Why horses take so much time

I try to avoid talking about horses to non-horse-y people. I learnt during my teenage years that they find it boring, especially given that equestrians have a tendency to be obsessive about it - therefore I could never entirely blame them. In the past few weeks, however, for some reason I have ignored that rule and my horse-obsessed self was shocked to realise that many around me don't understand why horses require so much work and energy (which reminded me of when people say that horse-riding is not a sport - but let's not go there today!). 

Two days ago I sat across a very good friend over breakfast. I was telling her I was finding it sometimes hard to juggle all the hours spent on and around horses with my other work. She listened carefully before asking: 'But what is it that you do with horses that takes so much time?'

This was a very legitimate question. I thought of answering along the lines "I'm trying to teach that horse to improve its balance, or that horse to work on its suppleness, or that horse to become more confident etc" but stopped myself. Instead, I said: "It's a bit like training an athlete. You have goals, targets, things you need to achieve to get to where you want to get. These targets are physical but also mental. And you're not just teaching the horse you're also teaching yourself to be an athlete, to be able to work in sync with the horse." 

My friend said this made complete sense. She understood that, therefore, requirements included focus on nutrition, wellbeing, performance etc. She also understood that horses were part of a long term project that absorbed a lot of time, both physically and mentally.