I know this is a touchy subject for most horse owners but it is one that really gets my goat.  The amount of times that I hear some idiot is putting down there horse without any serious investigation because its lame infuriates me.  Now, I do understand that if the horse is in pain and discomfort and the lameness has been fully investigated then OK, but beyond this..........then you really shouldn't be a horse owner in the beginning.

Firstly, your horse should always be insured, failing that you should have a pot of money ready to spend on it if it gets injured or sick.  You should not own a horse without this.  If you don't have insurance and/or a pot of money to cover those occasionally uninsured elements, you should not own a horse.  They are expesnive creatures.

Now, I'll tell you why I am writing this. The amount of horses that I have heard of being put down for uninvestigated lameness lately is insane.  We all know lameness can be really tricky to treat and diagnose, sometimes you just don't know what is wrong despite doing all the things you can like bone scans, x-rays, MRI scans, rest, shoes off, therapeutic shoeing, diet change, exercise change and the list goes on.  But without going through all of the above and giving time, I would say at least a year for you to try and diagnose and treat, then you should not be putting your horse down unless its exceptional circumstances or major pain.

Nower days people dispatch their broken horses like flys and it irritates the crap out of me.  Don't get a  horse if you aren't prepared for at some stage for it to be lame, because it will be I guarantee you.  And if it does go lame, treat it and try some various options, there are so many things we can do to help lame horses.  If you need some ideas, look no further:

1. Call the vet to look;
2. X-ray;
3. MRI scan;
4. Bone scan;
5. Physio;
6. Chiro;
7. Change of exercise regime;
8. Change of diet;
9. Increased turnout;
10. Change of shoes / try barefoot / therapeutic shoes;
11. Supplements - joint, hoof etc etc;
12. IRAP / PRP treatments;
13. TIME !!!!!!  These things do not fix over night.  For example, if you take shoes off it can take 12 months before the feet adjust properly.  At the end of it you may have a sound horse !
    
14. Rest - find a big paddock to turn your horse away in for a while, it's not going to cost much at about 120 pounds a month, and that's in Surrey !
    

I speak from experience when I say the above, I literally tried everything over the course of a year and finally my horse is sound.  These things do work but it can be a lot of trial and error, especially if the vet does not know exactly what is wrong, and that happens a lot !  But please please don't just shoot your horse, he should always be worth a year of your time to try and fix him.

Now, before I start this little blog, I should say I didn’t know what the Jolly Farmers Meet with the Kent and Surrey Bloodhounds was all about.  I had a rough idea that the jumps might be slightly bigger than normal and that there was a fair amount of jumping, and this is what I relayed to my merry team.  However, it was all a slight understatement as I later found while galloping along with my mouth hanging wide open as my friends awesome cob charged off in front and flew over what can only be described as a well over five foot double of hedges with just a few paces in between. 
 
When the hedges just keep coming, you just keep riding and they just come at you so fast that you don’t have time to debate with yourself as to whether or not you may or may not die on landing and this can only be described as a good thing !!  If I had time to think, and look at the approaching hedge and analyse its drop on the other side and the large ditch beneath it and the sheep staring at me on landing, I probably would have to say ‘no thanks’.  But, as it happened, all that I had was my horse, Harry, galloping and popping them like they were the 1’6 feet clear round class.
 
Beyond that, they just kept coming, hedge after hedge after hedge, what an amazing rush of adrenaline as your horse just takes you over them one after another.  Every now and again you find yourself looking around blindly to make sure fellow team members are still in situ in their saddles, which of course they are.  I cannot quite describe the amazing feeling after jumping about 10 huge hedges in a row, I think for me it was mainly shock and I can only really thank my horse as I sat there like a limp fart much of the time occasionally patting him on the neck whilst galloping full pelt.
 
My friends horses range from a fantastic cob with the jumping ability of a stag in full motion and a flirty ex-racehorse who needs some vocal encouragement to avoid use of the handbrake prior to take off (she enjoys seeing her rider engage the air bag) but who can also jump like a deer when she opts to.  We all had a fantastic day.  The Kent and Surrey Bloodhounds are lovely and inviting, and should you part company from your horse (as occasionally is the case) there will always be someone there to catch you and your horse.  Should you not be in the mood for a 6ft hedge, there is always a way around and a friendly field master to guide you on an alternative route.  I cannot recommend them highly enough.  Not only that but their super Photographer Julian Portch always gets some amazing full flight shots so that you can look back on your super day and smile.
 
There is nothing that can beat a day’s hunting, nothing at all and I have tried them all.  Show jumping is over too quickly, dressage is like putting me in front of headlights and eventing deprives me of sleep the night before.  Hunting however never ceases to bring a smile to my face, from the port and mince pies at the meet, to the hedge hopping and high fives as we go along, to the massive love for our horses after a fabulous day. 

All I can say is try it, you will definitely like it. If you are not sure and need some advice, get in touch and take a look at my hunting guide and some info on hirelings , if you don’t fancy taking your own horse!  There is also some helpful info here on the Kent and Surrey Bloodhounds page. Get cracking folks !!

Today was a traumatic day, I am unsure if I will ever fully recover. Hay giver / feed provider / girl thought it would be a good idea to drag me from the calm happiness of my field to go up the long dark place they call the farm driveway.  I cannot put in to words how traumatised I feel after the ensuing ordeal. 

She talked a considerable amount to me whilst she debated removing the caked mud from my face whilst moaning it was MY fault that I was so muddy.  She clearly did not know that the mud threw itself at me as I rolled casually.  I chose not to comment.  She has no right to remove the mud, I protested with my head held high.  I will not be subject to such degrading treatment in front of my fellow horse.

She continued her talks with me about the dark coming in and that we should hurry up, when quite frankly, I am not of the inclination to be rushed so I fidgeted, skipped and leapt occasionally to express my displeasure.

We move off up the darkening farm track. I see wolves eyes glistening at me in the bush, I leap from left to right and bounce accordingly, before realising they are pheasants, I do not feel it right to let the girl know, that I know they are pheasants, she would not realise the danger that pheasants also present to a young horse.  Unfortunately, she remains seated.  We continue up the drive.

She yatters on about one thing and another but I pay little attention to her, my worry is only for the wild horses to my left.  I spot them in the distance and stop.  They are galloping towards me, I snort, are they coming to say hello?  What danger follows?  I snort louder to alert my fellow horses, I whinny loudly but to no avail. 

She continues to press me up the track, she has not seen the wild horses galloping over.  Fortunately, I am happy to rescue us from this situation by spinning and by galloping off at the fastest pace I can in the opposite direction.  She tries to hold me back, but I have to RUN……….THIS IS LIFE OR DEATH.

At this stage I have little care for her, I shall go it alone.  I reach my head down as quickly as I can and throw in the most ferocious air leap I can muster, she stays, she sits, silently. Why?  WHY ? Why would she do this to me?  Does she not know the wild horses are galloping over and every second lost brings me nearer to death ?!

After much to’ing and fro’ing, I look up to see the wild horses have arrived.  They stand looking at me in the paddock adjoining the farm track and mock my lost battle.  I realise it was all a game, the wild horses are the holidaying polo ponies from next door, god damn them and the 100 acre field they roam and gallop about in.  God damn the girl seated on my back.  We walk off, back down the farm track, she does not know I have already spotted another pheasant.

Its a tricky area that's for sure, I have learnt that horses that are broken take a very very long time to come back together again.  Most of the horses in my little herd have one issue or another.  Whether its rearing, bucking, loading or pissing off, I think I can pretty much cover it all.  Each horse has come to me with its issues and I have taken them on in full hopes of managing to get them back to a normal riding state.

So, how long will it take to rehabilitate a horse? It will take FOREVER and even with forever, each horse has the potential to return to its prior behaviour if it is not very carefully monitored and managed.  Two of the horses I took on in February 2016 are well on the mend. My naughty rearer has turned in to my favourite hunter and I can't actually think of the last time he reared, he is an easy going gent.  SUCCESS.

As for the other one, it has turned out his behaviour was down to lameness, he will still try to buck and piss off now occasionally but way way less than he has done before.  He is still very slightly lame, but this is improving every day but is taking huge amounts of time and patience, he will always be sharp I don't doubt that, its just his nature that he likes to keep you on your toes.  What I do know is that he is not innately a mean horse, he was simply telling his rider he was in pain and there is only so much s**t this horse will take.  So, should he have been put down? No, I don't think so, he just needed someone as stupid as me to put up with his weird quirks, take my time and enjoy a fun ride with reduced athletic expectation for now.  Maybe one day he will reach the hunting field, fingers crossed but maybe he will be a happy hacker for the rest of his days, we shall see !

The final pony, he is tricky.  It pisses off on the ground and occasionally decides not to load randomly.  He has only been in the herd for a few months but already he is improving.  I took him hunting on my own the other day and he loaded perfectly, but then other times he just doesn't fancy it - completely random.  He needs more experience of going out regularly and a slightly regimented approach to how he is handled on the ground.  BUT he is only 5, plenty of time yet  - he is always getting better and that is all I need to see, small improvements.  At the point this pony loads on command I shall be loading a video up as that's my aim, at the moment he looks at me like I am insane..........I'm in it for the long haul clearly !

With all my rehab ponies there is no quick fix, it just won't happen with any horse.  Even if you get a quick fix, chances are it will return to its prior behaviour just as fast and as soon as its given the opportunity to do so.  Rider education is also very important and time spent teaching owners would be key.  To all the professional rehab trainers out there, I have to salute you, it can be a tough and a frustrating job but so good to think of the results you can get.

There are a few beaches recommended below, but Bracklesham Bay seems to be a favourite due to handy parking and very few horse riding restrictions !  I emailed Chichester Council to check this with them and it is still the case that you can ride at any time :)

Bracklesham Bay -  highly recommended !

1) Tide Times: Look under Selsey Bill which covers this area - http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/coast_and_sea/tide_tables/8/69#tide-details
2) Riding Times (extract from Chichester Council Website): Horses are permitted throughout the year on our beaches (at any time) from the entrance to Pagham Harbour to our boundary edge at Shore Road in Wittering. However due care and attention must be paid to users of the beach, they are not permitted to jump the breakwaters or race on the beach and owners must clean up after their horses - http://www.chichester.gov.uk/foreshore#horse
3) Parking: Large car park where horseboxes are allowed just by Billy's on the Beach Restaurant, East Bracklesham Drive, Bracklesham Bay, Chichester, West Sussex, PO20 8JS
4) Access: Straight from the car park on to the beach !

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West Wittering

I recently took my niece and my two ponies to West Wittering beach in Chichester for a ride. Info as follows:

1) Check the tide times here (Chichester Harbour is nearest): http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/coast_and_sea/tide_tables/8/68
2) Check what time riders can ride on the beach - From 1st May to 30th September, for everyone’s safety, horse riding on the beach is restricted to before 9.00am and after 6.00pm.  It is always sensible to choose to ride at low tide. 
3) Parking - that's a tricky one - Cakeham used to allow parking of horsebox's but they have since stopped this.  TBC
4) Miles of beach to ride along, just don't get stuck with the tide coming in, leave plenty of time as I left it a bit lose and nearly got a little stuck :)

Gorgeous beach, really good fun, watch out for kite surfers but we had a super time, well worth it !!
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Hayling Island - Another well recommended sandy beach

Tide Times: Hayling Island comes under Portsmouth Tide Times : http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/coast_and_sea/tide_tables/8/65#tide-details
Riding Restrictions: From good Friday to 30th September you cannot ride between 10am and 7pm, after 30th September you can ride any time. http://www.hayling.co.uk/activity/horse-riding/
Parking: Just by the Inn on the Beach Pub, 97 SEA FRONT, HAYLING ISLAND PO11 0AS
Access: Straight on to the beach

So I have been battling with bruised feet and bruised bones in the feet (pedal and navicular) for some time.  Its a difficult one as the horses are so used to wearing shoes, but are now shoeless in the paddock while they are resting.  But, because of this their feet are not used to the hard ground, I have found my mare is still very sore two months on.  She was actually having a slight hop around the paddock the other day and having called the vet out, he has said that she has bruised her sole again, very very sore.  So, having the shoes on would have prevented this, but I get the feeling I need to give the feet longer to adapt, after all she isn't back in work until September.
So for now, I shall persevere with barefoot, but if she keeps going hopping lame from bruised soles just while on holiday in the paddock which is now dry (perhaps the wet to dry change has not helped), I may need to opt back to front shoes.  The hoof boots sadly don't seem to stay on for full turnout, but they are excellent for going out for a little walk in.
I am currently trying different hoof boots, and I am waiting for the Cavallo Treks to arrive, having bought a pair of Equine Fusions already.  They are great, but I think they are a tad too big and this has made a huge difference, these hoof boots really need to fit like a glove to be any good at all.  The Hoof Boutique online store have been superstars in giving me some amazing advice on this point, I think I just need to keep going.  EBay is fantastic for second hand boots so you can get the size right before you spend any major money on a pair of hoof boots. Hoof Boots are a whole new world !!