Rollin' rollin' rollin ....

Today I went to check on the boys ('Mr F', 'Luke' and 'little 'Sam') while having a tea break.

As usual, the crew joined me and were snooping around near where I was, eating grass and now and then asking for a scratch here and there.

I was on my way back indoors when I  heard much grunting coming from behind the little lean-to that is in the field.

It was 'little Sam' who was enjoying a good roll on the floor. I happened to have my camera with me as initially my plan was to hunt for some ladybirds. Instead I had the pleasure to witness the following:

'Little Sam' pleased with his roll, walking off to make room for the others. 

'Luke' upon seeing me : "What's up?"  while 'Mr F' is preparing the ground ...

'Mr F' is next in line, rolling on the same spot were 'little Sam' just enjoyed himself.

'Luke' is lining up, ready to join ....

 ... and gets down to roll ...

 ... 'Mr F' changing side .... 

 .... and here we have nearly synchronised rolling ....

 Although 'Mr F' isn't very good in judging distance ... 
Luke: 'Woah! That's a bit close ...!

 Preparing to get up ...

... one long shake: ' ... mmmm better!'

 This rolling ritual is often an invitation for Luke to play: 'Come on, lets play now! We can go chase the little guy!'

'Mr F': "No not in the mood, found some nice grass."

Talking about horses rolling:

Everything they do is worth observing. Rolling for example can show you if there are any health conditions, predominately relating to their back.  

If a horse rolls only ever on one side, there may be some pain somehwere that stops him from rolling on both sides.

I have observed them all and the routine is: roll side 'A', get up, shake vigorously, roll side 'B' get up, shake yet more vigorously. Repeat if desired.

Here at the farm there are only 'Madame' and 'little Sam' that can do a full roll. I haven't seen the others do it but then I don't see them all the time. But I never noticed 'Mr F' do a full roll.

I always thought that a horse should be able to roll from one side to the other without having to get up to change sides. Yet apparently, horses with high withers (like 'Mr F') cannot physically do a full roll. He does one side, gets up and does the same on his other side. Rolling is good for horses as it stretches and exercises their muscles and some people deliberately have a sand pit for their horses to roll in.

And this photograph was taken on a previous day:

'Work? What is that?'

 

On Supplements - Hack Up

Annette has been to visit again.

She suggested to give 'Mr F' collagen supplements but I had my doubts after researching online. It appears to work for some but not for others; there have been various studies trying to find out if it can actually be taken in by the horse's body.

Reading on forums, there also seemed to be equally as many voices for it as against it.

The whole topic of supplements is a minefield! Unless you are a horse nutritionist, you'll soon find yourself very confused once you start reading up on herbs.

There is a saying "Don't fix what is not broken" ...

Unforutunately I have a very analytical mind and this is causing me some troubles at times. By digging deeper and dipper. There is another saying:

"A little knowledge is dangerous ..."


There are various companies that offer individual herbes but many herbes have similar properties. Asking the representatives of these various companies too has resulted in more confusing information.


While reading on various online forums I noticed a company that was mentioned who would offer bespoke supplements: "only the highest-grade human products - all free from all preservatives and additives - Bespoke for your horse, created for joints, calming, digestion, circulation, detox or simply as a prophylactic to protect your horses long term health."

Having read some testimonials and also the founder's background I decided to give it a try and had a bespoke supplement made for his joints and general movement. 'Mr F' has been on it for the past 2 months but I decided to take him off it for a bit to see what his condition is going to be without it.

He seemed more stiff again without it so I will be putting him back on it for now. At least I know more or less what the ingredients are.

Our Own Warderobe - Tack!

We finally have our own saddle, thanks to 'Lilian' who sold me a Barry Swain Dressage saddle. 

Compared to the other saddles I have tried, this one for me is the most comfortable saddle. I like it because both pommel and cantle are quite flat. I didn't get along with saddles that have high cantles nor did I get along with knee rolls because it made me feel wedged in place, forcing me to aim for that exact spot when doing rising trott or I would bounce of the high cantle. With this saddle I could find my natural place and even the stirrups did  not bother me too much. 

What I also liked was that there was very little bulk between my legs and the horse.

'Mr F' was fine with the saddle too, it seemed. But it needed to be fitted properly. Apparently, it needed padding out at the back to lift it and I was told the width was fine. I know very little about saddles but had a gut feeling that the saddle was too narrow at the front. However, these were professional saddle fitters so I went along with their recommendations.

In addition, we got our own stirrups, bridle, reins, saddle cloth etc (laced) and Sprenger bit. All quite cheaply (afterall 'Mr F' is a horse on zero budget) thanks to an well known online auction site!

The sprenger bit was a great purchase, 'Mr F' is no longer throwing around his head.

The not so manly ear bonnet was borrowed, 'Mr F' does get very annoyed with the flies ...