Andrew Davies – Show jumping
Depending on the season each horse has had, depends on their work load over the winter. Some of the younger horses have a break allowing them time to mature naturally over the winter, whilst others start to compete indoors to notch up their experience.
If they have had a hard season prior to winter they are turned away and a couple go back to their owners to be pampered.
Those that have had an easy season are kept in work, either for experience or to continue their form. We have the luxury of an indoor school, despite being smaller than the outdoor one, it makes working through the winter much easier and nothing has to stop for the weather.
Working Through Winter on the Yard
Here we ask Team
EquestrianClearance.com sponsored riders what they will be up to throughout the winter months and how they manage their work with the cold and frosty weather.
Harriet Morris-Baumber - Eventing
My horses go out for a few hours every day and in winter this stays the same, weather permitting. They do not get turned away completely, although the work load decreases so they do get a break.
They will remain in a low level of work to keep their fitness
going. This helps keep the muscles and ligaments lightly toned and is much better for the horses than becoming totally unfit and then having to recondition the body all over again in the build up to the competition season.
Work usually consists of hacking, unless the roads are covered in snow and ice, and flatwork in our outdoor arena. However, as we found last year, even the school becomes completely unusable when we get a lot of snow!
Victoria Hesford – Showing
My horses get turned away for the winter and rough it a little, although Forgery will come in
at night as he did not do well last winter being out 24/7. I start roughing off by removing one rug at a time and reducing hard feed but increasing bulk. Shoes come off, they are wormed before being turned out, if possible have their backs checked and teeth done.
They go out in a top quality turnout rug. If the grass is good then we do not feed any haylage until the weather turns. As soon as the weather comes colder I put another turnout rug on underneath the heavy duty one and start feeding haylage.
They are checked twice a day for any injuries and under the rugs for signs of rubbing. They usually go out as soon as the Horse of the Year Show is done and stay out until January.
info@southernhorsemagazine.co.uk
The horses in work get a variety of schooling where possible, training on the flat in the indoor school, grid work in the outdoor school and we are fortunate to have excellent hacking around us.
Laura Robinson – Show jumping
When the weather is wet the horses tend not to go out or they do just for a short time because the ground is not good and our paddocks soon become a boggy mess.
However in winter when the snow comes we sometimes give the horses some time out to relax and enjoy the snow! The horses have a short break from shows around Christmas time and are just worked lightly to keep their fitness levels from dropping off. This means they are ready to pick back up in the New Year ready for the season ahead.
www.equestrianclearance.com
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