Firstly, I must apologise for not updating my blog for so long. The sole reason I have neglected my online duties is because I like to include photos in my posts. However, every time I have had an opportunity to take new photos of my two girls, it has either been pitch black (I soooo can’t wait for the clocks to go forward, I’ve almost forgotten what colour my horses are!) or the horses have been so disgustingly muddy and filthy that I’ve been too embarrassed to share the images with you!
Anyway, this morning I decided, photos or no photos, you’re all well overdue a catch-up so here we go.
The only way is up!
Jazz and Katie are both doing very well and are doing what babies do best- eating, sleeping and growing. They both turn nine months old this month and Jazz is already about 15.1hh at the withers. Last week, I also measured her bone below the knee and was pleasantly surprised with the results.
To ascertain a horse’s amount of ‘bone’, you simply take a tape measure and measure the circumference of the leg directly below the knee. As a rule, the larger this number, the more weight the horse is capable of carrying. The amount of bone will also depend on the type of horse. For example, a strong cob or hunter type will have more bone than a dainty show pony. Anyway, I am thrilled with Jazz’s statistics as she has a massive 10” below the knee already! Seeing as she is destined for the saddle/show hunter ring, this is great news. It puts her firmly in the heavyweight hunter category, as animals in this class should ideally have over 9” of bone.
Little and Large
Katie is also growing nicely and is looking more stunning every day, despite all the mud! They are both chomping down their NRM Asset and Oaten Chaff although I am going to have to feed Katie a little less and Jazz a tad more. It seems that overnight Jazz has shot up several feet and suddenly looks lighter and Katie is looking a bit porky (not overly fat but her ribs are rapidly vanishing which isn’t good for a weanling) It just goes to show that you have to keep a careful eye on the growth of youngsters- they don’t follow a set schedule and are constantly changing!
Farriers....
Both Jazz and Katie had their first trim a few weeks ago (since I have owned them anyway). Katie was a bit nervous but behaved like an angel. Jazzie was a bit more of a challenge. She tolerated having her front feet seen to but would not let the farrier trim her hind feet. She wasn’t throwing herself around but she refused to stand still and it was obvious that she wasn’t happy with him doing it. I’m not sure whether this is because she hadn’t had her feet handled enough at her previous home, the farrier wasn’t sensitive enough or she was just having a bad day. Nonetheless, I have spent every day of the past month getting her used to having her feet picked up. She is now a hundred times better than she was a few weeks ago and hopefully her next appointment with the farrier will be much more positive.
On the subject of farriers, the one I was using has had me tearing my hair out. He was supposed to come and trim the horses last week- I took a day off especially as Jazz really needs her hind feet doing. I booked him in four weeks previously. Well, he did not show up. I waited for two hours at the livery yard and received no phone call, nothing. So, needless to say, I won’t be using him again. Thankfully, the guys at Bryant Farrier Ltd- while not having any space on their books themselves- recommended four alternative farriers in the area. I have booked one of them in for this Wednesday so fingers crossed he turns up!
If anyone else has any recommendations for farriers in Kumeu, feel free to drop me a line at jennifer@intermediary.co.nz. Also, if any of you have had problems with farriers; let me know as I would love to know I’m not the only one who has had to deal with this kind of thing....!
Spring isn’t too far away...
As I was trudging through my mud clogged paddock, trying to avoid having my boot sucked off for the second time, I heard a sound that gave me hope that this cold, wet weather won’t last forever. I heard lambs baaing! It made me realise that spring and summer aren’t actually that far away.
Now is a great time to start planning what you’re going to do when the weather gets warmer and will help you get through the rest of winter with a smile on your face. If, like me, you want to start thinking about what showing shows you want to go to next season, it is well worth purchasing a special calendar from Anne Hjorth. It is the first of its kind in this country and she is selling them to fund her trip to represent New Zealand at the EFA National Show Horse Championships at Werribe in Melbourne on December 2009. She will be riding for New Zealand in the Saddle Hunter division on her NZ Horse of the Year Show champion, Saville Row. The calendars are $20 each and can be pre-purchased by emailing Anne at anne.hjorth@gmail.com
Happy riding everyone and I’ll bring you another update soon- hopefully, with some more horsey photos for you to look at!