Woods Equine AU

06/11/2023

Sophie and I resurrected our career for the one and only 🧡💕 at the Charity Dressage Day. 💕🧡Raising much needed awareness and research funds 🔬 for cancer, particularly Colorectal cancers and Neuroblastoma.

It was a great day with so many lovely members turning out in their pink & orange to support our beautiful friend Sooz and expand tribe 🧡💕

The glorious 🌧️🌧️🌧️ didn’t dampen the fun, although it did mean .schmidt ‘s Teco got out of doing his tests and just got to come along for moral support (and the food) which he thought was an excellent way to do dressage 😜🐷.

Huge thanks to the SEG committee, especially the tireless Cass and Lindy McGahey for the mammoth organisation effort, donating countless hours sourcing judges, volunteers and sponsors and raffle prizes, catering… 🙌💕🙌🧡🙌💕 🦸‍♀️

19/10/2023

Great product 👍

23/09/2023

Willow flying over the and jumps for 🦄🧡💕🦄🧡💕🧡💕🧡💕🧡💕🧡💕🧡💕🦄🧡💕🧡💕🧡💕🦄🧡💕🧡💕🧡💕🦄💕🧡💕🦄🧡🦄🧡💕
📸 DKA Photography

13/09/2023

Happy 4th Birthday to my beautiful big baby Aana today!! 🥳🐴💕. You’ve been nothing but sunshine and joy since you entered the world on a full moon, Friday the 13th 👻 2019. Love you kid!! ###

06/09/2023

Forgive me for being indulgent and mushy 🥹, but Willow has been getting a lot of kudos lately, so it’s time for a Sophie update!

Progress is not linear… this photo might look more like our first show jumping round, than a progress shot. This is a 60cm oxer. Six weeks ago we were jumping 1m+ in training and had a clear round in our first 90cm competition at the festival of show jumping.

On paper, this photo looks like a big step backwards and I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t been considering resurrecting Sophie’s dressage career (or just retiring her) a few weeks ago! Just as I had considered selling her/ putting her in foal/ giving her away, countless times over the 9 years I’ve owned her.

Sophie has been the most difficult horse I’ve ever ridden, and honestly it’s mostly been out of fear of where she’d end up, as well as having no other horse to ride for many years, that I haven’t let her go.

She’s also taught me more about patience and compassion than any other horse I’ve known. We may or may not get to my goal of jumping 1.05m at a show, but either way I’m going to continue to do my best to understand what she needs from me, and we’ll face our fears together, as long as she’s willing to keep trying. She owes me and my ego absolutely nothing 🖤🦄🥲. 📸 thanks to Brianna Thurston Photography

03/09/2023

Another super weekend of at the Samford Equestrian Group Spring Classic 🌼. Thanks again to Dani & James from Bunya Springs Equestrian for putting on such a great event.

I was proud to sponsor 2 classes! A big congratulations to all the riders who placed over the weekend. Huge thanks once again to the course builders, judges, sponsors, photographers and volunteers 👏👏🤩.

Lastly, but most importantly, the biggest gratitude goes to my beautiful horses Sophie 🖤🦄& 🧡🦄Willow for giving me the best rides all weekend !

Beautiful shots of Willow thanks to Jasmine Dunmore Photography 📸 in the Auswire Electrical & Air 1.05cm.

28/08/2023

Thank you for a super fun and friendly Sunday at the Winter Show Jumping Festival 🤩 and for capturing this moment with my 🧡🦄

27/07/2023

Willow 🧡🦄. Offering words of wisdom to the young lads 🐴🐴 Bronson & Timmy.

24/07/2023

Proud coach moment!! 🤩🤩 So very proud of my dressage ladies Sooz 🧡 and Shelley 🤎 stepping up to Novice dressage competition yesterday, for some super scores and feedback from the judges.
Well done ladies 👏👏. It’s such a joy to be a part of your team and see you reaping the rewards of all your hard work 🦄💕🦄💕.

23/07/2023

Some super jumping with the golden girl at Sunshine Coast Show Jumping today. She always gives 110% and is so forgiving of my many mistakes 🧡🦄🥹.

Thanks a million to .equestrian for the hangs and cheering us on today. Next stop; Hampton & Harlow Winter Championships 😃.
📸

01/07/2023

Great article I shared a while back. I love these exercises for improving the canter for dressage and jumping 💪🏼

https://eqlifemag.com.au/issues/66/dressage-for-showjumpers/?fbclid=IwAR2IbFF1WfacLbqXfV53k2nf0q_atU2s11C21HxP815shC7BmMKNcUb0M-s_aem_AfS3Ba0llwKlXIHbM8TpHHtna6fsZBt4mt3C-Upb1V7u5-teHnAKzgNmxCMpqx3fbaA

If dressage is training for balance, suppleness and obedience, it is obvious that dressage training will help jumping horses achieve their best, says Dr Kerry Mack.

27/06/2023

Very interesting 👀, especially how horses see jumps. Amazing animals 🐴 💕👁️👁️
🎥 credit to Rebecca Golding on tiktok

21/06/2023

Yellow & white oxers are Sophie’s 😱. This was jump no1 in our 90cm, after a not-very-confidence-building warmup 😰. So happy we could get her back 🦄🖤. 📸 Thank you

10/06/2023

🙈🙉🙊

04/06/2023

The ponies and I have been enjoying the added cushioning and reduced dust and glare, from our recent surface upgrade, thanks to 🤩🙌

01/06/2023

The dangers of breeding a !! Thought I would take the opportunity to start the weaning process, while Bronson had put himself in the yard next to mum Amelia. They have been spending plenty of time apart over the last few weeks, and prime lucerne upsets Bronson’s tummy, so I figured I would give mumma some nice calorie-dense hay, while he had a seperate yummy feed in the yard. As I quietly shut the gate and returned 30 seconds later with said feeds, Bronson jumped the 1.20m gate! 🙈. He is 6mths old… 🦖
Might have a to upgrade to deer fencing !

17/05/2023

😂

07/05/2023

Had a super fun day running yesterday! Thanks so much for all your help gang!

Philippa Edwards on course building/setup, with Helen .91 Alisha .equine for coming down so I could ride a couple of rounds (so of Sophie 💕🦄), .nicky and Roger, Nicole .equestrian , Tahlia and Lee Howard, Tara and all the members who helped with poles and poos 💩!

Anita Porter, thank you for keeping me fed, watered and caffeinated ☕️🍱😋 and for all the lols 😂

Last but certainly not least, a huuuuuge to for doing the draw and all the admin, so I got to just rock up and take all the glory 😜🙏💕.

04/05/2023

As the nights start to cool off in Queensland, and us humans start to reach for the trackies and blankets, it can be tempting to put pj’s on our beloved ponies.

However, just as anthropomorphic thinking can cause welfare issues in horse training, so too can over-rugging horses because we feel cold 🥶. Below is a great article which includes a useful guide for rugging horses in Australia 🐴

Selecting The Right Rugs For The Right Conditions Over-rugging is a common problem that owners and riders who don’t properly understand horse biology and the technical features of their horse rugs can easily make. It can lead to horse overheating which can cause dramatic weight fluctuation, metabo...

27/04/2023

💯 🙌🙌🙌

Andrew McLean talks about the ethics of training:
“Judges should recognise that they are ultimately custodians of the performance horse because the rewards they issue give direction to horse sports. They should have clear perceptions about how they might judge a flash moving, but tense horse, as opposed to a more average moving 'happy' one.”https://www.horsemagazine.com/thm/2021/06/the-ethics-of-performance-horse-training-with-andrew-mclean/

18/04/2023

💯 🙌🙌🙌

Johan Hamminga, member of the KWPN Licensing Commission tells us: “Never make a horse short in the neck, you must always be lengthening in front. When you make a horse short in front, then it goes down in the back, the neck is too high. When you open the horse, it lowers the croup and carries the rider’s weight. I like to bend the horse’s inside hind leg, don’t pull the inside rein. When you pull on the inside rein, you block the inside hind leg.”
A young Glamourdale illustrates:
https://www.horsemagazine.com/thm/2023/01/top-tip-on-balance-from-johan-hamminga/

11/03/2023

Don’t want to be accused of only posting the “highlight reel”… 🤣 I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve been told to stay tall and keep my lower leg on before the jump, especially when I get into trouble - this is why! 🤦🏼‍♀️

01/02/2023

Auntie Willow is a big softie 🧡…

26/01/2023

Another podcast recommendation- I came across this on my recent deep dive into hoof health. This trainer does a fantastic job of explaining learning theory; Operant and Classical Conditioning. Very useful information for anyone interested in the science of learning. 🤓

‎Show The Humble Hoof, Ep Making Hoofcare a Positive Experience with Adele Shaw - 13 May 2022

19/01/2023

“The size of your dreams must always exceed your current capacity to achieve them.

If your dreams do not scare you, they are not big enough…”

Ellen Johnson Sirleaf

One of my all time favourite quotes 💕. Dream BIG and Ride BIG! 🦄

10/01/2023

Food for thought… 🤔

The parotid gland is the hidden indicator of training quality and here is why.