Beware of Greeks…
Maybe a slightly inappropriate quote – Virgil was actually referring to enemies (the Greeks using the gift of a wooden horse to invade the city of Troy) when he wrote the Aenid, Book 2 more than 2000 years ago – but nevertheless still a good lesson. John Dryden translated it slightly differently Trust not their presents, […]
On the Right Foot…
We live in a world of almost endless possibilities. The internet has given us access to information in a way that only twenty years ago was impossible. Vast libraries of books have found their way onto the electronic highway and although not always absolute in its accuracy, Wikipedia is almost as expansive – and accurate […]
Houston Police-horses 100% Barefoot
Nice article on the Soul of a Horse blog about the Houston Police Department’s horses. They are all unshod and, no, they were not specifically selected for their hardness of hoof… They all went through some kind of transition, some harder than others, but this is only to be expected since they suddenly have ground […]
But…
How often do we hear, or use, this word when talking about horses? Often in the context of knowing something is actually better for the horse but my horse can’t because of all sorts of carefully created and formulated excuses. I know that roughage is best for horses but my horse needs extra cubes/mix/nuggets etc because… Barefoot is […]
New Developments TWH Regulation
According to Fran Jurga’s Hoofblog, there are developments in the regulation of soring and other associated practices applied to Tennessee Walking Horses to initiate the so-called “Big Lick” The article speculates on the intentions behind a new member’s bill in the American house. You can read the article here.
Boots
People often ask me which hoof boots I would recommend, usually as a cautionary precursor to riding barefoot outdoors. My answer is very simple – but not always satisfactory! I do not recommend any make of hoof boot. Among the various reasons why horses should not be shod, is also the question of physics and […]
Wear and Tear
Very interesting article about the dangers of dressage (and horse riding in general) and its effects on the wear and tear of joints etc. http://scienceofmotion.com/documents/wear_and_tear.html
TransHu Autumn 2013: Day Seven
Slightly remiss of me, I ended on day six when in fact day seven can still be counted as part of the adventure. Occasionally one or two of the party may head for home late on the evening of day six; for the rest of us, day seven marks our departure from Porta and the […]
TransHu Autumn 2013: Day Six
And here we are, sitting at the breakfast table on day seven, writing up the events of the penultimate day. As always, and certainly in retrospect, everything has passed very quickly; and nothing more so than the last day in the saddle. Our departure from Puivert at 09:15 was accompanied by rain, initially light but […]
TransHu Autumn 2013: Day Five
Just a short report today. Our departure from Comus was rapid and without problem. The first part is over quiet metalled roads; after the first col, we took to the rutted tracks again – and again 50cm snow! This is actually quite useful in slowing the herd and stopping any horse from attempting to overtake. […]