Horse & Hound

THE way horses respond to stressful situations and the lasting impact of a bad experience in early life have been highlighted by experts, who advised how owners can help horses in such situations. Neuroscientist Emma Lethbridge and equine behaviour c

Share your news story Call 0330 390 6386 Email eleanor.jones@futurenet.com @ jones_eleanor_ ARE recent initiatives and campaigns improving groom’s lives? Academics from the Netherlands have researched whether four initiatives were seen by grooms as a

A LEADING equine welfare charity has “serious concerns” over hoof care – as it has had to put four horses down. A spokesman for Bransby Horses told H&H the team was worried by the number of cases of hoof neglect the charity saw last year – a trend th

MOUTHGUARDS, and how they might help in preventing concussion, are back in the spotlight, after research and developments in other sports. A Canadian youth icehockey study, published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine in 2023, found those wear

ONE of the best professional huntsmen since World War II has died, aged 85. He started hunting with the Heythrop where his father Tom was the long-serving kennelman of more than 40 years. His aunt was a Littleworth, and his uncle Jack Littleworth hun

INBREEDING is a “contributing factor” to mid-and late-term thoroughbred pregnancy loss, a study found. Researchers from the Royal Veterinary College (RVC), with Cornell University, analysed 189 DNA samples – including a control group – and found that

alexandra.robinson@futurenet.com @alexrob_ journo_ OPINION I WOULDN’T ever say I’d have been a good weatherman but it’s hard not to talk about the subject when we’ve experienced one of the hardest winters I’ve ever known. The immense amount of rain w

MOMENTS of relaxation are rare for perennial US showjumping team member Laura Kraut, but she takes advantage of them on Mondays during the Florida circuit. The Olympic team gold medallist is dealing with a string of 10 horses from December into April

At 30, I had a mid-life crisis – an early one! I was the classic horsey teenager, who loved the idea of working with horses but wasn’t creative about knowing what was out there, and my parents said, “You need a proper job”, with horses as a hobby. So

“DURING lockdown, I was thinking about buying my son, Ollie, a project pony. A friend mentioned Hannah Turnock had a nice Welsh section A she would consider selling to the right home. Benny was a stallion at the time, but he seemed sweet and had a ni

Cartmel, Grange-over-Sands, Cumbria For you: a Grade II-listed five-bed farmhouse, with original features such as oak beams and staircase, and sash windows. There is a self-contained apartment and cottage (both marketed as holiday lets) overlooking t

AS exciting as it may be to scroll through stallion listings searching for your mare’s perfect partner, some serious deliberation is called for before creating the next generation – as Holly Bishop of Parkfield Breeding in Wiltshire explains. “It’s e

BREEDING a superstar looks easy when you analyse the pedigree. Cornish Queen, the dam of the all-conquering Lordships Graffalo (Walter) and five-star campaigner Pencos Crown Jewel (Jasmine), has bloodlines loaded with quality. Advanced event horses a

IN days of old, when wagon wheels rolled, the horse was the living, breathing engine that delivered goods, won battles, provided transport, ploughed fields and saved lives. Then came the steam engine, the start of a mechanical revolution that goes on

THE future is looking good for working horses – that’s the genuine belief of Tom Nixon, who is enjoying a lifetime of working with the big fellas at his home in Hook, Hampshire. Tom’s relationship with his horses is second to none and he was recently

EVENTING SPRING CARNIVAL 28–31 March pippa.roome@futurenet.com @pipparoomeorkyle Eventing Spring Carnival, Thoresby, Notts EMILY KING and Valmy Biats led a world-class field from start to finish, successfully defending their Lycetts Grantham Cup titl

GUBBY LEECH had only ridden Direct Ballytarsna Ducarel (pictured) a handful of times ahead of their super CCI4*-S performance, which yielded second. The 15-year-old, owned by Penelope and Katie Cabourne, is usually ridden by Jodie Amos, but Gubby has

A BIG contingent travelled from Britain to Kronenberg in the Netherlands for early Olympic qualifications and prep runs. Tom McEwen led the pack when he claimed the 66-starter CCI4*-S on the Lamberts and Deirdre Johnston’s JL Dublin, leading througho

HIGHLIGHTS 21–24 March Tweseldown (X), Hants KITTY KING and Vendredi Biats won the advanced intermediate (AI) at this lastminute fixture by more than nine marks, leading the dressage on 18.8 and adding 3.6 time-penalties across country. “He led the d

Munstead (1), Surrey LESS than 24 hours before securing a win in BE90 section P, teacher Sue Buxton was flying back from Geneva, where she had been supervising a school trip. “It wasn’t the ideal preparation and I had to ask for late times on Sunday,

oscar.williams@futurenet.com @oscarw_dr HIGHLIGHTS 18–24 March Brook Farm Training Centre, Essex “HE definitely has the engine,” said Georgie Day of her “mini Ferrari” Waverley Night Music, who headed the prix st georges (PSG) with 67.79% on his debu

TWO prelim wins and a personal best score of 75.77% added up to a memorable outing to Beaver Hall EC, Staffordshire, for Peter Morris, who was riding his seven-year-old coloured part-cob gelding Rathnagrew Jacksie, who is known as Captain at home. “I

HIGHFIELD AT HOWE 23–24 March Highfield at Howe, Fife AIMEE PAXTON secured her chance of defending the Royal Highland title she has claimed for the past two years when she qualified two rides for the 148cm championship, winning with Eyre Diva Dior an

HOME-PRODUCER Ellis Priestley had a field day at the BSPS Area 5 show, partnering her versatile 13-year-old Connemara stallion Rathcline Argon. They stood native challenge worker champions, took the 90cm worker stakes, were second in the 100cm equiva

HIGHLIGHTS 17–24 March alexandra.robinson@futurenet.com @alexrob_journo_ BSPS Area 15a, Addington Equestrian, Bucks A FOUR-YEAR-OLD first ridden show pony showed maturity way beyond his years to trounce a full range of types and sizes and scoop the £

HUNTER enthusiast Emma Gibson looks to have found another gem. At the recent UK Ponies and Horses (UKPH) Spring Classic, Claire Oliver piloted Emma’s stunning new heavyweight, part-bred Irish Draught Greenhall All Business to take the first tricolour

IRISH trainer Aidan O’Brien described his Derby and Breeders’ Cup hero Auguste Rodin’s 12th-place finish in the Longines Dubai Sheema Classic as a “bit of a non-event”, but four-year-old stayer Tower Of London (Ryan Moore, pictured) made amends in th

HIGHLIGHTS 25–31 March jennifer.donald@futurenet.com @jen_donald Meydan Racecourse, Dubai, UAE “I’M still coming to terms with what’s just happened,” said trainer Bhupat Seemar after Laurel River upstaged his star-studded rivals when he put in a brea

THE big, burly grey 10-year-old Numitor (Sean Bowen) lands the Unibet Middle Distance Veterans’ Finale at Haydock for Oxfordshire trainer, breeder and former opera singer, Heather Main.

HIGHLIGHTS 29–30 March Kimblewick, Kimble, Bucks LIFT ME UP romped home to take the mixed open under Jack Andrews for Maxine Filby and owners Geri and Christian Horner. The eight-year-old son of Mahler was scoring for the fifth time in eight starts.

Essex & Suffolk, Higham, Suffolk IZZIE MARSHALL celebrated her 100th pointing winner when taking the mixed open on the consistent I K Brunel for trainer Alan Hill and owners The I K Brunel Partnership. “The owners have been so good to me, so it was g

BALLYMACAD FOXHOUNDS 20 February catherine.austen@futurenet.com @cfausten123 Joint-masters: Michael Bevan, Brendan Cosgrove, Gary O’Neill, Martin Farrell Huntsman: Kevin Donohue Whippers-in: Bobby Kellett, Maurice Quinn Hounds: 30 couple of modern an

IT’s the time of year when you attack all the things that are neglected while hunting is on. I didn’t notch up a huge number of days this season but even when you’re not hunting, you’re probably thinking about it and it is easy to sweep life’s other