Now that the Worldshow is over, summer is just around the corner. A few horses are allowed back up to the mountain pasture, I’m going to start working with my ponies, and I’m also selling two horses.

June.

Issy and Wylano were already thoroughly enjoying their freedom on the alpine pasture, and after the Worldshow, I took Incredible to the alpine pasture as well, where she was allowed to spend the summer. One more summer just being a horse and growing up.

It was really time to start selling Adylano. I’d always wanted to sell him, but the horse market can be tough sometimes. People are looking for the perfect horse, for as little money as possible. As a seller, you ultimately want to make a profit, you’re not giving your horses away for free. That’s what makes it tricky sometimes. I took some new photos, since he’d really come a long way, and posted a new ad on Facebook. Who knows, maybe this time I’d find him a new home. I got a few messages from interested buyers; now it was just a matter of waiting to see if any of them were a good fit.

July.

In the end, it all happened very quickly. A family from Switzerland turned out to be very interested in Adylano. They wanted to come pick him up by the end of this month. My girls at the campground helped bathe him, and he was on his very best behavior. Saying goodbye was a little hard, but he was going to have a good home. I was happy for him! A few months later, I got a message saying they were incredibly happy with him, that he felt right at home, and that he was very well-behaved. These are the messages that make it all worth it!

Jazz and Star both turned 4 this year, and it was about time they started learning something. I’d really love it if I could eventually use them both as children’s ponies, have them join pony rides, and maybe even give a few lessons with Star. But then again, how do you go about that with such little ones? I think Jazz is now about 90 cm tall, and Star is 108 cm. It’s not like I can just hop on them myself. I’d already started lunging them, so they were somewhat familiar with that. Every year, I have a few girls who come back and enjoy helping me with the horses. It seemed like a good idea to let them get started with the ponies. They lunged Jazz and Star, which went very well. I ordered bridles and a saddle so we could continue. In the end, they were able to walk both ponies by hand, which went very smoothly. Of course, these girls will go home again, and the training will come to a halt for a while. Next year, when they come back, we’ll pick up where we left off. And who knows, maybe by then we’ll actually get to the point of riding them.

August.

Wylano is growing well on the alpine pasture, and the foal inspection is getting closer. I’ve already practiced putting a halter on him for the alpine pasture, but that’s all he’s used to. I thought it would be a good idea to wean him this month and bring him back to the stable. That way, I could train him a little more before the real thing.

I decided it would be a good idea to take Issy and Wylano along together and then bring Issy back afterward.

This turned out to be harder than expected. Luckily, a friend came along to help. We managed to put a halter on Wylano and thought things would go smoothly from there. Issy went into the trailer fairly easily, as usual, but Wylano had other ideas. He refused and started rearing up. Even with the three of us, we couldn’t get him on, he was completely resisting. Luckily, an acquaintance stopped by and offered to help. After a lot of fuss, but ultimately with a lot of patience, we got him onto the trailer and were able to head to the stable.

Opinions are always divided when it comes to weaning foals. When should you do it, how should you do it—quickly or gradually? For me, it’s always been the case that doing it quickly works better than doing it slowly. Not dragging it out too much works best for me, and my mares have always cooperated well with that approach so far. With Issy, we’ve always weaned the foals around 5 months of age, because Issy gives everything to her foal and has nothing left for herself.

This time, too, I decided to go with the quick approach. We drove Issy and Wylano to the stable and walked inside. By then, I’d decided in the car not only to take Issy back to the pasture, but also to let Press enjoy the summer a little longer. I loaded Press onto the trailer first and then brought Issy out as well. After a moment’s hesitation, she walked obediently onto the trailer, and we drove back to the pasture. Issy didn’t cause any trouble; at the alpine pasture, we kept a close eye on her because of her udder, but everything went fine. Wylano whinnied a bit during the night but quickly became friends with Star and was content.

September.

The foal inspection was actually scheduled for earlier this month. Wylano had developed well, and we were ready for it, even though he really wasn’t easy to handle. Unfortunately, he wasn’t feeling well at the foal show, he was coughing a lot and had a runny nose. I didn’t think it was wise to present him, so I withdrew him. I kept an eye on things online for the sale, but didn’t find anything suitable, and if he had to stay for the winter, that wouldn’t be a problem either. That way, Star could stay with his buddy a little longer.

Meanwhile, the mares were having a wonderful time on the alpine pasture. Whenever I had a moment, I’d go check on them after work or on the weekends. Just to enjoy the moment with them, even if only for a little while. Issy looked great and was putting on weight again. She certainly needed that after foaling. She was allowed to enjoy herself for a little while longer; now that she wasn’t pregnant, she could slowly get back to work once she came home.

Meanwhile, I was busy riding Sevimli. He was incredibly well-behaved and a really great horse to work with. Unfortunately, his summer eczema was pretty severe this year, so I really needed to start looking for a new home for him right away. Preferably, of course, somewhere by the sea where those pesky mosquitoes don’t live. Since I once did an internship in Egmond, I know a few people there, so I decided to put out the word back in July. You never know until you try. And what a stroke of luck, she might have known someone and put us in touch. After back-and-forth communication with lots of photos and videos exchanged, we agreed that she didn’t want to just buy him outright but wanted to see him first, and this was scheduled for September.

In mid-September, she came by with her daughter and the person who had put us in touch. I rode him, and he was exemplary. She wanted to give him a try herself, this would be the first time he’d had someone else on his back. But he handled that wonderfully, too. Even her little daughter got to ride him for a bit.

They stayed for several days, and we decided to let him run free for a bit so they could see that too. I’d done this with him once before, but that was quite a while ago. Now he acted as if he’d never done anything else and jumped over everything in sight. I could tell they were incredibly enthusiastic, and I had a good feeling about it. At the end of their visit, we agreed that they would buy him, I was so happy! He would have a fantastic little home here. At the end of September, he would be transported to the Netherlands, on his way to his new adventure. One last ride and one last photo. Our bond had grown tremendously lately, and saying goodbye was really hard. But I also knew he’d be incredibly happy there and that this was the right thing to do. After he arrived in the Netherlands, I received good news that they were happy to have him and, after a while, that he had settled in well. He truly deserves to have found such a lovely little home!

This month, I also started to notice something less pleasant. I’d noticed it a little before, but not to the extent that I do now. Even before the World’s Fair, Incredible occasionally seemed to have a slightly crooked leg, depending on how she was standing. At the time, I mainly thought it was at the elbow, and that she would turn it slightly outward when at rest. I didn’t think it was anything out of the ordinary, a growing horse often has some peculiarities. She was never lame and didn’t seem bothered by it. Out on the alpine pasture, it slowly started to become more noticeable. But now it wasn’t just her elbow, it was actually more her front knee. It was getting thicker, and the leg was now clearly crooked. She still didn’t seem to be in any pain; whenever she saw me, she’d always come galloping straight down the slope. A horse in real pain doesn’t do that.

Still, I wasn’t comfortable with it, so I contacted a veterinarian. I was advised to have X-rays taken to see what might be wrong with her leg. I started searching online. Which vet should I choose? Should I have someone come to my house, or should I go to a clinic? What could it be, and what are we going to do about it? What can I do? I kept telling myself, “She’s only 2.5 years old and still growing, I’m sure she’ll be fine.” Unfortunately, it turned out to be a bit more complicated than that. I’ll discuss this in my next blog post.

Love, Fabiënne