to the December 2024 issue
The H&R team knows only too well how challenging it is to be a horse owner over winter, so we’ve packed this issue with simple schooling tips and motivation to help you power through to the spring. Whether you’re focusing on improving ahead of the 2025 season, or riding is taking a back seat while there’s much less light, we have lots of ideas for you this month. Feel the satisfaction of ticking off those annoying chores with our tips on page 110, and spend some time working
improve your mindset on page 46. And for when the to-do list won’t wait but the weather isn’t playing ball, we’ve got the best long waterproof coats on the market on page 121. Until next month
Louise Kittle, Editor-in-Chief
THIS MONTH’S CONTRIBUTORS
Ingrid Klimke
Louise was bitten by the horsey bug at age two, and has ridden and owned horses ever since, competing in eventing as well as enjoying training her horses – and herself: she’s a BHS Int SM.
Our amazing subscription offers! Choose from a HKM Lena jacket or LeMieux Elite ProKit Lite grooming bag –turn to p118.
Did you know you can improve your riding by implementing simple breathing techniques? On p46, performance coach Jacqueline explains methods you can use to overcome your fears.
Developments in veterinary medicine mean the prognosis for fractures is much more positive than in the past. On p62, David tells us more so you can be prepared should the worst happen.
Looking to improve the quality and shine of your horse’s skin and coat? On p106, Nicola explains how his diet is the biggest influencing factor, and what you need to consider.
The benefits of cavaletti are endless and on p38 Ingrid shares three simple exercises that will help you create a consistent rhythm and ride perfect lines between fences.
Effective routines can have a huge impact on your riding confidence. Alison shares strategies for you to try and explains how to tackle challenges you may face along the way on p52.
Get ready for competition success with Nicola’s advice on p26. She discusses what you need to think about in your final tune-up and how to make your session productive.
David Rutherford
Louise Kittle, Editor-in-Chief
Jacqueline Malone
Alison Buttery
Nicola Wilson
Nicola Tyler
IN THE SADDLE
20 Flying high Improve your horse’s canter and learn how to introduce flying changes
26 The final countdown Get competition ready with Nicola Wilson
32 4 secrets to riding half-halts Our guide to nailing this crucial move
36 Jump small, think big Ingrid Klimke shares her simple cavaletti exercises
43 Try something new... Everything you need to know about working equitation
MIND MATTERS
46 A breath of fresh air Breathing exercises to boost your riding
52 Good habits Confidence building with Alison Buttery
58 An age apart The differences between owning younger and more mature horses
ASK A VET
62 Breaking point Vet David Rutherford discusses the treatment for broken bones
ASK THE EXPERTS
76 Management know-how
78 Mind matters
80 Ask a vet
82 Horsey shopping
84 In the saddle
86 In brief
MANAGEMENT KNOW-HOW
88 Management 101 Caring for non-ridden horses with Fizz Tickridge-Marshall
94 Winter health and wellbeing Massage techniques with Gillian Higgins
100 Fever pitch 6 ways to avoid mud fever
104 Winter coat care Our top tips
106 Time to shine Feeding for coat and skin health
110 31 tips to get you winter ready Tick off your to do list with our help HORSEY SHOPPING
121 Tried and tested Long winter coats
132 Buyer’s guide Equine first aid kits
134 This month we love... Feed, supplements, reins, rugs and
Photo by Jon Stroud
Whatever your plans this month, our experts share their advice on riding, confidence and horse care so you can achieve your goals.
IN THIS ISSUE
8 Brought to life Equine sculpture 14 Horseworld hub Keep up to date with the latest horsey news 18 BETA new products Award-winning products, coming to a shop near you
41 Win! A StormX Empra rug bundle 50 Perfect prizes Amazing goodies for you and your horse
69 John Whitaker in his own words An extract from his new biography
116 My life with horses Haley Bouma talks us through her busy week
118 Subscribe to H&R Get every issue delivered straight to your door
136 Dream horsey homes Find your ideal equestrian property
Flying high
Improve your horse’s canter in preparation for flying changes with our helpful exercises and advice
Every horse has their own character and when training, it’s important to take this into account and work with your horse and his personality. This is the key to success, because a happy horse is a successful one. The way to do this is by making sessions fun. This issue, we’ll look at ways to improve your horse’s canter, which will set you up for teaching more advanced work, such as flying changes. By including these ideas little and often in your training sessions you’ll notice a big difference in your horse’s balance in canter, as well as general way of going.
Activity matters
In tests, you’ll be marked higher if your horse shows active steps in canter. You can develop this activity by using exercises that help your horse produce it naturally – here’s one way to do that...
• Pick up canter and come onto a 20-metre circle
• Ask your horse to collect by riding into a travers (quarters-in) position. This will help to ensure he’s using his hindleg to contain the energy, rather than just slowing down and losing impulsion
• Make the travers steps small and quick, and then straighten up again
• Next, bring your horse’s shoulders to the inside to ride a canter shoulder-fore for a few strides before riding straight once more
• Repeat the exercise a few times to help your horse understand what you’re asking – this anticipation of the work will help in the early stages to prepare him for what you’re asking him to do
• Praise his effort (rather than the results), give him a walk break and then change the rein and repeat
TOP TIP
When you’re teaching your horse anything new, don’t do it for too long. Settle for a few good steps then offer a walk break and praise.
In this feature
Achieving activity in the canter
Improving lightness and balance
Preparing for the flying changes
TOP TIP
Try lots of exercises in the canter, such as riding travers, shoulder-in, counter-canter, and on and back. That’s how to teach your horse to really sit. Then, when you feel him sit for a couple of strides, ride forward again.
Lift off
Many horses have a tendency to pull down on the rein, particularly in canter, to try to avoid taking weight onto the hindleg. If you can relate to this with your horse, the following exercise will help…
1. From walk on a large circle, pick up outside lead canter (counter-canter).
2. Stay on the circle and slowly ask your horse for slight inside bend. Remember, you’ll need to allow the outside rein forward a little when you’re flexing him to the inside in counter-canter.
3. As you ride this exercise, think of lifting your horse, so he’s sitting on his hindleg and not his shoulder.
The final
countdown
The run-up to an event is prime schooling time for solidifying all you’ve learnt, explains eventer Nicola Wilson
Cross-country schooling isn’t simply about training and introducing new concepts –it’s also about tuning up and bedding down everything a horse already knows. If your horse is quite experienced, there might not be much left for him to learn in order to excel at the level you’re competing at – but you’ll still need a plan of action to ensure your schooling sessions ahead of a competition are truly productive.
EXPERT
Nicola Wilson is a GB team rider with eight championships and five gold medals to her name. Following an injury in 2022, she now focuses on coaching and mentoring riders.
TOP TIP
Even experienced horses can have a confidence wobble, so go back to basics, make the question as easy as possible and the answer straightforward and fun. Once you’ve re-established confidence, you can build on it.
A breath fresh air of
Performance coach Jacqueline Malone explains how breathing techniques can help overcome fear and improve your riding
From your first riding lesson, either as a child or in later life, every command you will have ever been given will have been physical in nature because commands involve instructions about what to do with the various parts of your body. But there is another side that people rarely talk about and is rarely addressed in traditional lessons, and that’s the noise that flies around in our heads and the physiological responses associated with it.
Jacqueline Malone MSc is an accredited coach and runs Ahead for Horses. She has a passion for empowering riders to improve using performance psychology and mental skills in the saddle. EXPERT
Balancing body and brain
The brain is such a big part of our operating system and studies show we can all improve our riding by working on the mental skills of confidence, focus and resilience to maximise performance both in and out of the ring.
We have been taught to physically control and direct a horse with very specific aids, but very few of us are lucky enough to have had much, if any, help addressing our thoughts. But to be in control of the body and the brain, the key is in balancing the physical, physiological and psychological.
➤
Studies show we can all improve our riding by working on our mental skills
Photos: Jon Stroud. Chelle129, evrymmnt, JW.photography31/shutterstock.com. Posed by models.
Breaking point
Vet David Rutherford looks at the treatment options should your horse suffer a broken bone
EXPERT
David Rutherford BVM&S Cert ES(Orth) Dip ECVS SFHEA MRCVS is Clinical Associate Professor in equine orthopaedics and imaging at the University of Nottingham School of Veterinary Medicine and Science.
Most owners will never experience a fractured bone in their horse, but breaks can and do happen, so improving your knowledge of them is a good idea. While in the past, the prognosis for a horse with a broken bone was very poor, today developments in veterinary medicine mean that many horses make a good recovery.
DID YOU KNOW?
The most common sites for a broken bone in a horse are the legs, mainly due to their vulnerability and the stresses and strains put on them.
All bones are flexible and can withstand some degree of bending and impact
MANAGEMENT 101:
Non-ridden horses
Part two: Good company
Simple time spent together can maintain that special bond with your non-ridden horse, says Fizz Tickridge-Marshall
Fizz Tickridge-Marshall has had a varied career, from Equine Therapy Centre Manager at Hartpury College to stints working for Jonjo O’Neill and Carl Hester. She now runs a livery yard in Herefordshire. EXPERT
Having a horse who’s not in work doesn’t mean an end to time spent together. Whether he’s out in the field all day every day or stabled some of the time, he still requires your care and attention to ensure he remains happy and healthy. ➤
DID YOU KNOW
Research has found that interacting with horses generates feelings of companionship, reduces loneliness and lessens symptoms associated with anxiety, depression and trauma.
