What horse bullies get in return

This post is about bullying against horses and their owners. Like human bullying, there is no age limit. Bullies can be from little children to very old people.

Unlike dogs and cats, horses are prey animals which can easily be scared and their owners have adjusted their attitude to this fact. Therefore, they are both prone to bullying. But the thing is, that horses can defend themselves mainly thanks to their teeth and feet. And their owners are protected as well, under civil and criminal law in most countries.

But the ignorant who look for easy victims to prove themselves, are not really aware of these facts. And of course they end up injured or visited by the police. Last summer I experienced a series of such incidents. One night, we were on a hack downtown with Yannis and two tourists, who were riding Bebis and Zimas. When we got hungry, we tied the horses in an empty space about 50 metres away from the taverns. While we were sorting out the horses, a bunch of kids surrounded us, some of them calling us names and saying what they were going to do to the horses. As we were putting a ribbon around the space, the kids were trying to get through. I got so pissed off, that I provoked them to realize their threats. “Go ahead, hit the animal, right at the spot you are saying. But when it defends itself, don’t start crying. We are not responsible if you end up with broken limbs and your parents know that. So, go ahead if you dare, and prove your friends how brave you are”. The kids stopped offending the animals and soon returned to their play.

Here is an impressive video: