One of mine came to us as Cheddar... He was renamed Loki after he'd been with us a couple of days, with good reason.
Other cheeky ponies I've known have had names like Pixie, Sprite, Pumpkin, Cookie (definitely not as sweet as he sounds), Toffee, Freddie, Pudding, Munchkin, Sherbert... Now I...
Centred Riding as recommended above, and I also really rate Sylvia Loch books (any of them!); to me her explanations are crystal clear and make a real difference. I loved Anja Beran's books too, but how valuable they'll be might depend how interested in dressage your friend is if I remember rightly.
I've very recently lost my very best little horse, after 25 years. Read this thread at the weekend and couldn't get past the first few posts, but this line keeps coming back to me -
I have thought of this sentence often over the past few days and for some reason find its straightforwardness...
My PRE likes to be kept busy, and she lives to hack. She'll compete just fine, but it's quite clear her absolute favourite thing is exploring out in the forest with a mix of ambling along looking around and a good blast. Most of the PREs I've known have enjoyed being out and about, alone or in...
Lot of beautiful horses on this thread!
Agree with the Cartujano comments... Mine hacks on the buckle like a seaside donkey, but also has a very sharp streak & flares up quickly when she's excited or if she disapproves of what I'm doing. There's not much middle ground! She's brilliant both to...
Yep, mine are the same at the moment since it's been frosty and I've been haying (using older hay). The poor OAP is really a very odd shape! I've just (yesterday) started giving them Gut Balancer - I usually use it just for changing fields/opening up the next bit of track, when there's a sudden...
Is it just you at the yard/field or is there someone you could pair up with, so you take extra water to do their horses' troughs too when you're in the car and they do yours on the days when you're on the bike? Or could you even fill from their troughs on the days you're cycling? I'm guessing...
You'll get differing opinions on here, but for me personally I couldn't loan a horse under those circumstances. Limited winter turnout is one thing; absolutely none (presumably for weeks or months) is something else entirely.
I have the 600 and am considering either buying a second or getting rid to buy the next size up - it was fine when I only had two though and more grazing (mine are out 24/7). I'd think you'd be fine with 600 for one horse's daily amount, even if they're in overnight. How many kg do you feed...
Agree with MuddyWellies - we needed planning permission for our mobile shelters unless we were prepared to move them monthly, and we're not in a NP, AONB, Conservation Area, or anything like that!
Depending on the type of land, you might be glad to have six acres of grazing over winter. My winter field is 6 acres, split into paddocks. I rotate regularly, which means I get through very little hay and almost never have any serious mud, except for the field shelters and gateways. It's also...
I would suggest Mud Control mats, or the Jelka ones as an alternative? They're wider, so a single run would make leading easier than a single run of MC mats. I think price-wise they're pretty similar, but MC delivery is incredibly expensive (think Jelka's was free last time I looked). If you...
I have this one:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Petzl-Swift-E095BA01-Headlamp-Orange/dp/B07SB1Y46M/ref=mp_s_a_1_16?dchild=1&keywords=head+torch&pscroll=1&qid=1635784353&sr=8-16&wIndexMainSlot=34
It's not cheap, but it is absolutely fantastic.
I have one insured and for the rest I have £5k in a dedicated savings account, and about £5k that I could borrow through credit card and overdraft. In an ideal world I'd feel happier having £5k per horse in case they were affected at the same time, Heaven forbid (e.g. multiple injuries in a...