Winter Championships

[Butkin]

Just sent off entry form for the PUK Southern Winter Champs show at Towerlands.

Isn't it cripplingly expensive - especially when you know you'll be lucky to be in the first 10! We're just doing M&M Lead Rein and have decided not to take the new novice. Will concentrate on getting him going locally and qualifying for the Summer Champs.

Anybody else going and if so what classes?

I'm not going but just wanted to wish you luck! What breed's your M&M?

Yes, best of luck.

I haven't been ignoring you all btw, the man has just come to replace our modem, hurrah.

We're doing the Coln M&M Leading Rein Championship with our Section A (they have their own class, separate from other small breeds).

If in first 3 we get to evening performance so buying the kit just in case - although highly unlikely we'll succeed with this pony.

We'll probably aim him more towards Pony Club, Hunting, working M&M and hopefully First Ridden although he may be too lazy for DD to kick round the ring by herself.

The new Sec A 4yo palamino has been away for a month's professional schooling and is back tomorrow so hopefully we can really keep up the good work with him and start doing novice qualifers for Summer Champs etc. Don't think he'll quite be up to RIHS or HOYS qualifers but we'll have to see.

Lots of luck; it all sounds very exciting!

How do you find laminitis management with a Sec A? I have a Fell already but have heard that the little Welshies are more prone to laminitis than Shetlands. How sad am I ... haven't hatched yet and have no idea if it will be able to stick the sight of ponies, never mind want to ride, but am already mulling over Sec A vs Shetland ...

Nekabu, We definitely love Sec As but not so keen on shetlands. Also had a Dartmoor but they are stronger and DD was too small for him so moved him on sharpish.

We started with an older Sec A mare when DD was 2 and now have the two geldings. They are a great size, easy to ride and tractable. Perfect for leading rein through to first ridden and come in different sizes for different sizes of children.

In the Winter (from December until early March) they get the run of the big field with the connemara and cob and come in at night. In the stable they get hay, a mug (literally) of high fibre nuts and a mug of fibre beet (which is Laminitis Trust approved). We are just moving them onto a mug of Lo-Cal feed balancer instead of the nuts and they also now get a handful (literally) of Hi-Fi Lite (which is unmolassed chaff).

When they are 2 weeks away from a show we also start giving them a daily dose of a blood supplement like Pro-Plus.

In the Spring and Autumn they get penned in a much smaller paddock (tiny) but come in a night.

In the Summer (May to September) they live out but if going to shows we continue to feed in the paddock. This paddock is usually worn right down to nothing - deliberatly.

We also work them quite hard so they need the energy.

The key to laminitis avoidance is to just watch our for the arrival of spring grass and starve them of grass from the time it starts growing - don't worry if non-horsey people think you are being cruel, you know better!

Nekabu, We definitely love Sec As but not so keen on shetlands. Also had a Dartmoor but they are stronger and DD was too small for him so moved him on sharpish.

We started with an older Sec A mare when DD was 2 and now have the two geldings. They are a great size, easy to ride and tractable. Perfect for leading rein through to first ridden and come in different sizes for different sizes of children.

In the Winter (from December until early March) they get the run of the big field with the connemara and cob and come in at night. In the stable they get hay, a mug (literally) of high fibre nuts and a mug of fibre beet (which is Laminitis Trust approved). We are just moving them onto a mug of Lo-Cal feed balancer instead of the nuts and they also now get a handful (literally) of Hi-Fi Lite (which is unmolassed chaff).

When they are 2 weeks away from a show we also start giving them a daily dose of a blood supplement like Pro-Plus.

In the Spring and Autumn they get penned in a much smaller paddock (tiny) but come in a night.

In the Summer (May to September) they live out but if going to shows we continue to feed in the paddock. This paddock is usually worn right down to nothing - deliberatly.

We also work them quite hard so they need the energy.

The key to laminitis avoidance is to just watch our for the arrival of spring grass and starve them of grass from the time it starts growing - don't worry if non-horsey people think you are being cruel, you know better!

Thanks for that! I do have a Fell so am used to a fair bit of laminitis prevention but had been warned that Sec As were particularly prone to it, more so than Shetlands even. Interesting about Dartmoors being strong as I was thinking about them too. Get me, it's not even hatched! Mind you, there is a fair chance it'll be sick of the sight of ponies so who knows!

BTW Lo-Cal didn't agree with my (admittedly already very bouncy and spooky) cob at all. The Fell was fine, as is my friend's pony but just thought I'd mention it in case you start seeing any unexpected fireworks with yours!

Thanks Nekabu. We had the older pony (now 9)on lo-cal balancer for the shows last year and he did well on it. The professional producer we've been using to bring on the youngster really sticks the food in to them but we're being cautious and sticking to our one mug a day rule.

I forgot to mention that we spoke to the Baileys nutrionalist recently about the ponies and we're also going to feed a mug of Outshine a day as well.

The cob gets straight cod liver oil but with the ponies we're going to just feed Outshine to give them better coats (hopefully!).

Last spring/summer we fed the mollichaff showshine chaff and ours all had lovely coats, even the shetland who has cushings. They really liked the cherry flavour too.

What's Outshine?

Nekabu it is an expensive but apparently good feed supplement from Baileys:

www.baileyshorsefeeds.co.uk/about/news:16.htm

We are always keen to get them looking well from inside even though we pamper them with show sheen and sparkle anyway!

Thanks for that! My Fell is usually pretty gleaming anyway but a friend has a grey who could do with a shine boost.

Took Sec A 4yo palomino to his first ridden show yesterday. Colne M&M LR at Towerlands (BSPS Area 15) and we finished 2nd.

He went lovely - calm and on the bit - even though the cobs were thundering round in the adjoining ring.

Beaten by a professional pony and that was fair enough - the judge liked him and said he'd get better with maturity. Qualified for PUK Summer Champs as well so that is out of the way.

Lovely weather at Towerlands but went pointing at Ampton in the afternoon and had two hailstorms!