Sun 30th May
Still a bit sore and stiff from my fall from Stormy the other day BUT still trying to do something active, Mark and I put together all our polyposts, electric tape and rope and went out to our second new field and put up our 'Paddock Paradise' into action. Jaime Jackson, US barefoot trimmer, has a fabulous book about how to make this paradise and the ultimate is a very cool place for naturally barefoot horses to be. We only have a grazing field but intend to do as much as we can with a field that is being leased to us.
Firstly we put up an electric fence around the outside of the field to prevent any of ours from rubbing and pushing over the fences. Next we put up polypoles and tape in a huge oval in the centre of the field to prevent the horses from just gorging themselves at a standstill. With the edges being not too large the horses themselves 'push' each other around the outside 'track' which goes all the way around the inner sanctum. It's like a racetrack ;-) We've allowed slightly larger area's at the top (for feeding) and at the bottom (for the horses to lay down and rest on).
Once we'd done that we went and fetched Tara and Fortune first and popped them into the field. I usually take three horses and Mark two but I just wasn't feeling up to scratch to be able to be a good leader for three of them, and believe me they need a good leader when they get together! lol. So, for me, one at a time was enough. Whilst taking the two lower mares up to the field Stormy and Solly pranced and cantered around their old field, Solly doing his acrobatics of kicking up his heels and striking out at the same time...wish my camera was fast enough to catch it! lol
Then we went back and Mark took Stormy and Holly (the big ones) and I took Solly who behaved very nicely for me today.
Mark leading Holly and Stormy along the track to the new fieldStormy's SO big now you cannot actually see Mark inbetween the two horses!
We made sure they all went and looked at where the water source was and then left them to it. I think I worried all night about whether they'd have hot feet the next day but they all seem fine and even Tara has layed down and actually stopped eating for a while. The track has been fully navigated and hopefully they're getting some good exercise whilst in here. Believe it or not the track we've got going now is only HALF of the actually field size...there is another flat bit with the same amount of grazing in it to the bottom right of the pictures here!! ;-)
Serious 'Ride the Rail' could be done with the inner sanctum fence line! lol
Serious 'Ride the Rail' could be done with the inner sanctum fence line! lol
Horses enjoying their grass
Horses at the bottom part of the track, we feed them small amounts (mostly speedi-beet) to put something other than grass in their bellies ;-)
Horses cantering up the track to the upper most part of field for breakfast ;-)
Mark feeding the horses this morningThursday 27th May
Well we needed more electricity and a couple of apples today so I decided to take Stormy out on his first trip to the shop from our new home. He caught me well and came up to be groomed and saddled and grazed his head off too. lol
I played Stick 2 Me and yo-yo's down to the first gateway and then mounted him from there. Going along the whole track he was hesitant a few times, almost in the same places as Solly was the other day, but went on well for me. I got off once at the wooden bridge just in case he spooked over it but I had a good strategy for him. I did Point 2 Points the whole way to the village. I spotted a good place to stop and graze and then had a Superb Focus on that point and took nothing less. He put in a couple of backups where I turned him around and let him backup in the direction I wanted ;-) And he also stopped a couple of times to assess things. I got off where there were cattle in a field. All in all the way down was superb. I could ask no more of him, he was listening to me, attentive of his surroundings and appreciated all the grazing stops ;-)
Admiring the view to the shop 
Watching the lapwings dancing over the sheep fields
The same 'strange' place that Solly stopped at...notice the BIG yellow notices about overhead electric cables and all the cables...
probably quite a lot to take in for a sensitive horsey ;-)
Made it to the shop...two apples down and ready to go home ;-)
All ears and eager to get homeHe went very well at the start of the ride home. Attentive, trusting and also put in some lovely trot transitions. When we got to the field with the cattle in it things went a bit pear-shaped. The cattle are on a hill that is higher than the road, one cow decided to RUN down the hill in almost a challenge to Stormy and he lost the plot. He pranced about and I decided to get off BUT getting off a HUGE 18.2hh in an emergency dismount is not as easy as it seems, he continued to prance and then tried to canter. Letting a big unbalanced baby Shire canter from fear is not something I wanted to do SO I tried to stop him, he then put in a buck, Buck, BUCK and I came off.
Luckily he went for home and a gate stopped him just a field away SO I went and got him. Not his fault, just an accident. I should have got off earlier, at my own doing! ;0(
He had managed to get along a field fence between the fence and a stone dyke wall! Must have done it from the beginning of the dyke wall where the field gateway was. Luckily having done PNH with him all his life I got his mecate rein and squeezed him in a jump over the slightly broken stone wall. He was a bit sweaty and we walked back to his grazing field together, only a couple of fields away. I'm a bit bruised but nothing serious thank goodness...very VERY lucky that I wear my riding hat nowadays as it got quite a bash and the whole peak part split open. Time to buy a new hat ;-)
Luckily he went for home and a gate stopped him just a field away SO I went and got him. Not his fault, just an accident. I should have got off earlier, at my own doing! ;0(
He had managed to get along a field fence between the fence and a stone dyke wall! Must have done it from the beginning of the dyke wall where the field gateway was. Luckily having done PNH with him all his life I got his mecate rein and squeezed him in a jump over the slightly broken stone wall. He was a bit sweaty and we walked back to his grazing field together, only a couple of fields away. I'm a bit bruised but nothing serious thank goodness...very VERY lucky that I wear my riding hat nowadays as it got quite a bash and the whole peak part split open. Time to buy a new hat ;-)
Tuesday 25th May
Been out and about teaching for a while so I'm going to try to play/ride my horses as much as I can whilst I'm home for a few days ;-)
Today it was Solly's turn. I needed to buy a stamp and send a letter off at the village shop SO instead of driving there I decided to hack there with Solly. He's never hacked this bit of ground (although Tara, Stormy and Holly have) but I was determined to have a great focus and see if he could follow that.
He came and caught me in the field nicely and I haltered him and played some games back up to the gate. He was a bit sluggish but the ground is on a hill and either boggy or full of grass tufts so he did well. Outside the field he discovered GRASS...yum, yum. I put him next to the car to graze whilst I groomed and saddled him. He was in heaven.
I then played with himk going down to the first gate out on the hack. He was very responsive along the track whilst playing Stick 2 Me, w/t/bkups and that was good. After the gate (which I backed him through) I cinched the last time and mounted from the fence and just sat there taking some time out to be really calm and let him graze again.
There were sheep in the next field but Solly's not really bothered by them, what he did put his head up about was going around corners that he couldn't see directly around so we took those really slowly. Next gate I got off and re-mounted from a 'stile'. Gateways are great...he gets to relax again, graze and we practise out sidling up to a mounting block regularly ;-)
Solly wondering what's around that big corner...where did the track go?Anyway, the hack takes about 20 mins and Solly did it in 35. He had two major stops, one where I got off and led him over a wooden bridge...seems like he's never been over that sort of bridge and he was worried when we went over a stream that went under the road...probably wondered where the water went and why it came out again! lol. The next bit he was worried about I just sat there and waited with him. The track went a bit narrower, lots of bushes one side and sheep w/lambs both sides. He wanted to go back so I turned him around and backed him past the worrying bushes (he didn't even realise, he just wanted to go backwards!) and when I turned him around he realised we'd passed the worrying thing and he just walked on like nothing had happened! lol
The next big worry was where two old bales of hay were along a fence line, could have been plenty of mice and things in there and so I got off and led him past a cottage and got back on at a gateway. Here he had a bit of a strop. There was a metal letter box on the track and overhead phone/electricity wires (which I've always found sensitive horses notice) and he was really not happy about going down the track BUT again I just sat there, when he backed up I turned him left and then right putting in some DHQ's and asked him politely to move on. Eventually (after about 8 mins) he did go, my phases went up and he decided to trust me.
Half way down the track he started whinneying big time. I remembered that there are about 7 horses near the village at the end of this track and he obviously could smell them. He stopped a couple of times to listen for an answering whinney, decided that it wasn't his herd and moved on nicely. At the end of the track there is a small array of houses, a small school, a stone bridge over the river Ardle and then the village highway and shop. I got off him and led him through this part of the village as it's a sensitivity overload with noises and sights so just to be safe he followed me through to the shop.
At the shop I played with some yo-yo's to make sure his attention was on me, backed him up, popped into the shop and got my stamp and two apples. I then posted my letter and gave Solly his green apple whilst I ate the red one and gave him the core after he'd been a good boy and stood still at the end of the rope ;-)
Letter posted, apples ate and people chatted to and it was time to mosey on back home. I asked Sol to sidle up to the edge of the bridge wall and mounted him. He knew exactly where he was going, he went well with politeness and no panic about getting back. We had some lovely forward walk and trot and he felt safe and was listening to me the whole way. He even went over the wooden bridge with me riding him, he was a little on his toes but calm enough for me to not worry much about it. He got to graze for being good after it so that next time the bridge will mean a much needed grazing break! lol
I'm very VERY proud of Sol doing this, hacking out at our last home was a bit of a nightmare, worrying about shooting, pheasants, ducks, quad bikes and things jumping out of bushes at us.
This ride was a smooth happy hack that I hope just gets better and better the more we do it.
(NB. I rode Solly with a hackamore but with concentrated reins, this is safer for me and helps him feel that I'm there as his leader. Riding him Freestyle on a hack is a little unsafe as he can spin and bolt home if something really freaks him, having me there with the reins helps him feel safe as he can go RBint when out and about and that in itself helps me trust him more and relax with him.)
Solly backing through a gateway
Solly getting one of his many grazing spots along the track ;-)Thursday 20th May
Yesterday we had a 'key' meter put into our electricity meter...this means that we go to a post office and get our electronic 'key' updated with cash and then come back, put it in the meter and hey presto we have more electricity to use up. We've found that we can keep an eye on how much electricity we're using per week and not have a massive quarterly bill in which we've not accounted for in the house bills! It also gives us a GREAT PURPOSE to put our horses to as now we can ride off road to our local post office to get the electricity and this is what I did today ;-)
I went into the field and asked Tara to catch me, not a problem there as she LOVES me giving her itchy spots scratches at the moment. I then drove her out of the field from Z2/3 and next to my car on the track where I groomed her whilst she grazed on nice grass. Next I put her near the car and asked her to stop grazing (which she does really nicely now) and saddled her up and put her hackamore on.
I then played with her (backups, driving, draw at canter etc) down the first part of the track and through the first gate towards the village. At this gate I asked her to sidle up to it and I mounted.
Tara just after first gate, backing up through gateway and just before sidling to gate for mounting
So the hack began, I used plenty of transitions (w/t/c/bkups) throughout the journey and some sideways when opening/closing the other 2 gates. She was light, listening to my requests from my energy nicely and it was a fab ride to the shop...took about 20 mins.
At the shop I sidled her up to the shop front and asked her to stand and stay (which she does really well ;-) and got my electricity 'key' moneyed up. I also bought a nice juicy apple for Tara and a water ice lolly for me which we ate together outside the shop. She really appreciated the apple and then tried to get some of my lolly too, cheeky girl!
So, I remounted and off home we went. She was very happy to be going home and we did LOTS of canter transitions, most of which I was doing with my hands on my head so as to not use the reins at all! cool. Very happy with her tries for me and her implusion is great too.
On getting back to the horses field I dismounted, took her saddle off and in the field remounted and rode her bareback down the whole field to give her water from the stream and put her back in with the herd. The other horses were all dozing and dear Solly was looking after herd leader Holly really well ;-)
At the shop I sidled her up to the shop front and asked her to stand and stay (which she does really well ;-) and got my electricity 'key' moneyed up. I also bought a nice juicy apple for Tara and a water ice lolly for me which we ate together outside the shop. She really appreciated the apple and then tried to get some of my lolly too, cheeky girl!
So, I remounted and off home we went. She was very happy to be going home and we did LOTS of canter transitions, most of which I was doing with my hands on my head so as to not use the reins at all! cool. Very happy with her tries for me and her implusion is great too.
On getting back to the horses field I dismounted, took her saddle off and in the field remounted and rode her bareback down the whole field to give her water from the stream and put her back in with the herd. The other horses were all dozing and dear Solly was looking after herd leader Holly really well ;-)
Solly watching over Holly whilst she dozes ;-)Wednesday 19th May
Went out today and groomed Tara, Solly, Stormy and Fortune. Holly was laying down so Mark did her later on. I then haltered up Tara and Solly, took them out of the field and rode Tara bareback and ponyed Solly to the playfield again. I put Solly into the roundpen to graze first today, here is my session:
Solly happily grazing in roundpenTara, ridden bareback:
Asking for my 4 requirements from my horses (Relaxation/Willing Obedience/Impulsion/Flexibility) I started with some transitions, first w/bkups, then trot/bckups and then canter/bckups. She was light and willing and very nice to ride.
Next I did some fig 8's in trot trying to not use my reins, she was working lightly off my leg and body movements and I only used my reins a couple of times so we moved onto some serpentines at trot and then into canter with SLC's (this is all in a very large open field!) I was very very happy with her lightness and enthusiasm ;-)
I put Tara into the roundpen, asked Solly to catch me, haltered him up and then took him out for a play.
Solly Online (22'):
Again asking for my 4 criteria requirements (R/WO/I/R) I started with yo-yo's and moved swiftly onto moving circles w/transitions and COD's and obstacles. He went over each jump 4 times before I moved off and he did the jumps well. After some grazing we moved onto asking him to put his Z5 to a jump and then sideways over the white barrel...okay today so moved on again. Next was weaving at w/t from 20' away...this is our first time so far away from the cones but he did marvellously well, I was very proud of him. Smoothly onto some fig 8's at trot first and then canter, I used more of the 22' line and moved further away from the cones to give him plenty of room to maneuver. He was cantering very well, did quite a few good FLC's too ;-)
Backup Z5 to a jumpHe did put in a stretch 'bow' so I jumped on him and let him graze a bit. Instead of jumping straight off I asked him to raise his head and LF and I put the rope into some reins and then rode him bareback in walk around the weave pattern a few times. He was okay, a bit hesitant (probably wanted to graze more! lol) but I persisted and he did the pattern a few times before I stopped at X and let him graze again. It felt good to ride him again ;-)
After a short break we moved onto more moving circles, this time no obstacles and mostly in canter around the whole large flat area of the new field. I wanted to see if any spots were worrying for him, test him in lots of new places in the field and see if he remained calm alll around it....he did very well. I decided to stop on a very good note....next time I come I should bring my 45' in a rucksack so that we could continue our longreining.
I haltered Tara up, got on her bareback and rode her, ponying Solly, back to the grazing field. I love doing this, it's a lot of of fun and they seem to enjoy it too.
Tuesday 18th May
Went out to horses today, no teaching, no unpacking just horse endulgence at it's best ;-) Firstly I groomed Stormy, Solly and Tara...they all needed it badly especially Tara whose coat was very thick this Winter and is coming out in clumps. They all really enjoyed being groomed and I was very hairy when I stopped.
I then haltered up Tara and Solly and took them out of the grazing field together. They were very much into the grass outside their field so I let them graze for a while whilst I put Tara's 22' line into reins and then sidled her up to a large stone and got on her bareback. Then I rode to the new playfield and ponyed Solly from Tara which I always enjoy.
Solly being ponyed from Tara
Solly and Tara checking out my new 'covered' barrels ;-)They both behaved beautifully down to the playfield and once there I put Tara into the new 50' roundpen. This is what I did with Solly:
Online (22'):
Started with some light yo-yo's to get his attention on me. His focus was mostly on the grass but he did very very well with the game and his reward was to graze. Then we went onto some moving circles, asking him to relax and have some nice impulsion in w/t/c transitions. He jumped a few jumps in succession and is moving nicely. Again although we've not played much over the last few weeks due to me teaching and also moving he was light and attentive and happy to be with me which was lovely.
I then asked him to stop at a single laying down barrel which he did well and then I asked him to jump just the single barrel from a standstill and he did that wonderfully, really leaned back and put his weight on his HQ's, picked his feet up nicely and popped over it.
Next I went to the small white barrel and asked him to sideways over it L&R...he was great, very light, hardly any phases and he was straight and not worried by it at all. I then asked him with the big barrel and he went to the right nicely but was worried a bit going to the left so I didn't push it, just went back to the smaller barrel and stopped on a good note.
After some dwell time with him grazing I went over to my cones and did some fig 8's w/transitions. He started at walk then went nicely up to trot and finally went into canter for me and did some lovely large fig 8's with some FLC's ;-) We then did some lovely weave in walk and then some in trot too and finished that section off with some trotting fig 8's again. He's really doing well with these patterns.
He was light, flexible, go=whoa and willingly obedient so I called it a day and let him graze.
Tara (Liberty):
Whilst Solly grazed I went into the roundpen and played some games with my dear Tara. Her DHQ's is light and attentive, her porcupine great and her trotting circles not bad at all for a LBint. I decided to try some Fig 8's at liberty but didn't have any cones or barrels in the pen SO I just decided to do them anyway without the 'focus toys'...and she did marvellously....very light, turned when asked, trotted them and did about 4 of them. This is a FIRST for Tara and it was fun to try it out with her....must be doing something right! lol.
Tara and Solly doing what they do best......
Online (22'):
Started with some light yo-yo's to get his attention on me. His focus was mostly on the grass but he did very very well with the game and his reward was to graze. Then we went onto some moving circles, asking him to relax and have some nice impulsion in w/t/c transitions. He jumped a few jumps in succession and is moving nicely. Again although we've not played much over the last few weeks due to me teaching and also moving he was light and attentive and happy to be with me which was lovely.
I then asked him to stop at a single laying down barrel which he did well and then I asked him to jump just the single barrel from a standstill and he did that wonderfully, really leaned back and put his weight on his HQ's, picked his feet up nicely and popped over it.
Next I went to the small white barrel and asked him to sideways over it L&R...he was great, very light, hardly any phases and he was straight and not worried by it at all. I then asked him with the big barrel and he went to the right nicely but was worried a bit going to the left so I didn't push it, just went back to the smaller barrel and stopped on a good note.
After some dwell time with him grazing I went over to my cones and did some fig 8's w/transitions. He started at walk then went nicely up to trot and finally went into canter for me and did some lovely large fig 8's with some FLC's ;-) We then did some lovely weave in walk and then some in trot too and finished that section off with some trotting fig 8's again. He's really doing well with these patterns.
He was light, flexible, go=whoa and willingly obedient so I called it a day and let him graze.
Tara (Liberty):
Whilst Solly grazed I went into the roundpen and played some games with my dear Tara. Her DHQ's is light and attentive, her porcupine great and her trotting circles not bad at all for a LBint. I decided to try some Fig 8's at liberty but didn't have any cones or barrels in the pen SO I just decided to do them anyway without the 'focus toys'...and she did marvellously....very light, turned when asked, trotted them and did about 4 of them. This is a FIRST for Tara and it was fun to try it out with her....must be doing something right! lol.
Tara and Solly doing what they do best......Grazing ;-)
Sunday 9th May
Today I did a bit of unpacking (dvd's and video's only) and decided to take the day off from unpacking. SO, as the weather is glorious I go out and groom all 5 of our horses. By golly did they need it. They're still shedding their Winter coats and I got out a ton of old hair from them all. I also took time out to make sure their manes and tails were brushed and all the tangles gotten out of them. Finally I took the scissors and trimmed their ears slightly and under their heads where all that winter long hair still clung (apart from Solly who never gets this ;-) It was a great grooming session, all of them stood at liberty to be done and it was a good bonding session too.
Finally I asked Tara to catch me, which she did very nicely and I haltered her and took her out of the field for a ride down the track and into the 2nd new field again. This is actually a nice hack out, lots of grazing opportunities (so point 2 point a good game) and hills for some slow downs and canter ups. lol. I went to the top of the field today and looked at what needed doing for the entrance. There is an old stone 'dyke' wall which has fallen down and we've been given permission to move bits of it to make an opening to the top of the field where our new fence can be started with a gateway. When I got there I asked Tara to go over the gap but there were too many moveable stones that she was unsure of so I dismounted and moved a few from the pathway, used the dyke wall to remount and asked her again to try to go over it....this time she did very well and got over it nicely ;-)
Stone wall from field side looking at track after going over it(you can see how much stone needs to be moved to make
a good entrance....a job for another day when I'm feeling fit)
We went down the top part of the field in a zigzag as it's quite steep in some places and then we cantered to the middle and checked out where I could put a small plastic shed to put my grooming kit, ball and some trimming bits for safe keeping. We then trotted out of the field via the lower gateway and she cantered up most of the hill back up to the track. We often see groups of deer around these fields and today was no exception, we saw one group of 18 deer all laying down snoozing ;-)
When we went back through the gateway where she helped me close it again I then went around this field for a snoop, checking out the fields next door and seeing all the wee little lambs there, they're so cute. Then Tara did another canter to the field entrance...she's definitely got some oomph in her at the moment which is lovely. I take her into the field, let her drink and set her free. Stormy and Solly came up for their hugs and then I went back home for a cup of T and some special Chocolate Brownies...well I think I've deserved them. lol.
When we went back through the gateway where she helped me close it again I then went around this field for a snoop, checking out the fields next door and seeing all the wee little lambs there, they're so cute. Then Tara did another canter to the field entrance...she's definitely got some oomph in her at the moment which is lovely. I take her into the field, let her drink and set her free. Stormy and Solly came up for their hugs and then I went back home for a cup of T and some special Chocolate Brownies...well I think I've deserved them. lol.
New home
View from home drivewaySaturday 8th May
Today we decided to take an hour out from unpacking boxes from the move and go and see the horses. They all greeted me wonderfully and it was good to be back amongst them. Tara came up and we decided to go and check out our other new field, Mark drove the car and I rode Tara bareback. This field has to be fenced on two short sides before it's secure for them all so it was a good opportunity to go and check the field out and count fence posts which will give me a good idea as to how many electric fence posts I will need to keep them off the fence once it's up. I also wanted to see how many posts I would need to put two pens up (one on a hill and another on a large flat bit which will be my new play/ridden area)It was a LOT of FUN going down the track and into the field, Tara was up for cantering a lot which was fun...there is some nice grass growing in here so I used this for canter point to points whilst checking out and counting the fencing....cool ;-)
Then we went back and Tara was superb with cantering up the hills and helping me open/close a gate which swung open...she learnt to push it closed while I did the catch up! ;-)) clever girl.
Then when I put Tara back into the grazing field Solly came over for a scratch and seemed to want to play.....
Solly wanting to play? lolHe kept picking up Tara's halter/rope and so I took the hint that he wanted to play and haltered him up. Played friendly game to start with and found his itchy spots. Then I played some yo-yo's and he's still very light and hasn't forgotten anything over the last two weeks.
I then stand on a large stone and play some circling (I only have a 12' line) at w/t both ways. He does really well and disengages very well. Next I have a bit of fun with sideways, start off in Z3 and then disengage him and do some in Z1, both ways. He does really well with this and seems very happy to be playing today. I go back to the large stone and sidle him up to me on the left and then back him up and do it to the right and use this opportunity to groom him well with my hands down his spine where he's loosing quite a lot of winter coat. I then ask to see if he will stand on a low stone....
...yup, not a problem, big show off that he is ;-)
I decide that this small play is enough and back him up really fast and then ask for a 'bow'. He does it nicely for me and I jump on his back and then just sit up there (friendly game) with one rein whilst he grazes for a while. I don't stay up long, maybe 5 mins or so and then just jump off, take the halter off, give him a big hug and leave to walk back home for a cup of T. Good fun ;-)
I then stand on a large stone and play some circling (I only have a 12' line) at w/t both ways. He does really well and disengages very well. Next I have a bit of fun with sideways, start off in Z3 and then disengage him and do some in Z1, both ways. He does really well with this and seems very happy to be playing today. I go back to the large stone and sidle him up to me on the left and then back him up and do it to the right and use this opportunity to groom him well with my hands down his spine where he's loosing quite a lot of winter coat. I then ask to see if he will stand on a low stone....
...yup, not a problem, big show off that he is ;-)I decide that this small play is enough and back him up really fast and then ask for a 'bow'. He does it nicely for me and I jump on his back and then just sit up there (friendly game) with one rein whilst he grazes for a while. I don't stay up long, maybe 5 mins or so and then just jump off, take the halter off, give him a big hug and leave to walk back home for a cup of T. Good fun ;-)
Solly posing for his piccie ;-)~~~~~~~~~
Moving Pictures from Monday...
Moving Pictures from Monday...
Solly and Tara ready to unload 
Me riding Tara and ponying Solly to house where Mark took Solly and I rode Tara to new field
Mark at the half way point on the trek with Holly to new home ;-)
Me riding Holly into Kirkmichael village, just half an hour from our new home 
Me and Holly just after a good canter up to her new fieldwhere herd wait for her ;-)
Friday 7th May
Well it's been a very busy week and this is the first opportunity I've had to write on the blog. We have just moved house and grazing. Only 11 miles from where we used to live in Glenshee but a big difference in weather and good riding. We used to live just up the road from here so we know all the good riding and are very pleased to be here ;-)
So, last Monday we moved the horses here. First in the trailer was Tara and Solly next to her. They loaded beautifully and travelled well. I rode Tara and ponyed Solly to the field after unloading at their destination. Both were very well behaved and got straight down to grazing in their new field which is just down a track from our new home.
Back to the old field and next to load was Stormy, he loaded very well and settled down while I loaded Fortune. Fortune took a couple of tries to get into the trailer but she was calm and happy when I put the butt bar up. The travelled well too and I was very pleased as neither of them have been trailer loaded or travelled for over 2 years ;-)
While I was trailering Stormy and Fortune, Mark was riding Holly over to the new field. I met him half way and we swapped over car for horse and I rode the last half to the field. Holly was very RB and a bit spooky, she's not done much out of the field in the last 2 years due to there not being much riding at our old home BUT she behaved in a very LB way and I could see and sense her trying her hardest to not spook at things and she did SO well over the whole ride. Very proud of her travelling the 11 miles along road and track to meet up with her herd.
When we were within a couple of miles from the field Holly started whinneying....she knew were she was as we'd ridden this track a few years ago I've been told that the herd were whinneying back to her, calling her home to them which was cool. At the last gateway we could see the herd and even though she'd been on the move for a few hours she willingly went into canter up a small slope to end our journey.
It was a fab ride but I know that Mark, Holly and I were glad to be home...in our new home.
I will not be able to do much with the horses for a while, we're waiting for some new fencing to be done in our 2nd new field. This field has some superb flatter ground and I am putting my playfield in there. I hope to be able to go and groom them and be with them and get our bond strong again. I will put more pictures up tomorrow of the horses move but for now, here is one of them happily munching grass in their new home ;-)
