Innholdsfortegnelse for 16-Apr-2020 i Horse & Hound

AS everyone in the world settles into the circumstances created by lockdown measures, and does all they can to adapt and kick on, so Horse & Hound is no different. Ordinarily at this time of year we would be ramping up our events coverage, bringing you special reports such as that from the World Cup Final in Las Vegas, while preparing for intense weeks of Badminton previews, form guides and reports. With no events, the team has done a stellar job in adapting our coverage to provide quality alternative journalism to keep all readers informed through the crisis, as well as entertained with many new and uplifting reads. In this week’s issue we introduce a new series, “Legends of our sport”, which kick-starts with a nostalgic look at David Broome’s…

EQUINE and animal welfare charities struggling during the coronavirus pandemic do not appear to be included in emergency government funding. Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced a £750m support package for frontline organisations, but animal charities were not mentioned. The Riding for the Disabled Association (RDA), which has set up an emergency appeal to support its groups across the country that have lost all income from activities, said it understands the government’s focus. “But it means thousands of community groups like RDA groups are at risk of closing permanently before the crisis is over,” a spokesman told H&H. The RSPCA said its staff have continued to work, and thousands of animals are still being cared for in its centres. “Times like these show just how crucial charities are, and although this package…

THREE-DAY EVENT FOR GRASSROOTS BRITISH EVENTING (BE) will test a BE90 three-day event in 2021 and 2022. The pilot will trial BE90 and BE90open sections, including a dressage test in a 20x60m arena, roads and tracks and a steeplechase. Bicton in Devon, Great Witchingham in Norfolk, and Keysoe in Bedfordshire are in the running to host the three-day. They will be inspected by a BE panel once government advice to avoid unnecessary travel is lifted. The potential hosts will present to a panel of stakeholders, before the successful venue is chosen and further details are shared. JUMPING CLUB PLANS 2020 WORK CONTAMINATION, the new invitation system and the world ranking list are among the priorities for the International Jumping Riders Club (IJRC) for 2020. The organisation will be monitoring the…

Brazilian Olympian Pedro Veniss has been appointed athlete representative for the FEI jumping committee. Pedro hopes to contribute by working closely with riders and the jumping community. Irish jockey Jack Kennedy has set his sights on returning to the saddle after breaking his leg in a fall at Leopardstown in February. Jack is aiming to be riding out in four to six weeks. Trainer David Lanigan is relocating with his family to Kentucky, US. David, who has sent out more than 200 winners, will focus on the move before any plans to return to training. Saddler Godfrey Morris, of the King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery, won the president’s choice award for a leather item at the Society of Master Saddlers’ national competition. Showing producer Katie Jerram-Hunnable has been elected a…

GOLIATH The former Household Cavalry horse has recovered from two hoof surgeries aged 20 and been reunited with his retirement companions at the Horse Trust. Goliath was treated for canker over several months. MILAN The 22-year-old scored his first jumps sire title, leading the prize-money table at the end of the shortened British and Irish National Hunt seasons. Progeny of the Coolmore stallion amassed more than £1.9m in earnings. BLINDAJ The last remaining horse to star in the 1994 film adaptation of Anna Sewell’s Black Beauty has died, aged 31. “Billy” was owned by Louise Maryon, who worked as a groom on the set and bought him after filming.…

OPPORTUNITIES Talking of rolling fields, hands up all those people who actually managed perfectly to hit the annual 18-minute window of opportunity between swamp and granite? Anyone? No? SPENDING One stumbles across a rather posh website selling rather posh brushes – $200 brushes, to be exact, and you don’t have to know the Canadian exchange rate to know that’s expensive. Even more jaw-dropping was the £610 whip. You’d be irritated if you shelled out that much and it wasn’t British Showjumping legal… CROWS One will not name the equestrian-related organisation that in a press release sent to H&H Towers referred to problems caused by “Corvid-19”. Is this a rather large and particularly aggressive magpie, perhaps? Or a jackdaw bored of lockdown?…

IN these difficult times, certain professions are coming to the fore – namely, those working in the NHS and in the supply of food and teachers of all skills and subjects. I am in my mid-50s and now more than ever appreciate the role of a good teacher. Having had a riding accident a few years ago and been too frightened to ride for over two years, I found a new yard and teacher whose encouragement gave me a whole new perspective. There followed four years of achievement and pleasure that I thought impossible. Recently my teacher messaged to alert me to an online event I’d be interested in. I hope to learn from the event, but even more importantly, it felt good to know that someone wanted to involve…

IT is hard to believe that it is just over four weeks since Imperial Aura won the Northern Trust Company Novices’ Handicap Chase on the Tuesday of the Festival. “There is nothing more exciting than winning at Cheltenham” In normal circumstances, I would be reliving and savouring a Festival winner like no other. My marketing tactics would be in overdrive, pushing the good news out there in the hope it would bring new owners – so I could go to the sales and restock for the winter. Sadly, since that great Festival week, we have all been in total lockdown owing to the coronavirus pandemic, with all racing and sales now off. Thinking about Cheltenham, I can only smile with satisfaction that a plan hatched came to fruition. Imperial Aura…

ONE of the biggest challenges of our generation (of which there seem to be many right now), is trying to process the deluge of information that competes for our attention. It’s thought that, with the aid of technology, our brains are processing the same amount of information in one day that our ancestors would have processed in a lifetime. Just take a moment to digest that! As a result, we have become used to a constant stream of data running through our head, so much so that we don’t really question it. In sport, this presents a significant challenge, because we need singularity of focus, which comes from a clear mind, to maintain our attention on executing complex skills consistently, sometimes for long periods of time. Many riders struggle to…

DURING his lengthy rehab at Elli’s yard, London behaved impeccably. “He’s a quirky horse but he was textbook throughout, which was a relief with him being as big as he is,” says Elli. “The operation site on his abdomen was small and healed quickly, so he didn’t really lose his tummy muscles. However, it has taken a long time to build him back up.” London was able to return to ridden exercise after three months and in August, he made a competition comeback to finish third in the Bicton Arena summer regionals. A year on, and “twice the size, bulk-wise” according to Elli, he is winning at elementary and ready for medium.…

REARING without any apparent physical cause is usually a conflict behaviour, says equine behaviourist Gemma Pearson MRCVS, who explains that the horse’s motivations are typically at odds with the rider’s requirements. “If pain has been ruled out, rearing is often due to inadvertent reinforcement as a result of poor training,” she explains. “A horse who does not move forwards immediately from a light leg cue and maintain his gait, in self-carriage, may trial a rear to escape excessive or nagging pressure from the rider’s leg, spur or whip. If the rider momentarily ceases this pressure when he rears, the behaviour is cemented through negative reinforcement – a good example of inadvertently training the wrong response. “Similarly, a horse who does not slow or stop immediately may trial rearing to resolve…

IN January this year, the RCVS published results from a survey conducted with veterinary surgeons, which asked a variety of questions on demographics, work status, wellbeing and views on the profession. Some of the key trends and results show… • The amount of men who work part-time has increased since 2006 from 5% to 14%. • Some 35.5% of respondents worked in a corporate-owned practice, with 6.4% working in an independent practice with some shared centralised functions and 4.6% working in a joint venture with a corporate group. This compares to 41.4% who worked in fully independent, standalone practices. • A more female profession – male respondents had a significantly higher average age (51.5) than female respondents (40), and graduates from the past 10 years were overwhelmingly female. • The…

INTERNATIONAL dressage rider Wayne Channon’s company Stabilitech is in the race to develop a Covid-19 vaccine. The company have secured a £3m grant to develop its oral vaccine, OraPro-Covid-19. Defra has asked vets to spare NHScompatible human ventilators that are not being used for emergency animal care and many have answered the call. Cork Racecourse is being used as a Covid-19 testing centre in Ireland, while the NEC in Birmingham – home to Horse of the Year Show – is one of the new NHS Nightingale coronavirus hospitals, with 500 beds and capacity to expand to 2,000 if needed.…

“It gives him confidence to be in front and to think he’s in charge” THE first day Nick Phillips acted as field master for the VWH – the pack that his father and grandfather had been masters of before him – was also the first time he’d sat on Shandy. Eventer Mike Jackson had sold him to a hunting livery of Nick’s sister-in-law, Heythrop master Nessie Chanter, but it hadn’t worked out, and Nick was in need of a new hunter. Nessie thought Shandy would love field mastering, so off to the VWH country went the 16.3hh grey, and the pair clicked immediately. “He’s a handful,” warns Nick fondly. “He’s a bully in the field, he hates the farrier and doesn’t like being on the lorry. He’s quirky, but awesome…

WE’RE all slowly adapting to “the new normal” as people keep calling it. Our horizons have shrunk to a pin prick (the immediate precincts of the farm) and hanging with the family is what we do ad infinitum: a bit like a domestic version of Groundhog Day, with one day looking very much like the other. It will change all of us this time (I try not think about how long it will go on), and two weeks in, I’m already noticing differences. Neil the postman, or more accurately my reaction to Neil the postman, is the first big change. He’s a lovely guy, the type who will do anything for anyone, but pre-coronavirus I didn’t always welcome his friendly chat. I hope I wasn’t rude, but the truth is…

GOVERNING bodies are looking at all options to ensure sport gets under way as soon as possible – but have reminded riders they are funded by membership. Some members have debated whether British Dressage (BD), British Eventing (BE) and British Showjumping (BS) should freeze or refund fees while no competitions can be held. But like most sport governing bodies, ours need income from membership, horse registrations, events and commercial activity, all of which have been hit. “There are essential costs to running our sport,” BE CEO Jude Matthews told H&H. “We’re reliant on membership and horse registrations, and when those dry up, we have no income.” Ms Matthews said BE has been hit by a “perfect storm” as bad weather caused a number of abandonments, and many people had not…

DARRY LOU Beezie Madden’s 2019 Spruce Meadows grand prix winner has been sold to join Jennifer Gates. The 12-year-old was to move after the 2020 Olympics, but the postponement of the Games changed the sale timeline. BELAFONTE British rider Ellie McCarthy’s under-25 grand prix ride has joined Annabella Pidgley. The 16-year-old stallion had numerous top-10 results across Europe with Ellie, and the US and Canada with Naïma Moreira-Laliberté. MILLFIELDS SPORTSMAN The Cook family’s prolific Connemara has died aged 24 after suffering from colic. The gelding was a multi-HOYS finalist as an open pony and also qualified for the veteran and M&M supreme finals at Olympia.…

THE renowned trainer and rider Dr Wilfried Bechtolsheimer has died, aged 71. The father of top British dressage rider and Olympic gold medallist Laura Tomlinson, who himself rode on the British team at the 1995 European Championships, died last Wednesday (8 April). “It is with great sadness and profound regret that we say goodbye to our husband, father, grandfather, trainer, mentor and friend,” his family said. Dr Bechtolsheimer is survived by his wife Ursula; his children Felix, who is married to Geraldine; Götz, who is married to Alida; Till, who is married to Julia; and Laura, who is married to Mark; as well as his grandchildren Annalisa, Amélie, Wilfred, Lukas and Hanni. “His deep passion for our sport and his love of all creatures, but horses in particular, were at…

A HUGE mural of Grand National hero Red Rum has been painted near the Southport beach on which he trained. Renowned Liverpool-based street artist Paul Curtis created the artwork in just over a week. The painting, commissioned as part of Sefton’s Borough of Culture celebrations for 2020, shows the Ginger McCain-trained star galloping through waves and features the years of his three Grand National wins – 1973, 1974 and 1977. “This is by far the biggest mural I have completed and one of the most enjoyable,” said Paul. “Such is the size and scale of the mural you can see it from a great distance, and I hope it will form part of a continuing legacy of Red Rum remembering what he achieved as a racehorse, and his training on…

APART from the obvious jokes about what we will do with our redundant whips and spurs, many of our enthusiastic dressage community are wondering what we are all going to do with ourselves this summer. Knit our own haynets? British Dressage and the British Equestrian Federation have recommended that riders don’t ride, trainers don’t train and judges don’t judge at present, even remotely and online, which has come as a blow to riders wanting to continue and trainers who are struggling to keep their businesses afloat. It’s been a really difficult decision for the governing bodies, who are navigating the fine line between interpreting government guidelines and supporting their members. And it should be remembered that these societies are made up of actual people, who are neither detached from reality…

“IT’S easy when things go well, but when they don’t and people stick by you – how can you put that into words? There’s so much gratitude for that. Last year was tough.” Sitting in the VIP tent at the Adequan Global Dressage Festival (AGDF) in Florida, Steffen Peters appears to be on top of the world. On the day we meet, he had won the World Cup qualifier grand prix the previous night. That evening, he would win the freestyle too. A glance at his FEI record a couple of months later shows that he and Suppenkasper were unbeaten during the AGDF season, winning 11 classes, with scores up to 83.5%. But the emotion Steffen showed after those wins tells the story, which goes far beyond a mere scorecard.…

WHEN I left school aged 16, I went to work for the late David Nicholson. He was a trainer with old-fashioned values and it was his way or the highway. I learnt many important lessons during my time there; not only discipline when it came to how the horses were looked after, but also with how you were around people – always to be on time and be polite. Anyone wanting to be a jockey needs to be prepared to work hard and be patient. I was at the bottom of the ladder when I arrived at David’s and it took me two years to get my first ride for him. There are no shortcuts; trainers will give you the opportunity once they feel you are ready. “A GREAT, STRONG…

THERE are several tests available which can confirm the presence of Cushing’s disease, but no single test is 100% accurate. The most frequently used tests are the measurement of resting plasma ACTH concentration, the dexamethasone suppression test and the thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH) stimulation test. The ACTH blood test is the most commonly used. It involves a single sample being taken from the patient and analysed for the level of ACTH present. A high level of ACTH suggests an increase in its production consistent with Cushing’s. This test can be performed on a single visit, which makes it convenient for vets and owners alike. However, there are a few drawbacks. Firstly, the ACTH levels in a normal animal vary with the time of year, being particularly high between September and December.…

CAITLIN BURGESS had owned her warmblood gelding Chocotof for a year when he started to rear. “He had always been as good as gold,” she says of the Lord Leatherdale son, then nine. “It got to the point where he wouldn’t move forwards when I got on without standing up.” Chocotof’s tack, teeth and back were checked and he underwent clinical examinations and X-rays, all of which failed to pinpoint a problem. And while the rearing subsided when he spent some time with Caitlin’s trainer, he would still stand bolt upright on occasion – often out of the blue, but particularly when asked to collect. When a bone scan later revealed a sacroiliac joint injury, Chocotof was given shock-wave therapy, a cortisone injection and careful rehabilitation. “He wouldn’t move forwards…

ONE potential downside to developments in medicine is that it can blur the ethics line. Are we getting to a point where vets are doing too much? “A vet’s intention should always be to enhance welfare and keep in mind that euthanasia is an option when enough is enough,” says Chris. “There are cases where you have to decide just because you can, should you? It’s important to make as informed decisions as you can and face that some things don’t work.” A similar topic under constant scrutiny is the development of the racing welfare lobby that aims to protect the welfare of racehorses and tighten regulations on the track. Where do vets stand with the constant tightening of rules? “It’s really important to separate ethics and welfare on this,…

Bull Run, Cedar Mountain, Virginia, USA VIRGINIA feels like the place where good foxhunters go when they die. It is a landscape of expansive wind-bleached fields, rolling up to brown wooded hills, with the calm bulk of the Blue Ridge mountains along the western horizon. Every fenceline seems to have an inviting hunt jump (a chicken coop, in the local parlance) built into it. The pretty town of Middleburg could be considered the epicentre of Virginia hunting, surrounded as it is by fashionable packs like the Orange County, the Piedmont and the Middleburg Hunt. The depth of wealth here is almost inconceivable. Many farms are bought as tax write-offs, or for the status that land ownership in the Piedmont confers upon the owner. The famous Orange County Hunt, arguably America’s…

IF hunting hounds is a challenge most people wouldn’t be brave enough to take on, then riding in the Grand National – especially if you are 6ft 2in and weigh more than 15 stone – is on another level. Richard explains: “In 1996 I devised this project, Race For Life, which was to benefit the Bob Champion Cancer Trust, Sparks children’s charity and the Riding for the Disabled Association. I did a deal with Littlewoods Pools whereby they ran a scratch card promotion nationally – the winner would receive the horse that we’d leased to run in the Grand National that year and £25,000. “And I was going to ride the horse, which was obviously totally overambitious.” He spent time at David Nicholson’s, Henry de Bromhead’s and Jessica Harrington’s yards…

IT’S almost impossible to imagine it now, but in the 1960s and ’70s families sat down in front of their TVs in their millions to watch a young Welsh showjumper and his counterpart from Yorkshire take on and beat the rest of the world. In those heady days of primetime showjumping on the BBC, everyone had heard of David Broome and Harvey Smith. They were national heroes whose exploits in and out of the ring made the sort of headlines now reserved for other sports. The public adored David Broome. In 1960, he was only 20 when he was voted Sportsview Sports Personality of the Year. In 2007, he received a “National Treasure” award from Alan Titchmarsh’s ITV show and only seven years ago, ITV Wales broadcast a documentary on…

▲ SPEED Wow, Ros Canter is not just a speedy rider across country, her own two legs go like lightning. The eventer completed a 5km run as part of the Equestrian Relief fundraiser for the NHS in about three minutes (not quite that fast, Ed). Is she eyeing up the athletics in Tokyo next year, one wonders? ▲ SHOPPING A miniature Shetland has been hitting the headlines for delivering food to vulnerable people during the Covid-19 crisis. We’re most impressed just by the fact he doesn’t eat everything before he arrives… ▲ WEATHER Overheard at the yard, two riders gazing out over perfectly rolled but rather bare fields. “I hate to say it but I think we need some…” started one, before the other cut her off with a look.…

IN these strange times, it can be daft little things that really bring it home to you. As the clocks went forward at the end of March, it was the first time in my memory that I hadn’t had to remind my staff to change their clocks – because they’d need to be up in time to go to a show on the Sunday. Amid so many cancellations, I must admire Royal Bath and West show organisers, who have instead postponed until the end of July. I appreciate their optimism and only hope they’re right that, by then, we’ll have beaten this virus. EXCITING PROSPECTS SOME European countries have banned riding for the foreseeable future. But until or unless that happens here, we’re keeping our horses in light work. All…

Never in a million years did I imagine as a child I’d be doing this; backing horses and working with difficult ones. I was in a children’s home and, in five years, had nearly 20 foster homes; my brother and I went through a lot. Then, my last foster parents came along with horses. Everything we had was unbacked or difficult and that’s how it started. Horses saved my life – I owe everything to them and my parents. I used to self-harm, took overdoses, but I would go and cry to the horses, and that’s what saved me. That’s why I’m so passionate about what I do. All horses are completely different but you have to outsmart them. It’s a psychological game, but a horse is what you make…

“HE was hurling himself to the ground,” recalls dressage rider Elli Darling of the day in March 2019 when Forever London developed colic. “It’s scary with an 18.2hh horse in a normal-sized stable.” Elli was joined by London’s owner, Pat Pomp, and Harriet Easton MRCVS from local Suffolk practice Ryder-Davies & Partners. When an initial examination suggested more than mild medical colic, the gelding was transferred to Newmarket Equine Hospital (NEH). Suspicions proved correct when surgeons discovered the reason for London’s discomfort – a rare condition called idiopathic focal eosinophilic enteritis (IFEE). “This disease causes blockage of the small intestine, when bands of inflammatory tissue form in the intestinal wall,” says Fran James MRCVS, a surgeon at NEH. “These bands cause a narrowing of the lumen, the opening inside the…

CUSHING’S disease — also known as pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction (PPID) — is a progressive disorder caused by a dysfunction of the pituitary gland. This gland is located at the base of the brain and it produces an assortment of hormones. In a horse with Cushing’s, the middle lobe of his pituitary gland becomes enlarged over time, often referred to as an adenoma, and results in the over-production of these hormones. The growth can compress the adjacent structures in the pituitary and hypothalamus – a region of the brain – resulting in loss of their function. One of the hormones produced in the pars intermedia is the adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH), which stimulates the cortex of the adrenal glands (two glands located close to the kidneys) to produce cortisol. An increase…

A REARING habit is considered among the worst of equine behaviours. A horse who “stands up” of his own accord can be difficult to handle and dangerous to ride; if he falls over backwards, the consequences are potentially catastrophic. The causes of rearing can be complex and may involve both physical and psychological issues that need to be carefully unravelled. Where’s best to start? “When a client presents me with a rearing horse, it’s important to rule out any pain that might be causing this behaviour,” says Dr Liz Barr MRCVS, of Barr Equine Veterinary. “We’re becoming more aware that horses are rarely ‘born naughty’. Unwanted behaviours, such as rearing, are more often down to failures by the owner or trainer – for example, failure to train correctly, correct badly…

OUR NHS heroes are all around us in the equestrian world – and right now they are facing an unprecedented situation. They are the riders we pass in the collecting ring, the medics who sit for hours in freezing fields so we can enjoy our sport. They are stabled next to you on your livery yard, the people we see when we are injured, and they are the ones who fix us to get back on board. H&H spoke to a tiny snapshot of thousands connected to both the equestrian and healthcare worlds to find out more about their roles and say thank you, on behalf of the horse world. “A lot is up in the air, but at the end of a stressful day Ican come home and poo…