What a sunset!

Today was the lunar eclipse, so at 8.30pm, myself and my daughter decided to go to the top of our hill to have a look. Unfortunalety we didnt get to see the eclipse as the clouds weren't being nice to us. But we still got a show. We have the most awesome sunset that words and photos just couldnt capture. But I did however manage some photos on my little camera that showed some part of the magic. My horses as usual wouldn't cooperate with the camera, they are so camera shy...grrr.. Got a few shots of Harry but Holden just kept on annoying me, breathing down my neck and generally being a pest. So no photos of the big boof head. But really, the photos just don't show the true colour and redness of the sky, it really was stunning..

I hate playing God

I hate playing God!  Ok so everyone says your doing the best thing for them, best they dont suffer, they will be in rainbow bridge waiting , etc etc But to be honest it doesnt help one bit, its just crap. Ok so am i selfish, maybe but still, I dont like playing God.

I have done  it too many times now and it does not get easier. It is getting to the stage maybe I shouldnt have animals.  Why the comments of playing God? Well its time again.

I don't think it matters what type of animal it is you are putting down, but I do think the hardest are horses. I have been putting of this task, for want of a better word, for a while now. But as my wee pony had trouble walking and is getting skinny by the day, I guess its time I put my God shoes on. But what makes this double hard is that it wont be one pony but two.

My 2 georgeous wee ponies who i love to bits. Sophie has been with me for 11 years now but her battle with her hooves has been hard. Talking to the farrier, there isnt much he can do. Smurf was my daughters first pony and we have had this shy timid lovely girl for 6 years. Smurfs knee held out for so long but this particulary hard wet boggy winter didnt do her any favours. So I made the decision that they would go together, as they are inseparable anyway.

So I am feeling miserable....why cant they pass away in their sleep?? I do not like playing God and never will!

Glady Sports

Well daughter went to her 2nd show in the weekend. Wasn't sure how she would go as there was no training ring just the 10-12yr old group, which had some good ponies and riders in it.

Each class she did involved cantering, which is a pace we are still working on. Its the brakes department that need a bit of work as daughter and pony havent got that sussed yet.

 One thing that really annoyed me was that the circle they used was very small in ratio to how many ponies there were. So they all got bunched up. Daughters pony has a fast trot and canter so kept getting stuck behind slow pokes!  So a number of riders went wide so you ended up with 2 circles one inside one outside. So the judge didnt really get a good view of the outa circle ponies. Apparently in other classes who has same bunched up problems, the riders who went wide got disqualified!!

But they did very well and im very proud of them. She only got one ribbon a 3rd in best rider which I thought was awesome. When they get the cantering sorted out then im sure we will have more ribbons to come.

Saddles Saddles Saddles

I hate saddles.....trying to fit one for my daughters pony is a nightmare!!!  Ok so she's only 14.2 , the pony that is, but...she is a wide gullet with not much wither and wide shoulders. Painful...very painful. We or should I say I have tried about 6 saddles so far with no luck. I have a wintec wide at the moment 16.5" that I'm trying and that i think it may be a fit. But im not a big fan of Wintec Wides, having one myself for my big clydiex. But I prefer a deep seeted saddle and as I dont have lots of dosh to spend, that has to do.

I may have to make a trip to Palmy or the coast to check out saddles. May not be a bad thing as i could have a spend yeahaaaa

Anyway, we have a pony club rally tomorrow and a show in a week or so...so the race is on. I have told daughter that if she has to go bareback to the rally then so be it. I dont think she minds as long as she is on her horse. It certainly wont do her any harm to ride bareback, in fact i always feel it puts you in a good position and makes you ride properly. If you dont...you fall off!

I am also gutted that my new horse float is to small for my big clydie. I swear that boy is 17hh or not far off!!  I haven't officially measured him but he is was bigger that my other 16.2 and 16.1 horses!  Didnt quite want a horse that big ...but.... You dont actually notice he is tall when you riding, just when your trying to get on LOL  Thank god for logs, gates hills etc

Daughters First Show

Well this was it, my daughters first show. To be honest I don't know who was more nervous me or her!! Anyway it was mad rush on Friday to get pony ready all spruced up and tack all cleaned. I wasn't sure if I could plait her mane as she only had half...the other bit in the middle had been cover rubbed ...and the tail...well it had been cow chewed. Not by our cows but previous owners calf. Never mind the show must go on as they say, so i made the descion on Saturday morning not to plait up. Oh natural was the style of the day.

First class was at 8.30 so we should have left at 7am but us being us we didn't leave till 7.30. So as usual it was rush rush rush. But we managed to get sorted and dressed and ready to go...just 10 mins late..oops. Luckily for us it hadn't started yet. One day I will be on time....

Such Concentration

Anyway my daughter had a ball, they ended up with one 1st, three 3rds and two 4ths. Not bad for a first show. Pony behaved very well although she got a bit lazy in the flat classes . We need to work on that I think.

First Ribbon of the day

And another...

The last class was the jumping. Pony knows how to jump, daughter doesn't really but thinks she does. So I was biting my nails as she really wanted to do the jumping. This is the girl who crawled for ..oh...3 days..then walked! So it didn't surprise me that she wanted to do it.

Off we go...

The pony apparently loves to jump, so you need a strong hand and know what to do. It was apparent that jumping over one warmup jump wasn't the same as entering a ring full of jumps. Pony had an instant transformation from lazy to lets go. They weren't high and was told to trot over them...this was the training class after all. So off she trotted but then pony cantered over the jump. Lovely jump couldn't fault it but it unseat daughter a few steps after and she fell off. Not so much fell off but jumped off and landed on her feet. But the good thing about that was that daughter realised that it wasn't that easy. They completed the course trotting except for the last jump again a canter but all ok.

Well done

Pony wasn't keen on standing still after the jumping, so was fidgeting, that meant I couldn't get a good photo with all her ribbons...

All 6 ribbons

So she is keen to do another show...upwards and onwards.

We have joined Pony Club which she also enjoys. And has lessons once a week. Now to sort myself out LOL But Im worried that the float we bought , just isnt big enough for The Tank aka Holden. I was hoping to have lessons as well but time will tell. Will need to do a test run.

Is Summer just around the corner?

Well I still miss my darling Taz but life goes on as they say...so ...let me introduce to you...ODIE. He is a corgi x Foxy. His dad was a corgi and mum a foxy. He is sooo dam cute and everyone loves him.

He does however loves rolling in the most smelliest pongy stuff he can find. So baths are a common occurrence in this household!

Also my daughter is getting into her pony stuff. She was meant to do Solway RDA gymkhana but was sick and pony was lame...However we are entered into the Spring Show in Carterton. Yehaa. She is off to Pony club tomorrow as well so we have a happy camper...

Holden is coming on fine and i am thinking of hunting maybe next year. That boy can certainly jump! Also the endurance thing is still on ...just need to get myself and him fit. He is looking a trim mean machine...its just me that isnt lol

R.I.P little Tazzie

"TAZZIE"

If tears could build a stairway,
And memories could build a lane,
I'd walk right up to heaven
And bring you home again....


The day i dreaded finally came.... my beloved companion of 11 years went to the rainbow bridge. She was going down fast over the last few days but I hoped that she would bounce back again, as she has done in the past. But a phone call from the vet with her blood results confirmed a complete shut down of her liver....she had a day or two if that. So i made the decision there and then that she wouldn't suffer.

I knew that "that" day would come, but i had hoped we had a least till xmas and another summer with her. The kids spent a few hrs with her after school as did I. Then i took her to the vet. I have had animals put down in the past but this was the hardest....

Taz was a great little dog with a passion for tennis balls. Right from an early age she would want to play ball. You would throw the ball and she would bring it back for you to throw again ...and again...and again...she never wanted you to stop. It got to the stage that at times we would hide the balls. At first we threw it into bushes thinking she wouldn't get it...but then she would appear with it...she had a great nose for sniffing. So then the kids started putting them in trees. Sometimes she would jump up and get them but we did have lots of trees around the garden with balls in them LOL.

Some saying will always be tazzie sayings...

"Go find...go find the ball...wheres the ball.."

"Wheres they go...Wheres they go"

" Tazzie wazzie woo"

I do feel lost without my sidekick with me....who will come and check the post with me....who will keep me company when i go for a walk ....who will go to the river with me... I had a good 11yrs with her and we had fun, one day we will be together again im sure..


RIP my best friend

Taz is getting some bounce back

Well my little dog Taz seems to have had a wee spark ignited. She wants to go for walks (all be it small ones) and is playing with her tennis ball! She is eating better, not coughing or getting up in the night for wees!

So maybe these tablets are reducing her liver better than we thought! Shes still blind as a bat but her heart is strong...

We have decided that we will take her in the caravan with us in summer rather than leave her in the kennels. I dont think she would cope there any more.

So I'm happy at the moment....

Another pony to add to the collection!

Oh my what have I done.... bought Zara a pony that's what....It has been long overdue though. I have been looking for a while, sometimes seriously sometimes not.

Its very hard to find the right pony. When you buy a horse for yourself you can take certain risks because you know your limits and capabilities. But my daughter is still learning and I am so protective of her when she rides, as a mum I think of all the bad things that could go wrong. I know I have to let those strings loosen a bit but its hard. I mean she is turning in to a very good little rider!

If i cast my mind back to when I was 11yrs old and the things I used to do then (oh to be fearless and silly ay), well its just as well my mum wasn't horsey and had no interest in them. She would certainly have either banned me from riding altogether or had multiple kittens..over and over again... lol!

I delayed the inevitable a bit, by telling my daughter that we wont get a pony until I have a horse float. This was quoted back to me however, straight after I bought my float home...oh dear...she didn't forget!

But now we have a lovely chestnut 14.2hh pony in the paddock, I haven't yet regretted it. She is a sweet thing and Im certain my daughter will have many years of fun with her. Actually a dream of mine when my daughter was born, was to go riding with her and now it will be a reality. I can see lots of days where we take the horses off to the beach, forest, wherever and ride together. That does mean a lot to me. The fact that the pony seems so far, a safe and sensible thing, means i can concentrate on my boy Holden, rather than worrying about what my daughter is doing.

So the collection grows..... I do have to many 4 legged friends but I feel this dynamic will change in the near distance future.

PAT: My lovely old 16.1 retired gentleman, 26ish. He is on a day to day watch as he has arthritis in his back and spine, but he seems to be coping really well at the moment.

SMURF: My daughters 1st pony, must be about 24ish , 11.2hh welsh mare. Lovely wee pony but was retired a number of years back due to her knee starting to collapse. At the moment it has calcified and a bit bow legged but is causing no pain. So we keep a close eye on her and walk her around. As with Pat, she is on a day by day watch.

SOPHIE: Timor Cross ornament and is Smurfs best friend, forever home here as well. She must be about 18 yrs old now..

HOLDEN: My beautiful big softie, a forever home with me is assured. Lots of years of fun with my boy.

JOCK: 14.2 standardbred. Was hoping this would have been my daughters pony but he is a little to advanced for her. We don't own Jock so he may go back to his owners.

HARRY: 16.1 gelding. He is not doing much at the moment and I think I will have to sell him. He is a great horse for someone who has lacked confidence or getting back to riding. Will never be a top show horse but knows all the basics and great to trek around the place.

So we have 6, no..make that 7.. pony/horses on the place, which may be reduced to 3 in the near future. But hey we have 30 acres here so its not like we don't have the space.

Hairy Monster!

Its official.. my boy is a hairy monster..he really does not resemble anything but a yeti on four legs! And he has a cover on..spoilt boy he is!

I wonder why I take covers off as well. Ok, so its a nice day, the monster looks at me with those pleading eyes....or maybe he is hypnotising me... "take my cover off...take my cover off...take my cover off..." So i do and instantly regret it.

Off he goes to the muddiest wettest patch of mud (which isnt hard at the moment...but still) and rolls and rolls and rolls. We now have a muddy dirty yeti on four legs!. It took ages to brush him clean after it dried so I could put his cover back on again...so why do I do it?

Plus the hairy yeti on four legs is molting...one sweep of the brush and the brush is covered in hair, i'm covered in hair, my mouth has hair in it...mumble mumble. One thing I guess is that maybe good weather is close by, summer is around the corner, or am i tempting fate.

But this aside I still love my boy, hair and all..

Yey I have a Horse Float

Isn't it odd that here in NZ & Aus we call them "Horse Floats" where in UK & States they are called "Horse Trailers or Horse Boxes" Where the heck did the word float come from? Maybe its because the horse doesnt use its legs and look like its floating LOL..

Anyway I finally bought one. Its an old one but solid. Bit like my old Hooper which I sorely regret selling 12 odd years ago. Funnily enough a number of months back I actually saw my old float for sale on trade me. Sheesh prices have hiked up. It got sold for double what I sold it for back then, and it doesn't look like much work has been done, looks like same paint job.

Ok so it needs a bit of work on it and probably a new paint job , then off we go. Holdy and myself will explore the world LOL. So watch out !!

Ups and Downs....

I really am getting quite sick of the roller coaster ride I've been having lately. All ups then downs....I'm over it!

So the downs....Taz my little dog is terminally ill, and its just a matter of time with quality of life. Last tests show that the liver is not good and all likely a tumour. So what I thought was an up for Taz is now a double down. So I make her comfy as possible and when the time comes that her quality of life just isn't there, then i have to not be selfish and think of her.

I'm noticing changes already, as her liver is getting bigger its pushing on her diaphragm which causes her to cough at night when she lies down, and she also she needs to go to the loo more often. Also at night she seems to get a bit of dementia. It happens when dogs start going deaf, which she is starting to do. Going round in circles not really knowing where to go or what to do. Also going up to walls and staring...not that she can see.

But on the up she did enjoy her walk and wagged her tail and had a good game of fetch the ball. I put cushions all around to make a circle so she didn't donk her head. She seemed more confident about getting the ball so I think she quite enjoyed it. You just have to watch your hands as she has been known to mistake them for the ball!! ouch!!

Then the Ups...Holdy is doing mighty fine and I will be bringing him into work again, finally. Just need to get the hooves trimmed. I can't wait to zoom around on him. Im looking at getting a float so I can whizz around meeting friends and that, just need to find a nice big roomy one.

Also we sold the bit of land we subdivided. That was a long process with surveyors and lawyers and council, not sure if i ever would subdivide again. But all done now and we sold.

Eureka

Eureka!!! I made a tennis ball toy which seems to work and little Taz has a new lease on life. Ok so its not the most professional job but it does the trick.

I'm even thinking of creating a better one and marketing it...nah not really but this was a prototype and I'm sure I can do one better and more noisy.

It was funny as she heard the thud of the tennis ball when it hits the ground but couldn't quite work it out at the start, that the jingle noise was also the ball. Didnt take her long to twig and now she knows the noise associated with the ball ...well done me and good fun for Taz.

My Little Blind Dog

Well I guess all animals get old, but when they go down quite quickly, its quite disconcerting. My little 11 yr dog Taz was well healthy and full off beans just a few months ago. She lives for her tennis ball and I always joked that when she dies she would be buried with tens of tennis balls.

Anyway, no she hasn't crossed the rainbow bridge yet.. but she started coughing really bad. It came on quite quickly. To cut a long story short and after heaps of tests, she has hypothyroidism. So she wasn't fat cause i fed her to much! But her liver is so enlarged that it is pushing up onto her diaphragm, causing her to cough. More so when she is lying down. It also is pushing on the bladder so she needs to be let out for a wee more (very tiring when she goes 3 times in the night) Her heart is also enlarged due to all the work it has to do.

Tablets later, and fingers, arms and legs crossed, her liver will resume to its natural size and coughing and bladder function will return to nomal. But this may take months :-( and not guartenteed. At least the liver is an organ that can repair itself.

But then the worst happened, Taz went blind in a matter of weeks. It happened so quickly that the vet thought it could have been a reaction to the drugs...but no it was just her... Of all the senses to go it had to be her sight. It makes me cry when I see her wanting to play throw the tennis ball but she just cant see it. I now have to roll the ball so it touches her feet then she knows its there, but it's not quite the same. She so loved to race around the paddocks chasing the ball.

So i'm on a mission to find toys that visually impaired dogs can use. Surely there must be something. But I am yet to find that. Maybe I will make some myself.. .

Here she is at xmas, she got a box of tennis ball ...she couldn't decided which one to pick up first lol!

Yehaaa

Well it's been a while since I last posted but im pleased to say that Holden is doing just fine. He is out in the paddock most of the day now with my old boy and then I pop him into his stable at night. I will get around to a cover one day so I can leave him out all night. But till then he will have to go inside at night.

He is trotting and cantering in the paddock and doesnt pull up lame. Sometimes he favoures his leg but not to badly. Still a way off riding him but im counting the day.

But we did have an incident the other day. I let Harry out with Holden the other day. Harry is his best buddy so I thought it would be fine. Well it was for a while then Harry got a bee in his bonnet. Talk about a big bully! He hounded Holden around the paddock biting when he can. I saw that Holden was lathered in sweat and starting to pull up lame. So i had to jump on the motorbike and separate them. I drove Harry back into the yards leaving Holden standing breathing heavily in the paddock.

I then took Holdy to his stable and looked him over. He seemed ok apart from a few bites. Then i went to Harry and saw a big cut just above his knee. There was a flap of skin which when flopped down exposed bone and tendons. Buggar I thought. Anyway vet was called and 6 stitches later he was fine. Fortunately it was a clean cut and shouldn't be a problem.

Harry was very lucky...a few inches down and his knee would have been smashed, a slight change in angle for the kick and his leg im sure would have been broken...so im counting my blessing on that one.

Horses ay....don't you just love them!

Better by the day...

Well he is getting better by the day and i'm very pleased to say that. Today i gave him a treat and let him out into a small grassy area for a few hours.....he loved it...but was happy to go back into his stable at night.
He is still a bit of a pain lifting his feet up but what he's been thru I guess its hardly surprising. So i have to get hubby to help hold his foot up and he is too strong for me to hold..little buggar.

His sole is recovering well and no more abscesses yeha. Farrier still convinced it was some sort of poisoning but we shall never know..

On the mend??

Well its been a while and a long hard slog but I think my boy may be finally recovering....I say this quietly so as not to tempt fate. But i took him out of his stable couple of days ago to see how he walked and he wasnt lame! That is a major breakthru after 3 months of lameness, painkillers and stabling.

The vet and farrier still have conflicting diagnosis but the farrier is convinced he was poisoned by something...I'm not sure who is right but hes turned a corner and is on the mend, hopefully with no lasting problems.

But if he turns out that he can only be a paddock mate, then so be it, if he becomes rideable again then I still want to hit the endurance riding or if thats to much I will just hack him. Whatever the outcome, he has a forever home here!

There was a time though, I decided he had had enough and was going to put him to sleep, but vets were happy with the xrays and didn't see a reason why he wouldnt pull thru. So i kept going and Im glad i did.

He is still not out of the water yet but a feel so much happy now he walked without being lame..

Slow Slow recovery...

I am so over this weather, one day its 29 degrees hot hot then next day its absolutely pouring down for days. Poor horses.. covers off, covers on.

Had vet up again for my boy and more antibiotics for his infection. I hate needles so its a challenge to say the least! But each day I think hes getting better. So much for my summer riding though.... Hmm i guess im getting fit with all the mucking out of stables i'm doing LOL!

My old Ginga Ninga isn't to happy neither and i'm seriously thinking that I have to make the big decision in a few weeks. I was going to do the deed last winter but he perked up really well. Kids are back at school in a few days, so that will make it easier. Im so dreading making the call...

Actually its not been a great start to 2010 for my animals. Ive lost 2 chooks, they are quite old, infact im sure they were over 11yrs! I didnt think chooks lived that long. They just died in their sleep, way to go I think, but they had a good life.

One of my goat keeps getting a foot infection, probably due to the wet weather, and he hates getting his foot stuff on. So I get dragged around the yard...but i win...well most of the time. Oh for a little goat stall..

I then noticed one of my sheep got pink eye, was blind for a bit, so I put the antibiotics in and she coming right now. Just got to round the rest up and check them.

Crazy Weather

I'm singing in the rain...Just singing in the rain...What a glorious feelin'....I'm happy again...NOT! Bugger off rain ..I want some sun, sol, soleil, that yellow dazzley shiny thing in the sky ..if its still there!

Ok so enough said about that, she says listening to the rain pounding on the roof and thunder rumbling in the background....

Vet came up today (before the rains) and Holdy has an infection in one of his front tootsies. So a big jab of antibugs and painkillers hopefully will get him back on track, plus a follow up of bute to help.

Well we have grass from here to Africa, its ridiculous. All animals are in about 3 acres of the farm on diets!! The rest of the farm is getting overgrown with grass. Its times like this when i really wish we had flat land. Hmmm think of the hay we could had cut...ah well.. This time last year the grass was all brown, what grass we had that is. Crazy crazy weather we have now...

Ahh buggar again

Well the haynet incident has appeared its ugly head again. No Holdy didn't get his foot stuck in the haynet again.. but his foot is now swollen and he doesn't put much weight on it. I have a feeling it was Harry that made it worse. I popped Harry in the Jenny Craig paddock with Holdy for company. But Harry was not happy about it and kept bulling Holdy. I feel maybe it has aggravated his foot.

So the vet has been booked for tomorrow. Poor boy he really is having a bad run and I sooo want to ride him. He is however looking very nice and slim... he really is a lovely looking horse.

On a more fun positive note, my daughter is on her 3 day horse course at the moment and is loving it! She goes every holidays...she just lives eats and breathes horses. Hmm that sounds familiar! On the last day they have a sort of gymkana and her room is already filling up with horsey ribbons, with of course a dose of pet lamb ribbons from A&P shows and Young Farmer shows. Its a shame her wee pony is retired now due her gammy knee but its certainly not stopping her. She gets lessons once a week and has improved ten fold. Its lovely to watch.

Mid Life Crisis?

Ok can someone tell me please... Why do I have winter covers on my horses? Why have a lit the fire in the lounge? Why is it bloooody freezing and raining and windy....and its January, middle of summer? Global warming my ass!! More like global freezing lol

So I am reflecting on things.....I cant believe how fast time goes by. I remember when I was in my 30's, I commented on same thing, only now in my 40's it seems to be going past much faster, god knows how fast it will go in my 50's? I think I may be having a little mid life crisis (or maybe its just this weather!) Is it too late to have a mid life crisis?

Anyway I realise in the last 10yrs, I have slowed down my activities and you know what...I think I'm getting bored and feeling old.

So I'd better get off my ass and get fit and start doing the things I love again. Ok I might not be able to mountain bike the pylon track or gallop around the paddock on my horse bareback and in a halter (wow did we really do that !) but I can still mountain bike and still do 2 day horse treks....And who says I'm to old for indoor soccer LOL

Now im a doofus!

Ok we went out yesterday and got back home quite late. I had totally forgotten that I had left the covers outside...well....what happens....this morning its raining and cold and my two oldies were shivering. Covers were soaked right thru, so I wasn't quite sure what i was going to do.

Thinking cap on....firstly I put the big old guy in the barn with some hay, so he was happy. Then i found my old shetland cover. Ok so I have a Shetland size cover that some how had to fit on my 11.2hh pony. Hmmm not rocket science it isn't going to fit. But i plonked it on her back anyway and gave her some hay . She warmed up quite quickly and it stayed on for quiet some time. I decided she will have to go into the barn to, even though she absolutely hates it.

As for the others, well they just have to tough it out im afraid..after all its supposed to be summer not Winter!! I do need new covers for next winter, but dont have the cash at the moment to go and buy them now.

This weather is very frustrating, I really wanted to ride Harry over the hills this week!!! I bet that when the kids go back to school, the sun will shine and the thermometer will rise LOL...Suppose i can wait until then, its only 3 weeks...

Silly Doofus!

Well I checked on the big lad (who is in Jenny craig pen) to check his water and to give him his breakfast. As I was walking towards him he didnt look right...and gave pathetic whinny,then i saw....silly buggar had got his foot stuck in the haynet! I hate hay nets for that reason, so i have been extra careful...but...

So i have no idea how long he was like that. Hopefully he just did it, but it could have been anytime in the night. Unfortunately his good front leg was stuck so his weight was on his sore leg. So back to square one ..again. Might have to get the vet up tomorrow..

Back to work

Well i decided it was time to put some serious work into the fat wee ornaments in the paddocks!

So first off it was Jocks turn, well what a performance from a 14.2 pony. You would think that there was a big scary monster behind him ready to munch his tail off. Talk about jig jog jig jog. Very nervous for some reason and ears laid back...not a happy chappy. So i just worked him slow and then there was the beginning of that dreaded rear. He didn't managed to do it but i could feel him getting ready. A few yells and growls at him made him change his mind, but it had certainly made my mind that he is not a good prospect for my daughter. Shame as he is a lovely looking chap and does have nice moves. But i will work him more and see if its the grass that's still making him go silly.

Then it was Harry's turn (Thats him in the photo here) What a lovely willing chap he is, always trying to please. I just lunged him today and spent some one on one with him.


Holden is still in the fatty paddock, much to his disgust. Cant work him yet but hopefully in a few weeks he will be better.

Old Friends

Its funny how you can come across many horses in your life, but there will always be one or maybe two that will stay with you forever. The dark bay in the photo is of my old horse "Roo". I got him as a 9yr old and when i saw him for the first time I was in love.... He wasnt flash but had been a B grade jumper at one stage and had potential. Though he certainly didnt show it when i took him over a log, he flately refused not once but three times, there was no way he would jump, even the owner at the time couldnt get him to jump. But i didnt care to much ...he was the horse i wanted..
So that was that and we were together till he was PTS at the grand age of 34! He got cancer of the mouth a very agreesive cancer so there was nothing we could do. Im not sure if you can have a horse as a soul mate but I think we were darn near it. We were very much tuned it, he followed me everywhere, he knew what i wanted and I him. Its been 5 years now since he has gone and i still miss the grumpy old sod... One day I will write a book of all our adventures, as there certainly was many happy and a few nail biting moments we had together.

The grey pony was "Alfie" a cheeky wee shetland who i trained to pull a cart. He had his moments and could be very stubborn but didnt have a bad bone in his body. I had the wee chap for about 15 years, got him as a year old colt, but sadly he struggled with cushings for many many years.