Recent content by Valar Morghulis

For a number of seasons I recorded our mileage on GPS. The longest day we ever had (in the spring and on good dry ground) was 38.6 miles. There were 2 of us out with GPS and we had the same mileage (less than half a mile difference between us) so it was pretty accurate. The horses were tired but...

If you have enough space it is possible to put up stables without planning as long as they are within the "curtilage of the garden" - I did this some years ago in a previous home. I opted for brick built stables as thought they would be worth the investment - they were. It was only 2 stables...

So have I got this right...If you have a bay mare whose sire was grey she definitely cannot be carrying a grey gene so could not have a grey foal (unless of course the foal's sire was a grey gene carrier)?

Didn't pay attention out hunting and by the time I had refocussed on my horse instead of my conversation his bridle had been removed by the horse standing next to him...

Totally agree. FWIW, I have a horse who has hunted for many seasons and is absolutely brilliant to hunt - so much so that he is often borrowed by visiting friends. Because he is so good with a competent rider (and has been ridden by lots of different people) I once agreed to let another friend...

Sounds more as if he has gone footy after a period on new grass - I think brucea is right on this one - get home off the grass and see if he improves again.

Absolutely - my 2 horse heroes both hunt regularly (one hunts with 3 different packs!) and both are over 80. I want to be like them when I grow up (I am mid-40s now!)...

Ditto all the above and round here we often offer snack sized chocolate bars at the end so that riders can grab a couple to put in their pockets for later :-)

This, every single time.

I wouldn't put any of mine through it but a friend did have colic surgery on her horse and he came through it well. He was a big, lazy horse who was quite happy to do the box rest in a box where the other horses could all come and chat to him and he had lots of forage to eat. Most horses would...

If you don't mind soaking you could get wiesencobs from Agrobs (Red Rufus) - basically just forage made into pellets so once soaked its a good base feed. Takes about 10 minutes to soak in cold water, about 5 in hot.

Problem is that if you are feeding 250g per day then you are only getting half the RDA. In any case, most people seem to be saying they are feeding a handful or a mugful - either way the amounts are very low. I'd love to know if anyone really is feeding 500g per day. Also my horses need a lot...

We had feral cats here years ago and am considering having some again as could do with rat/mouse control BUT don't want them to make a dint in the fairly big population of wild birds we have at the yard. Those of you with yard cats - do you find they have an impact on the bird population as...

Do invest in waterproofs - you will certainly need them and it can make the difference between a happy day and a disastrously soggy one! Yes, there is lots of wet ground - especially with the Exmoor and D&S - but your horses will cope fine I am sure, though it may take them a few outings to get...

It wasn't bad enough, I suspect, to interest the welfare charities. The horse was ok-ish - not starved, just very poor compared to how he was with me and not IMO in a fit state to do the work that was being asked of him. I was massively disappointed in the "friend" and felt so sorry for the...