Using Studs on your Horse: Part III

Part I
Part II

There are heaps of different studs around and each of these studs are made for different conditions. Below are a number of the more basic studs that are avaliable.

Stud Keepers

Keepers are designed to keep the stud hole clean and undamaged when the horse is turned out in the paddock or in the stable. There are three main types of keepers avaliable in New Zealand (as always there are more avaliable overseas). Metal keepers (Pictured), Rubber Stoppers, and Stromsholm Keepers. I prefer the metal keepers as they are simple to take in and out. Rubber plugs need to be pried out with something sharp and Stromsholm Keepers use Alan Keys to get them in and out. Some people also prefer to plug the hole with cotton wool.

Road Studs
Road studs are usually used on roads or on very hard ground. Road studs can be used on the front or back and on the inside and outside of the shoe. Generally road studs are the best studs to use on the inside of the shoe as they are blunter then other studs and are less likely to cause damage if the horse should stand on itself.


Grass Studs
Grass studs are avaliable in a few different sizes. Grass studs are longer and generally narrower than road studs so they can dig into hard, dry ground. Contrary to the name they don't have to be used everytime you ride on grass, road studs can be used too. Grass studs should be used the when the ground dries up and gets hard, which can cause your horse to slide on the slick grass. They can also be used when it has rained on hard ground, causing the surface of the ground to be really slippery.

Mud Studs

Mud studs are used for very wet and soft riding conditions where deep traction is needed. Some mud studs are called Olympic Studs and these are used for extremely slippery ground. Generally, small mud studs are used in the front shoes and slightly longer mud studs are used in the back shoes when conditions are wet and slippery.

And so it continues

'Sigh'

Well the abscess saga is still not over.

Nope.

It keeps going on and on.

D, the farrier, arrived nice and early to shoe my horse. I was hoping to get Jack' s hooves clean and dried before he arrived but when I got to pony club I discovered that my halter and leadrope had disapeard from my boot. I searched my whole car and then the pony club but I couldn't find them anywhere. I found someone elses halter and leadrope but the halter was far too small so I ended up catching Jack with just the leadrope. A friend who lives close by saved me by bringing me a halter. But unfortnately Jack's hooves were muddy and wet when D arrived.

I already had the two front shoes from Jack's previous owner so all he needed was two new back shoes. D did the first front hoof fine and then moved onto the back hoof which had been causing all the problems. He soon found that the abscess was not completely healed and had in fact spread towards Jack's toe. So he dug out the rest of the abscess.

This is a picture of Jack's hoof.

The white arrow indicates the hole that the vet dug out when she first discovered the abscess. The yellow arrow on his heel shows where the abscess popped out a few days after the vet made the first hole.
And the red arrow and outline show where the abscess travelled downward towards Jack's toe. This is also the part the farrier dug out.

When D pushed the sole down near the abscess little bubbles of pus seeped out from under the sole. D's opinion was that we should leave the abscess to 'dry' out over the next couple of days and then on Thursday if it looks to be dried out sufficently he will put a pad on his hoof and then shoe over that. Once the shoe is on he'll be fine to ride.

He then moved onto the other hooves. The other back hoof was fine but the front hoof was a shocker. One side was flared out and the other was chipped and broken. He filed it but when he went to fit the shoe on (the one I had been given) it was completely the wrong fit. He showed it to me and we both couldn't believe that who ever had shod him previously had forced that onto his hoof. It was far too small for him. He got a new shoe from his truck and fitted it correctly. It turns out that 3 of Jack's hooves are size 4 and the other one is a size 3 (the first front one).

So currently Jack has three shoes on and is barefoot with his bad hoof. Hopefully it will dry out by Thursday because I really, really want to start riding again.

Murphy's Law and Horses

Murphy's Law. Everyone knows of it. That phenomenon that if something can go wrong, it will. Well its true with horses too. Here are some of good Mr Murphy's Law that relate to horses and their slaves aka you and I. Enjoy!

1. There is no such thing as a sterile barn cat.

2. The least useful horse in you barn will eat the most, require shoes every four weeks and need the vet at least once a month.

3. A horse's misbehavior will be in direct proportion to the number of people who are watching.

4. Clipper blades will become dull when your horse is half clipped.

5. If you fall off, you will land on the site of your most recent injury.

6. If you need to take your horse somewhere in a hurry, he will not load.

7. If you are trying to impress someone you will fall off.

8. The very week you start your horse on a conditioning program for the show season, the biggest flood of 30 years will occur and you won't be able to get out to the barn for at least a week.

9. You will make a stupid mistake saddling in front of a guy you want to impress.

10. You will get bucked off a new colt in front of the same guy.

11. If you're wondering if you latched the pasture gate, you didn't

12. Wind velocity increases in direct proportion to how well your hat fits

13. Horses that hate each other at home become inseparable when you try to take a 'potty break' out on the trail.

First Rally of the Season

It was the first Pony Club rally of the season last night. Our Pony Club had a huge influx of new members this year and to accommodate all the new members the committee made the decision to divide the one rally into two which means the two top rides will be riding on Wednesday and the rest of the rides will be on Tuesday. I happen to be in the third ride which means I will be riding on Tuesday. Unfortunately all my friends are in the top two rides which is pretty annoying so it’s my goal to get into one of the top rides ASAP. The top two rides are also getting some really awesome instructors in so I really want to get up there with them. I think I should be able to do it soon. Here’s hoping.

Because it was pouring we had an un-mounted rally. Our instructor came prepared to give us a very informative theory lesson, she also gave us homework! I haven’t homework since I left school a year and a half ago. I’ve already lost it! I know! I can’t believe it. I put it in my back pocket and when I went to get it out last night it had gone! I think I’m going to have to get one of my fellow riders to let me borrow theirs so I can photocopy it. I’m going to get my C+ certificate this season so I need to know all my theory. She also introduced us to the double bridle which I have never really bothered looking at before because I haven’t needed to. She showed us how to hold and reins and explained everything about it. I’m glad I won’t need one for awhile because I don’t think I would be able to get my head around all the reins.

Jack was moving into the herd last night. Up until now he has been with three other newbies. I went to move him after the rally. It was pouring with rain and the wind was wild and freezing. Two of the other horses had already been moved out and the third one was just leaving when I arrived to move Jack. He came running up to me as soon as he saw me. I think he was more worried about being left behind rather then being excited to see me. He was impatient to go and I had to work to make him stand still so I could buckle his halter. Finally we were off. He was pretty well behaved the rest of the time. Standing when I asked and not dragging me (too much). I gave him his feed and then put him with the hacks. He was more interested in the grass then the other horses in the paddock so hopefully I won’t find any big cuts on his legs when I go to see him today. I had my big Kathmandu goose down jacket on during the whole thing which kept my upper half warm and dry, unfortunately it has no hood so my head got cold and freezing as did my legs.

Fingers crossed the weather will hold out the rest of the day as I would like to get to know Jack in better weather. I’m getting a saddle either tomorrow or Friday so hopefully I’ll be able to ride him soon. I’m impatient to be back in the saddle.

Also, this Saturday we are having a Waitakere Push Play day where we provide quiet ponies and hacks that kids from the local community can come and have a ride on (actually its just a lead). They also have an opportunity to groom and pet them. It’s basically a way show our community spirit and encourage kids to get into sports. I volunteered to help and I’ve been given the role of talking to parents and children about our club and what we do using my “people-person” skills. I’m actually quite excited as I love our club and I really want to help give back to our club since they have done so much for me.

Jack has arrived

Jack arrived safe and sound yesterday at about 1pm. He came off the float no worse for the wear which was predictable considering he is a good traveller and it was only a 20 minute journey. We put him in one of the newly built pens while we tied up the loose ends and I signed the purchase agreement. Once he was signed over and his previous owners left I took him for a walk around the grounds. He was pretty well behaved; he grazed a bit but spent most of the time looking around at his surroundings. After our walk I put him back into a pen and went to get my grooming gear. When I opened my grooming box I found that my first aid spray had opened and spilled through everything so I had to rinse it all out! At least any bugs on the brushes would have been killed. After I groomed him my friend Melissa and I took him for another walk around. Everyone who saw him asked all about him and commented on how gorgeous he was.

He went back in the pen for another little bit while I rode Summer, one of Sue’s (my old instructor) horses. I just took her around the arena a couple of times for fun. Soon it was time for worming. Jack resisted a bit but not for too long. He really has no ground manners though. This showed more and more as the day went on. I did know about it when I bought him. I will have to work on them quite a bit. He spent a lot of his hand grazing time trying to drag me along. I backed him up every time he tried. At one point when I was taking him to his paddock he got pissed off at me when I wouldn’t let him get in front of me so he did a few nice bucks on the end of the lead. I quickly got him to stop and backed him up some more and he settled down. I don’t accept behaviour like that so I will be working hard on his ground manners.

When I put him into a paddock with one of the other newbies he gave her a few sniffs and they soon trotted off together to the hay at the end of the paddock. When I left him he was eating happily.

So I’m off to see him again this afternoon. Tomorrow is the first rally of the season but I want to give him a couple of days to settle in so I won’t be riding him until Wednesday. I didn’t get any photos of him yesterday because I was too busy trying to do other things and since the weather is appalling today I don’t think I’ll try but hopefully tomorrow or Wednesday.

Counting Down

Jack arrives on Sunday! The first pony club rally is on Tuesday but I won't be riding because I want Jack to have some time to settle in. I am so excited! Unfortunately the saddle I had set up for him fell through so I'm rushing around trying to find someone who will lend me a saddle with a changeable gullet before next week. I think I've got one sorted!

I ordered some new grooming stuff which arrived yesterday since most of my stuff got lost when I was in Taumarunui. I didn't really know what size brushes to get since you can never really gauge sizes on the internet. I ended up with a huge dandy brush and a small body brush (its like child size) which is annoying! I can do with the dandy brush but I'm going to have to get a new body brush.

Anyway here are some pictures of Jack and I last time I rode him. I can't wait till I get him into work and get some muscle in the right place. Yes that is mud on the side of his face.

Meet Jack

This is Jack getting all excited because he hasn't seen his friends in awhile

Yesterday was the day I met Jack. Unfortunately M, his current owner was unavaliable to show him to me as she had to put her other older horse down and didn't feel like she would be up to the task. Instead D, his former owner, took the time to talk to me and show me him. My first impression of Jack was great. He came cantering up to the fence when D called him and was super easy to catch.

She told me a bit about him as we got him saddled. She had rescued him off the track when he was a lot younger and he was in bad condition. Thankfully after a bit of TLC he came right. She had always been a show jumper (up until recently) so with her most of his experience was in jumping. She said she just loved his jump but sometimes he was a bit looky and would jump higher then he needed to (at this point he was sounding supiciously like Red). She's done 1.20m show jumping on him. He's done one ODE but has done a few cross country clinics where he was sailing over the Open jumps easily. He's an easy keeper (i.e. not like Red who fluctuates between being practically obese in the Summer to under weight if hes not fed daily in the Winter). His hooves are strong and she only used shoes so she could stud him when jumping. He's never been lame. His ground manners aren't the best I've ever seen but that can be worked on. She had also taken him to her dressage friend and had him schooled. Once they got over the trot situation (see below) he was great. Unfortunately Jack was always the horse D rode last in the day. She had another horse which took priority plus she schooled horses for other people. She said she was always having "first rides" on him and she never liked him enough to want to put up with his trot. Which is why he was passed onto her friend M.

Jack is enjoying a good scratch on his withers. You can just see the pleasure on his face.

Before I got on him she warned me that his trot was sticky and fast... more like a pony trot then the hack that he is. M had also told me about it so I knew that I wouldn't be getting beautiful extensions out of him. I mounted up and took him for an amble around the paddock on a loose rein. Soon I gathered him in and asked for a trot. He went into it straight away and it was diabolical. His neck came up and his steps shortened so much that we were barely moving. His body was bunched and I kept thinking he felt like a colied spring (not in the sense that he was going to suddenly start bucking wildly but just that he was so bunched up). I worked on getting him softer and he slowly started to un-wind and I managed to get a few resonable trot strides out of him. As in trot strides that any normal horse would do immediately. I did a bit of canter and some more trot and walk and then we put him away. Being a trainer herself D said she would be happy to come and give me Dressage lessons since she knew Jack so well. She also offered to float Jack down to Pony Club for me so I can take him over the jumps there. She did warn me that he had been out of work for awhile so for the first few weeks I would get a lot of thoroughbred crap out him until he came back into work. Also apparently he's much better with flat work if you take him out and do some jumping with him first. She stressed the point that because of his trot this was a horse you would have to love otherwise you would just get pissed off everytime you asked him for a trot.

This is Jacks impression of a "too-cool-for-you-cool-guy" as he ignores the other horses. He really just wants to be loved.

Once I got home I gave Sue, my instructor, a call and told her about him. I was going to do this earlier but when I called she was in the middle of a meeting with the Pony Club instructors and I was on speaker phone so I got to say hey to all of them. She said she would give D a call soon and we would go from there. I really think that Jack is the horse for me. Especially with my limited funds. I think his trot can be worked on and that he could be an awesome horse with some work.

Once a horse woman, always a horse woman

When I told people I wasn't going to be riding in Auckland many people commented that they were sure I would start riding again one day because you know "Once a horse woman always a horse woman". I agreed with them thinking I would start riding again when I was in my late 20's or something but a higher power decided differently for me.

Since leaving Taumarunui and not being able to ride I've gotten kind of depressed. My zeal for life vanished you might say. I'm not a naturally depressed kind of person. I've always been happy and upbeat and depression has never touched me. But since "giving up" riding I've been down in the dumps. I felt like I had lost a part of my identity. Because I had always been a horse rider and now I wasn't. It all came to a head one day when mum came home with the latest Horse and Pony magazine. I refused to look at it for a couple of days because I wasn't riding any more and what was the point. But that shiny magazine sitting on my desk just beckoned me over. Finally I opened it and promptly burst into tears. It was then I realised I just couldn't give up riding with out a fight. It was my passion.

My good parents had said they would pay my Pony Club fees if I wanted to start riding again. And then a Pony Club friend offered me one of her horses for the season. I went to look at him on Saturday but still quite hadn't made up my mind when I went to a party for her that night. All the rest of my PC friends were there as well and I got to talking to one of them about coming back to Pony Club and how I was looking for a horse. She told me about a great horse she knew about that was in my price range (not very much) who would be perfect for me. The owner was looking for someone who would make him their "No.1" horse.

Anyway I got onto the owner last night and she told me all about this great horse. His name is Jack. He's a 15.2, black thoroughbred gelding. Hes also only 10 years old. He's a been there done that horse but has been out of work for the past few months hence the good price. She has had him for a year but has only done bits and bobs with him because her first priority has always been University and now that she is getting a full time job she just wants him to go to a good home where he will be the "No.1" horse. He sounds perfect and I'm going to see him on Monday! I am so excited. I really have a good feeling about this horse so hopefully things will work out with him. Wish me luck.

Also I've been struggling with what to do next year. I knew I didn't want to go back to full time employment and wanted to study... but what? I had been thinking about going to Telford Rural Polytechnic to do Equine Studies but the accommodation costs would have been beyond my budget so that was a no-go. Thankfully I found another course in Palmerston North at Kyrewood Equestrian Centre. I've applied for the Sport Horse Course and everything looks like its a go ahead at this point in time. So hopefully everything will work out and I'll be studying what I love best next year!

So that's it. I am back for good! Since making the decision to come back to riding I have been feeling a million times better and I can't wait to get back to Pony Club! Now to find a job to fund my passion.

Goodbye.

Well a lot has been happening in the past few weeks and its led me to make a very difficult decision. I've decided to move back to Auckland... this coming Tuesday in fact. Its been on the cards for awhile mostly due to financial problems but a recent health scare pushed me to make the final decision. Unfortunately I won't be bringing Toby to Auckland with me as he is needed here for camps in the Summer and it would mean bringing him back from Mid-December to Early February. This cuts into the eventing season which I dont want to do and so he stays here. Since Red is retired (and thats where I think he should stay) I won't be riding when I go back to Auckland. I'm neither in the right financial place or state of mind to look after a horse at this stage.

I didn't make this decision lightly but I believe its the right thing to do for a lot of reasons. And so with the end of my time as an equestrian, so comes the end of this blog. I may raise it from the dead one day if (and I hope I do) I get another horse.

Thank you to all those out there who have supported me throughout this endeavour by reading my blog. I really appreciate it. I enjoyed the time I spent getting to know you and your gorgeous mounts through your own blogs.

May God bless you all.

Happy Riding and Happy Trails.

Love from Katie, Red and Toby

I Ride a Wooly White Mamooth

Winter officially arrived on the first of June. It unofficially arrived here early last month. I'm an Aucklander, I come from the warm north. We have cold winters but its nothing compared to Taumarunui winters. Its already been colder here at the start of winter then it ever gets in the dark of winter in Auckland. We live 45 minutes away from Mt. Ruapehu. An active volcano, its also the site of one of the biggest ski fields in New Zealand. Snow started falling on it last month and on Sunday the snow went to the foot of the mountain. The mountains due to open to skiers and snowboarders in three weeks. Reports are that this winter is going to be earlier, colder and longer then other years. It would happen the year I move down. I didn't get much of a chance to acclimatise. At least the skiing is going to be awesome, not that I can afford to go skiing with the petrol and feed prices the way they are.

Toby's coat has grown full pelt even though I've had him well covered since last April. Hes become a shaggy mammoth and I've affectionately dubbed him Wilbur the Woolly Mammoth. Hopefully I'll get him clipped soon.

Somehow he got the memo about the harsh winter before I did.

Mustering in...

It was cattle mustering time at the farm last night. The herd needed to be bought in so the calves could be separated from their mamas, and then tagged. The Whanau (that means family for those who aren’t kiwi) left for the muster as soon as Emma, Mere and Sarah-Anne were back from school and so no-one was home when I arrived. “Ahh,” I thought to myself “Some time alone to read my book.” I snuggled onto my bed and was soon lost in the world of Show Jumping. After about ½ an hour Lance appeared and knocked on my window. “Did you see my note on the floor by the front door?” he asked. I hadn’t. You see, there is a lot of paper around in our house, and one piece of paper doesn’t stand out from the rest. “Oh well, Ghost is in the yards for you to ride, we thought you could meet the others out the back but their might not be much point now”. I decided to go see what I could do anyway so grabbed Ghosts bridle and jumped on her bareback. We cantered up the hill only to meet the cows coming through the second to last paddock before the yards. I didn’t attempt to get to the others since it only would have sent the cows running back the way they came. Instead Ghost and I stood to the side and watched the others chasing the herd through the paddock. Have you ever seen or rather heard people chasing cows? It’s rather fascinating. Cries of ‘Hey Hey Hey Hey Hey Hey Hey” and “Get up, getttt up” along with the bellowing of the herd resonate through the evening air to create a sort of ‘Mustering Symphony’. Finally the cows were through to our paddock and it was our turn to help.

After the herd was in the yards, Val asked Emma and Mere to go to the river lease paddock to get some of the extra cows and bring them back. Somehow I got roped into doing it also and so off we went. We first had to check the Ostrich pen to see if the cows were in there. Thankfully they weren’t since none of us really wanted to face the ostriches. On the way back to the river lease we passed the hay paddock. One of the herds of feral goats, that roam our farm and eat all our grass, were chomping happily in there. We were soon in there, chasing those blasted goats out of the paddock and down a small bank. Into the river lease we went, searching for the small herd of cows that we knew were in there. Now the river lease is a huge paddock, I’ve spent over an hour looking for horses in there before. There are hills everywhere and dozens of little side clearings that a small herd of cows could hide in. We were riding down the main hill when we met the horses. They came straight up to us and wouldn’t leave us alone. This would have been fine in normal circumstances… but at least two of the horses were stallions. One was only a yearling (I think) colt but the other was fully developed. And two of us were on mares. Emma, who was on Summer, seemed to be fine with them. Summer was biting and kicking anytime any of the horses came near. But Ghost wasn’t trying to fight them off at all. And the stallion wasn’t leaving her alone either.

I tried scaring the stallion off by yelling at him, but he didn’t care. Then when he started getting mouthy I started getting worried. I’ve read stories about stallions trying to mount a mare when a rider has been on and things never ended well. Emma was starting to get worried too and I told her (I could have been over reacting) that if the stallion tried to do anything to Summer (i.e. mount) she was to get off immediately and leave Summer to fend for herself. I jumped off Ghost and grabbed a stick of the ground and tried throwing it at him. Unfortunately I missed so I picked up a huge stick that took two hands to carry and charged at him. He ran off but was almost immediately back to Ghost. I grabbed another stick and vaulted back onto Ghost and got him in front of me and then hit his rump a couple of times. Again he ran off, but came straight back.

By now we were coming to the entrance of a small path that led out to the back of the paddock. Since Mere was on Morrie and was having no trouble with the horses, in fact Morrie was being a hero and fending the horses off, we left her to guard the entrance to the path so we could have a quick look for the cows. We rode along as far as we could but couldn’t find them and was on our way back when we heard a shout from Mere. The stallion barged past her. It came galloping straight up to Ghost and I gave it a good couple of whacks with my stick. It ran on ahead of us and we were soon out in the open again. The stallion was still being a big pest and I was still worried so I made the decision to get out of there. I stuck Mere at the back since she was on a big fast thoroughbred that was doing a great job of being aggressive to the horses and we started up the hill home. At some point we put the horses into a canter and Emma who had been just behind, blasted past me. Mere and Morrie had set of at a canter too and the other horses were soon past her and were fast catching up to us. I felt Ghost getting tired and since I didn’t feel like we were in any immediate danger since we were almost to the top of the hill, I let her trot. Emma had gotten to the gate and was holding it open for Mere and I. I trotted Ghost through while Mere kept the horses at bay, then jumped off Ghost and helped give Mere a chance to get away. We walked home, full of talk of what had just happened.

The cows still haven’t been found.

Questions and Answers

Misha commented my one day event post and I thought I might answer it as a post here since its a relevant question for all horse riders. If you have any more advice stick it in my comments :)

Misha: That's awesome that you have so much fun riding! Don't you ever worry that you'll fall? When I go trail riding the thought of falling barely enters my mind, but I've never jumped before. I would like to learn how to jump someday, though. That sounds like a really super ultra amazingly awesome day! lol-that's alot of adjectives!

Hey Misha

Thanks for your comment. I believe that having a healthy fear of riding is a good thing. Horses weigh hundreds of kilograms, are fast, agile and strong and worst of all… they have a mind of their own. It’s dangerous not to have some kind of healthy fear, call it respect if you will, of horses. I’ve experienced fear many times on the back of a horse. Fear of falling being one of them. But really if I let the fear of falling get to me, I’d never get on the back of a horse again. As Katherine Patterson once said (I have no idea who she is) ‘To fear is one thing. To let fear grab you and swing you around by the tail is another.’ Which is totally true.

And so ‘Risk Management’, as I like to call it, comes into play. You’ve probably heard of the old barrier at the top of the cliff, ambulance at the bottom analogy. My barrier is my balance and independent seat when I am jumping and also riding in general, which will hopefully keep me in the saddle rather then on the way to hitting the ground. For my ambulance I, as a rule (which is only seldom broken), jump wearing a helmet and back protector. Back protectors were the norm at my previous pony club and competitions in Auckland although I seem to be one of the only ones to wear them down here. But really, I would rather be safe then worry about whether I looked cool or not. I also think the horse you are riding can boost your confidence a million percent. My old horse Red was a terrible show jumper in competition and as a result I went into the show jumping round on Ghost feeling worried but I needn’t have been. She flew around like it was nothing and I felt secure the entire time.

If you want to learn how to jump make sure you get in contact with an experienced instructor that will be able to teach you all the basics. An experienced, safe horse is also a must. I hope this answered your questions and one day you have lots of fun jumping too!

Photography

I love photography and at some point in my life would love to be a photojournolist.

Living on a farm provides ample opportunity to take photos and I thought I might share some of the horsie ones with you that I've taken in the last week

Enjoy...

The New Year

Wow! Can you believe it? Its 2008! Happy New Year to you all. Riding has taken a bit of a back burner recently because of a camp I went to over New Years but its back on now. Somehow in the week that I didn't see Red he put on a ton of weight. Its all sitting on his neck and at the back of his belly effectively giving him a pot belly. Its really quite unattractive.

I went for a great ride yesterday, the first in ages. Red was spooking at anything and everything. Luckily I've mastered his spooks so I never feel like I'm going to bite dust when he does them. The funny thing was I had been talking to a family friend and had mentioned that I could not ride Red for awhile and then get back on him and he would be sweet as. Obviously I overestimated him. Once I got him into the arena and concentrating he settled down and was fine.

My friend Sarah brought her miniature pony Snipety over for a visit. Red stood with eyes on stalks as Snipety approached. Once he got over his initial shock he put on his 'stallion' act. Snorting, huffing and arching his neck. Snipety is a gelding too so I don't know what he was hoping to get from this. Snipety then decided to lie down and roll and he happened to be near the side of the arena when he did. Unfortunately he breached himself on the wall. He struggled a bit then lay quietly as Sarah and I laughed. We managed to pull him out from the wall and he got up easily by himself.

I'm just about to go for another ride soon. Hopefully I'll get some of the extra fat off from around Reds body. If he gets any fatter I'm going to have to yard him.

I'm still here... really

Well its been awhile since my last post. Basically nothings really been happening with Red and I, we're just moving along waiting for Pheonix's arrival and the new season to begin.

The first PC rally is in 2 weeks! Its going to be great, I'm in a ride with two of my good friends so it should be a fun season. We have a new instructor so hopefully shes as nice and as fun as Sue was.

Almost every wednesday for the past few weeks a few of us have been going along to C certificate theory lessons. Our head instructor Sue wants to push us through our certificates as soon as possible because we're behind for our age. I don't know why the other girls don't have higher certificates but I only started PC last season so I have an excuse :)

Red's putting on weight with the Spring grass! I'm sure he's loving all the new grass and the warm sun we've been getting!

Well anyway coming up in the next post is 'A Story for Another Day'! You're excited now aren't you?!

Till then :)

Freestyle Dressage

This is Andreas Helgstrand riding at the World Equestrian Game 06 in the Freestyle Dressage Competition. He came third (if I remember right) and Anky won but personally I liked Andreas' routine better! I'll never get sick of this video. I thought you just might want to have a look at what the pros are like :)

Red is Racing Royalty!

You wouldn't believe it would you? But he is!

His great, great grandfathers were........ Nashua! and Native Dancer!

And his great, great, great grandfather was Nasrullah!

And then his great, great, great, great grandfather was Nearco. Now if you were anything like me before I delged into Red's history, you would have no clue who these horses are. So let me tell you. These horses were some of the most influential and sucessful horses in Thoroughbred Racing History!

Anyone who grew up in the thoroughbred racing industy during the 1950's will know about Nashua. He was incredible. He won dozen of high stake races, was named the United States 2 year old of the year in 1954, the United Sates 3 year old of the year in 1955 and also in that same year he was named the United States HORSE of the year. His progeny went on to win huge races such as the Kentucky Derby! Nashua also was the FIRST horse ever to be sold for over $1 million dollars! He was 24th in the top 100 horses of the century. Guess who was 25th... Seabiscuit! Red's great, great Grandfather was better than Seabiscuit!

Native Dancer aka The Grey Ghost was the 7TH in the top 100 horses of the century. This makes him bettter then Phar Lap! He was the first horse to be made famous by way of television. In his first season as a racer he won every race he entered and apparently 'thrilled' the crowd with his come-from-behind running style. Native Dancer has heaps of honours and awards and won lots of big races. You can check them out at the link at the top of this page.

Nasrullah was a pretty amazing horse also. He was known to be a temperamental and unpredictable horse. I'm sure he passed those traits right through to Red lol. He was known as one of the most important sires of the 20th Century, sireing a number of winners :)

And Nearco was great too! Thoroughbred Heretige said that he was 'one of the greatest racehorses of the 20th Century'. He raced 14 races and was never defeated. His grandson was Northen Dancer who was another amazing horse although hes not related directly to Red.

WAIT theres more! Red's Grandfather was Mr. Prospector AKA Mr. P. He wasn't a great racehorse himself but he sired some amazing horses. One of Mr. P's most remarkable feats was siring one winner of each of the Triple Crown races.

But then the big names stop there. Red's Sire was Pat's Victory from the USA, his Dam was Lighting Bay from New Zealand. We found some half brothers of Reds, out of Pat's Victory who did quite well as New Zealand steeplechases but thats about it. We figure that the couple that bred Red would've paid a lot of money to have him bred with such an impressive lineage. Which makes us wonder why Red only raced once. I don't know much about Racing but you think someone who had a horse with incredible lineage like Reds would give that horse more than one race to prove himself. Perhaps he had a injury? Or maybe they had to sell him for some other reason? I guess we will never know.

I do know his breeders names so I tried looking them up in the phone book but unfortunately none of the people I found were the right ones. One guy just hung up on me when I told him why I was looking for a guy by that name! Rude!

Anyway here are some pictures of his famous forefathers:

This is Mr.Prospector, Reds grandpapa. Hes American.

This grey fellow above is none other then Native Dancera aka The Gray Ghost. American born and bred.

This is Nashua racing his little heart out! He is an American too.

This is Nasrullah his great, great, great Grandsire. He was British.

And this is Nearco, the Italian Stallion (yep he was Italian). Red is truly foreign.

Yep so thats it! Reds part of a famous racing line! It was incredible finding out about him. I feel I understand him a little bit better! Until next time!

A little bit of loving

When I first got Red he grazed at a property in the Waitakere Ranges. Actually it was the same property that the infamous black Bank of New Zealand horse used to graze at. We first put him with a couple of other horses grazing in the paddock but he got bullied so we took him out (hes usually the dominant horse so this was surprising). Then those horses were taken by their owners to another place so Red was all on his lonesome. Most of you know that horses are herd animals. They rely on other horses for protection and companionship so Red must of been missing his equine friends sorely. I saw him most days so at least he was getting attention from humans.

He obviously liked having us around because one day he did something I'll always remember. He was in the largest paddock in the property... it had quite a lot of grass but also a small lake and a big patch of forest. I had gone out to see him and give him feed but when I got there he wasn't anywhere to be seen. If I had decided to walk to get him there wasn't much chance of actually finding him in that huge paddock, I could have been looking for hours. So instead I decided to try call him. I stood on top of the hill, "REEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEDDDDDDDDD" I yelled as loud as I could "REEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD". Then, from the depths of the forest I heard a loud whinny. Then the distant sound of hoofbeats. After a few minutes Red came galloping out of the forest whinnying all the way, and straight up the hill to me. He slid to a stop in front of me and nuzzled my hands (probably looking for food).

Oh that was a great day. The joy of my horse coming happily, even excitedly to me was incredible. Every horse-lovers dream I'm sure. But alas, it didn't last. Now that he lives with a herd he'll only occasionly come calling up to me, and he sometimes even turns and walks away when he sees me coming. These horses have no gratitude I tell you! After all I've done for him! Oh well when I see him walking away from me in I just try to remember the happier days when he actually wanted to see me.

Hear ye, hear ye: I have an announcement to make!

There will soon be a new addition to A Girl and Her Horse... for I am leasing a sweet little pony called Phoenix until December.

Everyone meet Phoenix:

Isn't he just darling? He was broken in last summer and thats us on his first trek. He was great, so laid back and he did everything I asked of him. From what I understand the girl who he is leased out to now hasn't been able to ride him much and as a result hes getting a bit naughty. So hes coming to me!

I was sure he was the same size as Red (15.3hh) so I would be able to use Reds covers on him, then Sarah-Anne told me he was only 14hh. Oh well, I guess I'll be buying some stuff for him :)

I can't wait for him to arrive! He'll probably come in 2 or 3 weeks! And just to reasure all my readers who are thinking about poor Red, I will still be riding him as often as I did before and he'll still be loved. Because seriously Red is my number one!

PS. A girl and her horse might have to change to a girl and her horse and her pony :P but we'll see what happens

Shopping List

Its Pony Club sign up day this month on the 25th of August. So I decided to write a list of all the things I need for the new season. Lucky for you I didn't include all the items in the First Aid Kit otherwise we would be here for hours. I have included the price of some of the items and also where I am going to get them. Some of these items are purely wishful (like that $160.00 Bridle) but I can dream. So here it is…

PS I wouldn’t say no if someone decided to buy me a thing or two off this list.
PPS I'll probably add to this list a bit overtime as I know I've missed things off it.

• Collegiate Hanoverian Bridle - $159.99 from Kumeu Grain & Saddlery or Tackshop or AMS Saddlery
  
• Zilco Champagne /Gold Saddle Blanket - $69.99 from Clarkes Saddlery
  
  
• White Jodhpurs x 2
  
  
• Beige Jodhpurs x 2
  
  
• Black Jodphpurs x 2
  
  
• Assorted Jodhpurs x 3
  
  
• Black Leadrope x 2
  
  
• Event Shirt and Hat Cover (Sky Blue and Black) - approx. $60.00 from Trade Me
  
  
• Event Boot Set - $99.99 from Kumeu Grain & Saddlery or AMS Saddlery
  
  
• Saddle Racks x 2 - $19.99 each from The Saddlery Warehouse
  
  
• Cover Racks x 3
  
  
• First Aid kit
  
  
• Washing Kit:
  - Sponges (Large) x 2
  - Ravishing Red Shampoo
  - Tail and Mane Conditioner
  - Equine Shine
  - Bucket
  - Bucket Cover - All from The Saddlery Warehouse
  
  
• Grooming Kit:
  - Hoofpicks x 2
  - Body Brush
  - Dandy Brush
  - Sponges x 2
  - Face Brush
  - Grooming Box
  - Mane Comb
  - Thinning Scissors
  - Scissors
  - Thinning Comb
  - Black Mane Bands
  - Sweat Scraper
  - Shedding Blade - All from The Saddlery Warehouse
  
  
• Red Pony Club Tie
  
  
• Massey Pony Club Polo Shirt
  
  
• Sheepskin Quarter Pad
  
  
• Helmet - $164.95 from Tackshop (But I think you can get it cheaper at Kumeu)
  
  
• Brestplate - $19.99 from The Saddlery Warehouse
  
  
• Aigile Riding Boots - $174.95 from Tackshop
  
  
• Saddle Cleaning Kit:
  - Saddle Soap
  - Leather Oil
  - Rags
  - Ice Cream Container
  
  
• Hoof Kit:
  - Clear Hoof Oil
  - Hoof Brush
  - Container
  
  
• German Dressage Girth - $29.99 (down from $59.99) from The Saddlery Warehouse
  
  
• Fly Mask