We need more young people in the equine industry. It’s a simple fact. The industry is suffering and as soon as fifteen years down the line we may not have an equine industry in Ireland, and this is due to the sad fact that many young people are opting for a college based career rather than the many equine based ones such as becoming a vet, a farrier, a groom and many more.

The only way to keep the industry alive and prospering is to draw more young people into it. How do we do this you may ask? By helping them in any way we can. More and more young people are choosing to give up because of how hard it is to progress and thrive in the industry. Companies won’t offer sponsorships to younger riders due to a lack of faith in their skill and determination which then makes it harder for riders to progress through the ranks and make a career out of it.

We also need more mentors in the industry, more experienced trainers and riders willing to help the younger generation and help them reach their full potential, rather than big yards cycling through the same riders and not giving others a chance to prove themselves.

There is a huge shortage of workers in the industry due to many of them having to deal with inhumane working hours and rubbish pay. This is another issue for young workers because they don’t want to speak up and possibly lose their job which sours them towards working in the industry ever again.

If we want our industry to survive we need more rules in place to protect the younger generation and more opportunities for riders, or else less and less people will see how amazing our industry can be when we put the work in.