A HayNet Pick of the Week

Some of you other horsey bloggers out there will probably know of HayNet, but for those of you that don’t it is, in it’s own words, an equine social blogging network. You can put links up to your blog posts or even run another blog from it.

Anyways now that you’ve got a rough idea of what Hay-Net is I was simply going to say that my Mud and Mishaps post has been chosen as a HayNet pick of the week blog post, so I am quite happy with that.

If you aren’t already a member of a HayNet and would like to become one here is a link to the HayNet website.

Sorry about all old photos I haven’t been taking any lately, so I thought I’d just take a look though what I did have.

Mud and Mishaps

Ah just look at all that mud. Obviously I haven’t been able to ride when it’s this bad, it has dried up a lot since this photo was taken thankfully, but sadly I did have to cancel a lesson. So I’ve got awhile until my next lesson, I guess it’ll give me time to practice what I have learnt.

I’ve also started to try and do more work with Madeline now that I have more of an idea of riding in general as when I re-backed Madeline I was hesitant to start her training because I didn’t want to teach her incorrectly. I am now a lot more confidant and would like to get her going nicely.

I was riding Madeline the other day when she saw the other equines were having some food. She immediately decided that she would go and have some as well. But of course I wouldn’t let her so she tried to canter off with me sending mud and dirt flying. I asked her to walk for me which she did, but I noticed she had her left ear back in a rather odd way and I found myself wondering if maybe she had hurt herself. So I stopped her, lent forward onto her neck, reached over and took hold of her ear checking to see if she had hurt it somehow and next I knew Madeline saw a bit of haylage and lent down to get it, sending me slipping off over her neck with the grace of a drunken baboon. I swung my right leg over as if I were dismounting but my left leg was stuck in the stirrup, Madeline looked up from her haylage with a bemused look as I wiggled free. I was so very relieved that she hadn’t ran off, so with everything but my pride intact I got back on and finished the ride.

Now steering away from my little bit of foolishness here is a photo of Niko after rolling. Niko and I had just finished working and I’d un-tacked him, given him a quick brush down and off he went to get muddy. I hadn’t the heart to stop him because he hasn’t had a really good roll like this in some time. I have to say I think it probably wasn’t a good idea, I am still trying to get the chap clean. He loves to rub the mud on his face.

Anyway that’s about all from me, oh and if you were wondering why I thought Madeline might have hurt her ear I am ashamed to admit it, but seriously, I thought she might have flicked mud up into it, turns out she was just a bit put out because I wouldn’t let her go eat.

I know, I know, how have I survived this long?

Back On Blogger

Hello everyone as some of you may have noticed I have been off Blogger for sometime, in that time I’ve had my 18th birthday and been doing I lot of riding. Anyway on to the blogging but one more thing I’d like to say thanks to Abby for the happy birthday comment.


So here is the post I said I was going to do about my riding and Niko and I. Here’s a photo that was taken just earlier today, as normal I have a odd look on my face but I am really not bothered about that, as you may be able to see I am not wearing spurs, to me he looks like he is going quite well and just as well as he goes when I am wearing spurs.

I haven’t really got any good photos of me riding him in spurs for you to compare with the photos of me without spurs, but enough about the spurs. I’ve found I am having trouble with my legs so I have a question for any of you horsey experts out there, how do I keep my legs wrapped around the horse and my toes in, anyone got some tips?

Now that’s quite enough of my whingeing I could go on for days, but all in all I guess my riding has improved and Niko is going really well for me. I am so pleased with him. Niko is slowly starting to get a bit more of a shape to him with all the work he has been doing in a good outline, he still has a lot to build up. Also it may not seem like it but his mane has grown quite a lot too which I am happy about, I would like to let it grow long and then I’ll decide if I am going to do something with it after winter.

Well I think that’s plenty of rambling for one day I hope to be doing some more blogging soon and hopefully my posts will be a bit more organized.

Murphy Show Pony to be?

I’ve been planning on taking Murphy to a show for sometime, he’s such a pretty little Pony and does move quite nicely, but when he moved in with Pip he became good friends and they would groom one another very often which sadly led to the tragic demise of Murphy's beautiful mane as Pip may have um… well… he ate it :(

On the bright side he ate it in the friendliest way, with simple incessant grooming. But it has still somewhat lessened Murphy’s appearance, so the plan is that hopefully I can get his mane on the correct side during winter and his mane to grow back so he’ll be looking good next year and will be ready for a show.

I’ve got to do lots of inhand work with him over the winter months too as I’d rather Murphy did not go crazy and start cantering and bucking around the show ground. He can be very spirited and full of energy at times, which I love about his character but it does also mean that he’s likely to do something silly with all the excitement of a show.

Murphy is coming along really well and I am very happy with him. I have lunged him a little bit and he has been great at it and really listening. All this said I haven’t really much idea about shows so I had better learn a thing or two as well.

Now that’s all from me, my next post will hopefully be about my riding and how Niko's getting on.

The HoneyChop Horses

In the past I have mentioned that we use HoneyChop in the horses feed and how much they love it, well sometime ago I posted that I’d been trying the horses on HoneyChop plus Garlic, which went down very well. I also received a comment from HoneyChop asking if they might be able to use some of my photos, here’s the link to my post.

After HoneyChop had let me know what photos they wanted to use, I was happy to say yes, and as a token of their appreciation they gave me five free bags of HoneyChop and I was allowed to choose the type of HoneyChop as well, thank you very much HoneyChop.

Anyway the HoneyChop website has now received its full makeover complete with some of my photos and many more, the new website is great it’s very informative and helpful. Here is a link to the HoneyChop website, take a look around and you’ll probably spot Tipper and maybe some of my other photos.

Details on Pippin

It’s taken me longer than I would have liked to do this post but as usual lots of things have been getting in the way, but now some details on Pip.


Pip’s full name is, Bayfields Pippin Lord Darby. He was born sometime in May 2010, and he is still entire, his sire’s name is Bobby and dam’s name is Daisy. Pip is a Gypsy Vanner, also referred to by some as Classic Cobs, Gypsy Cobs, or Irish Cobs. Gypsy Vanners were originally bred as wagon/cart horses and children’s riding horses.

My father purchased Pip to be used for pulling (pushing) a trap, but obviously Pip has a long way to go till he is ready to pull (push) a trap, having said that some people say equines can drive at a younger age than they can be ridden, what is your opinion? All that said if everything goes the way I would like Pip will be broken to ride at the age of four and than broken to drive. As you can see from this photo I am having difficulty keeping the little chap clean with all the rain and mud around here.

In this photo Pip is on a tether, many Gypsy horses are kept in this manner. I have seen what harm it can do to an equine and I truly hate tethers, needless to say Pip is no longer kept on a tether and now shares a paddock with the other equines and his play mate Murphy Junior. Pip has become a very happy and sensible pony since he was joined by the rest of the herd.

The breed Gypsy Vanner should have a build similar to a heavy horse/ draft horse, with a compact body a short back and neck with good bone. Gypsy Vanners should also have long manes and tails with lots of feathering on the legs, a Gypsy Vanners hair should be long straight and silky. It maybe hard to tell from the photos but Pip has all these characteristics, he is a great little chap, and I was so pleased with him today as I did a little bit of in hand work with him and he was so good for me, he is getting on very well.

That’s all on Pippin for now, next up I hope to be doing the post I metioned about Murphy. Oh and I just remembered another name used to refer to a Gypsy Vanner is Tinker horse, and now I am off.

Welcome To the New Month

Welcome to the new month, a very special one too (my birthday’s in this one), I hope you’re all well I haven’t been posting a lot lately. I only did 8 posts last month, but I was surprised to see that I had more views than September when I posted 13 times.

Autumn is finally here, a bit late but better late than never, the trees are starting to turn a very nice colour, and the leaves have finally begun to fall, anyways on with horsey stuff.

I’ve got lots to yak about but need to get around to putting it in to a post, I’ll be talking about my riding and how Niko and I are getting on some more.

I’ll also be posting about little Murphy and what’s been going on with him and the plans I have for him, yes I know that makes it sound kind of sinister, but it’s really not.

And I really want to do a post about Pip with more details on him and of course how he’s getting on, but I need to get some photos of him, all the ones I’ve been getting have been rubbish.

So all that is hopefully to come in the new month and obviously I’ll have other stuff to go on about like the other horses and things.

Now I am off, thanks for following and I hope you all had a cracking Halloween.