What Do Horses Mean In New York?

I’ve been hoofing around New York and DC in the pursuit of a holiday and book two (which will be out in, ooooooh, 2015?). Shanks’ Mare and I saw a surprising number of equines on our travels, although we missed the zebra and pony on the loose on Staten Island. Books two and three are …

Horse vs. Grizzly

Here’s an absolutely cracking story from The Spokesman Review about a young woman and an 18hh  Percheron/Quarter Horse called Tonk who chased after a grizzly bear that was pursuing an eight-year-old boy on a terrified horse. They faced up to the bear and charged. “… when you’re riding, the horse is your best protection, if …

Whole Heap of Little Horse Links

An escaped German circus pony attempts to board a tram. A riding corset from the 1870s – you see how Skittles managed that waist. A new anti-slaughter feature film called Saving America’s Horses is underway in the USA, while a new government report looking at the negative impact of the effective ban on horse slaughter …

Beauty and the Beast

Quick hit: an earlier news story about “rodeo queens” in New Mexico completing their routines on hobby horses raised a question for European horsefolk – what the hell is a rodeo queen anyway? And why are those little girls wearing eyeliner but not, you know, hard hats?* Jezebel.com has republished a piece on the phenomenon …

The Definition of Abuse

FEI GENERAL REGULATIONS 23rd edition, 1 January 2009, updated 1 January 2010 Article 142 – Abuse of Horses 1. No person may abuse a Horse during an Event or at any other time. “Abuse” means an action or omission which causes or is likely to cause pain or unnecessary discomfort to a Horse, including without …