The summer paddock they are in at the minute is very lucky to have an area of shade throughout the day from the layout of the trees; I know the horses will have enjoyed that, as they could get out of the heat for a bit. In addition to this they also have the odd hose down (much to Autumn’s distaste), but I gave Aria a pamper session the other morning as it was hotting up and she had a full bath, suds and all 😊.

I used a neem oil based shampoo as those pesky bugs are still out in force and no matter what I do they still seem to upset the horses. Safe to say Aria absolutely loved her bath and was 99.9% perfectly behaved, just a little squeal whilst washing her belly (area were flies had attacked so a bit sore). A bit of a prance whilst awaiting the rinse off but aside from that perfect (of course no one was there to witness the good behaviour but me coming away injury free should be good enough proof 😉 ha).

She does love a good groom and pamper, and that’s one way we managed to get her vaccination done – like a normal horse! Vaccination time for her is a very stressful event (and for all involved) but this year was great! Initially we tried with the vet behind a fence, but Aria clocked him and refused to get close enough so we ended talking to the vet ‘as normal’ whilst grooming Aria and the vet getting closer.

I gave Aria a good brush/scratch on her neck whilst the vet quietly injected and voila  - flu jab complete and everyone happy! That was the first time in 11 years with no drama or battle – I was ecstatic! Maybe just maybe she’s starting to get better with other people??

I’ve been doing more lunge and ground work with Bob which was going well but suddenly he has decided that something on the other side of the driveway is now scary (I have no idea what as there’re a couple of bushes, the river and then someone’s land but that’s it) so on occasion he has become quite lively.

It’s not something I want to encourage as sometimes he can get very worked up and just blindly charge around, so I’m going to do a bit of work with him on the drive (it’s gated so no risk of spooking to the road) and gradually desensitise him. For such a big horse he is such a wimp at times, although sometimes I’m sure he does it to try to get out of work!

I took Autumn for a ride round one of the fields one evening, she’s been doing well with her flatwork and lunging but I decided to take her out for a leg stretch in the field instead. As the ground is hard we only walked but it was nice to ride alongside the river listening to the birds, she’s such a good horse especially as the others were completely out of view and I had never ridden her in the field since we arrived, and yet she didn’t put a hoof wrong.

I came across a post on Facebook recently of some local gallops opening up so as soon as she’s fit enough I can’t wait to get her out there for a good run (Bob however, I may need to do a bit more work on and get a huuuuuggge pair of brave pants too😨)!

My partner has bought himself a new toy, mainly as I kept hinting/gently pointing out the height of nettles at the yard! So I let him loose the other night with his new brush cutter and he loves it. Once the nettles were dried I put them out for the horses who gobbled them up which is great as we do not have a shortage and I know they are very good for them! I’ve been toying with the idea of taking some home for nettle tea….but haven’t quite got there yet.

I follow a page that has lots of information about plants and wild herbs that you come across in pasture land/countryside which I’ve found very useful for identifying plants at the yard, luckily so far no poisonous ones! I have come across wild garlic which I’m very fond off, I leave a bit out for the horses every few days to nibble, then take some home for cooking – yum! So maybe one day soon ill brave the nettles too!

I’m looking forward to getting a fair few areas cleared round the land so we start to see what areas we can utilise for the different ideas we have such as more herbs and wild flowers in the wooded section etc. We are still on tender hooks waiting for the final outcome of the planning application too, and I’m obsessively checking the portal frequently each day, still crossing everything but hopefully the answer should be through in the next week or so (according to the end date) eeek!

Hope everyone is staying safe 😊