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WATCH: The positive influence of being on horseback

Equestrian advocates celebrate the human-horse connection

  • How horses helped people escape the last few years
  • Kelowna’s rapid expansion threatens a way of life
  • A horse doesn’t care what brand you wear, it just wants to be with you

The COVID-19 pandemic and ever-increasing mental health strains have seen many people turn to nature to help alleviate two years of anxiety, stress, and isolation.

For Amy Catton, that relief is found on the back of a horse. However, this special way of life is threatened by the galloping pace of Kelowna’s growth.

The president of theKelowna Riding Club (KRC) said horseback riding can offer an array of positive outlets for youth and adults, alike. During the pandemic, the sport attracted people who were eager to find an escape from the ebbs and flows of the pandemic.

“I think especially as we come out of COVID, where everybody has been plugged in … we need to have people come out and experience the calmness that the horses bring,” she told Kelowna10 at Spirit Ridge Equestrian.

Heading out of the city and disconnecting from the rapid pace of modern life can also pay dividends.

Beyond helping to refocus after the pandemic, Catton said experiencing horse riding as a kid can teach a multitude of life lessons.

“They are excited, they are enthralled, they’re outside, they have this animal that they love and they’re learning how to trot on their own,” Catton said. “It’s just so much self-esteem that comes with these animals that it just needs to be an experience to be tried.”

The KRC website has a list of farms in the city with details about specialties such as boarding, lessons, and more. It’s important to find a good partnership as each farm is a little bit different, she said.

“A horse doesn’t care what you’re wearing, doesn’t care that you had a bad day, it’s not going to call you a name, it just wants you to be with them at that moment, and loving them and respecting them.”

Preserving a rural way of life

But finding a tranquil place to ride is being challenged in and around Kelowna.

As the city booms and more people move to the Central Okanagan from around the country, development encroaches ever closer towards agricultural and rural land. This threatens the spaces that are available for riding.

“Unfortunately, I feel like the city is at a weird standpoint, they want the farming, they need the food, but yet, we’re building more and more cherry and grapes, and that’s where the focus is,” she said. “Not so much on the urban farmer, the little farmer that’s giving you your fresh meat, fresh fruit, that’s becoming rarer and rarer.”

This takes a toll on the agritourism opportunities that come with horseback riding and its peripheral businesses, such as feed and tack stores, farming facilities, and more.

“I’m not too sure if it’s that well known how much money it funnels into the community,” Catton said.

“All of these intermingle, so for us to lose this would be devastating not just for those that own the horses, but all of those businesses that are tied in with us.”

Published 2022-03-21 by Jordan Brenda

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