Hope In The Valley Riding for Disabled Group based at Plumpton College, has welcomed an additional coach to boost its training programme. The quality of coaching at RDA is second to none, combining equestrian knowledge with an in-depth understanding of a wide range of disabilities.

To meet the high standards required of their coaches,  RDA provides a tailored programme of training and assessment and supports Instructors to help achieve their coaching goals.

At Plumpton College in Sussex recently, two RDA examiners, Annie Irving and Rosemary Harrison, presented Jen Wathan with her RDA Group Coach badge.  Jen will now join Hope in the Valley’s current coaches (Lesley Morrill, Sheila Camilleri and Hilary Bowles) in delivering the high standard of therapy and coaching demanded by RDA for all the group’s riders.

Delighted Jen Wathan ( centre) is pictured receiving her RDA Group Coach badge from Annie Irving (left) and Rosemary Harrison.

Jen, who is currently completing her work for a PhD at Sussex University on Horse Communication and Cognition, reacted to her successful assessment by saying: “I am delighted to have passed my assessment and to become a fully-fledged member of the coaching team! It’s a real pleasure to be involved with the wonderful team of coaches, riders, helpers, and horses at Hope in the Valley, and I look forward to continuing to work with the group.”

Mrs Lesley Morrill, Senior Coach and Chairman of Hope in the Valley, and RDA County Coach for East Sussex said: “Jen’s input will be invaluable in maintaining our essential therapy sessions for younger riders, and for developing the riding skills of our older riders, enabling many of them to participate in RDA activities, including the Countryside Challenge and Dressage at Regional and National levels.”

To help continue with this work for disabled children, Hope in the Valley would be pleased to receive offers of help, particularly from trailer drivers, and offers of ponies.  Please note that volunteers are given RDA training and do not have to be experienced with horses or ponies.  All RDA equines have to be assessed as suitable before being used.

For more information about Hope in the Valley see the website www.hopeinthevalley.org or email info@hopeinthevalley.org or telephone 0845 241 5358.

Redwings Horse Sanctuary is delighted that the Control of Horses Bill for England has successfully passed through the House of Lords and is now ready to receive Royal Assent and become law.

The Private Member’s Bill, introduced by MP for York Outer Julian Sturdy, marks a positive step forward in the fight against fly-grazing and has been supported through every stage of its parliamentary journey by a coalition of animal welfare charities and rural organisations, comprising Blue Cross, British Horse Society, CLA, Countryside Alliance, HorseWorld, Local Government Association, NFU, Redwings Horse Sanctuary, RSPCA and World Horse Welfare.

Cardiff ponies being rescued : Photo Redwings

Similar to the Control of Horses Act (Wales) which came into effect in January 2014, this new legislation gives greater powers to English authorities to seize illegally grazed horses.

The Bill also provides greater reassurance for landowners who find themselves victim to fly-grazing in significantly reducing the lengthy and expensive process of removing the horses from their land; under the new legislation, the authorities will be able to take action after four days rather than a minimum of two weeks as it was previously.

“The passing of the Control of Horses Bill is a great reason for all parties involved to celebrate,” commented Redwings Chief Executive Lynn Cutress. “I am incredibly proud of the Redwings team who have seen first-hand the impact of fly-grazing on horses and landowners alike.

Horses rescued from around an office block Photo: Redwings

“The issue has brought together welfare charities and rural organisations to campaign for a mutually beneficial cause and I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to Julian Sturdy MP who has championed this important legislative change.”

Redwings first flagged a rise in abandoned horses in their 2010 year-end report where the number of welfare calls had risen by over 50 per cent; an increase for which fly-grazing and equine abandonments were recognised as a significant contributing factor.

The charity subsequently brought the problem to wider public and rural community consciousness in 2012 having assisted Welsh local authorities in the round-up of 220 horses and ponies found illegally grazed on Cardiff airport – 23 of which were rehomed to Redwings and known as the ’80s group.

Reports of abandoned horses to the Redwings welfare line continued to rise year-on-year, peaking at 806 calls in 2013.

Fly grazing poses a real risk to both horse welfare and the public. More often than not, horses are left to fend for themselves on private or public land without sufficient shelter, water or food, and subsequently fall victim to serious (and preventable) illnesses.

Furthermore, the horses are often grazed on land without a suitably fenced perimeter leading to tragic incidents of animals escaping onto busy roads and motorways. The passing of the Control of Horses Bill for England is therefore a significant move in improving horse welfare, protecting landowners, reducing risk to public health and deterring irresponsible owners.

These horses had been dumped on land at Alton, Hampshire, with no food, beside a busy road

“Nonetheless, the fight against fly-grazing has yet to be won,” concluded Lynn Cutress. “Although required by law, the enforcement of compulsory passporting and microchipping of horses is lacking, as is a centralised database for storing and retrieving horse and owner information in order to bring fly-grazing perpetrators to account.

“Our work as the UK’s largest horse sanctuary in improving welfare is ongoing, but the Control of Horses Bill marks a significant and positive move towards helping the estimated 3,000 fly-grazed horses currently estimated to be at risk across England.”

See more about the work of Redwings at: www.redwings.org.uk

More than 400 people headed to Lavant, near Chichester in West Sussex recently to meet dozens of friendly ponies, donkeys and horses during Lavant House Stables’ Spring Open Morning. And another event is planned on Easter Monday.

Visitors were able to enjoy free pony and tractor rides, face painting and pony grooming, whilst the pony parade and chocolate hunt were firm favourites with the children.

Getting up close with the ponies at Lavant House open day

“The Open Mornings are a chance for people to see what riding is all about and enjoy our fantastic South Downs National Park location” explained Lavant House Stables’ owner Lucy Thomson. “For our staff nothing beats seeing those huge smiles when children first groom or ride a pony. It really is a magical connection.”

It was not only the ponies that were getting all the attention on the day. Two other cheeky characters were certainly making the most out of the influx of new visitors.

Diesel the donkey is admired by a young visitor

“As soon as we start setting up in the morning, our two donkeys, Two Stroke and Diesel, trot in and take up position in the middle of the yard,”said Kelly Oliver, office administrator. “They know it will be a bumper carrot day and steal as many cuddles and treats as they can, sometimes from people’s pockets when they aren’t looking!”

Many families travelled from across Hampshire and West Sussex including Maurice Charles and his three year old daughter who came from Worthing. “This was our first time here and we had a great day,”said Maurice. “My daughter absolutely loved her very first pony ride and hasn’t stopped talking about it since.”

Youngsters had the chance to enjoy pony riding at the open day

Don’t miss the next free Open Morning, which is on Easter Monday April 6 from 10am-1pm and features an Easter Egg hunt through the fields and woodland at 11 am. Everyone is welcome and it is a great day out for children of all ages.

World Horse Welfare has called for a more open debate on stabling horses following latest research findings. A new report from researchers at Nottingham Trent University has highlighted the potential negative welfare consequences of a commonly used stable design.

Scientists discovered that horses who were housed individually with little or no contact with other animals showed significantly higher signs of a stress response.

Kelly Yarnell, an expert in equine welfare at Nottingham Trent University said: “Inadequate housing design potentially causes stress and negative consequences on the health and well-being of horses, despite the fact that it can be easily addressed by introducing more windows or shared areas. Group housing provides horses with an environment where they are able to display natural behaviour, and contact with other horses improves overall welfare.”

WHW horse in stable at GSF Rescue and Rehoming Centre
Photo courtesy of World Horse Welfare

In response to the findings, WHW Chief Executive Roly Owers said: “World Horse Welfare welcomes this study as it supports what we have been highlighting for some time: poorly managed stabling can cause significant welfare problems.

“Whilst we believe that stabling does have an important and beneficial role to play in the wide variety of ways that we can manage horses in the UK today, this must be done responsibly. This study provides plenty of food for thought, although we should be mindful of not reading too much into any single piece of research, not least because horses are individuals and what suits one animal does not necessarily suit another.”

Deputy Chief Executive Tony Tyler says that the culture that exists at World Horse Welfare’s four UK Rescue and Rehoming Centres encourages regular social interaction.

Horses turned out in the snow at WHW’s Hall Farm

He commented:“Most of our horses live out in groups ,with access to field shelters all year round.  For those which need to be stabled, we have large open-sided crew yards at each of the centres, where horses can be kept in small groups of up to three or four, and horses which are kept on their own can easily socialise over partitioning walls.

“However, it is sometimes necessary to keep our horses in stables for their own welfare but a combination of good management and constant assessment to make sure that all their needs are being met is essential to the mental as well as physical health of the horse.”

Some of the key issues to consider with stabling include:access to turn out;social interaction and the design of the stabling

Welfare challenges with stabling are not just a UK issue, as evidenced in a soon to be published report on Europe’s equine sector prepared by WHW in partnership with Eurogroup for Animals.  This makes it all the more encouraging that Julie Girling MEP is producing a proposal on responsible equine ownership and care for the European Union, which will highlight the need for guidance on good stabling practices.

Roly Owers concluded: “We should not lose sight of the key issue involved here: namely the needs that horses have for social interaction.  It is totally unacceptable to house a horse all-day in a stable with both top and bottom door bolted but  we would also seriously question a horse kept out at pasture 24/7 without any companionship.

“Clearly equine companionship is a great option, but people and other animals can play a role here too.  Above all we hope that this research, published in a highly respected scientific journal, will promote an informed debate about the role that stabling can play in caring for our horses.”