Eighteen year old Louisa Tarver finds people often spoil their horses - resulting in problems. Photo supplied.

“For some reason the pony bolted and careened back to its stall.  I decided I wanted to master horse riding,” Louisa told Rural Living from her Muriwai home.

After a couple of years of riding lessons at the ex Fruitfields Riding Centre in Coatesville, Louisa was accepted on to the Henderson Pony Club Scheme and awarded a free pony for a year – a definite help for the youngster from a single parent family. 

The youngest person on the scheme that year, Louisa was given a pony called Chammy to ride – unfortunately he went prematurely lame and was taken back by the owner before the year was completed. 

The setback did not stop Louisa who was picked up as a promising young rider and assisted in acquiring a pony, Myra May, which she rode for many years.  Since then Louisa has had a variety of problems with horses – including purchasing a gelding only to find he had a bilateral extensor process fracture which rendered his eventing career over. 

It is hardly surprising to find Louisa’s love of horses and her talent for working with them has resulted in her starting her own business – and she is now riding and training horses as a living. 

Nor is it surprising to learn she has not only  broken in two of her own horses and successfully competed them in national competitions but she has also broken in two other horses for independent people successfully and worked in the South Island for a trekking company as a tour guide and trainer of green horses including their stallion.  What is surprising is to learn Louisa is only 18.

“My age can be a challenge, some people don’t think I’m old enough to work with their horse, but that’s okay, everyone has their own preferences,” Louisa said. “The advantage in being younger I’m not so worried about getting on difficult horses.  Lot’s of people I know in the industry have found they get more nervous as they get older.  I get on each horse as if it is a completely clean slate and has never done anything wrong.”

Louisa was the youngest person in New Zealand to complete the Level 1 Monty Roberts Training course and after leaving school last year Louisa started her own business, Exquisite Equines, and was recently given the privilege of breaking in, training, riding and schooling a young Holsteiner by Corlando.

Using a mix of the Monty Roberts method, other methods, and her own observations Louisa also runs clinics to help horse owners and has found the most common problem she is asked to help with is usually caused by the most common mistake she sees.

 “The most common problem is horses that been broken but are misbehaving.  Generally they have the owner worked out and know what they can get away with.  I don’t just work with the horse – I get the horse to a point where it’s behaving again and then I work with the owner, setting boundaries.”

And the mistake?

“Owners who let their horses get away with too much.  Even I can do it with my horse – especially when you’re working well with one, and you get softer with it. You have to have boundaries.”

And what about the gelding Louisa purchased but was injured?  Louisa still owns him and is working through ways to improve his quality of life during his twilight years.

Angelique Jurd – with extra information from Maggie Tarver