Manor Hill Farm

Horse tip #3,120: I didn’t get out of the way in time this morning and was stepped on by my fat lard of a princess unicorn . Depending on the circumstances of being stepped on- you have immediate thoughts run through your head. 1. Oh praise the lord- I’m wearing my work boots! 2. Oh wow the pain is getting worse. 3. I can feel things swelling up in there... ... 4. Count to 15 if it doesn’t get better... they are broken? 15 minutes later: yup still throbbing. Now- here is the tip. Get some boots with a roomy toe cap. That way- if they are broken and swelling up you can walk around and ride and still get your boot off at the end of the day. It’s like an air cast. Plenty of room to swell in. Also- People that wear flip flops or open toe shoes around horses are insane. My boots saved me from having crushed toes. They are barely bruised but boy do they feel angry. And that’s! My tip of the day. See more

This gave me a giggle.

I spy with my little eye something that starts with the letter G. Do you see him?

It’s weird how things work out. We were planning on taking four horses to the paperchase this afternoon. Our goat Gretal was showing neurological complications this morning and needed medical attention. Mr. Luke took over the transportation while I stayed behind and waited for Dr. Rexroth. Who stopped by on her day off after completing a dressage test. Huge shout out to vets that drop their life for clients! Mystery was the last to be loaded on the rig. She bumped her head on... one of the door bars and we decided to call it a day for her as far as getting her loaded safely without stress. I don’t blame her... a trailer packed with geldings? Gross. Time was ticking. Everyone arrived safely at the paperchase, we got Thiamine shots for Gretal, and now the rest of the MHF crew are working out in the fields. I think we need another trailer so we can take the whole barn next time! Last minute changes are definitely a big part of horses and running a livestock farm. What you set out to do yesterday may not be what happens today! On a good note- it’s beautiful out- our Manor hill girls are currently chasing a blue ribbon and I can hang out with my goats for the rest of the day feeling confident that all will be ok. See more

The morning crew are having a private lesson from head trainer Miss Hannah and assistant trainer Ava. Tucker, is the mascot.

Finley lost a shoe last night and was about to lose the others too. They were all holding on by a thread, and everything about his feet were messy. Tyler had Josh from Anvil 96 come in to help us remedy the problems. After close inspection Josh needed to correct the angle and with time hopefully all will be balanced and healthy again. Josh did a wonderful job of educating us on what was going on behind the hoof wall. It’s always fun to learn about each horse that comes in and see what’s in store for the future.

Lollipop had her harness fitted today and we got our first lesson from Jennifer! Lollipop needs a refresher course and we are excited to learn more about training, long lining, harness fit and driving in hand!

This made me snort giggle.

Check out the pretty sunset!

We have a big congrats to Tyler who just got her first horse Findley! He is a 16 year old Thoroughbred. He settled in immediately and was pretty excited for hay and grass! Another shout out goes to our Feed Guru and Nutritionist Jim Fiorini from Oley Feed who dropped off the appropriate feed to help us transition Findley to our feed program safely. Jim! We love you. Thanks for bending over backwards for us and running to our rescue on such last minute notice.

We beat the rain and had a fun time at Wyndsor this morning. Ava showed in the Leadline classes and Emma got 4rth place in the Halloween contest! Good job today ladies!

Mystery had a nice warm up today with Avery in preparation for Windurra tomorrow! We are looking forward to showing her many new cross country jumps!

We set all the jumps up in the field to get the horses fit on grass. Avery and Heidi were the first ones to test it out! It turns out Raven loves jumping on grass!

Well we had an absolute blast at the paperchase today. We not only accomplished a lot of firsts but we also found out some great character points about our horses. Thankyou Mr. Stewart’s... for hosting a great paperchase. The turnout was incredible! Now little girls will have enough money to do more horse related clinics! We did a little over 7 miles in one hour 15 mins. I’m so proud of Jackson for learning how to be in third place with a winner mind. I’m so proud of JB fo...r being the best trail horse and finding the best path through rough terrain- he’s a steady piece of heaven... And... I’m most proud of Raven for discovering that she’s the best leader and setting the pace for the boys! I haven’t quite ever seen her heart shine as bright as it did today. She was all pride! I would certainly follow that mare into battle. Mostly because any horse would follow her. See more

Crazy how times have changed!

Well that’s one way to use a horse trailer?

We had another fabulous day here on the farm. Once again, Hannah won the best dressed for equine activities! She showed us some tricks while lunging Jackson. The kids had a blast in her lessons! Jess and I sat and watched while listening to the ever famous comedy series of the famous Hannah! She finally got done teaching, threw on some boots and a grab belt and took Ava for a double bareback ride in the fields while the sun started to set. You couldn’t ask for a better barn family. The end.

Are you stiff or tense in the saddle? Does your instructor constantly tell you to relax your shoulders, back or pelvis? Here are some great stretches for before or after you ride! It will definitely help you be more aware of all those tension spots!