Dealing with Barn Bullies
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By Megan Sacia Ulrich
Imagine what would happen if you took the characters from the 2004 film, Mean Girls, and put them in a horse show setting. It sounds like the start to a terrible joke, but for some, it’s actually pretty close to reality. While the horse industry is full of encouraging, well-meaning folks who support and cheer each other on, competition at any level can bring out a few bad apples in the bunch. Though barn bullying might look a little different than a schoolyard scuffle or being stuffed into a locker, it can be just as hurtful to the victims and even damaging to the horsemen and women who make their livings in the industry.
Bullying comes in a variety of forms, but the most common is relational aggression, which consists of gossiping, spreading rumors, name-calling, and ostracizing, which is all meant to demean, intimidate, or harass. Aside from that, acts like cutting someone off in a practice pen or show arena, or the less common, more subtle sabotage, like hiding pieces of tack or rearranging grooming supplies, could also qualify as forms of bullying.
Several brave competitors were willing to speak out about their experiences as victims of barn bullies to show their fellow equestrians that this can happen to any rider, at any level. You are not alone.
Paige Wacker
Paige Wacker has been showing horses since the age of nine. It’s competing in Showmanship that she says taught her to exude confidence and to look someone in the eye. That confidence, paired with plenty of hard work and the opportunity to show quality horses such as Vested Asset, Top Secretina, UR Secret Admirer, Exectuee, Ima Moxie Man, Theres No Tellin, Clearly A Goodbar, Javah Mon, Visible Investment, and Macs Sonic Boom led her to multiple World and Congress Championships during her youth and amateur careers. But, behind her confident exterior, there is a history of bullying and self-doubt.
