Recent content by Abacus

That’s so sad. I’d almost forgive them trying to rehome him if they weren’t asking such a substantial sum for a big older horse that can’t be ridden.

I have three and all are sound, although they haven’t always been. An old boy of 27 who has had navicular, kissing spine, proximal suspensory damage and a few injuries. He’s still in work and amazing. A 10 year old who has had hock arthritis but seems ok at the moment. And a 7 year old who...

Looks totally deformed to me. It could be made up of - and I’ve counted - five different horses. And possibly a bit of goat.

Traditional battery farming was banned in 2012. However the legislation made little difference to the area available per hen in the newer 'enhanced cages' (hens can have as little as 1m sq per 9 hens). I get my hens from a rehoming sanctuary and presumably they were kept in these conditions...

It’s a terrible advert both from the point of view of what they are trying to say (which isn’t clear) and the creative effort (and I work in advertising, specifically looking at getting the right message to the right audience). This is an unholy muddle. They have mixed up things that are...

You might find a hunter that someone is happy to loan out until next season. Or something like an older polo pony that no longer has a job. Or could you buy a project (ex racehorse or something) that you could bring on a bit, enjoy and sell on?

This isn’t always the case. I’ve known vets suggest a bute trial even without seeing the horse (but after a conversation on the phone) just to see if it makes a difference - if so it would then indicate pain somewhere which would then be investigated. I’ve never used devils claw but guess it’s...

I have previously had two amerigos (vega, the cheaper ones) and loved them. Sadly don’t fit my current horse so I sold the last one. Obvs you’d need it fitted for him and you but I found them incredibly comfortable.

Yes I did see that. (The jump also looks a bit awkward, at least from the rider). Three bad photos in one ad...

The hind end? Looks awful - there's a chance she is just standing oddly.

Your horse sounds super and you should find people interested, so take your time and vet them carefully. A financial contribution is certainly justified as he’s safe and fun, and you aren’t asking them to school him for you or take on a horse with some issues. I’ve always worked it out as a...

Sure!

I had one called Carson, which apparently (I never watched it) was the name of the butler in Downton, and his passport name was The Butler. So I would be announced as 'Jane Smith', riding The Butler. It was tricky to explain to my young children at the time.

Added to the above: if you muck out carefully you could separate the manure to put with your straw heap, and just take out wet pellets to store elsewhere. Although the addition of manure would make nice compost, if you are able to store and move it easily.

it has been ages since I bought bedding so there may be new options but I used to love wood pellets, they seemed to make dirty horses cleaner, and clean horses an absolute doddle. I wouldn't hide them in the muck heap but there may be other options, you could 'lose' some of it in muddy patches...