So I did it, a slight impulse buy, but i'm so pleased. I have had Travis for 3 years now and in 25 years of horses, he is honestly my horse of a lifetime, he makes me smile and proud to own him every single day HOWEVER/BUT he really is hard work!
I mean he spooks at everything, regularly colics, he doesn't travel too well, he doesn't stand tied up, he doesn't hack, he doesn't jump, has taken 3 solid years to do a comfortable canter, he is not a pick up put down horse, he definitely doesn't meet the criteria of "all rounder" and he most definitely HAS vices.
So here I am with a new horse, one that will jump, hack, travel, stand still, friends can hop on, I can pick up and put down.... I hope!.... So, actually I bought an ex-racer, who hasn't been sat on for a few months and not really done anything for 18 months! Luckily and so far, he travels well, stands well tied up, hasn't spooked at anything, and has let me have 3 quiet rides in a open field, so I would say, so far, so good!
Hopefully a winter of light work to up the weight and fitness and by spring, I will have the all rounder I wanted! And if he isn't quite all that, then at least he can't be harder than owner Travis, Right?!
Welcome to the family Beniamino aka Beanie, 8 yrs old, 16hh ex Point to Point Racer from Ireland!
Who else has felt the pain of this winter? It's hard to believe we are coming into spring, and yet the last of lockdown is still keeping those winter blues in place! Unfortunately due to the weather here, and the ridiculous hot headed nature of my horses, combined with no travel or arena hire allowed I haven't been able to take the boys out anywhere or ride.
Yassss! Yesss! Horaaah! Finally! I am back on a horse - horses - all of them have been off the yard! It actually feels like an eternity but the minute Boris announced the "road out of lockdown", I sat with the calendar and got filling, admittedly we had a slight hiccup as the lorry despite it's fancy repaint, apparently didn't appreciate being sat still for 4 months and my steering broke, but after many, many pestering phone calls to my mechanic daily (oops) we were back on the road within a week!
So what should you be aware of before immunising your horse? What vaccinations are available, and when should they be administered? And what do you need to know about protecting your animal’s health through insurance for horses?
Ex-racers who have already been away from the track for some retraining can be suitable for a whole range of equine disciplines. However, if you’re looking to buy a horse fresh from a racing career, then you’ll need to do some careful research into retraining. To get you started we’ve put together some guidance on how to retrain one of these sensitive and spirited animals.