Much as we hate to admit it, not everyone always gets it right when it comes to Christmas presents, especially when it comes to well-meaning equestrian gifts from non-horsey friends and family. We round up some of the horsey Christmas present fails that would have us smiling through gritted teeth come Christmas morning…
1. Adhesive bike lights seem a sensible gift — except for when you don’t have a bike. It then transpires that your mum thought you would be able to stick them on to your pony for those times when you’re riding on the road in the dark…
2. Receiving yet another ‘Horses of the World’ calendar from your loving Aunt who thinks you’ll be delighted at the prospect of another year of learning about different horse breeds every month.
3. In a similar vein, unwrapping yet another T-shirt or pair of socks with horse heads emblazoned over it can be trying. Perhaps by next year your family will have realized that being a rider doesn’t mean you want every item in your life to be horse-themed.
4. A smart new turnout rug for your horse from your unhorsey other half is a dream present for most of us. Except for when it turns out to be foal-sized… maybe one for the dog instead?
5. The worst nightmare of any pony-mad child at Christmas: spotting a bulky parcel under the tree that just HAS to be a saddle, or rug, for the new pony they’ve so desperately wanted — only for it to turn out to be a folding bike. Enough to reduce any young rider to tears of disappointment.
6. Possibly even worse is the prankster parent who promises their pony-mad son or daughter a pony — only for said pony to arrive in the form of a rocking horse, or worse — a 10-inch model.
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7. Your hopes may be high after dropping hints to your significant other about the new pair of dressage boots you’d love for Christmas, until you find that promising box under the tree actually contains calf-high suede cowboy boots. Try to smile sweetly…
8. Spare a thought for the horse-owner whose set of clippers bit the dust shortly before Christmas. Her mother thought she’d hit the nail on the head with a useful gift — except the fancy new clippers turned out, in fact, to be a men’s electric razor.
9. And finally there’s the horse owner with the not-so-hilarious brother, whose Christmas ‘gift’ was revealed to be a box of logs rather than the luxury grooming kit she had asked for…
Luckily, help is on hand for anyone looking to buy for the horsey person in their life. Check out H&H’s 13-page Christmas gift guide, on sale on 28 November, for plenty of present ideas you can’t go wrong with.
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