First, in an ideal world no one should allow their
animal to be that dangerous and rude. But.... the bottom line is
that there are people who will not discipline their children and will never
discipline their animals. Avoid them at all costs. You will never
never legislate common sense or good manners.
The first place to go with this would have been to
the ride manager--immediately. As Dr Susan said, she would have dq'd the
rider. I agree wholeheartedly, but don't count on that kind of guts from
most :-) At the very least, it would have given others a heads up on the
behavior. Ideally, the RM or HV at the pre ride should state that animals
that pose a danger will be dq'd immediately. Putting it in writing on the
flyer would be the way to go.
As far as sanctions are concerned. I realize
that everyone wants a system where they can protest an action (for that is how
AERC is set up) without actually protesting an action. Then, they would
like to remain anonymous....
If the action has to do with horse welfare, there
is a system - let the Welfare of the Horse committee know and we will look into
it, and you can usually remain anonymous. If and when you have something
of that nature, I will discuss it in person with you. If the action has to
do with a violation of the rules such as unsportsmanlike conduct (such as biting
another contestant) cutting trail or other violation of written rules, you
must go through the Protest and Grievance process, and no, you can not remain
anonymous. On a smaller, but as important, scale, RMs have the
ability to impose rules other than those written in the AERC manual, provided
they are in writing before the ride.
