Foxhill Livery Yard

16/11/2024

Hiding in the shadows …. ._.and._.archie 🐴❤️🦊

13/11/2024

The perfect autumn day in a picture, sunny, bright, bit of warmth, crunchy leaves and glorious orange hues🍁🍂🍂☀️ 🐴❤️🦊

13/11/2024

Coming into winter and many people are changing/thinking about changing their feed regime so I thought this post was well worth a re-visit. Sugarbeet seems to be a bit of a ‘marmite feed’…which side of the fence are you?? 👇🏻👇🏻

🌟Tuesday Topic - Sugarbeet🌟

I thought I’d take a moment to talk about this seriously under-rated and misunderstood feed. All too often people say to me they are nervous of feeding sugarbeet, they think it’s the equivalent of rocket fuel for their horse and have been told to avoid it. So let’s look at some of the facts about sugabeet;

Sugarbeet is a non-heating highly digestible source of energy and fibre.

Unmolassed sugarbeet has a very low sugar content of 5-6% compared to molassed sugarbeet which is approx 23%

The British Hores Feeds Speedibeet is unmolassed and is an approved feed suitable for Laminitics.

Sugarbeet’s fibre content is highly digestible (much more so than hay) and is fermented in the hindgut therefore more sympathetic to the horses digestive system than starchy cereal grains. It also provides similar energy levels of approx 11MJ (megajoules) /kg than many cereal based mixes hence why sugarbeet is often referred to as a ‘superfibre’.

It is high in calcium therefore useful for younger horses or to help balance the calcium:phosphorus ratio

It acts as a excellent buffer for mixing powdered supplements

It is a useful way to increase water intake as once soaked sugarbeet is approx 85% water.

It can be used as a partial hay replacer for poor doers or those with dental problems and similarly unmolassed sugarbeet can be used for good doers as an excellent source of fibre whilst supplying minimal calories.

Some horses can find unmolassed unpalatable or take a bit of time to get used to it but generally over time they will get used to the texture.

It MUST be fed as part of a fully balanced diet because it’s vitamin and mineral content is minimal,

Overall unmolassed sugarbeet is a fabulous and versatile feed that we need to stop being scared to use, it has so many benefits.

12/11/2024

Even though he is “officially” retired, he does still enjoy the odd little sit on 🐴❤️🦊

10/11/2024

Lest we forget

09/11/2024

Blimey the weather has changed this past week. Ponies are all snuggled in their suitable PJ’s, now to get the hoomans warm. Wish me luck lighting the unpredictable aga

09/11/2024

09/11/2024

𝐖𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐭'𝐬 𝐰𝐚𝐲! 𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐞'𝐬 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐭𝐨𝐩 𝐭𝐢𝐩𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐮𝐝 𝐟𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫:

🐴Manage grassland well by rotating fields and using hardcore or mud mats where horses usually stand.

🐴Check for mites, they can be a cause or a contributing factor. Both the mites and the mud fever need to be treated. If you think your horse may have mites, ask your vet for advice.

🐴Barrier Creams/waterproof ointments can be used before turnout to protect the legs. Ensure that the skin is clean and dry before application as wet skin can provide the perfect environment for bacteria to grow between the skin and cream.

🐴Don’t wash/scrub legs – it washes off the natural grease and weakens the skin allowing the entry of bacteria. Instead, gently rinse the excess off or brush off the mud when it has dried.

🐴Don’t allow horses to stand in muddy or wet conditions, bring them in to a dry standing area or stable with clean bedding.

🐴Boots and bandages that are fitted or used incorrectly can damage skin and cause an entry point for bacteria.

05/11/2024

Archie says “smile its Tuesday” ._.and._.archie 🐴❤️🦊

04/11/2024

Having literally had a meltdown as the clippers blew up ( as will testify) I have been in utter shock tonight to find out we have won a new set from , literally replacing the ones that have just died.…. I’ve just done a happy dance around the kitchen. What a cracking start to the week… might go and put a lottery ticket on now. Thank you so much , we love your products as it is, but we are even more in love now 😘😘

04/11/2024

🇬🇧🚜🌾

01/11/2024

𝐖𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐬𝐭 𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐞𝐧𝐣𝐨𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐬 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫, 𝐢𝐭 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐛𝐞 𝐚 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐟𝐮𝐥 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐬𝐞 𝐨𝐰𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐬. 𝐁𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐬 𝐤𝐞𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐬𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐲 𝐬𝐚𝐟𝐞 𝐝𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐝. 𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐢𝐩𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐚𝐦𝐛𝐮𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐦 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐧:

- Try to find out where and when fireworks displays are so you and your horse are not taken by surprise.

- Keep to your horse’s normal routine as much as possible or change their routine ahead of time if they will cope better being stabled/turned out.

- Check them regularly over the course of the evening, you could even arrange a rota with other yard members.

- If it’s safe to do so, stay with your horse, your presence can help keep them calm. You could even make a flask and picnic and set about doing all those tack room jobs you’ve been putting off!

- Keep yourself safe, keeping a safe distance between you and your horse if they are likely to be upset by the sights and sounds.

- Use positive distractions such as a likit or treatball, and ensure they have enough forage to keep them eating.

- Make sure they have other equine company, discuss a plan with your yard members so that all horses on the yard are considered.

- Horses who are scared of loud noises may benefit from wearing ear covers - although any headcollar they are attached to should be field safe.

- Avoid riding later in the day. With the shortening daylight, rides later into the evening could be risky.

- If your horse is extremely fearful of fireworks, veterinary intervention may be appropriate. The relevant sedation, under the watchful eye of a vet, could prove useful for extreme cases. We would not recommend relying on calming supplements which are not evidence based in these cases.

𝐈𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐬𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐮𝐩 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐨𝐧𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐞 𝐧𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐝𝐨 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐨𝐮𝐜𝐡, 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐯𝐞𝐭𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩.

31/10/2024

30/10/2024

28/10/2024

Please look at the circle on the lower right. Inside it is an eight sided series of straight lines, an octagon. Most riders who believe they are riding a circle are actually riding a polygon like this series of straight lines in the circle. This is because they do not bend their horses. They either don't know how or they lack the core and leg strength to do it correctly, or both.

Bending your horse and holding a bend happens when a rider applies physical strength at the center where the red arrow in the top image is pointing. Additionally, the rider holds their horse between the forehand with the inside hand and rein, and the hind with the outside leg slightly behind the girth.

The point of the red arrow acts like the point on a compass drawing the circle. The inside leg is the compass point at the red arrow defining the center of the arc of the bend. The right hand in the top picture is like the inside rein, and the rider's left leg acts like the pictured left hand. The rider in the picture holds their horse between the right rein and left leg and the "point of the compass" determines the center of the bend.

The process of riding an entire 20 meter circle in a bend might start as an octagon with many straight lines connected by quick turns. At the beginning an accomplished rider might hold a bend in their horse for the length of two of the straight lines, then three, then four and so on.

When the horse holds the bend longer, it requires more strength and stamina from both the horse and rider. Because of the strength required riders must be patient with the muscle development of their horse. To hold a bend throughout a complete circle is much more difficult than most riders believe.

25/10/2024

A gorgeous end to a very busy day. With the clocks changing this weekend, winter feels like it very much making an appearance. We still want those lovely autumn days 🍁🍂 but we are thankful that the grass is good and the horses have full winter turnout 🐴❤️🦊