Horse Blog

This article was written by Jan Dodds, SA

Can you imagine not being able to go and make a cup of tea for yourself or go outside if you wish without someone taking you there? Worse, can you imagine not ever being able to touch animals if you have been a creature-lover all your life? Well, often that is the case when you become older and infirm . . . unless you live at the Westbeach Residential Care facility in Adelaide South Australia, that is! Read the rest of this entry »

Last year Bud came to stay with us, I wrote about him in a previous post “No more racing, no more whips”. In that post I said that one day Bud would start to trust the human and allow himself to enjoy his life as a horse. Read the rest of this entry »

Merlin working nicely in the carriage

Yesterday I heard that the prime mister of Australia said that ‘the elderly were a burden on society’. So what does he suggest? Get rid of them? I am really incensed by that comment and the connotations attached. I believe our elderly are to be treasured, they are like our libraries, if we just take the time to listen we can learn so much about life, our history, our heritage, their heritage, so many experiences that we can draw from. A quote I once saw read “When an old person dies another library closes”. Read the rest of this entry »

Horses have played a huge part in my life. Something I am only just realising. I remember my first real horse encounter. My dad had been a drover for many years, as was his father so I guess that’s where the passion for horses came from. Dad had a young horse called ‘Fairy”, great name for a little girls pony… but she wasn’t mine. One day when I was 6 or 7, dad was longing Fairy and I asked him if I could ride her. I guess he thought he had her under control so he put me up on her bare back. She started to trot and I lost my balance and bounced off, as I hit the ground Fairy tried to jump over me but she trod on my leg slicing my calf open – I don’t think she was ‘light of feet’ like you’d imagine a fairy to be! anyway, I was a really skinny kid so 7 stitches in my leg was a pretty big wound. My legs are still skinny, I used to think I could use the accident as an excuse for not having a calf muscle…. but then the other one never developed either…. so it blew that theory! Read the rest of this entry »

How does she knows whats happening before it happens?

I often wonder how our animals know we are going to do something before it actually happens? My little dog Pat, knows exactly where I am going and when. I work from home and she knows I am going to my office, which is off the verandah. I can walk past her on my way to the office and she doesn’t get up, she continues sleeping or rolling in the grass or playing with our other dog Mister. But then I finish my work and think I might go and get my horse to go for a ride. The moment I get up from my chair she is jumping up and down at the door waiting for me to go. I have gotten up from my desk several times through the day to get a cup of tea, have lunch, stretch or whatever and she doesn’t make a fuss so how does she know? Read the rest of this entry »

Today I finished reading ‘Chosen by a Horse’, a book about a rescued standardbred mare that changed the life of the author. The ending was so sad but it had a wonderful message. It made me cry, I cried for the the horse in the book and I cried for the loss of the animal friends I have know over the years. It also made me feel very privileged to have the horses, dogs and cat in my life that I do. Once I got myself together I went out and rode a little standardbred mare I have been working with, she reminded me of the horse in the book and I just wanted to let her know that I was so grateful she was in my life. Read the rest of this entry »

Merlin, the horse that chose us

The day we met Merlin our lives changed.

That morning, 18 months ago, I had asked my husband Jack, if he wanted to come for a ride with me but he wasn’t interested. He never really rode horses unless he had a job to do like checking the fences or mustering the cattle. We don’t own a big farm any more so he doesn’t ride at all now, the motor bike does the job.

One day, he surprised me though when he said that he might be interested in doing the carriage driving for RDA (Riding for the Disabled) sometime… maybe! This gave me hope that one day he may become interested in horses and we could do something together. Read the rest of this entry »

...show me what you want and I will try

My dad once told me,’there are horsemen and there are horsepeople, never get the two mixed up’. I had no idea what he meant.  He was a ‘horseman’ himself, he’d been around horses all his life, made his living from them and with them. His father and his father before him were all horsemen

For years I thought anyone who could ride well was a horseman, people who have been around horses for a long time are often described as horseman. I respected and wanted to learn from these people until I started to realise that what they did wasn’t that clever. Sure they could ride well and get the horse to do what they wanted but there was something missing. Read the rest of this entry »

I don’t know about you but I can see a horse!

Is it my imagination or are my tea leaves in the shape of a horse?

I made myself a pot of tea this morning, I poured a cup and put the strainer down on the chopping board. When I finished my tea I came back into the kitchen to clean up my mess, that’s when I noticed the horse.

What does it mean? Read the rest of this entry »

Tomorrow my husband Jack and I take our carriage horse in to town to take people with disabilities for a ride in the carriage. It’s generally a great afternoon, one that fills you with purpose and meaning. We meet with the other RDA (Riding for the Disabled) volunteers and together we spend the afternoon with a group of local adults with disabilities to varying degrees. Its an activity we have only just started but it is so worthwhile. There are very few activities for older adults with disabilities but carriage driving is perfect, they get to spend a day out, challenge their fears and step out of their comfort zone. It gives them something to talk about, look forward to and I think in some cases, something to dream about. Read the rest of this entry »