Facebook - Latest Status Update

Feeling very bored last night, I was trawling through facebook's status shuffle for an amusing witty status update .  I lack the wit and originality to come up with own every day and it is one way to pass the time late at night when I should be in bed but am still glued to facebook.  Anyway, I decided to check out the animal category in search of a status update relating to horses and I found this post which suited my mood perfectly!

A guy says to God,  "God why did you create the horse?" and God replies "It was an apology to the girls for creating you guys!"

Has anyone else got any amusing one liners on a horse theme?  I would love to hear them so please put add them to the comments.

Toys for kids who love horses.

Le Toy Van Jilly the Horse Rider - Buy Now

Christmas is coming (less than 90 days left) and what do you buy for the little girl who loves horses. Do you need some gift ideas for your pony mad little girl? There are a multitude of horse toys on the market from the old classics like the rocking horse and the hobby horse to the toys of my youth like My Little Pony and Barbie's horse to the more modern brands.  Horses toys can be traditional wooden toys or brightly coloured plastic toys.  There is something for everyone. Prices start from a pound or two for a pack of plastic animals including a few horses to a couple of hundred pounds or quite possibly a good deal more for a hand made hand painted rocking horse which wouldn't have looked out of place in a large Victorian nursery.   You can even buy all the accessories for your toy horses like a stable, carriage etc. And not to forgot the soft toys; why get a teddy bear when you can get a cuddly horse instead. If they are growing out of toys, what about a book about horses. Anyway to make life easier, heres a few suggestions for you.

Playmobile Carriage £19.00 Buy Now

Barbie Tawny Horse and Doll £29.99 Buy Now

Pony In my Pocket - Pony Stable Buy Now £10

Breyer Black Beauty with Book £27.53 Buy Now

Autograph Wooden Rocking Horse £75.00 Buy Now 

Jellycat Small piper Horse £12.77 Buy now

          

Mastering the Canter

Finally made it up to Trevelog for a days ride, after what seemed like a very long three weeks during which I was definitely having withdrawal symptoms..  Weather was lovely and sunny, but not too hot.  Can't ask for more in September.  There was a surprise when I got to the stables.  Two new 17 hand thoroughbred horses, an unusual sight in the valley where the horses are predominantly welsh cobs.  I am glad to say though I was not riding one of them, and was more than happy with Apollo who I enjoyed riding last month.  Don't think I am quite ready for an ex-racehorse and it is a lot further to fall from a horse that size.

A slightly blurry photo of the new thoroughbred taken from horseback

So anyway, set off up the mountain for a ride over the top.  After a long haul up, we finally reached the top.  After the horses had recovered we had a long trot along the ridge.  Finally, it was time for a canter.  Surprisingly, only five of the fifteen of us held back for the canter. Although, I think some of the others intended to canter but were unable to hold their horses back and ended up trotting along behind the beginners instead.  Wasn't my best start to cantering for the day as managed to nearly lose my reins on the first canter but somehow managed to recover them and completed the canter without any mishaps.  It's lovely cantering along the top, but a bit unnerving sometimes as the ground can be uneven and when the horse steps in a dip, it is a bit too easy to lose your balance but a good handful of mane seems to do the trick and I avoid falling off.

Along the way, I spot my friends new foal - only three weeks old it is so cute and we pass several wild horses on the mountain who look very bemused to see the horses with riders on.  We also spotted some beautiful toadstools.  They were the quintessential toadstool, red with white spots like you see in the fairy tales.  Very beautiful and very poisonous, known I believe as the fly agaric..  There were also copious amounts of blackberries and elderberries.  Unfortunately, too difficult to pick from horseback though.

Wild horse on the mountain

We reached the lane and dismounted to lead the horses down the steep slope to the pub for lunch.  After lunch, one of the ladies decided she had had enough and couldn't manage the afternoon trek back to the farm.  Her horse, Floss, a beautiful Hanoverian cross, is very placid and knows the trek well  so headed back with the rest of the trek, riderless.  She was a star and didn't even need to be led just followed along with the rest of the herd, even when we got on to the road for the last haul.  We did get some funny looks from walkers along the way, who seemed to think her rider had fallen off and been left behind.

Apollo and I, ready for our afternoon trek after an hour at the pub.

On the way back, we headed up to the forestry path for some canters.  I was chuffed because I managed the last long canter without holding onto the mane for the first time for more than an a couple of seconds.  I felt so much more in control than with two hands on the reins than with one hand for the reins and one to hold onto the mane.  Although, I'm not sure I would want to try it, on rough ground.  I had a real sense of achievement to think that when I started pony trekking in the Brecon Beacons six months ago, I couldn't even trot without holding onto the saddle and now I managed a decent length canter with sufficiently good balance that I didn't feel the need to hold on.

Arriving back at the farm, it was time to untack and give the horses a well deserved wash down before their dinner.  Horses dealt with, time for a quick cup of tea in the farmhouse before the drive home.  What a fantastic day!

Horses and the English Language

Watching Horsepower with Martin Clunes the other night, he mentioned how the English language is littered with phrases related to horses.  Horses were once key to our society and their importance in history has left its traces in our language which is full of horse and horse related idioms. I thought it might be fun to explore this a bit more and see how many examples I could find so here goes...

image courtesy of www.freefoto.com 

Horses are often used as a smilie to emphasise certain traits:men are as strong as a horse, virile men are hung like a stallion, we eat like a horse or feel like we could eat a horse.  Girls wear their hair in ponytails, we collect bits and pieces.  We even have nightmares and men describe their wives as nags.  Anyway here are a few more expressions:


"Champing at the bit"  


"Got the bit between his teeth"  


"Stop horsing around"  


"You can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink"  


"Get off your high horse"  


"Hold your horses"  


"One-horse town"  


"Wild horses could not drag me away"  .


"Straight from the horse's mouth"  


"flogging a dead horse"  


"he's a dark horse"  


"put the cart before the horse" 


"Locking the stable door after the horse has bolted."  


"Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth"  


"hell for leather" 


"riding roughshod over someone"  
"giving someone a leg up"  


"backing the wrong horse"  


"one-horse race" 


"neck and neck"  


"drive a coach and horses through it"


"put out to pasture"


Can anyone think of anymore?  Let me know.  Hope this made you smile.

My Top Ten Books about Horses

A list of some of my favourite fiction about horses, although to be honest the first five or so came easy but the last few were a struggle.  Would appreciate any recommendations from anyone on good novels to read with a horsey theme to them, but these are my thoughts.

1/ Black Beauty by Anna Sewell - 
The ultimate classic novel about a horse, told from the horses perspective.  One we all remember from our childhood.

2/ Riders by Jilly Cooper  

This was a fascinating insight into the world of show jumping from local shows to the Olympics.  It also had a definite chick lit slant and some steamy sex scenes and bad language.  I loved it!

3/ The Horse Whisperer by Nicolas Evans 

 A moving story of a 13 year old girl and her horse who are traumatised emotionally and physically by a terrible accident.  Worried about the girls state of mind if her horse has to be put down her mother tracks down a horse whisperer to try and help the horse.  Beautiful story.

4/ The Valley of the Horses by Jean M Auel
Set in prehistoric times, the second book in the Earths Children series follows Ayla's battle for survival alone after being rejected by the Neanderthal clan.  She finds herself in the Valley of Horses and as a result of her loneliness she tames a foal and learns to ride him and as a result he becomes one of her closest friends.

5/ National Velvet by Enid Bagnold  
Another classic novel  from my childhood. 

6/ My Friend Flicker by Mary O'Hara
Set on the American Plains,in Wyoming, the tale of a boy desperate for his own colt of his own. 

7/ The Silver Brumby by Elyne Mitchell

The story of feral horses in Australia; a silver stallion Thowra  and his battle to become king of the Brumbies.  Along the way he and his half brother face many dangers in the form of rival stallions and stock men who want to hunt him for his beautiful coat.

8/ Polo by Jilly Cooper   

Another bonkbuster by the author of Riders set in the world of horse riding, this time the polo field.  Nevertheless an excellent read!

8/ The Horse and his Boy 

The third of the Chronicles of Narnia, a fantasy story about a boy Shasta and his talking horse Bree

9/ The HorseDancer by JoJo Moyes 

A modern novel about the relationship between a teenager, her grandfather and her horse.  He teaches everything he knows about fine horsemanship from his experiences fifty years ago at an exclusive french riding school.  

10/ Pony Club Secrets by Stacy Gregg
A series of stories about life in the pony club for little girls to read.  Very cute!