Welcome to 2018

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE

As I mentioned last year I usually take the opportunity over the holidays to have a look back at the last year and think about what I want to achieve next.

I really enjoy writing my blog but have decided to post slightly less for a while as I have other parts of my life which need a bit more attention this year.  There are not enough hours in the day or days in the week so something has to change.  I am planning to blog at least once a week though, or more if I have a chance.  I will upload a video at least once a month.

Looking back at  last year's aims I realised I have achieved some despite Chesney's problems and my challenges with Basil.

2017 Aims:

• Find a new bit for Basil
•  Achieve more rhythm and calmness in canter (and trot after we have cantered)
• Use the 'loop exercise' to work on our changes of bend
• More lateral work and turn on the forehand
• Start jumping with Basil again

I tried several bits and have (I think) settled on one now which he seems to be happy with.  Our canter is still variable but we have used the 'loop exercise' quite a bit and Basil's suppleness has improved.  We have also done much more leg yield and turn on the forehand and started introducing a bit of shoulder in towards the end of the year.  We did also manage a bit of jumping :)

• Tie Tommy up more
• Be able to catch Tommy in the field when he is not wearing a headcollar
• Introduce some ground schooling with Tommy

Tommy can now be tied up but I cannot catch him in the field unless he has a headcollar on (which he can get off).  I no longer think this is because he is nervous - he is just a typical naughty pony!  He has also continued to grow in confidence in every area of his routine which is fantastic.  I have not had time to do any ground schooling with him so I will carry this forward to 2018.  I now own the little monster :)

• Continue to Blog 3 times a week
• Vlog or post a video each Wednesday
• Start a training the young horse series on my blog

I have managed the first 2 of these, I might try the last this year to go with Tommy's ground schooling but I am not going to make any promises.

2018 Aims:

• Get Basil better
• Calmness in canter!!!!
• Shoulder in
• Jumping
• Tommy ground schooling
• Continue with my blogs and videos.

Have you seen last week's video 'Christmas vlog'  on my You Tube channel?   
Horse Life and Love.  Please check it out and SUBSCRIBE.

You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for updates on Chesney, Basil, Tommy and Daisy.

Until next time!   

Jo

Happy Holidays

Happy Christmas 

and 

Happy New Year.

I am taking a week off and hope you are doing the same!



Have a look at this week's video 'Christmas vlog' on my You Tube channel?   
Horse Life and Love.  Please check it out and SUBSCRIBE.

You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for updates on Chesney, Basil, Tommy and Daisy.

Until next time!   

Jo

Taking care of your hands!

I don't know about you but in the winter my hands really take a beating.  In and out of cold water washing buckets, covered in mud from picking feet out and freezing cold from doing both of those things!  

I still have not found a decent pair of gloves to wear whilst doing all these jobs.  I'm not keen on spending a lot of money because they really won't last long with the hard use they will get.  They need to keep my hands warm but I also want to be able to do rug buckles and headcollars with them on.  

I have always just worn the bobbly gloves - I am sure you know the ones - but recently they are so cheap and badly made that they have holes at the end of the fingers in a week (or less) :(
 
Last week with all the snow and very cold weather I was wearing 2 pairs of gloves, my summer riding gloves under the bobbly ones and this is fine until I need to do something with water.  In the last couple of years I have started putting some 'surgical gloves' on over the top of my bobbly gloves to pick out feet and that works pretty well.  I am not very good at doing this for washing buckets though and of course Basil's hay is damp from being steamed.

Sometimes I wear kitchen gloves over my bobbly gloves too but these are a bit too thick for doing some jobs like rug buckles.

I mostly end up just trying to treat my hands afterwards.  I think I am lucky because it is rare for the skin on my fingers to split, although it has happened. 

The best cream I have found is the Body Shop's Hemp hand cream - that is really good and thick and I slather it on at night time.

Yesterday I decided to buy some of these to try  ....

.... which I think will be good for buckets and wet haynets but they are not that warm so I bought a bigger pair so I could fit other gloves underneath if I need them!

Do you have any hints of tips?

Have you seen last week's video 'One Day in December'  on my You Tube channel?   
Horse Life and Love.  Please check it out and SUBSCRIBE.

You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for updates on Chesney, Basil, Tommy and Daisy. 

Until next time!

Jo

All About ... Horses and the Winter

At this time of year there are a lot of things to think about with horses and fewer light hours to actually do things - so here is a reminder of some of the key things.

1.       Some horses will feel the cold more than others - have a look at my blog to find out more about how horses are adapted to cope with different weather conditions.

2.       Stabling: check out my blog I posted a couple of weeks ago about restricted grazing.  There are a lot of things to think about when your horse is stabled for long periods of time!

3.       Mud Fever: can be a big problem at this time of year so do everything you can to prevent it occurring in the first place, check out my video for tips.

4.       RAO is more often a problem in the winter when horses are stabled more and fed more hay.  The environment can be dusty and causes problems for some horses' respiratory systems.

5.       What you feed to your horse during the winter often needs to be different to their summer feed, I wrote a blog a couple of years ago about the important points to think about with this.

6.       Riding can be a challenge in the winter too with the dark and gloomy days and the risk of icy roads so check you my blog for a few things to think about.

7.       Chesney has had problems with soft soles on his feet and has had abscesses over the last 2 winters so I will be looking out for this and trying to prevent his feet becoming soft in the first place this year.  I have a concoction from the vet to paint on weekly but there are other products available with eucalyptus which work well.

8.       Rainscald can be a problem for some horses at this time of year, treating it can be difficult at this time of year too, because generally horses need washing - and it is cold!!  Access to heat lamps would definitely be an advantage!

  

Have you seen this week's video 'One Day in December' on my You Tube channel?   
Horse Life and Love..  Please check it out and SUBSCRIBE.

You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for updates on Chesney, Basil, Tommy and Daisy. 

Until next time!

Jo

A Truly Great Horse - Sefton

Sefton was a truly great horse,  surviving a car nail bomb that killed 4 soldiers and 7 other horses from the Household Cavalry on 20th July 1982 in Hyde Park.

He was born in Ireland in 1963, his sire a Thoroughbred and his dam Irish Draught.  He was bought by the Household Cavalry in 1967. An impressive 16hh black gelding with a beautiful white blaze and 4 socks.  Sefton could be quite headstrong and was known to bite, nap and fidget!  

The IRA bomb left him with 38 penetrating wounds to his body, a damaged eye and a severed main artery in his neck.  Thanks to the speedy veterinary attention he survived  but had to have further surgery to remove the metal.

Sefton was named Horse of the Year in 1982 and really captured the public's imagination.  Donations for him funded an Equine Hospital at the Royal Veterinary College campus .  He returned to his regimental duties after 3 months until he was retired in 1984 at The Queen's Birthday Parade in June.  He moved to The Horses Trust where he eventually passed away in 1993. 

Sefton was 1 of 15 horses from his regiment on duty that day and all were injured, although Sefton the worst of his surviving stable mates.  The other seriously injured horses were all shot to prevent their suffering .  Echo, a grey police horse was hit by shrapnel and became too fearful of traffic to return to his duties.  Yeti another black horse suffered nerve damage and was also unable to return to his duties.  

There is now a bronze statue of Sefton at the Royal Veterinary College. 

 

Did you see last week's video 'Basil's Exercises'  on my You Tube channel?   
Horse Life and Love. Please check it out and SUBSCRIBE.

You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for updates on Chesney, Basil, Tommy and Daisy.

Until next time!

Jo