Hi Jonathan,

I don’t have any real advice for you, but wanted to say that you are clearly a strong person, being able to go back day after day and continue to be a support for those horses who clearly need you.
I have horses and want to get back into a full time role with them. It is an exceptionally difficult career path, long hours and some of the people are extremely difficult to work with. Ive been there myself.

However, having said that, you do sound as though you are being taken for granted. Is there no manager you can speak to directly about how you are being treated? I would aim to get your riding lessons improved, as that is one of the reasons you are there no?
You may not fit in with the others, but I also think that if you don’t have a huge amount of respect for yourself, the others, girls in particular, will sense this, and won’t feel the need to respect you either. Don’t be afraid to take back a little control. Be that doing some reading yourself at night, and then using this additional knowledge to your advantage when at work, challenge what they are telling you, question them etc. Just be a little stronger, put yourself out there, respect yourself, your career path and what you are trying to do, and they may respond and respect you a little more too.

As I said, the horse world is a difficult one, you must continue to be strong and push yourself forward if you want people to take you seriously. Good luck, and remember that the horses for one will appreciate and respect you. They are incredible animals who will teach you themselves if no body else will! Listen to them, and learn all you can from them. x