“The best laid plans o’ mice and men, gang aft agley” is a quote from Rabbie Burns the Scottish poet (if I got it right), and that just about sums up the last few days. Monday morning dawned bright and clear, and my mind, which never dawns bright and clear,  turned to the arrangements and […]

Yesterday we took Solo and another four year old off the property to school. It was very hot during the day so we took them later in the evening but even then, we were still limited by the heat and humidity. Both the youngsters behaved like stars. We started by leading them around in amongst […]

The weeks are flying past and Solo’s first under saddle show is fast approaching. This time in two weeks, he will be on the road to Millbrook NY. So far we have not worked out a way of getting him to another small show beforehand. Selena’s show schedule is intense and the spaces in the […]

Solo seems to be growing up, he is easier in all sorts of ways. Easier and calmer at feed times, less anxious when his buddy Waldo is working and quieter to turnout and bring in. He is also getting better to pony, he was always a bit of a pain to pony as he just […]

Finally the sun shone and all the cross country fields dried up. Even the water jump is at a fun level for the first time this year. I was also able to get my camera out again without fear of ruining it in the incessant rain. Solo has been hopping neatly over the little logs […]

As it turned out, the dressage show was NEXT Sunday the ninth,  and we couldn’t enter him.  It was a question of too many young horses at once. We have already entered two big four year old Holsteiners for the show – both of whom are at their first show and both of whom are […]

Solo had his first school in a real dressage arena on the weekend. He was not terribly impressed….as per usual, he had opinions that had to be expressed. He looked and spooked his way around the ring, and mumbled and grumbled about it the entire time. We have found that he generally tends to discuss […]

Solo’s education continues to progress fairly smoothly. It isn’t so much that he has stopped arguing and giving us all his opinions, more a question of us wading through his lengthy discussions over every aspect of his training. He ALWAYS has to say SOMETHING!! While we were at Bromont, the Pony Club were here at […]

Selena left for Quebec on Tuesday with Peanuts but life at Hawkridge Farm is NEVER quiet and this week seems to be particularly hectic – so….I am still not at Bromont, I am hoping to leave later today after our mare Be Bold Juliet is bred (everything happens when you want to go away). Since […]

I have noticed since the Pat Burgess clinic that Solo even looks more grown up. He has been much better behaved since his ‘dive in the deep end’. His body looks deeper and stronger and his neck is finally starting to fill out. All in all he is beginning to look more like a horse […]