HPEC Newsletter Summer 2018

Highland Pony Enthusiasts Club Newsletter Summer 2018 Editor’s comment

North-east Camp

So far this summer has thrown up a series of challenges for many with very hot weather, little or no fodder for our ponies and earlier a foaling season which has caused some heartaches for more than a few of us.

Having lost one mare just prior to foaling, followed by a slightly surprise foaling whilst away at the Royal Highland Show, I am now waiting with some trepidation the arrival of a very late season foal. Watch this space.

Many members have been busy at shows throughout the country although I suspect that the heat has curtailed some activity. I personally had one brief manic phase of activity with the Royal Highland Show, Breed Show, Great Yorkshire Show and the Southern Highland Pony Show all in a very short space of time. It has also not been an easy time for enthusiasts just hacking having to cope with the excessive heat. However I am sure none of us are really trying to wish ourselves in to Autumn and Winter just yet!

The North East Highland Pony and Fell Camp at the beginning of May started for many what has shaped up to be an idyllic summer. Hosted once again by the Charlton Family at Linnel Wood near Hexham, we were all treated to a wonderful weekend.

Activities commenced on Friday with sessions spread over the three days culminating in a friendly and fun competition on Sunday afternoon. Everyone was able to pick activities to suit their interests and the ponies’ abilities, everything from drill riding to lunging, cross country, showing and even rides to the local pub. Ponies and people alike enjoyed the opportunity to try different things and gain confidence with old friends and new.

We were blessed with the first beautiful weather of the year, enabling meals outside and demonstrations to be held will all watching in the evening sun. A skills-at-arms presentation was a real treat with some camp attendees joining in, followed by an informative talk about pony types by Gillian McMurray. Saturday night was treasure hunt night, groups departed in cars with a widely varied list of things to find around the local countryside, thankfully no one got lost and everyone appreciated the chance to see a little more of “Hexhamshire”.

Sunday afternoon’s competition rounded the weekend off with everyone coming away with something and our Pam Brooks memorial vase being awarded to the much deserving Vyv Wood-Gee. Everyone’s camp spirit meant Linnel Wood was left clean, tidy and peaceful once again. As we all departed home, happy thoughts of the weekend outweighed tiredness

Lambrigg Shula and her colt foal, Lachlan (by Connell Daibhaidh of Castle Green) on his first morning.

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and I’m sure I speak for all when I say we are looking forward to next year.

Special thanks to Mr and Mrs Charlton without whose kindness in opening their home to us this would not be possible. Thanks to the Grant family whose hard work and enthusiasm is unending and infectious, to all the instructors and everyone who helps to organize and prepare for camp.

back and get on and do a job.

The current climate, economy and weather! must also have an impact – it is a gamble to breed if you might not sell your weaned foals as it is becoming more and more expensive to find straw/hay/feed to care for them if you need to run them on until they are sold, not to mention the damage to your land – costs which are not taken into account by some buyers.

It seems to be the case that as well as there being a market for ‘show-quality’ ponies there is also a market for the more ‘everyday familyfriend’ type of pony, which seem to be very difficult to find. Is this because the stallions being promoted and standing at stud are ones who have done well in the ridden ring, where they need to be just a little bit more ‘flamboyant’? Or are there less people around now who can (or will) produce a pony slowly and carefully with a view to its long term ridden job?

The low numbers of ponies being bred is not a problem solely restricted to Highlands – many of the native breeds are finding themselves with the same problem.

Harriet Rust Graham

Breeding a foal?

Recently a thread on social media sparked a vigorous debate – the poster asked if numbers of Highland ponies being bred was on the decline, which on reading the figures provided certainly seemed to be the case.

There were many reasons given for this – the cost of getting a foal on the ground compared to the money recouped by selling the foal was one, making the old adage “Fools breed horses for wise men to buy” appear to be true!

The lack of suitable stallions available to visiting mares was also a concern, with many stallion owners not having facilities to take other ponies or not having the workforce required to cover mares in hand, not even taking into account the safety aspect of this.

Some people were not aware of the travel grant from the Highland Pony Society available to mares who went away to stud, although a relatively small amount weighed up against the cost of producing a foal, everything helps.

For some it was the restrictions of space – where to run a weanling until it was ready to

Michelle Parkin Vaughan

Welcome to……. ….new members and those returned after a break:- Tina McKay and Jill ThompsonArmstrong.

Reminder Work has started on the forthcoming publication of the Review of 2018. Many members were kind enough to volunteer to write reports of different events. However if any HPEC members would like to contribute with other types of article please contact alisonpayne909@btinternet.com. Also please send in your foal photographs and details for the ‘Foal’s Gallery’.

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HPEC National Show The HPEC National Show at Equifest is the brain-child of Amanda Hart who had for some years run a HPEC summer show at Bakewell showground in conjunction with the Fell and

complement of classes for mature and youngstock with multiple championships and is an NPS Silver Medal qualifier. The ridden section is to be judged by Mrs Jo Jack and the various classes are also NPS qualifiers.

There are also a variety of more unaffiliated and home produced classes, which means that there is something for everyone.

The show also has its own dedicated stabling area and stable manager, which allows highland owners to group together and socialise the evening before the show. The show has been generously sponsored but further sponsorship would be gratefully received. Hopefully this day will encourage a good turnout both from HPEC members and non-member highland pony owners and will prove as much a success as the inaugural event last year.

Schedules and entry forms can be downloaded from the HPEC Facebook page or by contacting Amanda Hart hartsika@btinternet.com and stabling forms can be obtained from Kate Hawes talisker_highland_ponies@yahoo.co.uk

Dales Societies. Unfortunately this show had to move both location and date and so subsequently a rethink was need for the highland side of this showing venture.

Fortunately at this time the Sunday slot at Equifest became available when the Southern Highland Show moved venue and so Betsy Branyan very kindly permitted the HPEC to use the venue and timetable slot. The second show is on Sunday 12th August at the East of England showground. Judged by Mrs Mary McCall-Smith, the in-hand section has a full 3

who had supported the Ride previously commented that the new routes were a nice variation on the familiar.

With riders choosing when they would like to ride, we were unable to take a “Highland Team Photo”. One of the participants though was Helen Fuller with Lagalgarve Kestrel. Seven year old Kes as he is known at home, was having a quiet ride round as part of his preparation for the Great Yorkshire Show.

A wonderful £338 was raised for this very worthy cause with a number of people who could not ride on the day generously sending donations too.

Pleasure ride near York All riders and ponies returned with beaming smiles at the recent HPEC & HPS Pleasure Ride in aid of the Equine Grass Sickness Research Fund. The Ride was held by very kind permission of Escrick Park Estate on their established Rideways course, just outside York.

The sun shone as riders headed out over the seven mile ride through parkland and forestry with some tackling the optional cross-country fences Everyone received rosettes thanks to the HPEC Pennine Group and were invited back to Ride HQ (aka our horsebox!) for tea, coffee, cakes and lots of pony chat.

I must admit I had a few sleepless nights in the lead up to the ride this year as the Estate began a trial of woodland pigs being released into certain areas of the woodland to clear Himalayan Balsam and bracken. However, the Rideways Team were wonderfully helpful and opened new routes on lovely grassy tracks, so ponies did not spot any pigs and instead enjoyed the fresh ground. Indeed many riders

Anne Owen Walker

Stop Press The HPEC Summer show at Equifest has very kindly been donated a lovely print of Balmoral Clunie by Lizzie Finlayson-Briant, Olwen Briant and Sylvia Ormiston as a prize for the Supreme Champion. The original painting by Jessica Crighton was gifted to Her Majesty the Queen in memory of Clunie and other ponies Balmoral have sadly lost and the printed edition is being sold for £60 to raise funds for Equine Grass Sickness Research to help fund finding a cure for this awful disease. Clunie’s story is documented on the back of the print.

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