the accidental smallholder :: diary archives

Smokey's sair feet!

When we came back from holiday, Smokey had developed a mild case of laminitis. While we were away, the weather had been mild and sunny resulting in a flush of grass - so sair feet for the boy. Laminitis isn't uncommon in slightly overweight ponies who aren't doing much work but it can be very serious if the inflammation is bad.

Lucky for us, it wasn't but it's put an end to Smokey's outdoor 24/7 lifestyle. He's now boxed at night and out for part of the day in a field with his chums but with very little grass. To be honest, he's quite content being in - I thought he might fret, but no. A fellow owner feeds him in the morning, gives him a fresh haynet and tops up his water. I go up at lunchtime and longrein him in the arena before turning him out; I do his box and fill his haynets for night then go back to work (I have my office window open now!); I then go back up about 6pm and bring him in for the night. It's much more intensive management BUT the increased contact has improved our relationship, I think, and hopefully, I'll be able to get some weight off him.

Two other native ponies at the yard has also developed laminitis in the last couple of weeks, neither very serious, fortunately but it's much earlier than usual, so we'll need to be VERY careful in the "real" spring.

Back in the saddle

I was back in the saddle yesterday for the first time in a long time (apart from two very brief and demoralising events over the summer). And it felt good! It was in the arena and we didn't do anything except walk and trot, backup and turns on the forehand but there was no spooking at the trailers, or the jumps, or the digger parked outside the arena fence. Smokey did have a good, long look at himself in the digger's window, but he IS a handsome boy.

I did plan to ride today but just had so many other things to do, I ended up just walking Smokey out in hand for 15 minutes (for his feet). However, the walk gave me a chance to play some games with him, to keep him listening and respectful. The plan is to do this every weekday and ride at the weekend. Give us both the chance to get a bit fitter as well - we trot together, until I run out of breath (not far!).

Maybe some photos soon!

Riding lesson 2

Well, I had my riding lesson and it was fine. In a group with three under tens,it wasn't hard to shine - at least I could keep my horse on the track! We walked, trotted, had a little canter, managed to stay on for a couple of little bucks. So I'm feeling a bit better emotionally - physically, I can hardly walk. I'm going for another lesson on Saturday, then I think it will be time to get on my own horse.

And no cameras!

I'll keep you posted!

Riding lesson

I'm going for a riding lesson tomorrow. I haven't ridden for ages, initially because of a medical problem then latterly because I've lost my confidence. Over the last few weeks, I've started to feel like I want to ride again. I'm going to have a lesson on a school horse for a couple of reasons - firstly, it will know what it is doing and secondly, there is no "emotional baggage" as there is with Smokey and me.

In preparation, I bought a pair of Musto "Snugs". Dan nearly had a heart attack when I told him how much they were - and telling him they were a bargain via the internet didn't seem to help! But, boy, are they wonderful. I haven't seen myself in a mirror (and nor do I want to) but they look fine looking down. And they are soooo comfy - they're like fleecy leggings but you don't feel like you're wearing anything, they are so soft and stretchy. Buying the right size helps - but couldn't they call XL something else, like XXM or something? I've had to take them off because I got them muddy and it was a real wrench (literally!).

So I'm ready for tomorrow and quite excited. I shall report back in due course.

Warm work

It's a lovely day here so we've been working outside. At thsi time of year, it seems that tidying and cleaning are the order of the day - and that suits me fine. While Dan was painting the window frames, I spent a happy hour scrubbing the rubber mats out of Smokey's stable.

Since we moved him home in February, the mats have been stacked behind the wood store - for seven months, I've been going to clean them since February but today turned out to be the day. It was so warm, working in the sun - it never seems so much like work, though.

It's funny how certain smells bring back memories. I was using Jeyes fluid to clean the mats - and it took me right back to when I worked on a farm in Northumberland. We used Jeyes fluid to clean calf buckets and equipment.

I'm glad I kept the mats. When I moved Smokey, I could have sold them to the folk taking his box and I've almost sold them twice since. But I think they will make excellent bases for a brooder and for a sheep shelter. They are non-slip, non-porous, easy to clean and well insulated. I've got three full size mats about 6ft x 4ft (which will do the sheep shelter), three probably half that size (for the brooder) and a couple of "bits", so should have plenty.

I'm planning the sheep shelter now - I think we can probably build something simple if we rope Dan's Dad in to help.

Dan's just brought me a G&T, so I'm off to sit in the late afternoon sun and put my feet up!

Interesting facts about horse poo

As you know, Smokey shares a field with three (or sometimes four) other horses. You may also have read my rant about ragwort and other injurious weeds. Well, I decided I should learn a bit about managing grass for horses. I have, therefore, bought a book called "Managing Grass for Horses" by Elizabeth O'Beirne-Ranelagh. Over the course of the next few weeks, I intend to amaze you with interesting facts.

Today's interesting fact: horses create latrine areas in their field. They will go to these areas to wee and poo. However, horses won't graze near poo (can't blame them for that, can you?) so the latrine areas become full of long grass and weeds. You will have seen this in horse fields - areas of long, rank grass (the ungrazed latrines) interspersed with areas of very short grass, where the horses DO graze. Now, those of you who have horses will already know this, so what's interesting about this? Well, did you know that stallions reverse into the latrine areas to dung, since this marks territory. Mares and gelding face INTO the latrine areas, so make the latrines ever bigger?

Certainly, one of the keys to managing the grass seems to be lifting the dung. Most of us don't have / make time to do it though. Most folk who have horses work full-time - otherwise you can't afford the horse, and if time is restricted and the choice is riding or picking poo, most folk would rather ride. If you have a field of your own or with one or two others, you might be able to get an agreement about clearing the field, but at my last livery, no-one bothered. One or two of us tried but it's thankless (and time-consuming) when you're the only one doing it and you're picking for seven or eight horses.

With this in mind, I was out in the field today picking poo. I have to confess, I haven't done it for some time. And it was clear where the latrines were and also that they were getting wider spread. So I'm working from the outside in to restrict the spread. It's fine just now - there is plenty grass but we'll need the whole field in the winter, unless we have a sacrifice area.

I'm off to bed now to read a bit more... Watch this space for more interesting facts about horse poo.

Smokey's bath

Smokey's just had a wee bath. It wasn't a big bath - he was kind of topped and tailed, so he's white at both ends with a dull brown bit in the middle. He's awful itchy. I had hoped the immunotherapy had worked, and early in the season it looked like it had, but he's awful itchy now. His mane is thin in one place and the top of his tail is rubbed. He's also rubbed his face.

So tonight he had his face, mane and tail washed with insect repellant shampoo, and loads of soothing lotion applied. I don't know whether to put a fly mask on him - I suspect it's too late and sometimes the seams cause more rubbing than they prevent.

The midges were torture this morning - I was getting eaten alive when I was feeding the horses.

After his bath, he got his favourite treat - wholemeal bread and Marmite. He and Johnny love it - they stand for ages after licking their lips. Dan's Dad made lovely bread - and the horses really appreciate it.

Hopetoun House Horse Driving Trials

As if we didn't have enough "driving trials" of our own - we went to watch some yesterday at Hopetoun House. Horse driving trials are the driving equivalent of a three day event. Yesterday was the marathon - the cross country part. We didn't stay long - partly bacause I wasn't dressed for the cold and partly because we had so much to do here.

However, we did do a spot of Royal watching! We knew HRH Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh was one of the judges but when we spotted him on his Easy Rider moped, we had to do a double take. He's good value for 80+ - but he should really get a moped with an electric start - the kick start seemed a bit hard!

Dan took some nice photos - the tandem diving looks scary. I didn't realise how the front horse moved away from the vehicle until I saw the photos. He'll get them on soon.

The Godolphin Arabian

I've just ordered a copy of "The ByerleyTurk" by Jeremy James. It's the true story of one of the three foundations stallions of the English Thoroughbred breed of horse. The other two were the Darnley Arabian and the Godolphin Arabian, I think.

Anyway, this got me reminiscing about books I read as a child (lots of horsey books, mainly).I can remember reading a novel about the Godolphin Arabian but I can't remember the name of the book or the author. I can remember that the horse has a wheatsheaf mark on him and he has a wee, short name. I'd love to read it again so I'm relying on you folk out there to know the name of the book and to let me know.

Over to you and thanks in anticipation.

An endless supply...

Now that Smokey is at home (or as near as makes no difference), I have taken it upon myself to keep the field clear of poo. The first few times I collected it, it went on some of the vegetable beds. Then I made a big pile for autumn application. Then...

my friend Carol took a trailer load and there's another trailer load ready to go.

And a half full wheelbarrow waiting to be emptied into the next empty trailer.

And just as I finished tonight, in the rain, Smokey lifted his tail and deposited another pile, and looked at me as if to say "Don't worry, Mum, I'll not let it run out".

I think I'll advertise it at work...

For horselovers

As you will know, Smokey and I have been learning to drive over the winter and into spring. It's all been going very well and he has been an absolute star.

Last Wednesday, however, we had a bit of a setback. For various reasons that I won't bore you with, there was a bit of a carry-on in the field, so Smokey was a bit hyped up. I wanted to take Smokey driving (a pal of Dan's was going to backstep for me), so I caught him, harnessed him up and started to lead him along the track to the road, where I usually get on. I'm not really sure what happened, but Smokey got more distressed and bolted. I simply couldn't hold him. He went along the track, on to the road, round a 90 drgree bend, then tipped the buggy at the next 90 degree bend.

By the time we caught up, the buggy was on its side, Smokey was on the ground facing the buggy and trapped in the harness. I told Dan to call the vet - I expected him to need a humane killer. We unhitched the buggy (I have safety devices on the swingle tree - thanks, Claire) and cut him free. Then he stood up and walked away.

He had a cut on his off hind leg, on his nose and on his eye; his knees were grazed as was his neck. But he wasn't lame at all. The vet gave him a shot of penicillan and an anti-inflammatory. When I looked out the window on Thursday morning, Smokey was having a really good roll.

I have a broken finger and a few bruises. I can't believe how lucky we are. I thought I'd lost him.

Anyway, this is really background. The real point of this post is Smokey's head. Although he wasn't badly hurt physically, he was so uptight and spookey. He's always been a very laid back horse - left brain and dominant. But he couldn't stand still - at the slightest noise or movement, he was off. I was pretty upset about this. We've had our ups and downs over the last five years, but I've tried to work on our relationship and I thought I'd lost it..

So I've been spending quiet time with him. Just having a carrot (or bread and Marmite, which is lick lippy), a scratch, a lean on each other. This morning, I walked up the field to give him his bread. As I walked back, I heard hooves coming fast behind me. It was Smokey, just checking in for a scratch.

Tonight, I was taking the empty feed buckets out the field, when he came trotting down for a scratch. I was leaning on him, scratching, when Johnny came over. I sent him away (protecting my herd of two). As I did so, one of our dogs started barking at him and he took off up the field. To my delight, Smokey chose to stay with me. He didn't even move. It made me cry.

A few years ago, Smokey and I started to follow a natural horsemanship journey via the Parelli Programme. Recently, for a number of reasons, we've drifted from it (although I try to follow the principles). Last night, I watched a DVD of Linda Parelli working with a scared horse. And I knew we were doing the right thing by not doing very much and I know we're going to be OK.

I've booked today to go to the Parelli event at the NEC in August. There are a lot of people now promoting natural horsemanship (which is great), but the Parellis are something special, not just in their horsemanship, but in they way they can communicate with us ordinary mortals, and let us communicate with and understand our horses.

I realised today that the most important thing for me isn't DOING anything with Smokey but it's about just being with him, in a relationship. If all I did with him was hang out in the field, and he wanted to be with me, that would be good for me.

I'm sure all you horselovers will understand.

Smokey, the rodeo horse!

Last weekend, Chris smoothed a track round the field for training his trotting horses on. On Monday, he took Coalford Legend round the track in the exercise cart. Smokey (and Johnny) went wild! Obviously, PULLING a cart is not the same as seeing a cart BEING PULLED by another horse! This was quite interesting, since I plan to use the circuit as well for driving. Smokey's reaction indicated to me that harnessing him to the buggy and taking him out with Coaly was NOT a good idea.

By Wednesday night, Smokey and Johnny were grazing quietly while Coaly did his laps.

So, on Thursday night, I dressed Smokey in his long reins and roller and waited for Chris and Coaly to appear. I am SO GLAD I was on the ground - Smokey was up on his back legs, spinning, backing up - twice, I was down to one rein to turn him in a circle. However, by the end of the session, we were able to walk towards the cart as it went past, and follow it calmly in trot. We'll have another session tomorrow, I think.

I managed to find my weight tape for Smokey today, so he's 503kg. This is light. When I bought him as a five year old, five years ago, he was 470kg. Two years ago, he was 600kg, which is grossly overweight. Last year, I managed to keep him around 530kg. He can put on weight in an instant - first whiff of grass and he's away. He looks much better for being thinner and he is much livelier (see above). I also think he's getting more exercise - not just from me, but from Johnny and (especially) Andy. These are active horses and they seem to spend a lot of time walking around the field - actually, Andy trots and canters, so that gets the other two going as well. So Smokey's diet and fitness regime seems to be paying off - I just can't keep up!

Come on, Silver Birch!!

I picked the winner of the Grand National today. I studied the form, the weights, the jockeys and picked Silver Birch because I like grey horses and a horse called SILVER Birch had to be grey. Of course, Silver Birch wasn't grey but he still won!

What will I spend my winnings on...

Luxury nests in Alloa

Since Smokey lives out all year without a rug, he develops a pretty heavy coat. So when it gets to thsi time of year, he has a lot of hair to shed. There are white patches all ovet the filed, where he's rolled and huge clumps, where I've brushed him or simply pulled out handfuls of hair.

Today, I noticed a flock of starlings collecting huge beakfuls if this hair - presumably to line their nests. Combined with their diet of fat cakes and "gourmet robin food", I expect a bumper crop of young starlings later in the year.

We go driving...

I've had such a nice weekend (and it's not over yet!). Claire and I took Smokey driving yesterday. It was quite hard work for him - uphill in trot with the gig and two (lightweight) passengers - but he rose to the task. He CAN move when he wants (see him in the field!) but I think his preferred working gait is trot. When he settles into a rhythm, he feels like he could go forever with very little effort.

Claire took some video from the backstep. Note the modern handheld camera techniques - Oscar next year.

I just wish some motorists would have a bit more patience and pass us a BIT wider. A few yesterday couldn't have been more than 6" from the hubs. I was considering strapping a large carving knife to the hub - a la Boudiccea - to see if that deterred them!! Alternatively, I think I'll get one of those things that cyclists get to encourage motorists to pass wider. Probably easier on the insurance!

Moving on 2

Now that I've got Smokey at home (or near enough), we had to bring his gig down. We could have put it in a horse trailer, but we, ie Claire and I, decided to drive him home. Now, this was a kind of openended decision because we'd never had him on the road before, so we'd never dealt with sloping surfaces. So for the first time, Smokey would be expected to provide the brakes for the gig on downhill slopes, by taking the weight on the breeching strap of the harness, which runs round his thighs.

For safety's sake, we decided make the journey early Sunday morning. I took Smokey up on Saturday and left him in his box overnight. On Sunday morning, again for safety, we decided to lead him down the sloping road from the stables, to see how he would go. He was brilliant! After about 1/4 mile, we jumped on, Claire driving and me on the backstep, and off we went. Claire was like the Queen, waving elegantly to motorists, passersby and folk looking out their windows. Horses in Alloa are a rare sight these days!!

The only time Smokey got a wee bit spookey was when we passed the glassworks. It's quite enclosed and noisy, then to crown it a bloke came out of a side door wearing a helmet with huge ear defenders on it - Smokes had to have a real good look at that!

Our biggest traffic tailback was at Tesco - about nine cars, I think. Almost all motorists were really good, though a few got a wee bit close when passing us.

Can't wait to do it again, now.

Moving on

Dan has finally decided to take the plunge and resign from his job at the Council and go freelance. But that's not what this diary entry is about.

Partly because Dan will be working away a bit, we decided to approach our neighbour and ask if we could graze Smokey with his horses. A trial period has been agreed so weekend before last (is it that long since we posted anything?), I long reined Smokey from Blackfaulds home. Claire came with me for moral support.

There are three other horses across the road - one retired trotter called Johnny's Decision (Johnny); one trotter called Coalford Legend (Coaly) and a two year old soon-to-be trotter called Winning Hand (Andy). Smokey was turned out with Johnny and Andy and we waited to see what would happen. In an ideal world, we would have kept Smokey in a seperate area for a while, so they could get used to each other. But it's not an ideal world!

Claire took the videos - I think they're pretty good! If you listen closely you can hear the intakes of breath as Johnny and Smokey show each other the soles of their hooves. But none of them are shod and no harm was done. We all had a good laugh when Johhny went for his "bath".

Some interesting horse behaviour on show - Smokey managed to expend a whole lot less energy than the other two. In the last clip, the reason he pulls up short is that he saw the haynets tied to the fence.

The videos were taken on Saturday. There was a bit of chasing on Sunday; by Monday it was really half-hearted and now they're all quite content. Andy's being gelded next week, all things being equal, so that will put his gas on a peep and quieten things down a bit.

Bruce Logan in the UK

Smokey and I are lucky enough to be going on a three day foundation course with US horseman, Bruce Logan. Bruce was a Parelli 3* instructor before going off run his own Foundation Station in Texas. He's worked with some of the greatest horsemen of our times including Ronnie Willis and Buck Brannaman (the "Horse Whisperer" of Robert Redford's film).

Bruce is coming to the UK for the first time in February to do the three day Foundation Course for eighteen horses and riders, including our good selves, and a ten day colt start at the new Scottish National Equestrian Centre at Oatridge, West Lothian. Spectators are welcome at the Foundation Course - �25 for one day, �45 for two and �65 for three. For advance tickets and info, email infobruceloganuk@yahoo.co.uk

There is also a demo. on the 1st February at 7.30pm at SNEC at Oatridge, to which everyone is welcome. Tickets are �20 in advance and �25 on the door; contact SNEC for tickets 0845 075 5025.

In the demo., Bruce will be working with a variety of horses including ex-racehorses needing rehabilitation and re-homing to challenging horses, young and old. He will also give a ridden demonstration.

Hope to see you there.

Working ponies

I spent a few (!) minutes surfing the web tonight and found two sites that I thought were interesting, so thought I'd list them here.

The first is www.daleslogger.com which is the website of the Working Dales Pony Centre in North Cumbria. I'm planning a visit already.

The second is www.suffolkpunchtrust.org, which is the website set up by the Trust to publicise its work in protecting and promoting the Suffolk Punch horse. If any of you have read Paul Heiney's books, you'll remember that it was Suffolk Punch horses that he worked with. The Suffolk Punch is in the RBST Critical category so could use our support!!

Enjoy.

First drive

Yippee! Smokey and I had our first drive on Tuesday.

Claire and I got him set up then she drove him first, being much more experienced than me. Then I had a turn. It wasn't what I expected - it was much bumpier for one thing although that might be due in part to the surface. Smokey was so good. We stayed in walk and in the arena, but he was so cool. The surface is quite deep and wet, so I think it must be quite hard to pull.

After we finished, Smokey took the gig back to the shed, along the road and it was obviously much easier for him.

Since Smokey didn't look like he was going to explode, Claire had time to take a short video of the big event!

Smokey is "put to"

Yesterday was big day for us. Smokey took a big step forward in his driving career and was "put to" the gig for the first time. Last weekend, he saw the gig for the first time, sniffed it, touched it and followed it around. Yesterday, we built on that, again letting him sniff and touch it, then leading and longreining him around it.

He was quite calm about all this, so he was asked to stand while Claire brought the gig behind him and lowered the shafts down. He had a wee look behind but never moved a foot. So we hitched him up to the gig and led him around the arena, in walk, with lots of stops (and a few polo mints) to let him think about what was happening.

The only time he lifted his head was when I asked him to turn a wee bit tight and obviously he couldn't bend his body because of the shafts, but he just thought about it and stepped over beautifully to make the turn.

We've a long way to go but he seems pretty relaxed so far, so we'll just take it slowly. I was so proud of him, I had a wee tear in my eye.

Thanks, Claire, for your help. And the photos. And this time we get video too!

My Bennington

Here's the first photo of my Bennington. I suppose, strictly speaking, it's Smokey's Bennington.

He saw it for the first time today and was interested but not hugely impressed. He followed it round the arena - my chum, Fiona, was pulling it - and didn't seem too concerned. We also dragged a tyre up the road - Smokey wasn't bothered by the tyre but the other horses spooking in the fields, spooked him.

When we tried tyre dragging in the arena, Fiona sat on the tyre. Smokey's face was a study as he had to drag something heavy (no disrespect intended, Fiona) for the first time. I'm sure it was heavier than the gig. What a marvellous invention the wheel is!

And here's two photos of Smokey. In the second, he is examning someone's grooming kit and probably trying to remember what all those brushes and things are for!!

My Bennington

Despite the horrible weather. our carriage driving has taken a significant step forward. Today, Dan's Dad and I braved the storm and headed off to Gleneagles Hotel to pick up our carriage!

It's a Bennington two wheeled gig (I think - I need to get to grips with the types of carriages). It's not new, but it will do us through the winter and next summer. Next winter, we'll put it off the road for six weeks or so for a full strip down and renovation. Dan's Dad is really good at these kind of projects and was working his way round it today, muttering things like "hmm, we'll need stainless steel bolts here" and "definitely brass buckles there" and " a nice bit of coachlining will make all the difference".

It wasn't a day for photography, but if it's decent next weekend, I'll get a photo to put up here.

By the way, thanks to everyone who contacted me with help, advice or contacts about vehicles. Much appreciated.

Working horses

Well, all is not going quite as planned.

The first set of harness I bought for Smokey was cheap rubbish and went straight back to the supplier. The second set was really nice but too big in the breast collar, although it was OK in the breeching. The third set (same make as the second but a different size) fitted in the collar but was way, way too small in the breeching. So, we 're buying custom made. It's from a company called Libbys, which makes a range of synthetic tack and equipment for horses and dogs. It can take up to three weeks to come but hopefully it will be sooner than that.

So we're still longreining and hacking out. We're also trying to source a vehicle so if anyone out there knows of an exercise cart for sale, suitable for a 15.1hh Highland, let me know.

It's been really windy here and there are lots of trees down. We had to manoevre round two today when we were out. However, Smokey doesn't seem to mind crashing through the undergrowth. In fact, for being a member of a plains evolved species, he's pretty comfortable in woodland. Maybe he can get a job as a logging horse...

There was an item on BBC's Landward last week about the original Horse Societies in Scotland in the 1800s. I watched it on the BBC website tonight. It featured an author called Russell Lyon, who has written a book about the subject "The Quest for the Original Horse Whisperers". I've just ordered it from Amazon. My grandfather was a ploughman, then latterly worked for the Co-op delivering milk by horse wagon. My father was brought up on a farm. I wish I had been old enough to know my Grandad better.

This week's Landward had a feature about West Highland Heavy Horses, who are relocating from Skye to Cumbria and are being ridden all the way. I thhought I had recorded it but hadn't, so I'll watch it on the BBC website when it comes on.

I love the idea of horses working - it feels right. There's a horse ploughing match near Perth on 25th November. If the weather's decent, I might take a run up and take the camera. Then in about five years,we'll put the photos on the site!!

Smokey's new clothes 2

Well, Smokey got to try on his new harness tonight.

First, he had to have a wash because he was absolutely filthy and I didn't want the harness to get mucky in case it had to go back. I didn't shampoo him, just rinsed him off.

He was very patient while I worked out which bit went where and attached to which other bit. I think the front parts - the breast collar and saddle are fine but the back bit - the crupper and breeching seem a bit big, although the breeching might be better when it has shafts in it. I didn't use the new bridle with the blinkers because I'd like him to be comfortable with the basics without blinkers.

Once I got him harnessed, I played some games with him so I knew he was physically and emotionally comfortable in the harness. A friend who keeps a horse at the yard helped me to attach a rope to a tyre, then attach the rope through the traces. This meant that Smokey could pull the tyre, but if he got upset we could let him move far enough away from the tyre until he was comfortable.

We set off round the arena - no problem. John then put his weight on the tyre so that Smokey had to put a bit more effort into pulling. Smokey seemed a bit puzzled at first but he did this beautifully, leaning into the collar.

We then set off up the road, dragging the tyre. This went fine until a horse in a field adjoining the road freaked at the tyre - Smokey then freaked a bit at the horse, but no harm was done and we went quietly up the road again then turned for home.

I am very happy with how he went tonight. We'll do more of this over the next few weeks, changing the load to give him more experience, and going further. Someone suggested that I get roller blades, but I think I'll pass on that.

If we're VERY good, Santa might find a wee exercise cart in the back of his shed for us!!

If I can get some photos at the weekend, you'll be able to see him "at work".

Smokey's new clothes

Smokey's new harness arrived today. Our living room looks like a "house of bondage". I think I know what's what and how it goes together, but we'll find out on Wednesday. I'm a wee bit worried that it might be too big, but Smokey's working hard to fill it. I can't believe how much grass there is - all the horses are pooing pure grass - it's like springtime!!

Anyway, so he doesn't outgrow his new clothes, I've looked out his grazing muzzle. I bought it ages ago and have never used it. We'll see how it goes.

I can't wait to try the harness. It's synthetic so can go in the washing machine when it gets dirty - by the colour of Smokey, that will be about two minutes after I put it on. You wouldn't think that he'd been clean this time last week.

I'll try and get some photos of him in his new clothes, so you can ll gasp in astonishment and awe.

Sparkly Smokey

Now, I'm not one who baths her horse regularly. In fact, I don't bath Smokey much at all, which is why he's probably the dirtiest horse on the yard. That and his sweet itch, which makes him roll - I think the mud must be soothing. I also don't bath him because he winters out without a rug, so he needs the oil in his coat for protection. I DO wash his mane and tail with a soothing insecticidal shampoo during the summer, again for the sweet itch.

However, it was a really nice day today; sunny, warm with a wee breeze and I decided it was time for Smokey's annual bath. He was really mucky and it seemed like a jolly good idea. I think he enjoyed it - he had a good scrub with shampoo and a rubber curry comb, which really worked out the dirt, then a rinse with the hose, a scrape down with the sweat scraper and a rub with a towel. He held his feet up to get his feathers done, then got his mane and tail done with conditioner. All finished, he got his fleece on and we went for a walk up the road to dry him off.

When Dan came home from work, we shot up to the stables to get some photos of Smokey while he was still clean. By tomorrow, he'll be back to normal, so I wanted a pictorial record of him "sparkly".

Dan will put some further photos in the Gallery in due course.

Carriage driving

Dan and I were down in the Lake District this weekend. While there, we took the opportunity to watch some horse driving trials at Holker Hall, near Cartmel, organised by the Scottish Carriage Driving Association. I've had a hankering to learn to drive and teach Smokey to drive and am now sort of progressing that, so I thought it would be good to see some folk in action.

Horse driving trials have three phases - like eventing. There's dressage, cones (the equivalent of show-jumping) and the marathon (the equivalent of the cross country phase). We watched the dressage and the cones on Saturday, but didn't have time to go on the Sunday.

Most of the entries were ponies. Naturally, I was looking out for any Highland ponies. I thought I spotted one! Dan said "it's a bl**dy big Highland. Look at the size of it compared to the height of the whip". According to one of the other spectators, it was a Highland cross Clydesdale. IMHO, it was a wonderful looking horse, full of presence.

Anyway, hope you like the photographs.

Smokey comes home

Last Saturday, I brought Smikey home for the first time. He's at a livery yard about three miles away, where he is really settled. However, I thought it woudl be nice to bring him home for at least a couple of hours.

To put you in the picture, I bought a Highland pony with the intention of learning to drive. Many, many years ago I would sometimes see a gentleman with a chestnut pony in a trap and I always thought it would be great to try this. Anyway, I've had Smokey four years now but haven't done anything about it. Until now...

Because Smokey has no shoes on, he needs to get regular work on tarmac to make his feet grow and toughen up. My EP (equine podiatrist) has advised that he is to have at least 20 minutes per day walking on tarmac. An instructor I have been following (Kirsty Logan) recommends driving the horse rather than leading, to encourage the horse to be brave. So the two came together and I started driving Smokey for his 20 minute walk. Initially, I was using my horseman's halter, 12 foot line and 22 foot line, but I have purchased a roller, which really helps as it stops the lines falling on the ground if Smokey dips his head. Smokey has taken to this well - we've been into the village, round past the roadworks, past buses, motorbikes, barky dogs, goats and he's been really good. This made me resurrect the idea of driving. So I'm thinking about investing in a cheap-ish set of synthetic harness.

The next stage is to get Smokey comfortable with dragging things, so that might be this weekend. I've done some desensitisation already.

So, the point of this is that I long-reined Smokey home last weekend. Dan came with us, and that was helpful for getting across roads and the scarey speed bumps. Once home, he had a rest in our field, accompanied by Tess and Meg (but mostly Tess) then we went back to the yard.

Sweet itch and immunotherapy

I can't remember if I've posted on this before, but my horse, Smokey, has a condition called sweet itch. Sweet itch affects around 5% of horses and is a problem with the immune system, which goes into overdrive if the horse is bitten by the Cullicoides midge. Now, I can have some sympathy with this because I get a pretty bad reaction to midge bites compared to, say, Dan. But nothing compared to Smokey and HE doesn't have it that bad, compared to some horses.

Horses with sweet itch will scratch and rub until they are red raw, destroying mane and tail (the most affected areas) in the process. There are lots of potential remedies - some work for some horses and not for others.

In the past, I've tried a number of feed additives (no joy), sprays and lotions (no joy) and now use a lightweight rug and fly mask. These are reasonably successful - they stop him getting bitten and if he does get bitten when the rug is off, stop him rubbing too badly. I also give him garlic and smear on copious quantities of Equineem soothing lotion. He likes both of these.

This year, we're trying immunotherapy. My vet hasn't used it on a horse before but has used it on dogs and cats. Another horse at the same yard has had the treatment from another vet, with some success.

Smokey's blood test showed that he was allergic to the Cullicoides midge. I now inject him regularly with increasing doses of serum. He's very good - not at all needle shy. This is our third week. I'm not sure when I'll be brave enough to take the rug off and see if it's working.

I'll keep you posted.

Tasty roadsides

I see Smokey five days out of seven. Two days a week my friends, Karen and Linda, feed him for me. Generally I ride three times a week and on the other two days, I feed him and check him over.

Almost every day, I let him have 15 to 20 minutes grazing the roadside. I love watching him - his whiskers, nose and top lip are constantly on the search for the tastiest bites. And on the roadside, these are many.

I suppose to us, grass is grass but the roadside is full of weeds. And for Smokey, these are just great. His favourites are what we call "sticky willie" (Goosegrass or Cleavers) - he eats that like long strands of spaghetti; what I think is Knapweed - he picks the flowers off the plant; and Cow Parsley. He likes the flowers and the leaves of Cow Parsley but not the stems. He doesn't like brambles, which is good, because I eat them while he's grazing.

Today, he was going mad for the leaves on a tree in the hedge. I don't know what it is - I brought a leaf home but couldn't find the tree identification book. He was also eating the twigs, stripping the leaves off first. I suppose this is how horses would graze if we didn't restrict them to relatively small fields with sown grassland.

I must say, though, I think my roadside foraging is tastier than his!

PNH

Smokey and I have begun a journey together. We have started to learn to communicate using natural horsemanship. Parelli Natural Horsemanship or PNH. If it all sounds a bit weird and touchy feely, believe me it's not.

Some folk at the yard had a session with a horse whisperer recently. Now that, to me, is pure mumbo jumbo and shouldn't be linked with PNH. The horse whisperer told one of the owners that her horse liked being owned by her because "she bought her comfy boots". What a load of piffle.

My view is that many of the problems we horse owners experience are caused by us treating our horses like humans. They aren't human and they can't communicate on a human level. What PNH tries to do is help us understand the language that horses use and to use it to work better with our horses.

Two friends and I went to Wyoming a few years ago for a working holiday on a cattle ranch. The wranglers were brilliant horsemen and treated their horses with respect and affection. But they didn't expect them to behave like humans and they didn't treat them as pets.

Anyway, i'm in no way setting myself up as an expert. I saw a Parelli demonstration a couple of years ago, just after I bought Smokey and was quite interested. It's been on the back burner - I've read the books and watched the videos but never really got started on the programme.

However, for my birthday, Dan bought me a one day course with an Australian instructor called Kaye Thomas. It was brilliant but really hard work. There were five people on the course. Smokey and I were the least experienced but we made reasonable progress. Since we came back, we've been working away on the seven games. Already, he's becoming more responsive. Smokey's not the most sensitive of horses - he's quite laid back and very strong willed. A trait in natives and particularly Highland ponies.

If you're interested, have a look on the Parelli website I'll keep you posted of developments.

Laminitis

Smokey is on a diet. He and Wallace, his grazing buddy, have been moved to a "restricted intake" paddock. Calling it a "starvation paddock" is now non PC.

Horses can contract a disease called laminitis which is an inflammation of the sensitive laminae in the foot. It can be caused by a number of things including high intakes of sweet spring grass. There is no cure and in severe cases, horses may be destroyed. If a horse gets it, it recurs and has to be carefully managed for the rest of the horse's life. So prevention certainly beats cure.

While being overweight doesn't cause laminitis, it can predispose a horse to it. I spoke with my farrier last night and he told me he's never seem so many new cases. Even horses like Thoroughbreds that you wouldn't expect to get laminitis are contracting it. In discussion with other farriers and vets, the theory seems to be that horses put on a lot of condition last summer because of the good weater, the good weather meant there was a lot of good hay made so horses fed well over the winter, and the grass is abundant again this spring. The combination has lead to the increase in outbreaks of the disease. The horse welfare organisations are very concerned about the number of overweight horses and the health and welfare considerations arising from this. We're killing our horses with kindness.

Smokey and Wallace are both native breeds, a Highland Pony and a Welsh Cob respectively. They have been bred to live on hill and heather, not lush former cattle pasture. Consequently, they pile on condition (that's fat to non-horsey people) in summer. I did quite well getting condition off Smokey over the winter, but he is putting it back on. I weight him weekly, using a big pair of scales (joke. I use a weight tape).

So both are on a diet, partly as a precaution against laminitis and partly because, as with all of us, too much "condition" is a bad thing. The aim is to get him to about 550kg and condition score 3. I'll keep you posted!

Long distance riding

I have been seeking an activity to undertake with Smokey. He's too big to show, even if I wanted to, and neither of us are that keen on jumping. After some thought, and a recommendation from our vet, we are planning to start long distance or endurance riding. Our vet described this as "hacking with style".

The sport is run in Scotland by the Scottish Endurance Riding Club (SERC), through a number of branches. We're kind of in the area of Glasgow, Lothians and Tayside, but I think we'll go for Tayside.

Most club events have three categories of event - pleasure ride, which non-competitive and where most people start, training rides and competitive rides. Top events can be up to 120 miles over three days. We're looking at starting with a 10-14 mile pleasure ride. Except at the highest level, rides are not against the clock - they are set speed rides. The rider decides what speed they will cover the 20 mile, say, route at. This will be maybe 6 - 6.99 mph or 7-7.99 mph. The object is then to do that, arriving at the finish with your horse's heart rate at 64 beats per minute ie without your horse being thrashed to death. The condition of the horse is always paramount and there are always vets and farriers at events to make sure that the horses are well looked after.

So, on Sunday (Mother's Day), Dan and I popped up to Scone to have a look at an event there. There were horses (and riders) of all shapes and sizes. The favoured breed for the serious competitor is the Arab or part bred Arab, but there was a smattering of Highlands and Highland types. In fact, a half sister of Smokey (by Monarch of Millfield) was competing.

It seemed pretty good although Dan's a bit concerned about my ability to follow directions (!). He suggested I identify someone else doing the same route and just follow them. Alternatively, he offered to accompany me on his mountain bike. This is the man that lost himself and his brother (some time ago, I admit) while hillwalking BECAUSE HE HAD THE MAP UPSIDE DOWN!

Anyway, I now need a fitness programme for me and the Smokey boy. Every night that I'm doing him, we'll be riding out. Up and down hill, where possible, to build up stamina. It'll be good to see him get fit (and me).

Our target is an event on 27th June at Devilla Forest, which is a few miles away. As usual, I'll keep you posted...

New bedding

We're, well I'm, lucky enough to have a horse. For those interested, Smokey, or Munro of Millfield, is a 15.1hh grey Highland gelding. He'll be seven in May and I've owned him since August 2002. Owning Smokey has been the fulfillment of a lifetime's dream and I could bore for Britain on his positive attributes (many) and shortcomings (few).

Anyway, last winter (2002/03), Smokey worked very hard to provide us with copious amounts of dung. Every morning when I mucked out his box, I would put on my "Marigolds" and fill a large skip with the "hard stuff", shaking off excess shavings, and bring it home in the boot of the car.

We were, at that time, bringing into cultivation an area of rough grass behind the garage. So each morning, about a square yard of ground was covered by a thick layer of dung. A black polythene sheet was rolled forward over the dung and weighted down. Come spring, the polythhne was removed, the soil lightly worked and potatoes planted. What a crop! And barely a weed showing.

Over the summer of 2003, I invested in rubber mats for Smokey's stable. A thin layer of shavings goes on the mats each day to soak up excess moisture. The mats are great, but the dung seems to get very broken down into the shavings and it's very difficult to remove it without loads of shavings attached.

So, we're investigating using hemp as bedding. It's a wee bit more expensive per bale than shavings but it is, according to the bumf, four times more absorbent. But the real plus is that we can get organic hemp, it's sustainable and best of all, it rots down into quality compost in eight weeks.

The main problem is sourcing it. To get it at a reasonable price, you have to buy it by the pallet load. So, we're going to buy a few bales locally next weekend, to try it. If we like it, we might have to bite the bullet and buy a pallet load.

We're going to try it as bedding for the hens as well. We use shavings currently so when I do the weekly clean of the chook ark, I remove all the dung into the compost bin, as free of shavings as possible, then remove the shavings. Using hemp should let me remove everything into the compost bin.

We'll keep you posted of developments.