Recent content by staffylover

My trad cob mare has always had a rather delicate digestive system: she has had sand colitis previously but is fine on a preventative 1 week in 4 psyllium regime. Since the drought ended and the grass has been growing fast she has had bouts of faecal water syndrome and now has very loose watery...

Try putting sheepskin sleeves on the GreenGuard headcollar where the rubs occur. You can buy them online or from saddlers. They do up with velcro, you can cut them to size, and are designed to prevent headcollar rubs. My cob wears her GreenGuard grazing muzzle happily with no rubs: I just put...

That's a bit uncalled for, Dexter

I have had a lot of success in finding sharers by advertising for a sharer on Horsemart (put it under the 'loan' section I think, but plaster the word SHARE all over the ad!) I have worked out what it costs to keep my mare per week, divided it by 6 for potentially 6 riding days per week, and...

Sorry, I don't know of anyone, but I just wanted to say how impressed I am with your (and your friend's) determination to start this young horse in the best possible way with the best possible trainer. Lucky horse to have such a wise and caring owner. I hope the perfect backing livery turns up.

I record all horse expenses and have done for years. I need to know the worst, and it's pretty bad.... It also means I can calculate a fair amount to ask my sharer for a financial contribution.

I worked out what the total weekly cost of keeping my horse is, including farrier, vaccinations, etc (but excluding vet's bills for injury/illness), divided it by 6 for one riding day, assuming the horse has one day a week off, and that is what I've always asked my sharers to contribute for one...

I've found my sharers almost all by putting an ad on Horsemart. I agree that it would be good to state what financial contribution you are asking for, so people know where they stand. I haven't had many replies to the ad I put up this year - maybe 4 or 5 replies whereas 3 years ago I had at...

My mare often turns her head away if people approach as if to stroke her nose. With her, I think it means she prefers not to have her head touched - just her nature, she's not head shy at all. Her way of saying politely ' Please could you stroke me on the neck, not on my face, if that's ok by...

My mare is fed psyllium in her feeds 1 week in 4 to prevent sand colic. The gloopiness is what scoops up any sand that is in her gut, so it's fed wet. Gloopiness is good! TBH she doesn't particularly like it but will eat it up ok, being a bit of a pig.

There are lots of places to buy it online and the price varies a little, but not much. It's all human grade ie fit for people to consume, as far as I know. Obviously, larger quantities (1 kg) is the cheapest way to buy it. It's all the same stuff, just check it is called psyllium or psyllium...

I found the easiest way to stop them rubbing it off is to plait a small soft loop eg bit of shoelace into the top of a plait just behind the ears. Then fix a clip (like a leg strap clip or similar, don't want it too heavy) with cable ties to the centre of the grazing muzzle headpiece, and clip...

I’m happy to tell you that she’s back to her normal happy self today after having moved fields yesterday. She won’t be going in the marshy field again! Thanks for your advice.

Just adorable. Are Santa Claus whiskers a foal thing?

Thank you who posted kind posts and helpful suggestions. No, no pond of green slime, I have checked the field carefully and can't see anything unusual on the plant front. She's been in this field before with no ill effects, as have her two companions. I'm trying very hard not to think there's...