Winter Solstice

Bugsy watching the sun going down on the shortest day of the year!

The broodmares are fairly filling out now - five months to go!! (Bridget in foal to Exbury Ghost)

Millie (In foal to Burnock Exclusively Done) - posing on a cold and frosty evening!

Chamfron.....

Because I'm always getting asked!!

Chamfron - def: Medevial plate armour to protect the horses head.

Millie - settling in!

A few photos of Millie turned out for the first time! What a laid back girl.

Millcroft Malinmore

Millie has joined our broodmare band!



This 15.2hh, 10yo show hunter mare is currently in foal to Burnock Exclusively Done and due on the 12th of June 2008.

The same cross produced a stunning perlino colt foal in 2007.

Mark is.....

A Fop....

















.... and a Dandy!















Pitufa and Mark at Opening Meet - November 2007. Pitufa adds another string to her bow by proving she is more than capable of jumping walls and rails.

Jack

Jack was Peters little black cob - lazy as they came with a wicked sense of humour. Before Jack came here he had been a valued member of Ness RDA and had won medals at the Special Olympics. We bought him in January 2006 and he took Peter to his first show, round his first course of jumps and out hunting. Sadly yesterday he had a terrible bout of colic and he was clearly not going to recover, he was put down quickly before he suffered. Poor lad - he didn't deserve that end.

Pitufa and Virtus - Hunting!

Virtus had a days hunting as field masters horse today (Mark was asked to Field Master for the day!) and rose to the challenge admirally!!


I took Pitufa out for an hour and four hours later I was still having a ball!

Polo Pony - £5000,
Set of shoes - £50
Days hunting - £15

Smiling all day out hunting - Priceless.... for everything else there is Mastercard!!!!!
Then little spotty horse went out - just broken three weeks and technically field mastering!!!!



I have set up a website with hunting photos for sale - http://www.photoboxgallery.com/onlymulesandhorses

Growing up fast!!

Kofi's foal continues to make us go "WOW" - he is growing up into a really lovely looking horse, shedding out into a very dark grey. He is sold and has been named "Chamfron Nagasha" by his new owner Sian. Looking forward to hearing how he gets on in the show ring!

Pitufa - a busy little smurf....

Pitufa - a lovely exotic argentine name - yes? Well no not quite, remember the smurfs? Blue cartoon characters with pointy white hats? The girl one - yip thats Pitufa in spanish!!

Well Pitufa has settled well into life here and has been a busy little smurf! Playing in three tournaments and hunting (whipping in!!!) twice before we were stopped with the foot and mouth outbreaks.

She has grown her summer coat in beautifully now and is no doubt thinking how awful winter has been and that spring must be just round the corner!!! Poor pony, a big change from cutting cattle on the pampas! She's come a long way and done a lot, cow pony, polo pony, whips horse....

A super pony in every way!

David Bailey eat your heart out...!!!

Finally fame and fortune...(?!!!) I've been published! I'm sure now the royalties and commissions will come rolling in!

Oh O.K then, two of my photo's have been included in this weeks (20th of September 2007 issue) of Shooting Times and Country Magazine.

They look fabulous in print!!

To buy any of my photo's please go to my photobox albums! http://www.photoboxgallery.com/onlymulesandhorses

WRIDA

Joanna's last Nico foal at Verwood Meadow is one of the first batch of foals specially selected to join WRIDA. To quote from the website:

"The WRIDA (Western Riding for the Independent Disabled Association) Fund has been set up to finance a horse breeding and training programme that will make available to those disabled through traumatic physical injury or illness (like spinal injury), specially trained American Quarter Horses, Paints and Appaloosas, giving them the opportunity to explore the countryside on horseback and even enter ridden competitions because their mounts are so highly trained, that to an onlooker, no disability exists"

Please check out her website - http://www.thewesternshop.com/websites/wrida/

Gemma's Nico foals from this year are growing up well too - this lad is turning into a very handsom boy!

Pitufa!

Another new horse - today we purchased "Pitufa" - a 6yo imported argentinian polo pony... this is the look of a man who is scratching his head and wondering "How did I spend so much on something so little?!!"She plays very very well and hopefully one day I'll get to steal her long enough for a Nico foal!!

Muley would like a word.....

Muley is now a 5yo and has been doing a little bit more work including trips out to our local unaffiliated showjumping center. She would like to answer a few common questions for you....

What is it? "It" is a very pretty mule.

Hows it bred? My father was a donkey, my mother a horse...

Ha ha ha all mules are stubborn. If your mule is stubborn you are not asking it correctly, I'm a go anywhere, do anything kind of mule.

Ha ha all mules kick. Only two types of horse don't kick - the rocking horse and the clothes horse. Personally I've never lifted my legs to anyone, however it is still stupid to stand behind me.

Can I stoke her ears? Yes you may - gently. However they are my ears, I'm attatched to them and I'd prefer it if you did not allow your small child to hang off them.

Can she have foals? Most mules are infertile, so no I will not be joining the broodmare band.

Can she get foot and mouth? Was my mother a cow? - No! Do I look bovine? (Don't answer that) Do I have itty bitty cloven feet.... Would I be out SJ'ing if I could? Right then question answered I think!



P.S they've promised me a "Haulin' Ass" Sticker on the new wagon!!! If you see us out and about at shows come over and say hello - neither of us bites!!

New horse, New photo's!!!

Well we have been quite busy this week - we have aquired a new horse - and what a horse!! A 7 yo Thoroughbred with Manners to burn and a head you could look at all day!!!

He is for sale but will be earning his keep as a whips horse for the D&S Hunt.

Charlotte and Dave came for a visit and Dave kindly took these lovely photo's of Nico.

My famous mule....

Well as muley has a huge fan club and larger group of friends than I do I thought it was about time she got her mug shot on the blog! Treacle (Show name "Mule of Kintyre"!!!) is a 14.3hh grulla ride and drive mule. She is a 5yo this year so we are just starting to get her going under saddle and out and about to small jumping competitions for the experience and she takes everything in her stride!

My mule makes me smile!!!