11 minute read
Equestrian
Simon was a little nervous at first and he was still a bit unsure when Bertie edged close to him and tried to give him a kiss. Then Bertie closed his eyes and waited for Simon to feel brave enough to come closer.
Horses - the ‘mood altering drugs’ used by many schools
How exactly does spending time with a horse help when you’re struggling? Equestrian columnist and RDA coach Sara Greenwood reflects on the power of those gentle ears, and talks to April Kibby of Lofty Therapy Horses.
Where do you turn if you have a problem? Personally, I will have a cuddle with a horse and we put the world to rights. Thoughout my life I have done the same - I’ve been lucky enough to always have a horse there to listen. It’s not even necessarily about the riding; is it the feel or the smell of a horse that helps? Or is it just someone that doesn’t answer back?
It’s not just about the exercise
Most of us suffer through short periods of physical or mental health issues. But for some these are lifelong and debilitating – and the Riding for the Disabled Assiociation (RDA) and Equine Therapy Centres are always there to help, whatever a person’s age. Horse Therapy has been effective for dementia patients as much as it is for physically impaired children and struggling teenagers. Many schools for pupils with special needs now routinely use RDA sessions. The physical activity provides a sense of independence and freedom, while developing coordination and muscle tone. Inevitably, however, the real benefits go far deeper than core strength. Children will increase in confidence, improve communication, gain real life experiences and even work towards being employed in the equestrian world, among other things. Locally, the wonderful Milton Abbas RDA works with younger children, Bryanston RDA works with adults, and the Blackmore Vale RDA works with all ages. The Stella Hayward Meerhay Group work with teenagers from Beaminster School who are finding it difficult to see their way in life. “This year we have focused on work experience, starting with the basics of putting on a headcollar, a rug, saddlery. Tying up a horse or a hay net with the correct knot can take a lot of work on co-ordination. We have been working on the BHS Challenge Awards, as these have small bitesize chunks to work on, with certificates that show lifetime skills.” Horses often simply help people
talk; someone who is lonely, or just frightened to speak aloud, can whisper quietly to a nonjudgmental ear. Even walking a horse, whether being ridden or led, around the village will always cause lots of chat and brightens someone’s day. My own neighbour and her pony are going to the next village ‘Coffee, Cake and Chat’ meeting. It gives people a chance to pat, stroke and talk to a pony that they otherwise may not have.
Horse therapy
April Kibby runs Lofty Therapy Horses. Lofty and his friends are miniature horses, pint-sized pals that travel around Yeovil and the surrounding areas, offering animal-assisted therapy. April says: “Working with, learning how to care for, and interacting with horses has a really positive effect on our mental health. It has been said that horses are ‘mood altering drugs, without the side effects’ and that is so true! Horses can read human emotions, they mirror our feelings. They are kind, forgiving, challenging ... and they are incredibly good at teaching us about ourselves, our emotions and how we interact with others. “Horses provide psychological therapy - helping us to learn about ourselves through interacting and connecting with them, how to manage new challenges, and ultimately leading to new life skills and a more positive outlook on life.”
‘A Lofty kiss for Jenny’ - Lofty Therapy Horses is a Somerset-based charitable organisation offering animal-assisted therapy open to all ages and abilities with one-to-one sessions and small groups. Sara Greenwood says never underestimate the power of a quiet chat with a pony, especially for someone who is lonely or perhaps frightened to speak aloud.
Seebeedee’s Nathaniel filly, one of Lucy’s morning-coffee foals from 13th March. image Courtenay Hitchcock
Honeysuckle reigns supreme, and it’s a busy foaling season at the stud
Mother’s Day was not the day of rest and relaxation Lucy Procter might have planned - but the unusual daytime foalings were special to the team
Foals, foals and more foals, but before we get onto the foals, we have to talk about Honeysuckle. In the middle of March the TGS-bred mare won her second Champion Hurdle at The Cheltenham Festival and by so doing, became the first mare ever to have scored twice in the championship race’s 95-year history. To give our hardworking team the opportunity to see Honeysuckle in the flesh, we sent them all to Cheltenham on the Tuesday, with the hope they would be shouting her home. With the staff having come in early and rattled through morning stables, they were off shortly after 10 o’clock, leaving the bosses at home to enjoy Honeysuckle’s triumph on the television before finishing up for the afternoon.
Mother’s Day gifts
And so, to foals! Most mares foal during the night and the staff don’t see them until they are a few hours old after they arrive at work in the morning.
An unusual early morning foaling before coffee with the TGS staff
EQUESTRIAN
Occasionally a mare will foal during the day. In last month’s column I wrote about sharing the culmination of the dream with the staff when they all came to Wincanton to watch TGS-bred Last
Royal’s win. Now, during March, our staff have been able to share the beginning of the dream, with two mares having foaled in the morning before coffee break, and a third having foaled around tea-time.
The afternoon foaler was in fact one of four mares to foal on Mother’s Day – literally no rest for new mums (or the bosses) here at TGS!
The foals are happily enjoying the dry weather and sunshine. The new foals go out for an hour twice a day for the first few days, and only in the paddock right by the yard. The older ones go further up the farm for a longer period, before they’re all back in a warm, dry straw bed for the night.
Equestrian obstetrics
Last month we talked about Glanvilles Guest visiting her chosen stallion with this year’s foal at foot. Two weeks after she was covered (mated), we were delighted when our vet scanned her in foal - and even happier when she scanned with a heartbeat two weeks after that. The mare will have one final scan at 45 days after covering, to check that the pregnancy is progressing normally and that will be the last check until stallion fees are due in the autumn. We scan to confirm that our mares are all still in foal on 1st October (a horse’s gestation period is 11-12 months). Three other mares have also scanned in foal this month, so the season is progressing well.
Glanvilles Guest, mentioned in last month’s column heading off to be covered, had a successful 28 day heartbeat scan
Miss Moses’ Aclaim foal - who was the first morning-coffee foal on 12th March image Courtenay Hitchcock
A Poet-ic double win
To put a cherry atop our March cake, our daughter Alice rode her first point-to-point winner at Larkhill, which then became a double, in somewhat unusual circumstances. Her horse in the first, Golden Poet, was the only declaration so they won with a ‘walkover’ (in racing, if there is only one runner in a race, that horse still has to go onto the track and cross the finish line, hence the term ‘walkover’). Golden Poet was also entered in the last race of the day, which turned out to be a ‘match’ (two runners), which Golden Poet won by 25 lengths, under an excellent ride from Alice for trainer Keiran Burke. We all hope these are the first of many.
A three day old Scalo filly out of Mollasses - another of the Mother’s Day foals image Courtenay Hitchcock
Toots Bartlett with her new horse, six-year old old Cor Y Taran - who she bought unseen, using her house deposit savings. Image © Courtenay Hitchcock
Toots settles into the Fox-Pitt yard with Freebie, Jago and new boy Taran
New columnist Toots Bartlett can’t hide her excitement as she leaves home to move into William Fox-Pitt’s yard near Sturminster Newton, buys a horse without seeing him, and looks ahead to a busy 2022 season
It was definitely time, but the idea of leaving home and finding a base to begin a professional career within the world of Eventing filled me with excitement - and some trepidation. I wasn’t absolutely sure how to even start the process ... until I remembered that William FoxPitt has encouraged young riders in the past by allowing them to be based at his beautiful yard in North Dorset. A few messages with William (and a visit with my father ...) and the adventure of moving began. What an absolutely life-changing opportunity, to be based alongside one of the worlds’ best Eventers, and with such fantastic facilities - I am honestly still pinching myself! We moved in the middle of November, originally bringing three horses; Carlos 55 (Charlie), Freestyle R (Freebie) and Extasy SR Z (Gatsby) from home, as well as my wonderful groom Joel Harts and his horse The Rag Lad. Although the move was a long process, it didn’t take long for us all to settle in.
The work begins
We spent the winter basically hiding from the weather - made all too easy here with the amazing indoor barn, horse walker and indoor arena. We brought a few of the horses slowly back into work, allowing them to develop their muscle and strength correctly after a few months off. The training has now picked up, and we are trying to get the horses out to British Showjumping (BS) and British Dressage (BD). We have regular training with both William Fox-Pitt and Emma Fisher (GB Young Rider Eventing Coach and Chef d’Equipe) on the jumping side, and Lisa White (FEI International Grand Prix dressage rider and trainer) for the flat work.
A new boy
With the excitement of the event season around the corner I received a call about a fabulous six year old about to go up for sale. I had been saving for a house, but when I heard about him I knew if I didn’t grab him someone else would, so I used my house deposit money and bought Cor Y Taran over the phone, without actually seeing him. He’s the first horse I’ve owned by myself, and he’s worth every penny. He is a superstar in the making and I can‘t wait to get him out eventing and to start his career.
The rest of the team
My top horse for this season, Freebie, produced the second best dressage and a double clear at his first event of the season at Tweseldown in March. The remaining four horses all begin their event season in the next two weeks. C Why, my partner for the last three seasons, is returning to me after a period of rehab and I can’t wait to have him back with us. He is an incredible jumper and we have gone from BE100 (competition level with a maximum height show jumping of 105cm and cross country of 100cm) to 4* and Championship events (CCI4*-L is for experienced riders with Advanced horses competing at the top of the sport, and who may go on to greater International success at CCI5*-L) in a very short period of time. We also have a very exciting new horse joining our lovely team in the next coming weeks so there is a lot to look forward to. 2022 is looking to be a very exciting year ahead, with a fantastic team of horses and some big goals to try and fulfill!
“We are currently looking for a second/home groom to join our team (you would think that with British Eventing having claimed Olympic, World and European Championships last year it would not be as challenging as it is proving!). If you’re interested, see more details here, call Susannah on 07798 820019 or email susannahbartlett@me.com”
Toots has ony owned Taran for a few weeks, but is already sure he is a superstar in the making Image © Courtenay Hitchcock Freestyle R - Freebie - is Toots’ top horse this year, and has already produced the second best dressage and a double clear at his first event of the season at Tweseldown in March Image © Courtenay Hitchcock
“I’m still pinching myself!” Toots Bartlett has recently moved into William Fox-Pitt’s world-renowned Eventing yard near Sturminster Newton. Image © Courtenay Hitchcock
