I wanted to get Travis back out to competition environments, but he definitely wasn't ready for BD novice, his fitness is not up to scratch to carry those huge plough horse shoulders in any sort of elevated manner, so we dusted off (literally) the show gear, and thought this was a great way to get him out and be physically less demanding. I am very glad we went and used the opportunity as he was a very naughty so and so - even rearing so high he pulled my friend up off the floor! But he shone where it mattered and we managed to get a 1st in the hunter class and a 3rd in the solid colours class. We were definitely too tired to hang around for the championship class, but for a first time out, to a competition properly this year, it was great to do something new. Now time for BD this weekend, time to dust off the posh clothes and dance our socks off, on very limited practice and even more limited fitness! No more delays or excuses now!
On the subject of something new we are now officially a small holding, we already had a few chickens, and a large vegetable patch, but now we have our first sheep. I am completely new to sheep ownership, so we just have 2 x 12 week old rams for this year, to build a bond, make them horse, dog, child tame before we get some ewes next year and start breeding.
I am blown away with how affectionate they are in only 7 days of being here. The horses definitely aren't sure what to make of them, but they sure are jealous of their little paddock which currently has the most grass! We have definitely reached maximum capacity at Homestraight Paddocks with 14 animals! Now to actually get the house finished!
Equine insurance specialist now able to offer live prices and immediate cover. Equesure Insurance has launched a new insurance product for horse trailers valued up to £15,000.
The annual trip to Your Horse Live was completed and even my partner enjoyed a bit of it! Okay, he mainly enjoyed the cake stalls (and they were amazing – we took three bags of cake home with us), but also liked the rescue village and heavy horse yard. We got to go into the stable with two donkeys for pats and cuddles and we both loved it.
Five years ago, I had the absolute dream of having my own acreage, but this has honestly been the biggest learning curve, relearning so much about how to better look after our horses and what the land requires. Hopefully, I can give some insight into things I have learnt, mostly by trial and error and lots of mistakes.
After five or six years away from the British showjumping circuit, I’ve rejoined, and this time with my little Connemara standing just about 15HH – and he’s been amazing!