How to Involve Your Horse Stable in the Community – 3 Simple Ways
How to Involve Your Horse Stable in the Community – 3 Simple Ways
The Equestrian community may provide benefits to a lot of individuals who have yet to be exposed to horses. Reaching out to people who may seem uninterested in equestrian activities and successfully engaging them into the industry creates opportunities for anyone making a living working with horses.
Discovering creative ways to connect with individuals outside the equestrian industry and catering programs to that client segment will grow not only your enterprise but the entire equine industry.
Horses For Education
An excellent way to introduce horses to people is to partner with schools. Reach out to schools within the community and volunteer your horses for educational purposes. For example, when students are learning
about animals, you could bring in a horse for them to interact with, ride and touch. You can also open up your horse stable to schools to enable field trips and introduce students to the industry. You never know which of them will fall in love with the experience and pursue an equestrian career.
Horses for Charity Events
Having your horses support a charity event is not only an excellent way to get involved in a charitable cause, but it is also an opportunity to introduce people to horses. Charity events often take place during Christmas, which is typically a slow season for a majority of equestrian organizations. This time can also make for an excellent opportunity to get involved in charity projects and events.
Horses for Mental Health
Horse related activities are known to be therapeutic for individuals of any age. Partnering up with a therapy clinic or rehabilitation center for Equine Assisted Psychotherapy (EAP) is a helpful way to expose non-equine people to horses.
My first introduction to a horse was on a public street. It was exciting, and a small crowd gathered around the majestic well-groomed animal. We got to pet it but not ride it and looking back, the horse was very well behaved and composed despite the crowd. So when selecting a horse to bring out to a busy, noisy, and crowded area, choose the gentlest in the herd. One that would not react aggressively to commotions and big crowds.
Large animals can be intimidating and are usually not the most inviting of the herd. It is advisable, when trying to engage horses with non-horse people, to start with a smaller horse. One that is easy to handle in case a situation gets out of control. Take into consideration the horse’s age as well. Younger horses are more excitable, energetic, and playful and could be a little scary for those who are not skilled in horse handling. Older horses tend to be calmer and more experienced with being around people, making them generally more reliable and safer around non-horse individuals.
The equestrian industry is profitable, and efforts need to be made both individually and collaboratively to preserve it. With stable management software from Stablebuzz, equestrian organizations can easily manage administrative tasks while taking the time to connect with members of their community. We’re committed to helping the equestrian industry grow, and we do our part by providing software and insights that are profitable.
Take the leap with Stablebuzz!
