Thursday, 31 January 2013
Magic would never do this...
Never in a million years...but I am still a sucker for a good old emotional advert - don't get me started on the John Lewis snowmen!
Friday, 18 January 2013
Bettering myself for free
We all have a sticking point in certain subjects - in the equine world, some people are extremely knowledgeable on the ground but they lack the confidence to ride a horse well, others excel in the saddle and sometimes forget the more detailed parts of horse care. For some, however, the point at which they come unstuck is far more generalised - and I am one of those people. The one thing I have always struggled to get my head around is feeding a horse - I have an honours degree and many qualifications, but I will stare blankly into feed bins for a good ten minutes at a time before admitting defeat.
Half of the problem is that I am not involved in horse care on a daily basis, much as I would like to be. I was in the Pony Club as a teenager and learnt so much through that and working at my stables, and I even remember earning my feeding badge, but I also remember that it was a lot of hard work at the time, and that was a good decade ago.
So, with some vague mumblings about wanting to become a horse owner at some point in my life, I've always known I have to sharpen up the areas I'm lacking in - because a decade old feeding badge from the Pony Club is almost certainly out of date, not that I can remember anything from it anyway - before I take the plunge, for my peace of mind as much as the welfare of any horse that finds its way into my life. Reading Horse and Hound magazine and Your Horse's Twitter account, I found out about a free equine nutrition course being run through the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies at Edinburgh. Basically, the course is five weeks long, it aims to teach you not just about what to feed and when but also physiology, dietary management and how to understand all of it. And the best part? Did I mention it's free?
I've signed up for the course - 3-4 hours a week can easily be fitted around a full-time job - which is entirely online, along with over 10,000 other people, in the hope that this time around, something might stick in my head!
To learn more about the course and enrol, click here.
Half of the problem is that I am not involved in horse care on a daily basis, much as I would like to be. I was in the Pony Club as a teenager and learnt so much through that and working at my stables, and I even remember earning my feeding badge, but I also remember that it was a lot of hard work at the time, and that was a good decade ago.
So, with some vague mumblings about wanting to become a horse owner at some point in my life, I've always known I have to sharpen up the areas I'm lacking in - because a decade old feeding badge from the Pony Club is almost certainly out of date, not that I can remember anything from it anyway - before I take the plunge, for my peace of mind as much as the welfare of any horse that finds its way into my life. Reading Horse and Hound magazine and Your Horse's Twitter account, I found out about a free equine nutrition course being run through the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies at Edinburgh. Basically, the course is five weeks long, it aims to teach you not just about what to feed and when but also physiology, dietary management and how to understand all of it. And the best part? Did I mention it's free?
I've signed up for the course - 3-4 hours a week can easily be fitted around a full-time job - which is entirely online, along with over 10,000 other people, in the hope that this time around, something might stick in my head!
To learn more about the course and enrol, click here.
Tuesday, 15 January 2013
Wednesday, 2 January 2013
New Year's resolutions
So with my last post being a horsey Christmas wishlist (sadly I didn't find Magic under the tree, despite my best efforts), it makes sense to find some horsey resolutions that I will have the best intentions of keeping, at least until February, where I will probably forget all of them and slip back into old habits. But hey, it's a tradition!
1. Be able to ride Magic around a course of jumps without a) frightening anybody or b) killing (or at least seriously injuring) either of us
This is easier said than done with an ex-showjumper. Never mind adjusting your horse's stride; Magic takes every jump on whichever stride she fancies (often from about twenty feet out), and also at about a million miles an hour. When you try to point out this isn't perhaps the best way, she rewards your efforts by putting in a dirty refusal and tipping you over her neck. The best riders I know have given up and just let her get on with it, so I follow their lead, but making it around a small course in one piece would feel like an achievement to me after the manic efforts we've put in before...
2. Make it back to Burghley
Okay, so this isn't so much a resolution and instead is more of an aim, but no harm in putting it on here. Burghley was one of my highlights of 2012, and I am determined to make it back there again in 2013. It was worth every penny and more.
3. Get a bit braver
I would be a much better rider if I stopped overthinking everything and imagining what could go wrong, so I need to make the effort to be more positive, and when that's under control, I need to feel the fear and then DO IT ANYWAY.
4. Seriously look into loaning a horse
I thought of an option that I hadn't even considered before, and what's more, it's also very practical, realistic and totally affordable. I can't claim the credit for the idea, but that doesn't matter - making it happen is far more important! More on that at a later date...
The hardest one for me on here has to be number three, without a doubt, but it's something I need to get over and work on, I worry far too much. The easiest to keep will be number two, because that's not exactly a hardship (although I had better start saving now...). Have you made any horsey resolutions?
1. Be able to ride Magic around a course of jumps without a) frightening anybody or b) killing (or at least seriously injuring) either of us
This is easier said than done with an ex-showjumper. Never mind adjusting your horse's stride; Magic takes every jump on whichever stride she fancies (often from about twenty feet out), and also at about a million miles an hour. When you try to point out this isn't perhaps the best way, she rewards your efforts by putting in a dirty refusal and tipping you over her neck. The best riders I know have given up and just let her get on with it, so I follow their lead, but making it around a small course in one piece would feel like an achievement to me after the manic efforts we've put in before...
2. Make it back to Burghley
Okay, so this isn't so much a resolution and instead is more of an aim, but no harm in putting it on here. Burghley was one of my highlights of 2012, and I am determined to make it back there again in 2013. It was worth every penny and more.
3. Get a bit braver
I would be a much better rider if I stopped overthinking everything and imagining what could go wrong, so I need to make the effort to be more positive, and when that's under control, I need to feel the fear and then DO IT ANYWAY.
4. Seriously look into loaning a horse
I thought of an option that I hadn't even considered before, and what's more, it's also very practical, realistic and totally affordable. I can't claim the credit for the idea, but that doesn't matter - making it happen is far more important! More on that at a later date...
The hardest one for me on here has to be number three, without a doubt, but it's something I need to get over and work on, I worry far too much. The easiest to keep will be number two, because that's not exactly a hardship (although I had better start saving now...). Have you made any horsey resolutions?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)