Horses..

[steveR]

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I rent land from horsey people for sheep. It takes all sorts!

Gotta love a good Thelwell...

 

[Kidds]

In previous lives I have driven horses from as far South as Stowe and as far North as Appleby. Those locations will give a clue to that former life.
There is nothing more rewarding on this Earth than the bond between a well trained animal and yourself, be that dog, horse or anything else. When you can communicate seemingly by telepathy you have reached something not many experience and no words can describe it.
As said earlier in this thread it is a great loss to the farming community and farmers themselves that the bond between good horses and humans is all but lost in this country.
Being with and at one with a horse or dog on a daily basis is something very deep rooted in our psyche and sadly all but lost.

 

[JP1]

In previous lives I have driven horses from as far South as Stowe and as far North as Appleby. Those locations will give a clue to that former life.
There is nothing more rewarding on this Earth than the bond between a well trained animal and yourself, be that dog, horse or anything else. When you can communicate seemingly by telepathy you have reached something not many experience and no words can describe it.
As said earlier in this thread it is a great loss to the farming community and farmers themselves that the bond between good horses and humans is all but lost in this country.
Being with and at one with a horse or dog on a daily basis is something very deep rooted in our psyche and sadly all but lost.

Do you still drive? Something I've always fancied but worried about stupid fast traffic

 

[Old Boar]

I was quite old when I finally realised that being able to communicate with horses was not that common. I had done it all my life. The feeling of "talking" to a horse, and it talking back is wonderful. The horse resting its head on your shoulder, sharing your breath, trusting you fully, just wonderful.
Most children with ponies love them to bits, would happily sleep in the stable. Its their best friend.
Of course there are neglected horses, just as there are neglected dogs, children...
One horse I drove would react to my thoughts not through the reins. I thought "slow down" and she would. I could tell her there was a bag in the hedge and it was fine, and she would look and ignore. The buzz was just incredible.
I used to break horses to harness, it was done through trust and love. I miss it.

 

[deleted user 87364]

I was quite old when I finally realised that being able to communicate with horses was not that common. I had done it all my life. The feeling of "talking" to a horse, and it talking back is wonderful. The horse resting its head on your shoulder, sharing your breath, trusting you fully, just wonderful.
Most children with ponies love them to bits, would happily sleep in the stable. Its their best friend.
Of course there are neglected horses, just as there are neglected dogs, children...
One horse I drove would react to my thoughts not through the reins. I thought "slow down" and she would. I could tell her there was a bag in the hedge and it was fine, and she would look and ignore. The buzz was just incredible.
I used to break horses to harness, it was done through trust and love. I miss it.

Beautiful! and a pleasure to read, 100% agree with you. Trust and Love all the way for these divine creatures their spirits should never be broken. Love riding and driving too. Absolutely incredible the bond we can share with them.

 

[Pilatus]

What I want to know is, the damned things have to be housed, rugged, clipped, fed special diets, mustn't go near a speck of dust, have to be attended by an entourage of people dressed in Dubarry; how do they survive in the wild, like in Yellowstone, etc?

I quite agree. My late father was a great horseman( there was only one horse I can remember that got the better of my father’s riding capabilities)and loved his horses but they certainly didn’t get molly coddled as most horses seem to be these days.
Bedded on straw, fed hay , rolled oats , bran and a bit of linseed. They were very rarely rugged when grazing outside.I dread to think how much some of these horse feeds cost which I see owners buying at the local MOLE VALLEY FARMERS

 

[Two Tone]

I was quite old when I finally realised that being able to communicate with horses was not that common. I had done it all my life. The feeling of "talking" to a horse, and it talking back is wonderful. The horse resting its head on your shoulder, sharing your breath, trusting you fully, just wonderful.
Most children with ponies love them to bits, would happily sleep in the stable. Its their best friend.
Of course there are neglected horses, just as there are neglected dogs, children...
One horse I drove would react to my thoughts not through the reins. I thought "slow down" and she would. I could tell her there was a bag in the hedge and it was fine, and she would look and ignore. The buzz was just incredible.
I used to break horses to harness, it was done through trust and love. I miss it.

I happen to know that @Dry Rot has a video on YouTube that I think we would all enjoy watching. Several actually.
But I’ll leave it to him to share with us.
I think he is definitely another who has ‘The gift’.

 

[Dry Rot]

I happen to know that @Dry Rot has a video on YouTube that I think we would all enjoy watching. Several actually.
But I’ll leave it to him to share with us.
I think he is definitely another who has ‘The gift’.

I bow to Two Tone's demands. Here is the video. It is a compilation of clips from various videos I have shot of training one pony here who is a bit of a problem to me as I don't ride. It was used to advertise for a rider, but failed. I have to rely on local girls who sometimes have different ideas to my own not to mention their own horses! So, in Highland pony terms, Alder "has opinions". I don't think I have anything, just a huge gap in my knowledge I wish I could fill.

 

[deleted user 87364]

I bow to Two Tone's demands. Here is the video. It is a compilation of clips from various videos I have shot of training one pony here who is a bit of a problem to me as I don't ride. It was used to advertise for a rider, but failed. I have to rely on local girls who sometimes have different ideas to my own not to mention their own horses! So, in Highland pony terms, Alder "has opinions". I don't think I have anything, just a huge gap in my knowledge I wish I could fill.

God bless you and Alder I loved watching your video and I so wished I could help you. Look forward to seeing more of this beautiful lady.

 

[Kidds]

Do you still drive? Something I've always fancied but worried about stupid fast traffic

No, as i said it was a previous life. You need to be young and silly for that stuff for the most part. It isn't safe now and I don't think it was then either.

 

[deleted user 87364]

No, as i said it was a previous life. You need to be young and silly for that stuff for the most part. It isn't safe now and I don't think it was then either.

Too many cars on the roads now with ignorant drivers that think roads were only made for them. Given the right time and place in my opinion it’s a very enjoyable thing to do and I do love the old fashioned carts/carriages and seeing how much the ponies love it too.

 

[Kidds]

Too many ignorant horse owners too. I can pretty much guarantee I know a lot more about what the horse is thinking and what it is going to do than the idiotic woman sat on its back waving her arms at me.
If you or your horse has a problem the least likely action that would help the situation is sitting on its back waving your arms, in fact more often than not that is the cause of the problem rather than the solution. See it all to often all the same and can't remember the horse ever being bothered about me or what I might be doing. Don't get me wrong, if the horse does have an issue with me I will immediately stop, switch off and allow them to pass but very rarely do I need to.

 

[deleted user 87364]

Too many ignorant horse owners too. I can pretty much guarantee I know a lot more about what the horse is thinking and what it is going to do than the idiotic woman sat on its back waving her arms at me.
If you or your horse has a problem the least likely action that would help the situation is sitting on its back waving your arms, in fact more often than not that is the cause of the problem rather than the solution. See it all to often all the same and can't remember the horse ever being bothered about me or what I might be doing. Don't get me wrong, if the horse does have an issue with me I will immediately stop, switch off and allow them to pass but very rarely do I need to.

I wouldn’t know, I’m not an ignorant horse owner or an idiotic woman sitting on the back of one, waving my arms about at anyone either, sorry you have come across such people!

 

[Kidds]

Wasn't aimed at you, I have come across countless of them though.

 

[deleted user 87364]

Wasn't aimed at you, I have come across countless of them though.

I know that..and I’m sure you have! It’s a shame.

 

[Two Tone]

It would certainly feel good to be out of the rain!

 

[deleted user 87364]

It would certainly feel good to be out of the rain!

Love it

 

[AnyOldName]

I will say that a lot of ‘farmers’ take the I-hate-‘orses’ into their production of fodder
Sh1t hay and even sh1t straw which is a hard one to get ones head around FFS!

Good hay is your way out of a bank loan, similar good straw.
To not have to steam/soak/whittle a carp delivery of badly made hay is a sure way to loose what could earn close to £50 pounds per Hesston bale.
I’m working on x8 smallies to x1 biggie here. That’s £6 per bale and a profit.

By all means sell sh1t to the ever dwindling cattle folk but there is a market in ‘good’!
SS

You think people make sh!t hay deliberately? Maybe in a super dry corner of Suffolk it seems so simple that it should always be good quality, how many bales do you bale a year?

 

[Kidds]

You think people make sh!t hay deliberately? Maybe in a super dry corner of Suffolk it seems so simple that it should always be good quality, how many bales do you bale a year?

I wouldn't say my missus burns my tea deliberately but it happens often enough.
Plenty of folk out there that are not very good at making hay, and straw for that matter, but still try to sell it as good stuff.

 

[suffolksmallholder]

You think people make sh!t hay deliberately? Maybe in a super dry corner of Suffolk it seems so simple that it should always be good quality, how many bales do you bale a year?

I do not make hay at all.
I Used to make a lot as part of a large team and every bale made and sold was guaranteed.
This was on The Chilterns escarpment with 25” average rain per year and roughly 400 acres of meadow hay. The Aylesbury Vale was slightly rain shadowed with 23” rainfall and at that time 1500 acres.

I want to PURCHASE good hay. Yes I am in a super dry corner of Suffolk with 20” rainfall, as you say and folk still manage to make poor quality bales.
Last year was the longest, driest summer and someone even managed to make carp straw
I gave up then and went to pelletised

I get good stuff down from East Yorkshire and have found another supplier who is not involved in feeding coos.
SS