Here's what Hesteyri Horses got up to in August...it was a busy month!

August started quietly for us, due to sending several horses back home or to new homes when our work with them was completed.

We still have sales livery Lola who has started to do some lovely work in the arena and has had a different rider on her, which is a big deal for her. Lola has been jumping amazingly! We started off by loose schooling her and she would happily jump a whole course at a decent height. We then started to jump her properly under saddle, and she has been incredible!

She absolutely loves it and is so talented, she is keen but fully in control the whole time, she has now jumped 1m at home in the arena. Lola is hacking beautifully now, and we are so proud that she can be ridden on the buckle now, she has improved so much! We went for a trip to Moores and she managed to jump around the main arena, which was a big achievement in itself. Let alone the fact that she jumped around the 60 clear, and the 70 with just a few poles over smaller uprights. We are so proud of her!

Schooling livery, Bobby, came on in leaps and bounds, he started out being quite sharp to hack, spooking at the bins every time out. Although still having a look at the bins by the end, he was quite happy to walk past them whilst out on his own. He was also a little resistant in the arena, but started schooling really nicely throughout his time here. He started to use himself beautifully, and was relaxed and confident. We started jumping him, and found that after he’d jumped a few fences he really started enjoying himself. He started off jumping fillers as low as they could go, but even throughout the first session progressed to jumping about 70, and his next session, jumping 80! We took him to Moores and although he had a stop at the first fence of the 60, he then proceeded to jump around the 60 and 70 beautifully! He was a bit on his toes for XC training at Ace, but soon settled down and jumped everything he was pointed at rather bravely!

Charlie was still with us, and by this point was regularly nannying other horses because he’s such a good boy! He had to nanny Meg at one point when she was poorly too! He also did plenty of lunge work to build up his muscles. He has now gone to his forever home on a lovely family farm in Dorset.

Shadow was also still with us, and was incredible to hack and in the arena. We started doing some mounted games with him, and jumping him from an angle to test how good he would be with a child. We also tested him in our neighbours’ big field, to see how he’d be in open spaces. He was amazing as per norm, and was ridden with no hands and no saddle! He also jumped a bit bigger, going around the full course of fillers. Shadow proved that our hard work had paid off as he had a lovely little girl come and try him and didn’t put a foot wrong! He has now gone to live down South, with a family with 12 grandchildren, we don’t think he’ll be running out of love any time soon!

Sienna had some good work in August, she did some free-jumping and some liberty work. She is so incredible at jumping, we just need to find a smaller person to jump her for us! She has had a couple of nice walks out in her bridle, and had a great bareback ride with Rose, where she was so relaxed and easy.

We did some work with our friend’s horse Boss. We backed Boss a year ago and he has changed so much, he’s officially a grown-up horse now! It was amazing to school him in the arena and take him for a gallop in the field the first time we rode him. We also went over to jump him, and although he was very green over the poles at the start, by the end he was jumping the biggest he’s jumped, and was looking so much braver!

Skewbald Lola (or big Lola as named in our updates) arrived, and had a solo hack on her first day as Meg was poorly. She was really good, we just tried to steady her and ask her not to rush. She worked in the arena and was easier on the flat than anticipated. She went around the course of fillers really well at a very low height on the first day, with just a few slip-ups. The third day she had a hack with Swift, and again was encouraged not to rush. We then switched the course around to make sure she had as much to look at as possible, and she flew around a course of 80. She was only here for a week and had a good solo hack to finish her time here. Lola came back for a lesson with her owner Abi the following week and they did some fab jumping with no run outs! We also met up with them at Moores and took her around the 60 course a couple of times, with Abi taking her around afterwards and doing amazingly!

Swift has had her work stepped up throughout August as we sadly need to sell her, and have been looking for a forever home for her. She has been schooling really nicely and trying hard. We have particularly worked on maintaining the correct bend, and doing some leg yield. She has also come back to her jumping very enthusiastically, and is going brilliantly, making 90 look easy! She has been to Moores and jumped brilliantly around the 70 and 80, with a few jumps at 90. Swift was slightly unsure when she started XC at Ace, but soon relaxed and was taking her jumps bravely and achieving new things like jumping into water.

Jysar arrived back to us as his new home wasn’t suitable. He only had one friend where he was and was worried about leaving him. He came off the box at ours looking happy and relaxed and went straight out for a solo hack and was as good as gold. We also taught him to jump this time round, and he cleared all the fillers with no problems! He is now schooling like a grown-up pony in the arena, and is even cantering. He also went XC schooling to Ace and although he was a little bit over excited, he settled well and jumped everything we pointed him at. Jysar also found his new home this month, but has stayed with us for a couple of extra weeks training. We will miss him a lot! Sponsored rider Scarlett came for a catch up and took him for a hack with Flynn and Lola. He has also been doing some bareback riding, which he loves!

We welcome new sales livery Flynn, who was a bit confused by the new setting and a bit tricky on his first day, but settled in and showed us how incredible he is! He has amazing paces and an incredible jump! He had another moment the first time he hacked, but the minute he realised he couldn’t get away with it he was as good as gold. Since then he has been perfect to hack alone and in company, in all weathers! On his second day in the arena he flew around a course of 1m with no problems at all! He has done some incredible flatwork, with great lateral work, and proven that he could do a lovely dressage test. When we took him out to Moores for the first time he jumped straight round an 80 and a 90 beautifully, even though it was his first jumping outing since he was a baby. Flynn had a great time cross country schooling at Ace, he finds show jumping easier but was very brave and jumped everything he was asked to! He then went to the Monmouthshire Hunt Hunter Trial where he did the 70-80 pairs and went around clear easily. He also went back for Moores for clear rounds at 90 and 1m and jumped 1.20m at home!

Backing livery Chance arrived and settled in well. He started with a nice walk up the drive to get used to his surroundings. Next, he walked out in tack, which he was equally as chilled out about. The next day was long reining, and after that we started to lean over him. He took it all in his stride. He had his first sit on in horrendous weather and was faultless! The next day we leaned over a couple of times before sitting up and taking a few steps. After a short period of time we were able to unclip him and walked down the driveway totally unaided by the person on the ground. He had his first trot the next day and passed traffic, bins and buildings with no problems. Once he’d started he was away, hacking out confidently with another pony straight away. He progressed to a long ride with some canters by the end of his third week and by the time he goes home we aim to have him hacking confidently on his own as well.

Backing livery Chance arrived and settled in well. He started with a nice walk up the drive to get used to his surroundings. Next, he walked out in tack, which he was equally as chilled out about. The next day was long reining, and after that we started to lean over him. He took it all in his stride. He had his first sit on in horrendous weather and was faultless! The next day we leaned over a couple of times before sitting up and taking a few steps. After a short period of time we were able to unclip him and walked down the driveway totally unaided by the person on the ground. He had his first trot the next day and passed traffic, bins and buildings with no problems. Once he’d started he was away, hacking out confidently with another pony straight away. He progressed to a long ride with some canters by the end of his third week and by the time he goes home we aim to have him hacking confidently on his own as well.

Phoebe’s mum Jen brought her youngster Bella around and had a great schooling session with some good jumps. We hopped on afterwards and jumped around the fillers, which was amazing as Bella hasn’t seen many jumps so far.

We met up with Nicola and Perez again for a play around Ace Cross Country. It was so nice to see Nic enjoying jumping her boy so much, they were brilliant together. We jumped on to pop Perez over some of the bigger fences and he had a great time and was super!

Amadeus went down to the Highbury field as he is still not right, so went to join the retired crew. We brought Cassie back home and once Swift is sold we will bring her back into work properly. Unfortunately Cassie decided to be rather naughty when leading her back and Lola earned her stripes retrieving her after she galloped almost all the way back to Redbrook!

Rose, Kerry and Tom have had a light months’ work, with a few lunge sessions and hacks each. Rose went to Moores farm to jump around the 90, with a hope to build her confidence a bit and get her to take the jumps from a slightly longer stride. Mission accomplished, and hopefully we’ll get her out a bit more next month.