This Mom Allowed Her 7-Year-Old Daughter To Ride Her Pony To School. Now, Parents Are Accusing Her Of Having "No Self-Awareness" After Their Kids Got Upset

Most kids either take the school bus, walk, or get dropped off at school by busy parents. Morning drop-off can be one of the most hectic times for parents and teachers who are trying to get students settled and focused for the school day.

A 36-year-old mom is facing backlash after causing a horse-sized disturbance at her child's morning drop-off at school.

This story is told by a 36-year-old woman u/Tall_Entertainer835, who sought advice from strangers in the Am I The Asshole subreddit about her decision to allow her seven-year-old daughter to ride her pony to school, which she see saw as "harmless."

Here's the story in u/Tall_Entertainer835's own words:

"My child asked if she could ride her pony to school last week. For context, we have a small paddock attached to our home where we keep two horses, one for me and one for my child. Every morning before school, my child gets all of her pony chores done before we leave and we normally walk to school, which takes around 20 minutes. We live on the outskirts of a fairly populated city where it’s not uncommon to see horses occasionally, but we are by no means in a rural village."

"I agreed to let my daughter ride her pony to school because I thought it was a harmless fun thing to do, and also it gives the pony some exercise as we had evening plans and wouldn’t be riding that evening. We arrived at the school gates and of course gathered a little bit of a crowd, which wasn’t a problem. The pony is very good and lapped up all the pats and strokes from kids."

"One girl came bounding over from the year above my daughter and started shouting at me saying she wanted to ride. I politely told her that she couldn’t because she doesn’t have a riding hat and she would have to learn on a safer horse. She immediately started hysterically crying and pleading with her mom saying she wanted to ride. Her mom looked at me with disgust and said 'See this is what happens when you have no self-awareness and bring a fucking horse to a school,' and stormed off dragging her kid with her. I was a bit taken aback, but ignored her, sent my child into school and walked the pony home."

"I was talking to my friend this weekend, and she said I was in fact the problem. She thought I was blatantly showing off and should have known that this would cause upset and problems. My response is that I turn up to the school gates in jodhpurs and boots regularly, so everyone probably knows I have horses, is that showing off too? All I wanted to do is let my daughter do something a bit silly and fun. Now, I am really overthinking it though and almost feel nervous to do school drop off tomorrow. So, am I the asshole for letting my daughter ride her horse to school?"

After reading through the post, several users felt the mother was NOT the asshole, and said that it's the job of parents to teach their kids that they don't always get to have the things that others do.

"Not the asshole. The other parents need to teach their kids that you can't always have what other people have. It is a fact of life (and this is coming from someone that grew up below the poverty line). Are they gonna be mad at another parent for driving an expensive vehicle? If I was the parent, I would just tell my kid, 'Look at the pretty horsey! But don't touch it unless they let you, okay.'"—wandering_alphabet

Agreeing that the mother was not the asshole, a user compared the situation to her experience allowing her child to be dropped off to school on a motorcycle:

"That woman blames other people for her clear lack of parenting skills. She has to manage her child’s expectations. My husband takes our daughter to school on a motorcycle and it draws the same attention without the entitled demanding a ride and rude response."—Listen_2learn

However, users like u/thewineyourewith completely disagreed and felt that the mom who allowed her daughter to ride the pony was the asshole for causing such a fuss for other parents and teachers at the school.

Agreeing, u/jersey385 felt that the mother was the asshole for "seeking attention":

"I’m going to be the outlier here— you're the asshole completely. Riding a pony to school is way over the top, it just is, own it and move on. 'I turn up to school in boots and jodhpurs people should know I have horses,' Oh please. Attention seeking much?"

And finally, a u/dinosupremo felt that all parties involved were the assholes:

"I’m on the side of everyone sucks here. Dumb of you to bring the pony. Dumb of the other mom to say anything to you about it (I would have just mentioned it to school admin)."—dinosupremo

What are your thoughts on the situation? Does allowing your child to ride their pony to school make you insensitive to others? Or, is it valid to want your child to experience something fun? Let us know what you think in the comments below.