Innholdsfortegnelse for 29-Dec-2023 i Horse & Hound

I HOPE you had a lovely Christmas, whether or not you had a break with or from the horses. If you find yourself with time on your hands now, have a crack at our quiz (p32) and let us know how you get on. Answers will be revealed in next week's issue – I warn you, some of it is light and some of it is fiendishly difficult! In news (p4) we look at the impact of language used in sport commentary. Gemma Pearson always makes sense, and it's interesting to hear her say the public expect racehorses to be treated well but don't want to hear they are treated like kings – rather that they are treated like horses. I can understand the public wanting that. I also see…

FLEAU DE BAIAN Dutch dressage rider Adelinde Cornelissen's grand prix winner, whom she owned with Gerard Korbeld, has been sold to join rider Christian Simonson in the US. AUTHORIZED The 2007 Derby winner, whose progeny include the two-time Grand National hero Tiger Roll is to return from Turkey to stand at Capital Stud in Ireland in 2024. COLORADO BLUE The 2023 Maryland 5 Star victor, owned by rider Austin O'Connor and The Salty Syndicate, was crowned EquiRatings horse of the year following a public vote.…

USING the plastic packets in which stiches come could be an economical, effective method of treating serious wounds. This is the finding of a study published in the Equine Veterinary Journal, on a “novel tension relief technique”. Study author Dylan Gorvy, a British vet based in Sweden, told H&H the “tension tile system” he developed, using stitched-on pieces of plastic, is a “game-changer for wound management”, as it relieves tension on the skin, allowing improved healing. Horses are susceptible to traumatic wounds, often on lower limbs, and Dr Gorvy said if not managed correctly, these can mean “months where the horse is out of action”, often resulting in an area of the limb that is “cosmetically poor and weak, susceptible to cracking”. “We've managed to turn round the success rate”…

▼ BLING Overheard, from a judge: “She thinks all the sparkle and bling will make me notice her. It does, but for all the wrong reasons.” Ouch. No red rosette, but looking fabulous has to be some consolation? ▼ SCAMMERS This week's award goes to she who sent a picture of a chestnut to a potential buyer. When asked,“Any videos?” the seller replied in the affirmative – and sent footage of a bay. One could argue the seller had done exactly what was asked… ▼ BATHS To a show in Australia, where a sign was found on the ladies’ door stating: “No horses in bathrooms.” Which is fair enough, the jaw-dropper being that they needed to state it……

SHOWING ONLY IN HORSE & HOUND Edited by Alex Robinson alexandra.robinson@futurenet.com @alexrob_journo_ OPINION THE 2023 season seems to have gone by in a flash, and we'll soon be on with early winter shows in preparation for the summer. However, looking at hairy, muddy and generally unkempt ponies at home isn't currently filling me with much enthusiasm for anything competitive in the near future. Those who competed at the London International Horse Show will be starting to wind down. Ensuring animals are kept fit and in consistent work while looking ring-ready is an unenviable task, especially with natives, and it is a huge achievement just to compete in the mountain and moorland final. What a major result for the Dales breed, with two impressive young stallions taking champion and reserve. The atmosphere…

RIDER CAROLINE POWELL “MY partner Greg Kinsella and his mother Gwen were looking at horses in Ireland – Greg called to say, ‘You've got to come and see this mare’. A friend of mine and I jumped on a plane and went to try ‘Cav’, who was a just-broken four-year-old, big and green, but with a good enough motor. “She's not your typical stamp of an event horse, but she's got a heart of a lion and nice paces. Cav is a princess in character – she's got the most beautiful head and she knows she's talented and certainly holds court over everyone on the yard. “She went to Le Lion d'Angers as a six- and seven-year-old – she's always said yes to the next step. She loves her job…

ONE of the reasons that wounds may break down is due to tension on the tissue. Following an injury, wounds get bigger as the tissue retracts. This can make it challenging or impossible to pull the edges back together. However, another recent innovation reduces the tension on wounds that have been closed but are under a lot of strain. Developed by a group of equine surgeons led by Dr Dylan Gorvy from Sweden, the technique utilises the plastic packaging used for suture material (news, p8). These plastic rectangles are attached to the wound edge and help spread the tension across the wound. A study evaluating the technique was recently published in the Equine Veterinary Journal and demonstrated that it was a highly effective way of closing wounds.…

THE BIG QUIZ SPOT THE DIFFERENCE There are 10 differences between these two pictures. Can you spot them all? TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE We cheered and we cried as the big spoils at the top of the sport went to the wire. But how much do you remember about the past season's major championships? EVENTING 1 What placing did team bronze medal winners France occupy after dressage at the eventing Europeans? 2 How many pairs made the time across country at the eventing Europeans? 3 What is British eventing Europeans squad horse Capels Hollow Drift's stable name? 4 Which Irish pairing produced a super pathfinding crosscountry round at the Europeans? 5 Which stallion sired two medallists at the eventing Europeans? SHOWING 6 Will Morton was crowned Royal International (RIHS) supreme horse…

IT is a Christmas Eve meet at the Curre and Llangibby and 70 mounted riders are gathered, sipping mulled wine and waiting for the hounds to arrive. It will not be their own pack, who have the cough, but the Duke of Beaufort's doghounds, hunted by kennelhuntsman Tony Holdsworth, who have kindly agreed to save the day. He has roped me in as an amateur whipper-in. What beheld us as we hacked to the meet was a fantastic sight of Welsh festive cheer. Ponies were adorned with tinsel and reindeer antlers and several grown-ups had gone the whole hog. At one stage, I was overtaken by a Virgin Mary with a baby Jesus on a lead-rein. It all added to the season of goodwill and did nothing to distract us…

SHOWJUMPING HIGHLIGHTS 7–10 December Forest Edge, Norfolk HENRY SQUIBB has missed out on most of the season because of injuries to his string but he was back on winning form here, piloting Kimba Kasino to a 4.79sec victory in the Blue Chip Dynamic B&C. “It's nice to be back out,” Henry said. “I'm looking forward to a fresh start and 2023 being over!” Henry rides the 10-year-old Arkoniente x Heartbreaker gelding, who was Blue Chip novice champion for Emma-Jo Slater in 2019, for his friend Jake Barton while he is away at university. “He's speedy,” Henry said. “I like to be quite competitive and he definitely likes to go fast. “He's come on massively. He's always been a bucker and we've found that he's using his brain more and understanding…

Edited by Eleanor Jones Share your news story Call 0330 390 6386 Email eleanor.jones@futurenet.com @ jones_eleanor_ CHANGING the way we talk about equine welfare – and treating horses like horses rather than “like kings” – may not only improve it, but also protect our sport for the future. This was the finding of a study on events after Animal Rising campaigners accessed the course at the 2023 Grand National. The paper, published in Animals, looked at how what was said could affect public acceptance of horse sport. Gemma Pearson, an equine vet, behaviour specialist and racing fan, told H&H the paper “wasn't an easy one to write”. The study's main message is that although Animal Rising's aim was to prevent a fatal equine injury in the race, in the main,…

British Equestrian chair Malcolm Wharton is to step down “to enjoy other pursuits”. The recruitment process has opened for his replacement. Jockey Rossa Ryan recorded his 200th win of 2023, on Sunset In Paris at Lingfield on 20 December, and is set to be crowned annual champion Flat jockey. Six-time dressage Olympian Kyra Kyrklund was given the Finnish Olympic Committee's great medal of merit for sport achievements and coaching. Para driver Deborah Daniel received the FEI gold badge of honour for her sixth senior championship, the 2023 World Para Combined Driving Championships. Jumps jockey Paddy Brennan rode his 1,500th winner in Britain, the Fergal O'Brien-trained Teorie, at Catterick racecourse on 19 December.…

DELAYED farrier exams have been given the green light as a new assessment organisation is approved. VetSkill has been approved by the Farriers Registration Council (FRC) and Ofqual to deliver the end-point assessments, after the FRC withdrew its approval of the Worshipful Company of Farriers (WCF, news, 12 October). That withdrawal meant the exams scheduled in November could not go ahead. VetSkill was “proud to announce” it had approval. The first end-point assessments will be at Myerscough and Warwickshire in January. “The VetSkill team has worked tirelessly to be approved, in record time,” said VetSkill's Sam Double. “This could not have been achieved without the support of the FRC and the WCF, for which we are very grateful. “We would also like to thank the three training providers and the…

Email to hhletters@futurenet.com Name and address must be included. Letters may be edited. @ horseandhound instagram.com/horseandhound facebook.com/horseandhound A SUPER EFFORT FOR CHARITY CHILDREN from Morpeth Hunt branch of the Pony Club in Northumberland have recently been involved in a fundraising project raising money for several Christmas charities. Ten of our members took part, namely Abigail Wood, Annabelle Calvert, Chloe Archibald, Emme Edmondson, Florence Bell, Harriet Calvert, Isabella Hindmarsh, Isla Vickers, Lucinda Hindmarsh and Robyn Routledge. “Vets do indeed look after humans as well as horses” ERICA V NORMAN They all worked so hard and raised more than £1,000 by running a dog show, showjumping competition, cake stalls, tombola, tuck shop and raffle. I took the children shopping with the money they'd raised so they could choose lots of lovely toys and…

LARVAE therapy involves applying maggots to a wound to help it heal. Maggots can be used to treat heavily contaminated, dirty or infected wounds as they remove dead tissue and bacteria (bioburden), leaving behind healthy tissue. The maggots used in this treatment are specially bred and are sterile so they cannot cause infection. The value of the maggots is that they are able to discern the difference between healthy and unhealthy tissue in a way that we cannot. They are particularly effective in deep wounds, wounds of the foot and wounds which are producing a lot of dead tissue. The maggots are available across the UK by next day delivery and arrive in a special net bag, which is placed over the wound, or they can be allowed out to…

HUNTING BADSWORTH, BRAMHAM, YORK SOUTH 9 December Edited by Catherine Austen catherine.austen@futurenet.com @cfaustenl23…

DRESSAGE HIGHLIGHTS 11–17 December Edited by Oscar Williams oscar.williams@futurenet.com @oscarw_dr HAVE YOU WON A BD CLASS? DO YOU OR YOUR HORSE HAVE A GREAT STORY? Email dressagehighlights@yahoo.com within 24 hours of your win for a chance to feature on these pages Sparsholt College, Hants “IT'S been more about making me smile, at times,” said Katharine Lewis, who celebrated a convincing overall elementary win with SLS Maurits following a challenging couple of years. “Some days I was just sitting on him to make myself feel better.” Katharine was diagnosed with cancer and underwent a liver resection this summer. After months of trying to compete around a tough schedule of treatment, she is now in remission and plans to step things up with her Dutch driving horses – six-year-old Maurits and the…

WITH a background in showjumping and eventing, Tila Da Costa's gelding Leomiro is finding his feet in affiliated dressage. After scoring a 74.46% novice win at West Wilts Equestrian Centre with the 13-year-old, Tila said: “It's all the more special as he's home-bred and we've been on a long journey together. We nearly lost him when he had an accident at weaning and spent months with a bandaged leg. “This is the first time we've properly done British Dressage,” she added. “He can be sharp, but once he's settled he's quite willing to do what you ask. I wanted to keep him and have a bit of fun. This year we've also done some team chasing and the David Broome Event Centre six-bar challenge.”…

WHAT is the collective noun for a group of hunting people? A guffaw, a gaggle, a pack? You could spot them if you looked closely among the people who had gathered in their hundreds for the funeral and memorial of Adam's friend, Ron Dobson, who died very suddenly at the end of November. A few more lines on the faces, perhaps, a rosier hue to the cheeks due to the combined effects of weather and whisky. Many foxhunters have a foxy look about them; an inquisitive, beady-eyed quality. In the same way that beaglers sometimes look a bit like hares and Aussies like koalas. When chairman of the Masters of Foxhounds Association Andrew Osborne kicked off his eulogy with a quip, “Looking around at all these people, I can't help…

BLAIR SUPPORTS WELFARE CHARITY WORLD HORSE WELFARE is Blair Castle International Horse Trials’ official charity for 2024. The Perthshire event (22–25 August) welcomes more than 45,000 visitors. Those buying tickets will have the option to donate to the charity. “As supporters of ethical horse sport, longtime attendees at Blair and sponsors of a fence on the cross-country course, we are so pleased to be able to cement this relationship,” said World Horse Welfare CEO Roly Owers. “Where horse welfare is always put first, equestrian sport such as eventing can be an amazing demonstration of the horse-human partnership. “We look forward to seeing examples of this during the event and to working with Blair Castle estates in the run-up.” 2024 FORUM TO TACKLE BIG ISSUES THE 2024 National Equine Forum will…

▲ ELVES Hats off to Lingfield vets for their genius “elf on the shelf”, as he was pictured with forceps, and an actual equine testicle. “Deck the…” (Stop. Ed). ▲ JOKES Talking of humour, did you hear about the rider who couldn't tell her horses apart? A pal suggested measuring them, to which she replied: “No, the bay and the grey are the same height…” ▲ SAFE WORDS A born-again rider and her converted husband have to be aware of talking too much about their passion to non-horsey types. “Our safe word is ‘cucumber’,” she said. “If one says it, that's enough horse talk!” Is there such a thing?…

Edited by Jennifer Donald jennifer.donald@futurenet.com @jen_donald THIS year has flown by and by the time you read this we'll have found out if we've made the nice list. December slows down for me and it's a chance to sleep in my own bed and enjoy the festive period. The past 12 months have been positive and, as someone who is constantly flying to shows, it finally felt as if we have returned to full normality after the pandemic. Apart from higher horse prices, the sport also seems to have reverted to a pre-2020 state. A subject that still seems to be causing a stir is the need to pre-enter at national shows. Brought in to adhere to Covid restrictions and maintained to monitor horse movement for biosecurity, riders need to…

I was brought up on a farm, milking cows. I could have taken it over but cows aren't my passion! I'm not from a horsey family – they were flown from Ireland to Southwell in 2015 to see my first race back (pictured, right) after my accident and they don't know what to do when they get to the races! Our neighbours had horses – many parents think it's a good idea to take a child riding – and I became obsessed. I'm from fairly humble beginnings, nothing's been handed to me on a plate and having my licence has been a long time coming. I completed my trainer's course a few years ago, and I was assistant to Dr Richard Newland for a year. I've learned from some of…

“THE most important thing is the willingness – and he has that,” said Luis Principe of Hippo Das Valadas, the 11 yearold stallion with whom he won the PSG at Burrows Court, Gloucestershire with plus-73% – on just his third attempt at the level. “He's quite small for me, at 16hh, but he's keen to do the job.” Luis teamed up with Karen Tapscott's Barlavento son just two years ago, and added of their journey: “Hippo was sharp and a bit green for his age when he came to me for training. ONE TO WATCH “Now that the work is getting busier he is definitely calming down.”…