26/03/24
As some of you may already be aware, just before Christmas last year, Johnny was taken unwell and had an emergency visit from the vet. After 24 hours of care, he bounced back remarkably. He was very poorly with suspected colic, but has made a full recovery, although this meant an unexpected break through January to make sure he was 100% fit and healthy. Thankfully no surgery was required, but it was a testing time.
The poor weather we have had here in Cumbria over recent weeks, along with restricted turn out and a busy calving period at work, meant the break hasn’t done him any harm. We have continued to go for the odd hack when the weather permitted, which has kept him happy. With the storms that have caused damage to my home and an incident at the yard Johnny was kept at, it's been pretty relentless. The one thing that kept me going was Johnny. It's surprising how therapeutic your horse can be when you feel like life is against you. The simple things like him nuzzling into you when you're mucking out, or the way he neighs when he sees you each morning waiting for breakfast just seem to sooth the worries.
Following the incident at the livery yard, we have moved to pastures new and Johnny has joined me on the farm where I work. He has a 20ft x 13 ft stable with five donkeys next door to keep him company. He had never been introduced to donkeys before and I was a little apprehensive as to how he would react, but as always, he just calmly said hello and went over to the hay and started munching.
He never ceases to amaze me how sensible and calm he is. The cows were the next big introduction! We have seen them across the hedges when out hacking, but he’s never had any interaction with them. Johnny was cautious at first, but settled better than I could have imagined and is now happy to have 200 young stock as neighbours too. I even caught him sharing a mouthful of hay with one this morning, much to my amazement.
Now that he is on the farm, I’m able to spend my lunchtime riding around 700 acres with my labrador, Penny. We are just over a mile from the beautiful Solway coast and this will be a huge benefit over the summer months for those evening rides at the beach. We are just down the road from a lovely indoor school too, so we can continue his schooling. Johnny seems much happier now he is not in a livery yard and can be out in his 35 acre field for 9 to 10 hours a day. I'm very fortunate to work for a wonderful family who have made it possible to enjoy my job and my horse in one place.
Looking forward to the show season in a few weeks, the diary is out and planning well under way. Hopefully this year we are aiming for ridden classes, both light weight hunter and thoroughbred. We have already booked onto a summer camp with Emma Carmichael over near Morpeth in July so we have that to look forward to.
Much love Jess and Johnny x
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