Booked for the big snip

We had an appointment at the vets today for the dogs to get their annual vaccinations. While we were there I had a word with the vet about getting Obi castrated. We've been thinking about it for a while, the main reason is that he's getting a bit grumpy and over excited as he gets older and the second is that he's completely off his head every time Elfin (our dobe bitch) comes in season. So the deed is done, he's booked in for the 2nd June. Poor boy, luckily he's blissfully unaware of what awaits him!
I just had to take a pic of this today as we've been waiting for two years for this clematis to produce a flower. Hurray!!

Much improved

The trimmer was due at midday so I took Anky out for a hack after breakfast. She was so much better today, on her toes but willing and forward. I intended to do a short circular ride to the wood and then ride past the house up to the school and do a short session there. As we approached the house I could see Gareth's van in the driveway, he'd arrived early, so the ride was cut short but it didn't matter as I was so pleased with her.
I'd noticed that Anky's boots seemed a little loose so after he'd trimmed her we measured her feet and they've definitely changed shape, more upright and shorter at the toe, so after speaking to the hoof boot people,new boots have been ordered and are on their way.

I really wanted the Easyboot Glove,

but unfortunately Anky's foot shape wouldn't be ideal as the measurements are between two size categories,so we went for the Easyboot Edge

The Egoscue Method........

......of Health Through Motion.
I'd like to thank Trudi  for lending me this book.
If it wasn't for the fact that, right from the beginning, the author stresses that however misaligned and disfunctional a person has become through not using their body efficiently and correctly, it can all be rectified, this book would be very depressing indeed.
Standing relaxed in front of a mirror and following the guidelines set out in the book, the reader is able to self diagnose any faults in posture. I have only read the first 4 chapters and already I know that my feet are splayed outwards, my kneecaps are angled outwards, my shoulders are rolled forward and stay in that position because I am not bearing weight in the functional four socket position with the head, shoulders, hips, knees and ankles in alignment. Also, my right shoulder is lower than my left. Gulp, I am disfunctional in many ways. LOL, I've already phoned the knacker man!!!
The book is fascinating and despite the fact that I'm sure the faults that I've mentioned are just the start and there will be more, I'm so looking forward to working my way through the rest of the book and finding the relevant exercises to fix myself!
Pete Egoscue Website
As a complete contrast, I glanced up whilst reading, to see Bonbon walking down the field - it was magic, she was striding out, her neck stretched and lowered, she was completely relaxed, I could see her muscles rippling and her summer coat was gleaming in the sun. Corny I know, but it was poetry in motion.

R,B,A and A again.

A busy day with the horses today. Another session in the school with Remy, lunging at walk and trot followed by some groundwork using the whole of the school, small circles off the track, halt, immobility,walk transitions. He was very good today and I finished by asking for halt and then placing my small tub at his side, jumping up and down on it to see how he would react and then leaning over his back from both sides. He looked sideways at me as if to say 'what the hell is she doing?' but didn't move.
I walked Bonbon around the garden, keeping her focussed, asking for halt and standing calmly before asking for the walk transition. She was a bit spooky around the front where we've never been before but she stood calmly when asked and handled it well.
A short session with Anky, lungeing at walk and trot followed by some in-hand work with some leg yield and giravolta on both reins. She's starting to stay more relaxed over her neck and is coming straighter on the left rein.
They were all hanging around the gate again at 5pm, I felt like riding so I brought Anky in with the intention of going a short hack. She wasn't very impressed and  wouldn't stand for me to get on. When I did get on she immediately tightened up and refused to turn up towards the gate.  I spent 10 minutes or so on the yard asking for flexions left and right until she started to loosen and we headed up to the gate. She was certainly on her toes, thinking backwards, rushing forwards but we got up to the track into the woods before she veered off into the field and started throwing her head around and backing up. The wind had got up by now and she was certainly "on one" so I just kept asking until we got a nice flexion and then circled her in that direction, alternating left and right. It was obvious that she wasn't going to settle, but she was behaving herself and doing what I asked her despite the fact she was worried so after walking towards the wood a short distance I turned and headed for home. She was very active so I practiced leg yields left and right. When we turned into our driveway and stopped at the gate she let out a huge sigh. Bless!! I must start riding out again, it's been too long!!!

My boy's too tall for a wobbly dustbin!!

Took Remy in the school today and started just by asking him to stand and remain standing until I ask for something else. Sounds simple doesn't it! Probably due to my sloppy training he halts and then tries to guess what I'm going to ask him next, he'll either walk on, or, like today, volunteer a rather nice giravolta. He tries to anticipate as soon as I place myself close at his shoulder, so, on Jim's suggestion, I asked him to stand, stood perfectly still myself and then I walked to his side, gave him a gentle pat, quarters, round the back and returned to his head, gently patting him all the time. I repeated this 3 times and it worked every time, he didn't move a muscle. When I returned to his shoulder he remained standing waiting for the signal. I worked at walk around the perimeter of the school, using small circles, changes of rein and walk/halt transitions. Once he was calm and focussed I halted him, stepped up on my improvised mounting block and lent over his back. He was fine so I repeated it on both sides letting him take my weight ( quite considerable, believe me!). He was a very good boy as the only thing I had as a mounting block was an upturned wobbly dustbin.
I had a short session with Bonbon on the yard, leading and halting, she was very calm.
I wanted to ride Anky but she was stretching a litle so I took her out and lunged her at walk and trot. She didn't look particularly tight over her back and after a few minutes started to stretch down ( to eat the grass I might add) so we did a little in-hand work and she gave me a really nice giravolta on both reins. he's seemed ok since.  A good day with the horses.

An afternoon at the pepiniere/jardinerie

I had a lovely afternoon out with Bev today. She came over for lunch, we had a giggly girly 10 minutes on the trampoline and then we went over to the  pepiniere, jardinerie (tree nursery/garden centre). It's a fantastic place, acres of land with a vast selection of trees and plants. We were very conservative this time, I bought only a couple of things. A lemon tree and a beautiful plant with white leaves that look like flowers, I can't remember what it's called as the label has fallen off, Bev would know. I saw some beautiful trees though that I've earmarked for our next visit!!

When I got home, Jim had just brought the washing in. I couldn't resist taking this pic of my little sweetheart, Inca.

Mummy's Boy

The horses were hanging around the gate this afternoon, so I brought them out one by one to work them.
First a session with Anky in the school. Remy wasn't very happy and I could hear him calling throughout but Anky just ignored him. Little mummy's boy, it'll do him good.  We started with the in-hand and then ridden. We're getting the start of a nice giravolta and today she kept the softness through her neck for a few strides before beginning to tense again. She was very spooky when we started, but was pretty calm by the time we finished the session.
A couple of short sessions with Remy and Bonbon. First Remy, a 10 minute session concentrating on the halt, asking for the softness through the neck and then asking for the walk transition, back to halt or into giravolta. He got some nice steps today staying up through his shoulder with a nice, even stride.
A short in-hand session with Bonbon asking and maintaining the halt, softness through the neck to a walk transition. She's not as shufflly (not sure that's a word) as Rem and seems quite happy to stand until asked to walk on. 

No Ulcers.

It's official, the test has been done and Anky does not have Gastric Ulcers. I'd sort of come to that conclusion myself, but now I know for sure. To be honest it doesn't change anything, she still gets episodes of gassiness (trapped wind,I guess) but I can now rule ulcers out once and for all. I wonder if there is an equine supplement for trapped wind? Her current diet consists of grass more or less 24/7, hay when they come in for the few hours every day, two/three feeds per day of Dengie Hifi Lite,Baileys Lo-Cal Feed Balancer and unmolassed sugar beet. To this I add Aloe Vera Juice, Slippery Elm, whole colostrum powder and probiotic twice per day.

Vide Grenier

I had a day off from the horses today, hehe, well , they had a day off from me!!
I went to to Brantome with Bev to the vide grenier (empty attic), think car boot/jumble sale, where the french try to sell all their old junk for ridiculous prices.
We had a great day, ahem, buying old junk, a truly french 2 hour leisurely lunch and a good natter. The scene was perfectly French, right down to the street singer/hurdy gurdy man who was great, albeit a little freaky!

Cantique et Cigale

More of the same today but working in the little area at the bottom of the garden. Remy was pretty focussed and we got some nice halt and walk transitions. We practiced the giravolta and he gave me some nice steps without backing off or trying to pivot.
Anky seemed very well this morning and was nice and relaxed and soft in her neck, rather spoiled by her snatching at the grass. We did get some lovely stretch in trot, but unfortunately for the same reason, lol she looked like a living lawn mower.
I took Bonbon into the chook run again and she was much calmer. She got a little spooked once, gave a little squeal and thought about leaving, but I kept hold of the rope this time and she just came back to me and was pretty calm.
We were invited to a concert of choral music this evening given by my friend Ricky's choir and a choir from Holland. I have to say that it's not my favourite type of music, but it did sound brilliant in the church at Busserolles. As an encore, they sang something entirely different, a rendition of  'La Mer Chantée' which turned out to be a rather nifty version of the Bobby Darin hit 'Beyond the Sea'.

One, two, three...........

Started with Remy today. A short session in-hand. He was tired and distracted so we kept it simple with walk/halt transitions, trying to keep the neck soft and long. I've been thinking about his focus and the need to quicken his reactions, so worked on the ask, having been reminded of the old concept, 'do as little as possible and as much as necessary', which is easy to overlook when concentrating on several things at once (hehe, for me anyway).
Anky was next and we worked again in the school, in-hand first, asking for a release over the neck, keeping the relaxation. She was more relaxed today and the left rein felt much better from the start. She was fine ridden and kept the relaxation on both reins. She showed no discomfort again during the session, but when we returned to the stables she started stretching (as she would stretch to pee) but still wanted to eat. I don't know what to think now, I've seen her stretching in the field on and off during the afternoon, but she came in for a feed mid afternoon and also ate her tea.??????
I figure it's time to start doing more with Bonbon so I tied her up outside for a good grooming session which she loves and then took her into our new mega chook run for some grass as it's far too long and we can't see the chooks. This was a new experience and she was handling it very well, out there on her own, chooks pecking on the muck heap, all the others in the stable. She was eating the grass, but her ears were going ten to the dozen and every few seconds she stopped chewing just so that she could listen. At one point she raised her head and looked intently down the field. I just stood quietly with her and she put her head back down to eat, but whatever she'd heard, it got the better of her and suddenly she just squealed and legged it to the top of the run. I couldn't have held her and I let go of the rope immediately and Jim caught her at the top. I went up to collect her and she didn't seem too upset so I walked her back down and after a couple of minutes of looking, with small squeals ( I could tell she was really thinking of going back up to the top, but she didn't) with me talking gently to her to keep her attention, she settled and began to eat again. I led her round quietly, and gradually we worked our way back to the top of the run. I had in mind that she may get a bit worried once she'd turned her back on whatever had bothered her before, but she stayed calm and we reached the top with no problems. She's a sweetie (why do you think we called her Bonbon!).

A smile to lift the heart

Off this morning to collect my horse feed. We get an order every few months from the UK as I've not found a horse feed in France that was suitable. After picking it up I went over to Trudi's with the Lexington so that she could try it for a second time. On arriving, I got the biggest beaming smile from her daughter, a smile to lift the heart. What is it about kids that they can do that to you?
I had a lovely time, a chance to not act my age, a nice relaxing lunch and then we played with the pones. Great - thanks guys.

A busy morning

I took Anky up to the school and we worked in-hand, concentrating on relaxation. She was very tense and distracted but I used the massage to encourage her to relax and stretch down. It took a while but eventually she gave and almost immediately started to relax and stretch. We kept losing it as she raised her head in response to something she'd either seen or heard ,the muscles in her neck going completely rigid, but we continued with the massage and after each distraction she relaxed more quickly, to the point where I could move her around the school, keeping longer and longer periods of relaxation, using circles and a little leg yield. After this I had a little sit on and we worked in walk encouraging the stretch down, changing the rein as soon as I got some softness, eventually working figure of eights with nice changes of bend.
I was pleased with the right rein, which felt much improved as soon as I got on, with genuine bend and softness. The left rein is trickier, Anky has a tendency to want to twist her neck and tip her nose to the inside, but with a little massage onboard, she started to relax and give a little. Trudi's got it absolutely right, the tenseness is most definately in her neck and not in her mouth. A good session which was spoiled slightly by Anky stretching and looking uncomfortable once back in the stable. She'd shown no discomfort during our session, but back in the stable she lay down and didn't eat her dinner.After about 10 minutes she got up so I took her out and lunged her very gently at trot which perked her up and she started wanting to eat the grass, so was obviously feeling better. Phew.
I then took Remy up to the school and worked in-hand on keeping his attention, not letting him walk through my hand and getting a quicker reaction. He was distracted, but after a while he started to listen, we worked around the perimeter of the school with small circles off the track, halt/walk transitions and lots of changes of rein. We finished our session with a much more focussed and relaxed horse and got a lovely leg yield on both reins. Hee heee!

Le Trampoline

C'était ma leçon française aujourd'hui qui était beaucoup d'amusement.  Je voulais travailler avec Anky et Remy cet après-midi, mais le temps était horrible. Il ne pleut plus pendant une courte période et le soleil brillait, mais les chevaux étaient loin au fond du champ, alors Jim et moi avons commencé à construire le trampoline que nous venons d'acheter. Malheureusement, après seulement quinze minutes, il a commencé à pleuvoir, alors nous l'avons terminé sous la pluie!   Espérons que, quand la pluie cesse, je peux commencer ma condition physique programme!
E.T.A
Well, the rain stopped and I had my first session on the trampoline. It's harder work than you might think.
Started off pretty well

Energy levels going, going......

Gone!!

 The horses were quite interested and a little bit bemused by it all

 Notice the rugs are back on and the decidedly bedraggled look after all the rain!! Sigh.

Intrepid, Moi?

No, most certainly not, but I'm ever so grateful for the award given to me by KK at All Horse Stuff.
Here it is - I take a bow ;-)

Anky and Rem in the school

Trudi came over today and helped me with Anky and Remy. I haven't worked them for a couple of weeks and Trudi provided some much needed motivation. She worked Anky in-hand and ridden, concentrating on getting her to relax her neck and stretch down using massage just behind the poll and along the top of her neck. It had an irrisistable effect and I think the more we do the better Anky will be. I agree with Trudi that this could be the key to the work with her and once we have more consistent relaxation the quicker we'll progress.
Remy was chilled to the point of horizontal today, he's a good boy but he just has to learn to concentrate on what's being asked of him and give a quicker reaction. Ho hum, I've a lot to learn. Me, Anky and Remy, we all have a lot to learn.
Thanks Trudi, you're a pal!

Playing on the beach

We used to take our horses to the beach, but we couldn't do this.

Jean-François Pignon.

A musical interlude.....

.....over at Ricky's today. We always have a good laugh when we're playing. We didn't actually play much music today but we had a good giggle!! The sun came out just as I was leaving home and when I got there she was preparing her pool for action - she's optimistic!! She keeps inviting me round to swim in her pool, insisting what good exercise it is. Well I can't swim, but I do like to go round to play in the pool and for the chat and drinks! Preferably when the sun's shining!

See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.

A burst of energy......

......not from me unfortunately, but the horses this morning after spending the night indoors. They went out and were very skittish indeed. It was great to see, Remy digging and rolling and teasing Bonbon, Anky throwing herself about and cantering just for fun. Even Corky had a roll and a kick of heels. They managed to retain their enthusiasm for the day for about five hours before the pouring rain got the better of them and they came up and huddled around the gate. So they came into the dry and they're still there, all fed and watered and tucking into their hay. The forecast doesn't seem too bad for tonight so I think that they can go back out later.
 Wow.

What the f**k has happened to the weather??????

It is bloody freezing, we've had to start lighting the fire again, the horses have their rugs back on and won't venture far from the gate, the wind is buffeting the house and it's doing my already frazzled head in!!

 'Ne'er cast a clout till May be out'       Exactly!!!!!

Pole on the ground

Well, Mary didn't win, that's 3 day eventing for you, one down in the show jumping and you drop like a stone. C'est la vie

The red button

Another inactive day today, made easier by having Badminton X Country on the red button.
I'm supposed to be having a lovely day out with Bev at the local plant fair, hmppphh!!
I've always enjoyed 3 day eventing (never myself of course, just watching, although I have done some hunting and x country events in the dim and distant past) and I enjoyed it today. It was good to see Mark Todd back at Badminton and Mary King had a good ( if not a bit hairy) round to end up in second place before the SJ tomorrow.  Karin Donckers did a good dressage test (as usual) with her beautiful mare Gazelle de la Brasserie, but  not so good x country. All those beautiful horses and something to look forward to tomorrow.

f**k

Anky back in the school

No hacking out today so I rode Anky up to the school and the rain overnight has provided a lovely surface to ride on.  She was tense, but we worked on flexions at halt and then attempted to keep the softness into the walk transition. She cannot walk in a straight line ( a bit like me in that respect) so we have our work cut out. She did relax and we got some nice bending and stretching into the hand. It's very inconsistent,but considering her history it's hardly surprising. It just felt good to be working her in the school again.

Simple pleasures

I had a lovely time this morning spending time in the stables grooming all the horses. No chance of ridng today so it was nice just to spend a little time with all of them. Remy and Anky can take it or leave it, although Anky relaxed a little as I massaged her face and ears, Remy just continued to eat his hay, but deigned to notice me when I brushed his front legs (I think he's ticklish). Bonbon loves being groomed and she's got the loveliest coat, very fine and silky. Corky really needed a good grooming and looked much better when I'd finished, she has a beautiful caramel coloured coat.
The vet came this afternoon to take blood from Anky, he will send it to a special lab in Normandy and they can analyse it to see if she has gastric ulcers. It's obviously less invasive than a gastroscopy and apparently 99% accurate.
Marilene came this afternoon to ride her pony in the school. They were very happy with it, it's nice and soft but not too deep. She is learning to ride and this is her first horse, a 6yr old t/b with a seemingly very calm disposition. I think she may come over again.

A calm hack without any extra excitement!

After trying the new treeless over at Trudi's yesterday, I rode Anky out in it today  but set the stirrup bars back a little and put the knee blocks on. I'm beginning to like it quite a lot. It felt better with the new stirrup settings and blocks and allowed my leg to fall  more in alignment.  After my last hack with Anky, I'd already decided to avoid any kind of argument and get off and lead her at the first sign of resistance to continue, so when she refused to go past the stone cutter building I got off and led her past all her usual scary things. She was quite happy to follow me and after about 15 minutes I remounted and we continued on for a while before returning for home.
She was much more forward on the way home so I concentrated on keeping her straight and soft and she was better today. We had two or three short trots and the saddle felt fine.
I had a young girl call round last week to ask if she could use the arena to school her horse. As I haven't got a proper grader and it's been getting quite hard, her father offered to come round and loosen it up for me.  Yesterday whilst I was at Trudi's he came round and did just that. I wasn't here so not quite sure what he used, but it is very soft now( a little too soft, I think) , but I've levelled it today with my little pallet and I think it's going to be fine. I took Remy up there  this morning  before I levelled it and he loved it -  for rolling in - hmmphhh!

Didn't expect that!

When I went down tothe stables this morning, they were all having a snooze, sleeping off the nights exertions.
When Anky saw me collecting the bowls she got up as if to say 'more please'. So instead of working Remy I decided to ride Anky first and try the saddle again.
She wasn't too impressed when I started to tack her up, but we set off with no problems. She was huffing and puffing, over-reacting to everything, but I'm quite used to her by now and with a little encouragement we usually get where we're going.  She was different today though, just in a 'no' kind of mood. I know, we all have them, and I am very patient with her, but today it wasn't working. We sat for five minutes just before the stone cutting place when she refused to go past the sign that she's seen at least 50 times, then she huffed and puffed her way down the field sideways when she decided she didn't want to go down the lane that we always go down.  At the bottom of the field she decided she wanted to go back up the lane towards home and not the other way, but I couldn't let her do that so we sat quietly for a couple of minutes and I asked her again. Well, she was having a real paddy by now, she spun round  quickly and fell backwards into a ditch at the side of the lane. Well, of course I didn't expect that and I remember thinking 'this might just hurt' as she slipped sideways and fell over onto me.  The gods must be smiling because somehow she got herself up without causing me too much grief. It's frightening how much it rattles your brain even when wearing a hat and my brain is rattled enough without any extra.
I was worried she might run off, but I think she was a bit shocked and I managed to grab hold of the reins. She didn't seem to have injured herself so I decided to lead her for a short distance, I could feel my back creaking but it eased as I walked so I continued leading her for about 15 minutes.  By this time I'd led her past all her usual scary places so I got back on and we turned for home.
On the way back I kept her attention by asking her lots of questions, keeping her soft and straight ( not an easy task) , trying to keep the walk active and more responsive to the leg. We came home without further mishap and she was fairly attentive by the time we reached home. Hmmm, we'll see how she behaves on our next hack. ;-)

Treeless Tryout

I took Remy up to the school today, but instead of going through our front field we went by the lane. He's never been this way before and was very good. When we got there we had a short lungeing session and although a little lethargic (they all were this morning) he was very willing.
I ordered a Barefoot Lexington  saddle to try and it came yesterday. Today I took Anky out for a hack to try it out.
My first impression before even putting it on the horse was that it was bulky and like most treeless saddles had an excessively large cantle. The leather feels quite tough and not as soft as I expected, but, no doubt, with a little leather treatment and some working in, it would be ok. It looked quite big when I put in on Anky also, but she's not a very big horse and it definitely wasn't too big for her. When I first got on, it felt quite solid under the seat and harder than I expected, but it was comfortable and quite snug (perhaps a little too snug for my big backside). It came with two pairs of knee blocks but I didn't use them (perhaps tomorrow I'll try it with the small ones) and I'm not sure it'll need them.
Anky was looking at everything today, completely on her toes and at one point she did an enormous spook and spun round,but I didn't move in the saddle. I think that's a good thing under the circumstances, but I don't know if it will allow enough movement and I don't want it to fix me in one position (if you see what I mean). It certainly doesn't feel as wide as the other treeless saddles I've tried, and in fact the more I rode in it, the more I liked it. According to the info it can be placed slightly more forward than a treed saddle as it doesn't impede the shoulders, and after looking at the pics I think I may have placed it a little bit too far back. One thing that I don't like is the fact that it has D rings instead of normal bars for the stirrup leathers so I had to dig out a pair of  ordinary leathers ( I prefer to use the t bar ones).  The D rings are attached by velcro under the seat and can be moved either forwards or backwards depending on the rider.  I've spoken to the agent and she is going to send me a velcro attachment with ordinary stirrup bars so that's not going to be a problem. .Anky felt ok with it and despite being little miss snorty today we did the whole ride and she came back much more chilled than she left.

And - Happy Birthday to Bonbon, she's 3 today.

Zzzzzzzzzzz

Well, I'm bloody knackered, but I've had a lovely day, thanks to good friends and a particularly charming nine year old child.
I now have my stock of Alfa A oil, which smells so lovely I could eat it myself  and Anky has her Outshine oil supplement so we'll see if it helps to get some condition on her.
I'm contemplating the merits of trampolining for weight loss..............

A cacophony of sound.........

.....just about sums up our ride out today.  I had my french lesson this morning (I'm just too tired to write this in french) so Remy had a day off. This afternoon I hacked out with Anky and from start to finish we had a succession of things making noise and giving Anky something to worry about. She was a little star though, striding out with a walk that definitely had potential. To start we had our neighbour dragging  logs across his garden with a quad bike, next a little old guy, hidden behind a tree and suddenly starting up his chain saw (it seems to be a time for 'doing things' with logs).We pass a stone cutting building and today the stone cutting man was busy cutting some lovely pink granite whilst his colleagues were power washing the lorry -  a very unsettling sound. Further along there's a new house just starting to be built and there was new machinery including a cement mixer, in mid mix. At this point Anky turned to me and said 'I'd really rather not mum'.  I dismounted and led her past, snorting and looking rather fabulous, after which we stopped for a few minutes for a breather and I let her eat some grass. When I got back on and headed for home she decided that she might possibly be able to pass the scary mixer and once past, it was plain sailing all the way home. An exciting ride, thoroughly enjoyable.  She seems to be coping without her boots too which is good news.

Remy and Anky Out and About

It was very hot this morning, so Remy and I had a short lungeing session before going out for a walk. He  needed a bit of a change so I took him for a walk up the track. He's been up there with Jim leading Corky but never just me and him. He's been quite sleepy this last couple of days but he soon woke up when I took him up and out through the gate! We went past our neighbours house and he looked at the chickens in the run, snorted at their dog when he came up to say hello, eyed up the silage bales, but was a very sensible boy and I think he enjoyed it. So did I.
After lunch I rode Anky out without Jim and Obi and she was pretty good. She stopped a couple of times, not wanting to go, but I just sat quietly at halt until she decided to walk forwards. We were out for about an hour and she felt easy through her back, and, it felt like a real hack!! Now that's a first!

I just have to fly the flag!!!
Well done Jenson and Lewis!!!

All tacked up.............

All the horses had taken a chill pill this mornng when they came in.

Remy was very relaxed so I decided to put the saddle on him and take him up to the school. It's the second time he's worn a saddle and he was fine with it. We had a very relaxed lungeing session, a very short in-hand session and then I leant over his back (standing on a little tub) and put some weight through the stirrup. He was so good, not fazed at all, so a very postitive experience for us both. Jim took some pics.

Horse, dog and two bods.

Another beautiful sunny day today. Yesterday afternoon I rode Anky out on her own. Jim came along for the walk with Obi.
She was on her toes, but willing to go forward. We had a few little spooks but nothing serious. Today we did the same and she was a little calmer, still on her toes but still willing to go forward. I tried her without her boots as we have mainly tracks and grass to hack on. She seemed fine, so I may continue and see how she goes.
I took Remy in the school again  for a short lungeing session, he was a good boy and we had some nice transitions to trot. I found it much easier in the smaller area. Finally I took Bonbon for another walk around the garden.

Anky and Remy at liberty

We didn't ride this morning as Jim had an errand to do, so, inspired by the demo yesterday, I took Anky up to the school for some work at liberty.I've done quite a lot of groundwork with Anky, but not recently. She was extremely calm and we started with some leading work, alternating then between leading and driving. She was very responsive and we were using the whole of the school. A couple of times when her attention left me and she stood concentrating on something else, I moved over to her and stood with her for a while until her attention returned to me, then either led her away or stood behind her shoulder and asked her to move from that position.  While we were working, a tractor arrived at the  house down the lane from the school and started unloading some metal scaffolding, it was a hell of a noise and Anky went from 0 - 60 in a millisecond. She's done this before, galloping from one end of the school to the other , skidding into the corners. I stood in the centre of the school quietly, waiting until she calmed a little, then started moving with her, quietly, trying to anticipate her movements and refocuss her attention on me. After a short time she started to look at me and then came in to me. Once she'd come back to me she was calm and we continued for a few more minutes before finishing. I was pleased with the session.
I've been wanting to do some liberty work with Remy, but not had the confidence,so once I'd finished the session with Anky, Jim went up to the school and put a temporary fence across the middle so that I had an area of about 25 x 25m to work in.  I thought this would work better with Remy as he wouldn't be able to get too far away from me, especially if he freaked out at something.  He  was very calm entering the school and I led him around the perimeter and he was unfazed by the new fence so I let him off the rope. He stood with me so I started to lead him around the area with halts and changes of direction until his attention drifted and he wandered off to look over the fence, down the field to the stables. I did the same as I did with Anky, went over to where he was directing his attention and when he refocussed on me, we continued. He was a very good boy, the leading was good and the driving from behind his shoulder much better than I expected. I've been moving him about on the lunge with me in this position so I presume he understood what I was asking him. He did try to turn towards me several times  to keep me in front of him, so I just reverted to leading him, then halted and started again, moving him away from a driving position. I think this work is going to be fun and will really help with the lungeing and in-hand work.

My baby's growing up

Bonbon is 3 years old at the end of this month and I'm going to start some groundwork with her. This morning I took her for a walk around the garden, asking for walk and halt transitions. She's very well mannered and responds from a very light request. I asked her to back up which she does very easily, staying nice and relaxed. She was a very good girl even with Remy neighing to her from the stables. Jim took some pics with his new camera.

I had a lovely afternoon out with Bev at a demo which had been organised by one of our local horse groups.
The demo was given by a 'horse whisperer' which I think has become a very overused term and in my view encompasses some questionable methods. I was pleasantly surprised though and  found him to be quiet and calm with a very relaxed  way of handling the horses.

Communication.......yes!!

It's been a lovely day. I took Remy up to the school and he was very relaxed and focussed. We lunged around the school, starting with walk and lots of walk halt transitions. The halt was very good today, he was especially tuned in to my movements. Once he was relaxed and walking out nicely, I asked for some trot transitions which are coming much easier now he's worked out what I'm asking for. I feel we really communicated today.
After my session with Remy I hacked Anky out with Jim and Corky. She walked out really nicely today and it was especially good because I rode her in my treeless saddle which allows you to feel more movement through the horse's back.
Both Jim and I had a spraying session in our hay field this afternoon. There's a thistly kind of plant growing and while it may be quite innocuous it leaves horrible woody stalks in the hay.
So, to finish a busy day I walked  both Remy and Bonbon around the garden to eat some of the long grass

Voici, Blanco

Je ne pouvais pas monter ce matin parce que c'était ma leçon française. La voiture est au garage pour la réparation et nous allions pour cela cet après-midi, donc aucune chance de faire beaucoup avec les chevaux.
Quand j'ai dit à mes amis à la leçon au sujet d'Ermentrude, un d'entre eux a suggéré que je téléphone à son ami qui avait un coq qui a eu besoin d'une nouvelle maison. Nous avons appelé et ainsi, voici Blanco. Il a 9 mois et est sussex blanc.

Avec les filles

Supervisé par JC

Goodbye Ermentrude

I've never really thought too deeply about our chickens, they have their little house and now they have a lovely big run. They peck about industriously all day long and I think they have a nice life with us. Every day they produce a lovely brown egg. When you really think about it that is a real achievement - 1 egg every day!! They are literally egg making machines. Every now and then something goes wrong and today we lost our lovely Ermentrude when she prolapsed trying to lay our daily egg. Apparently it's just something that happens (according to chook expert Jim)and nothing could have been done for her. Jim found her lying next to a tree with the other two standing over her. So, ironically, we now have the largest chicken run I've ever seen for just two chickens. Jim says we must get a rooster and re-populate.

Over indulgence

After a day to recover the after effects of a night out ( a rare occurrence these days), a big feed, few glasses of wine and staying up gassing until 3am, (thanks Bev and Trudi for a good night), we decided to ride out again today. It was ok, Anky seemed fine and they were both calm despite the blustery wind. We went a little further today and were out about 45 mins. If Anky stays well, we'll gradually build up the length of our rides and perhaps add in some short trot sessions. It was very blustery so I just took Remy out around the garden for some grass to see if he could relax despite the wind and he was fine.
We had someone round to give us a quote for the new horse shelter, so will just have to wait and see what they come up with.

Joyeux Anniversaire...........to me

Happy birthday to me! Happy birthday to me!
Haaaapppy biiiirrrthdaaaay tooooo,oooo meeee,eee!
Ooooh happy birthday tooo meeeee!

hip hip huraaaaaay!!!!!!!


Gareth (barefoot trimmer) came yesterday and all the horses were fine, especially Corky and Anky transitioning from having their shoes taken off. I had yet another opinion on Anky which was that I should ride her ( light hacking) to see if it helps. I've considered this many times, and, in fact, when she's been well I've exercised her by lungeing, it's just that when she is well I'm loathe to do anything that might change that. I know myself that exercise would help with her digestion so I made the decision to just do it and see what happens.
She's been good for several days now, eating and behaving like any other horse so today I rode her. Jim and I went for a hack, she was absolutely fine, I'd even say willing LOL, she didn't feel tight through her back and I know she was ok as she kept trying to eat grass as we walked along. The weather's been good to me today, it's beautiful,sunny and warm. I'm off to mow the lawn.

Happy hens, happy teeth

We let them into their new run today and after a little hesitation they scooted down to the grass and stayed there all day. This is the run down to the trees at the bottom which were being eaten to death by the horses, now nice and safe, protected by the fence.

I don't think they could believe that we'd actually opened the pop-hole for them.

Ok,now we're going for it.

Yes!!!!!

The equine dentist came today and they were all very well behaved. Remy had quite a bit of work but was stoic, standing quietly with a resigned look on his face. Bonbon had a light rasp. The last time he came (6 months ago) she had no work done, he just introduced her to the gag and the baby rasp so she did really well. Corky was pretty much ok and Anky needed no work at all. All in all a good result.

We started Anky on the colostrum today, 100ml. The vet recommended 3/4oz (about 100ml) 3 times per day so that's what we're going to do.

Work in the rain

The sun had deserted us this morning, I guess two days in a row had tired it out.
It was raining, but it was warm and calm. I did some work with remy on the lunge, getting more relaxation at the walk and then asking for a trot transition. His transitions to trot are a little tense, but today we got a nice calm one. I did a little in-hand work and tried some leg yield. He moves smoothly over on the left rein, but is a little sticky on the right rein, with a tendency to ground the inside shoulder. We finished on a good note though with him lifting his shoulder and offering some nice steps.
Anky's been ok the last couple of days and tomorrow I have a friend coming over with some colostrum so we'll see if it helps. I have some freeze dried whole colostrum on order, hopefully here within the week.
And.........we finished the chook pen, they'll be so chuffed tomorrow when we let them in there. The sun will be back tomorrow.

2 days in a row.....

........it's been sunny and warm. Took Remy up to the school again, it was quite windy this morning so just had a lungeing session, moving him around the school. We practiced the halting today. He's very willing to walk off, but not so keen on halting, but today was better and he was more focussed. We also worked over the trotting poles and weaved in and out of the jump wings which helped to keep his attention. A good session. Jim took some piccys.

We spent most of the afternoon putting the wire on our super duper chook pen. Hopefully we'll finish it tomorrow and we can let them in. I think they're going to love it.

Warm!!!!!!

A busy day today. The sun was shining and it was WARM!!!!!!
Started by bringing the horses in. Took Remy up to the school. A simple session, wanting to practice the flexion work that we've been doing  inside. Started with lunge work around the school, fine at walk, he's starting to relax and stretch down more so went on to some in-hand asking for slight flexion to the inside followed by a lengthening and slight lowering of the neck to walk transition. He was a little distracted in the school whilst we were doing this, but it was fine for a first session.
Before lunch I managed to get some weeding done and after lunch the horses came up from the bottom field, so I brought Corky in, gave her a really good grooming ( she's getting a lovely summer coat) and went out for a ride. It was bliss, just what I needed.
Finally, I treated the pergola on the terrace with some much needed wood stain.

Thank you

Well, the weather gods obliged and we had a day with some sunshine. It rained a little this morning, but was fine for a few hours this afternoon. I managed to prune all the roses and it was dry enough to mow the lawn. Just a high topping, but it looks much neater now.
Anky's been uncomfortable all day on and off.  Nothing extreme, she's been eating,but laying down for periods throughout the day. She ate her feed when we brought them in and it's forecast good weather tonight so they've gone back out. I'm hoping the weather improves so that they can stay out 24/7. Hopefully we'll have the shelter up soon.

Please stop raining!!!!!

That's what I thought this morning as I awoke to the sound of rain on the skylight.
Anky wasn't right this morning, she ate her breakfast, but not with the gusto she's had this last 10 days.
Of course, I put the kiss of death on it last night by saying to Jim that for the last week or so she's been the best we've seen for a long time.
Anyway, she was stretching a little and lying down, so I took her for a walk around the field and she had a couple of rolls. We stayed out for about 30 minutes, until she passed some droppings and then I put her out with the others. She still wasn't happy so we gave her an intramuscular injection of calmagine (anti spasmodic) which seemed to make her more comfortable. At time of writing she's out eating, looking ok.
Her blood tests have finally come back and appear to be within normal ranges, a few slight anomolies but nothing that would suggest serious illness. Her liver levels were slightly high, but not high enough to suggest liver disease. We have consulted  another vet, who has analysed the test and been given her history, she seems to think that it's not ulcers and is feeling (as are we) that it is an intestinal tract problem.

Possibilities include irritation in the hind gut from enterolith sand accumulation, unresolved tapeworm or small strongyle infestation. Another possibility is a small intestinal inflammatory process, either food triggered or autoimmune (they might actually be the same thing).  I don't think it could be sand accumulation, but will test for that and she has been on a very strict worming program all the time we've had her (although she may have worm damage from not being wormed properly as a youngster). She has suggested supplementing her with colostrum (although I know all about colostrum, I've never heard of it being used as a supplement on an adult horse) as it helps to support immune system function, combat bacteria & viruses and maintain healthy intestinal flora.  In fact it acts as a totally natural anti-biotic without all the side effects.It also helps to improve skin & muscle rejuvenation,support joint & cartilage function and build muscle mass. Bloody hell, it sounds great, I should take it myself!! Anyway, I'm looking into it.
 

Ooh, can I eat those?

It's been a bit of a washout again today. Windy and heavy showers, no let up really. We planted our trees though and I continued to clear the yard ready for our new gravel (lol, I can dream!!).  I did a bit of work inside with Remy, flexions and stretches.  He's becoming much more relaxed with the work in the cavesson and today I stood at his shoulder and asked for inside and outside flexions from this position, working with the outside rein over his neck.
I also introduced Bonbon to the training cavesson, asking for small flexions left and right. She was fine with it and responded to a light feel on the reins. I had to be careful with the reins though as she wanted to eat them!

How many trees........

........can you cram into one medium sized 4x4?
Well, I can tell you, it's 7, plus various shrubs, pot plants and grasses.
 I had a much needed afternoon out at a local Pépinière (garden centre, tree nursery) with Bev today, and somehow we managed to spend over 3 hours there (it is a rather big garden centre) buying quite a lot of stuff!!
I think Bev's going to be very busy planting over the next few days!!  It was fun, thanks Bev.