What Does This Weather Mean For Turning Out Your Pony?
Ok, so we all know it has been raining like crazy and half of England is under water. Down here in Cornwall we havent had the worst of it but it has rained a lot and we certainly havent had a summer yet. That said we had a great spell of weather back in April / May but that was a long time ago now. Ive just heard the weather forecast and theres more rain due today-great!!
The Launceston Show was on last weekend and we went down there for the morning- muddy, but not nearly as muddy as the Liskeard Show had been a couple of weeks before. I wrote a quick review of the Liskeard Show, specifically the Mountain & Moorland Classes, so its out there if you are interested.
Unfortunately the afternoon of the Launceston Show bought torrential rain so the show was closed. Luckily for us most of the Pony Showing Classes had gone on in the morning so for those Showing in the morning the day hadnt been a disaster. We watched the Lead Rein Mountain and Moorland, and then First Ridden Classes which were very well attended. The site turned into a mud bath but as at Liskeard the local farmers did a fantastic job towing vehicles out of the mud so everybody got out eventually.
For those that have not read any of our stuff before we have a Cleveland Bay mare, a Welsh Section B and a Shetland Pony. Fortunately for them we have a business supplying tack and essentials for Shetlands and most of the Native Pony Breeds so our three are not short on turnout rugs and such to keep them dry in this weather.
Our three are all in at the moment for different reasons, but in the case of the ponies it is mostly because the grass is continually growing that there is an increased risk of laminitis this summer. Our Shetland Pony, Poppy, started to look a bit sore when ridden on the road and we found a pulse at the fetlock which indicates increased blood flow to the foot. We felt it might be the start of something so we brought her in where she has been for a week now. Our Welsh, Gulliver, has also been put on restricted grazing just to be on the safe side. Lots of extra work but better safe than sorry.
In the stables we are using a Mini Miser Haynet and a Wee Pony Haynet. Basically these have holes that are half the size of the holes in normal Haynets so are perfect for hungry ponies that have a tendency to eat too much. We sell these on our website along with things like the Greenguard Pony Grazing Mask, again a product to restrict the grazing but not completely cancel turnout time. If you want to know more about products for restricting pony grazing please email us or visit the website.
There seems to be the feeling that once the sun comes out here the grass will really grow because we have had so much rain and then owners will need to be very careful that their ponies are not getting too much grass. If you have any concerns we would strongly advise consulting a vet.
Please look out for my piece on buying second hand horse and pony trailers so if you are trying to get one in the second hand market you can benefit from the hard lessons we have learned.
You can learn more about us and see some of our photos at http://www.theponytackshop.co.uk
http://www.theponytackshop.co.uk
Kram Yoga Mats