Hectic half term

Everyone and everything was moved without a hitch on saturday. Emma, my nextdoor neighbour(who is also a horse owner) and I rode the horses down from Kestal. They appeared to know nothing about what was happening and seemed to think they were going on a simple ride. We worked them rather hard to make sure they were tired and less likely to panic in the new stables which seemed to do the trick. They all looked worried but were reassured by each other and us. The day after they had had enough of being stabled and Tralee had figured out that he could reach around the dividing wall to try a chomp Nell who managed to remain just out of reach. They did look to head back up gears lane on the way to the field but caused very little fuss when we led them in the opposite direction.

It's been only three days but they have already settled well and it appears that they have realised this is their new home. The dividing fence between Nell and the boys was tasken down yesterday. Much to our surprise there was no chasing initially and Tralee mostly herded the two horses around and away from each other. We later found him with a cut on his back leg, a rip in Nell's rug and a good number of chase marks in the grass. We concluded that the most likely cause of Tralee's injury was that he had tried to mount Nell and she had probably kicked him. Thankfully it's not as bad as it looks and should be fine for him to go for a ride tomorrow. There were no signs of injury today and as soon as I opened the fence to let them to the top, Nell and Tralee both galloped all the way to the gate with each other. Rocky decided that running was just too much work and ambled slowly up the field. I did notice that Nell was rather reluctant to be touched for some reason so I suspect Tralee has probably bitten her a few times and is feeling a little tender. I'll give her a good grooming tomorrow and hope that he stops the stallionish behaviour soon.

Moving day confirmed and some gorgeous photos

Well, we are officially moving. Everyone and everything is heading down to Gears Lane on the 24th of this month. We have already packed most of our stuff away and have cleared the mouldy hay barn down at the new place to get rid of the rats and dogs who keep getting in there. We're already sizing up the other things that need to be sorted and can't wait to get things going. We are still waiting on whoever borrowed 10 of our fencing stakes to give them back otherwise mum said she will slowly pick some off without letting them know. We bought some anti crib spray off ebay to prevent Nell eating the stables at night but whether it'll work or not is another matter. Stall chains are the next essential item to stop the troublesome two from just walking under the one thats currently there and the electric fencing is being set up in a week or so, ready for them to go straight in. Saturday saw a change in the weather and I decided that it was now or not until spring that I get some nice photos of Nell. We did start the day with all the intentions of working the horses hard for 15 mins in the sand school and then taking some photos but instead we hardly worked the horses at all. We rode bareback and as I was mounting from the fence, Nell decided to walk off and dump me in the sand. I would have been fine if I had just let go of the rope but I ended up pulling my fingernail up. It is still a bit sore but the blood supply is still there and I don't think I'll lose the nail thankfully. Emma exercised both boys and managed to get them both to canter.

Nell was completely unfazed by the rope or gestures we were making to get her to move and I had to shove her a bit to make her go. After a while though, she started to really enjoy herself and all Emma has to do was lead her to the top of the sandschool and let her loose!

Patience is a virtue

We have been waiting for a long time now for a cheaper field to come up close to home. Although Kestal has excellent facilities and everyone there is great, as soon as Jane asked if we wanted to swap places with her we jumped at the chance. As long as Tess; her daughter, likes Kestal we should be moving Nell, Rocky and Tralee down to Gears Lane. Its a 5 minute walk to get there and it should save us around £100 a month or more. We will have 2 large fields that we are fencing into 5 for grazing and a small one that will be used for schooling and jumping, or as a spill over field when the grass gets too long in there. Hopefully Tralee will accept Nell in with him and Rocky, but if not we will just fence off a piece for her. There is no hot water or electrical outlet but you can't have everything and still pay so little.

There are a few things that need to be done though:

• Tralee and Nell's stables need a door put on. They only have a chain across currently to stop them getting into the tie-up area which Tralee and Nell would both figure out how to get through/under etc.
• We might get a small solar powered generator/battery to power a kettle, lighting or other small electric items.
• Electic fencing temporarily around one of the sides of the schooling field due to barb wire. Eventually would like to replace the wire with a proper fence when we have enough money.
• Someone wrote their horses names in pen all over the wood doors. That needs to be scrubbed or sanded off so that we can put some real name plates up.
• Move everything. Our boxes, tack, rugs, fence posts, tape, trolley, feed bins and of course the horses all need to be moved down there in october.

In other news, Nell seems to be looking well again although her fitness has taken quite a knock. She was very lazy today on the ride so will consider adding oats to her feed this winter. She was happy enough to trot all the way up to her field and across it with me bareback today and ran over to the gate to flirt with Justin. She seems to be back to her usual self but has definitely lost stamina since being rested.

Rocky has developed a swelling above his pastern. The girls rekon it is probably just a windgall that won't go away with exercise as he isn't lame with it. Emma and I changed his bit last week to a straight bar half-twist snaffle. It adds a bit more pressure for when he decides to tank off but is milder for him - no more nutcracker action! He is much happier in it - mouthing less, lowering his neck and head and not hollowing out when the reins are pulled - all signs that a bit change was just what he needs to start building a better outline.

Tralee is, as usual, grumpy. He was fairly mellow today though and is happy to be on longer grass. Moving will be more traumatic for him than the other two though. Nell will settle as long as there are horses she knows, food and her humans. Rocky is so chilled anyway he won't be worried at all. He might become a bit withdrawn for a few days until he settles down but he'll be fine with the other two and as long as we give him plenty of cuddles. Tralee is a worry though as he was in the same home for 14 years then for the past 2 has never lived anywhere else but Kestal. We hope that he should be ok with Nell, Rocky and us there but there is always a chance he will try and go back to Kestal.

Fingers crossed Tess likes Kestal and we do get the field. If we do, hopefully moving will go as smooth as possible.

Money don't grow on trees

...Which is quite unfortunate when you've just had a big vet visit.
All three horses had their teeth done which was pretty dramaless apart from Tralee throwing his head as high as possible. Nell had her flu jabs - the only horse we bother vaccinating against it as Tralee has NEVER been flued and Rocky's was out of date by about three years so he has probably built up some immunities by now. The vet had his microchip scanner stolen so we couldn't check Nell for that but he had a good look at her leg and shoulder, finding nothing. She flexed through all the way and there was no abcess in the foot. He noted that she is short-stepping in front but I know that already and that is simply due to her upright shoulder. He also said she wasn't tracking up behind properly, which I also noticed when mum trotted her up. Sooo... It could be her back. We're going to try and get some money together and have the back specialist come out to sort them all. + there's a free massage for the horse owner after! Optional of course. Then a couple of days ago Nell's shoulder swelled up and became very liquidy. We rekoned a kick but yesterday I went to sort her and couldn't really see what was wrong. When Alex checked her she was surprised at how much it had gone down - it had apparently been very puffy - and it looked almost completely like the other side. So thankfully she doesn't need to go for X-rays. At least that's some good news. She is however on Bute for whatever is causing the pain in her leg and therefore riding her is out of the question for now. I'm also back at college on Wednesday which I am pleased about. I have the weekends to ride Tralee or Rocky until Nell is better, and three days a week of brain stimulating bliss.

The end of an era

Lucy was put to sleep on Wednesday, the day after her 29th birthday. She had come down with mild laminitis a week or so before that suddenly became very much worse. She was put down at her home with her owners around her and had recieved many welcome visitors the day before to say goodbye. Everyone who knew her well was alerted and most pitched up that afternoon with the exception of myself and Sian, who both for the same reason didn't wish to remember her in that way. Lucy's death marks the end of something in everyone's lives and she will be sorely missed by us all. In some ways we think that if we still had her she may not have become ill. In others, we are glad she was at home rather than with us when it happened. In the end it turned out Lucy had Cushings, something we had suspected when her curly winter coat took a long time to shed. She went downhill so suddenly it was a big shock to everyone but with Gemma returning to Uni in only a few weeks and the fact she was an old pony with Cushings; putting her to sleep before it got worse was the kindest thing to do. Lucy was a remarkable little pony who taught so many children to ride that she will never really be gone as long as people remember her.

quick updates

Well Nel and I missed out on the jumping down at L.Jane's again. This time it was because she threw up lame. She had an old injury to her shoulder that plays up from time to time so she is on the No Bute as well now. Even Mum said that its time to face facts that they are old horses so now Tralee is on 25ml, Nel is on 15ml - which we will start reducing to 10ml again soon, and Rocky is on 10ml.

We saw Gemma the other day and Lucy is doing fine back in her home. She and Jasper are getting along great and her back shoes have come off - an official sign of retirement. Gemma is still taking her out occasionaly but we are hoping that she will not be coming back to us this winter.

Emma is riding again and we are back to our usual pace with lots of canter work. The trotting is a bit much for her so we try not to do much of that. She is coming up this week to help re-paint the stable walls and Alex and Pip have asked if she would ride Truffles as he is starting to get a bit too wide for the little girls to straddle. ;D

I'll blog again later in the week but for the moment I'm busy busy busy!

Some beach photos

Just a couple of photos from mine and Sarah's trip to the beach a couple of weeks ago. Can't figure out how to turn them over so you'll just have to make do.

Emma has been doing some light riding but cruddy weather today meant we just decided to hang around the stables. Nell has had her mane plaited to encourage it to grow and choose a side of the neck to fall on. She looks very pretty plaited and I expect I'll do it for the showjumping on the 12th.

Why do I end up working harder than the horse?

Mum took my uncle's ex riding today. Beverly has said for a while now that she wants to get back into riding so give's us £10 when she uses Rocky. She's still very novicy and hasn't rode in about 14 years so has very little balance, therefore mum rides out with her. I didn't go with them but took Nell around the lakes in the hopes of burning some fat off her due to her putting on some unwanted weight. We whizzed round the lakes in about 15 mins, trotting flat out pretty much all the way but it took about an hour to do the full ride. I'm careful about trotting on the roads for too long as it doesn't do Nell's hooves or legs any good and I wouldn't dare go faster than a slow walk down halammaning hill so it takes at least 20 mins to actually get down to the lakes. After Croft Gothal we'd still only been out for half an hour so I extended the ride a bit. By the time we got home, Nell was warm, tired and breathing quite heavily but she didn't even work up a sweat. There was a small patch under her thick saddle pad where the saddle sits but otherwise I had sweated more than she had. On the plus side I wasn't as hot, tired or sweaty as usual so I must be getting somewhat fitter.

Sarah said she would accompany me to the show jumping on the 9th August with Gully. We went to the beach last week and he was so well behaved for a 4 year old. I think thats Cobs all over though - you can't beat Cobs for temperment and amiability. We got some action shots and are hoping to go down again to get some more - possibly closer this time.

Rocky's nose, which was badly sunburned, is now looking lovely again and is smooth as a baby's bottom. He is developing some muscle tone now and seems to be more eager to go out these days. Tralee on the other hand is feeling rather grumpy and we may need to up his No Bute. His ringbone is getting bigger and seems to be more painful as the heat in his hoof today was much more than the other three. We knew when we got him that the ringbone would probably be the one thing to put him out of work but the riding does seem to ease it more so than just standing in a field.

Well, I'll try to get the photos up here soon but if not then you'll just have to be patient.

No go

Well the show is out of the question. Both Nell and Tralee are about ready to throw their shoes. Nell is holding on to them better than ever - they've both been about 8 weeks since Tony last came out and considering this time last year she was losing them after only two weeks her hoof horn has definately improved. It also goes to show that if you are trying to save money, ride your horse a bit gentler and the shoes and hooves will both benefit.
So now I have my gaze fixed on the 9th August when the next show jumping will be happening. Perhaps it's for the best and Emma may be able to take Tralee by then.
Well, having to shoe Nell less frequently will save me quite a bit of money and other news, I bought out the share Allison had in the jumps with her horse Fliss for £80. That now means we can use the jumps whenever we want. We now have plenty of time to practice for the next show and hopefully I will have someone to come with me.

Holidays

Well, the summer hols are here and I am already starting to feel a little bored. I have been riding between the rain showers but haven't felt as enthusiastic as normal. I am however, very excited about the upcoming show! Lisa said she was probably going to be busy that day as she's just got a job so it depends on whether Emma is off her legs. Damn surgeons had a poke around but didn't actually bother taking the cyst out from behind her knee... I'll phone her tonight and if she can't come I may have to ask Liz. Even if I don't make it this time around, there are plenty more shows this year.

Jumping

On the 12th July I am hoping to take Nell for her first showjumping event down at Laura Jane's. Lisa has agreed to come and jump Tralee as Emma will not be able to ride for a few weeks after her knee op.

She said she would try jumping him this week and with a bit of luck we'll get a few ribbons! Fingers crossed everything goes well and the horses don't suddenly throw up lame.

Just one mistake...

Sometimes people make big mistakes. Mum made one of those mistakes today by letting my sister ride Nell. To her credit, Mum honestly thought Sian would be careful on a horse she didn't know. I guess she was wrong.

Mum, Sian and Marion on Quids went for a ride today. It was mostly lots of roadwork as Quids is an old lad - the same age as Tralee - and also suffers quite badly with ringbone. Sian, being the defiant and contrary twat she is had a tantrum because they were only doing roadwork due to Quids being a bit lame. She threw a hissy fit and decided that she had had enough and was going home.

The stupid cow turned Nell around at Lucy's lane and made her canter off. Quids was spinning, Tralee was being arsey about being left behind and Sian was running Nell right towards Lucy. Great. So Mum hurriedly apologised to Marion that she had to get Sian before she got to the road and went after her. Thanfully Marion was fine and continued on her way, but Quids can be a funny character and is not 100% bombproof as our horses are.

Mum had called after Sian who had pulled Nell up right in front of Lucy who started screaming to Nell, and Nell back to Lucy. Then she booted her and made her canter the rest of the lane. Mum was absolutely shaking with both fear and anger when she caught hold of Nell at the end of the lane. She took poor old Nells reins and led Sian back to the vicarage where she immediately told her to get off the horse and that she was never riding any of our horses again.

Nell had only been doing what was asked of her and unfortunately it had been a stupid, selfish and dangerous act on behalf of a rider who knew better. That is why I refused to let her friend use Nell. That is why I worry about other people riding her. It's because I know no-one else will ride her the same way I do. I don't think I have ever hated Sian more than at this moment in time and it's going to take a bit of time for Nell to forget Lucy all over again thanks to her.

My sister will not be going near my horse again. I have made that quite clear, as has Mum, who I think has lost a lot of confidence in her. Marion as well was rather angry and ticked her off for doing what she had done.

Tomorrow I plan to do some quiet schooling and in hand work with her, getting her neck reining, stops and I might work on the rein back or turn on forehand. After today I think she just needs some time to chill out a little.

Wet weather blues

The glorious summer is once more being clouded by the forecast for another spell of rain. Riding is, unfortunately, not on the top of my to do list and I'm in a bit of a slump at the moment.

On the positive side, I schooled Nell bareback last week. We practised neck reining which she did fantastically well in. Serpentines, circles, diagonally across the school; she did it like a pro. I woder if she was ridden western at some point in her life or whether she's just learnt from how I ride her. We did a little bit of free jumping as well. She jumped about 1 ft but wasn't overly excited about doing so. She prefers being ridden really and kept running out. We ended on a good note by making her do a small jump so that the last one she'd remember doing would not be getting away with a run out. I jumped up again and did a bit more turning and stopping then finished for the day. I'm hoping to do it again this week and possibly do some jumping in the sandschool.

Summer is here!

Summer is here and boy does it feel like it. The weather is ecceptionally warm and its just too nice to be stuck in college all day. So tonight Emma and I are riding down to the beach after college.

I'm not totally into riding again, especially when its so hot you come back sticky with sweat, but I'm certainly going to make the most of it in case we end up with a crappy summer holiday like last year.

I should also be taking Lisa and Jade out again this week or next, so keep an eye out for photos.

Show time!

Today was a beautiful day for a show although we very nearly missed our first class. There was some confusion as to whether the horses were meant to be ridden or in hand but as it turned out it could be either. ?:S

The same judge as last year was judging our ring. Typical. Just like last year, if you were standing in front in the row, you got placed first. If you were the last one in the row... you guessed it. Unfortunately Emma and I were at the back so Nell got 5th and Rocky got 6th. Rather unfair considering all the other competitors were riding their veterans.

The fancy dress was so much fun! Rocky and Emma as you can see were pirates, and I was a highwayman on my masked steed. I'm not sure what the judges problem was but I cam 4th out of 4 for that. I suspect she doesn't like haflingers, or if rumours are correct, chestnuts. She placed a little grey pony, who was an absolute mess in the family pony class higher than the palomino who was brilliant and went off on pefect leads. Rocky claimed a 2nd prize in the fancy dress though, so at least one of ours now has a ribbon in the top three.

The other two competitors was a "native american" and a little grey pony with such a jumble of stuff, I didn't know what it was meant to be... I personally thought Nell looked stunning and her behaviour was such an improvement from last year.

We did have a little trouble in the fancy dress ring when she was moved away from Rocky but backing up is certainly not the worst she could do. On the way out of the show grounds she decided Rocky should walk in front. I asked her nicely to walk on and as she continued to refuse after being nice to her, I gave her a good boot in the sides. She complained. With a large number of people and horses watching us, she threw a fit; her front feet coming up a short way then down, followed by a nice buck and then the front feet again. Broncing doesn't work on me anymore though. I know her too well, read the signs and know exactly how to ride them out. I asked her to walk forward again and reluctantly realised that going in front was far easier than having a tantrum.

Overall I have enjoyed myself today. Nell's behaviour was far more satisfying than any rossette and in my eyes she was the best horse in that ring. Rocky comes close, but I guess you're biased when they're your own. ;)

First show of the year

Despite saying I was going to do more shows with Nell this year, I have currently found myself attending my first show... in May. The year is almost halfway through and finally, tomorrow, Emma and I are entering the horses in the pony club show down at Tregurtha. Both Rocky and Nell are going in the Veteran and Fancy dress classes so its going to be good fun. Emma and Rocky are going as cornish pirates and I am the highwayman on my masked horse!

I promise to get some pictures tomorrow as the horses (and us) are going to look so funny!

Not enough of the warm stuff

So the sun has been hiding this week. Its been on and off showers and today we had 50mph winds! woop de doo! So no riding again today. I did go and de-rug the mares and chuck them some food though so not feeling quite so bad as if I don't go up there. Dad took me up there on the new bike. VERY comfy, you hardly feel any bumps. On the way back however it pissed it down and the winds suddenly picked up. For a brief moment it felt like the wind would knock the bike sideways and even on the back I could feel it pushing the bike across the road. Thankfully when you are riding pillion, you can hide behind the rider and only get partially soaked :)

Another thing I am missing is jumping. Real jumping. Not just popping a log in the woods, I want to get over some poles. The other night I had a fantastic dream that Nell and I were hunting. as we got to the first 4ft jump (yeah I can really imagine Nell jumping that high), I was scared but Nell sailed over it and after that I jumped every one feeling confident. Liz and Emma were in it as well strangely.

When I woke up I felt like I could have jumped the moon. Now though that awesome feeling of dream immortality is fading an me thinks I need to re-assess the goal of 3ft I set myself at the start of the year. Perhaps just going to a competition this year would be a start. ;) If I get that far, I'll have a go at the 2ft. Then if I'm happy with that then I may try the slightly bigger jumps. We'll see. As it is, the next R.E.C event is on 21st June - the same day as the college open day which I MUST attend.

The one after is on the 12th July. Thats a possibilty. Before that however we are taking the horses to tregurtha show for the in hand veteran and a fancy dress comp. hee hee.
I have a few ideas cooking but I shant let you know until the day!

A new Trail

Mum finally showed me the ride to Marazion beach today. It was quite chilly and very windy when we got there though. That and the fact Tralee was looking as though he was about to explode into a bucking fit meant we stayed to a trot at the fastest. Helen, Rocky's old owner also enjoyed herself so all in all a very nice ride.

Although we didn't get to have a good gallop, I now know how to get there and I'm sure Emma will love to get down there at some point this summer. :)

Finally some photos! :) but none of the ride :3

Emma and I took Nell and the Rockstar for a beach ride yesterday and as you can see from the top photo, Nell and Tralee's friendship is blossoming!

It was the nicest day we had had for a while and although Mum couldn't come along it was still a nice ride. I had planned to get some photos but like last time, didn't check the tide times.

When we got there, there was only a small stretch of beach and it was already quite crowded with people. The tide was heading out but we decided that it was best we just spend a short time there and let the pedestrians have the beach.

The first canter resulted in a bucking fit from Nell. I think she was probably protesting about how hard I had kicked her. Rocky came along behind, doing something between a trot and a canter.

The second canter, Rocky was starting to feel excited and overtook Nell and I. There was a hair-raising moment where he almost didn't stop, but Emma pulled him into the sea.

We didn't stay long, as it was not in our interest to annoy the people sitting on the rocks and staying away from the horses. A few canters, a few trots and that was us done for the day.

On the way back, after the beach farm is the two fields I have mentioned in a previous post. The grass was much longer this time but the field is certainly not being used, so once again we used it as a canter spot.

This was only the second time we had used the field, but Rocky knew where we were. One minute Nell was cantering steadily in front, and the next Rocky had flown straight past us at the gallop. I had never seen that horse move so fast!

Emma and I were both surprised at how fast and fit the Rockstar had become over the past few weeks. By the time we got back he only had a bit of sweat under his saddle, girth and mane.

We didn't get any photos on the beach but I got a few nice ones of Nell to add to my album. Oh and look! Lucy isn't a yak anymore!

Makeover Time!

Well, the day started sunny at least... but slowly got greyer and wetter. So Mum and I decided that the beach ride we had planned could wait, and istead we spent the morning prettying Nell and Lucy up. Tails, manes, legs and bottoms were all given a thorough clean and Lucy - after a good brushing - is actually looking half decent for a change. Nell allowed me to clean her udder; something she was very sensitive about not long back. It looks like its been a long time since it was last washed, if ever. She had sudocreme put on the area to get rid of the dry sore skin and her legs were washed with hibiscrub as she seems to be getting the same reaction she did last year where hair falls out and forms a few scabs. I am now certain it is something in the chicken field as that is where they were when it happened last year.

Overall, things have been quiet lately. Rocky is paid for now and officially ours, Tralee is his usual grumpy self, Lucy will hopefully be going home in June and Nell is doing what Nell does best. Eat, poop and occasionaly run around like a mad ass.