The Not-So-Secret Diary of Diva the Shetland Pony - Floof!
18/04/2024Diva (Melland Queen of Scots) usually gets her summer coat quite early compared to other horses and ponies, but this year she has been holding onto hers for a lot longer.
It’s been a bit of a soggy, ok soaking wet few weeks! We have had the occasional dry day which has been lovely, but the majority has been us trying to fit a ride around the various showers that kept appearing – and some days it was unavoidable so we had to put up getting soggy!
I must have looked like a creature from a swamp at the weekend; on returning home from checking/feeding the horses whilst poopicking in the most torrential down pours this year, I think if I wrang my clothes out I could easily have filled a tub truck! I wore layers and a long waterproof coat…or so I thought! The rain was that heavy it went through every layer – and what sympathy did I get from the other half on my arrival home? A bit of sniggering leading to full blown laughter (before a small bit of sympathy at seeing how wet and cold I was)!
Bob’s been a major nuisance as he has gone through another week of being unbelievably sharp – and the only thing I can put it down to is the grass growth as thanks to the weather we have so much long Green grass!! He loves it but unfortunately cannot handle it.
We have gone back to basics the last few weeks limiting what he has been allowed to do as at one point – just going in to trot ended up in full blown extended strides flying round the arena!!
He also managed to spook at a leaf – yes just one, that floated through the air towards him, then a dog on the other side of the road that we have seen every day for 6 YEARS! Honestly, the things he was spooking at I couldn’t even pre-empt it was that random!
But I am pleased to say in the last few days he has begun to settle down more and become the horse I know – phew especially as we have a competition at the weekend providing there are not rivers running down the roads!
The horses will be pleased with me, I attended an open day at a tack shop in the next county as I seen it on facebook and it supported one of my fav charities – the air ambulance. We went along and spoke with a few of the feed companies who had stands discussing various supplements and feeds.
I also entered a couple of their competitions and the horses and dogs also got a lucky dip each which they have all loved – treats and toys…and I got a text in the evening to tell me I won a prize in the raffle yay! It was a choice of a 5kg horselyx for the neddies which I know they will love (although bob will have limited access to it).
Autumn has been a diva the past week or so just because I have been making her wear her rug! With this wet weather I’m sure she feels it in her joints so sulking or not she had to deal with it! I’m looking at the turmeric type supplements at the minute for her, as although she has been okay on her current one, I don’t feel it is giving her everything she needs especially with her old joints and stiffness, so this is something I am exploring.
I was lucky enough to get a small sample of one of the supplements to try her on to see if she would eat it, and luckily she does! The sample is only enough for a few days and unfortunately due to the weather and the arena now being a lake I haven’t been able to see if there’s any minimal changes yet.
I went to a very interesting talk last week on horse biomechanics and how their confirmation affects them, led by a veterinary physiotherapist. It was really insightful and I was pleased to know I understood all of the discussions (and got questions right whoop!). I managed to get some time at the end to have a brief chat about Aria and her legs as I want to see how to help her and strengthen them.
I showed a few pics and videos of her (hurrah my 2000+ horse pics came in useful – although it did take me a good few minutes… okay over 10 to find said video!) to explain what I meant, and have had a few suggestions on what to do such as using kinesiological tape on her back legs and working her on a flat surface (her field) to strengthen her legs as in the arena its quite deep.
I’ve booked in to attend another talk at the end of this week on equine behaviour which I’m looking forward to as I would like to understand Bob and Aria’s behaviours a lot better or at least understand possible causes of it.
Let’s hope the weather holds out and I can have at least one session of jumping ahead of the weekend otherwise we may have to just go on a wing and a prayer (with me probably ending up hugging a wing – a jump wing that is!). You never know Bob may behave himself……………..hahaha!
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