Welcome to my blog page!
For those who haven’t come from my Instagram, my name is Hannah and I currently have three, incredibly cheeky, horses.
Like a lot of riders, I don’t have the stereotypical “horse girl” background. My parents were divorced, we grew up in rental accommodation ranging from a bungalow in a quiet Kent village to a council estate in a seaside town.
My parents took me for a pony ride as a child and I was completely hooked. We were able to afford lessons for a few years, then unfortunately had to have a break as lessons were too expensive.
Few years later, we managed to find a stable that charged £5 for a morning working at their yard and a 30 minute lesson. A few years (and another break) later I started riding at a local yard that I still do the odd weekend shift today
This sparked a lifelong obsession with everything horsey. I studied an equine degree for my undergraduate, worked at a racing stud, joined the polo team during my postgraduate and finally, after years of hard work I got Daisy!
Daisy (Haybells My Way)
I loaned Daisy in March 2021. She had been in and out of loan homes since she was backed, this combined with Daisy’s “strong-willed” behaviour did make her a major handful.
She was broncing people off, very strong on the ground, overall quite dangerous to handle! Due to this, the loan home before me just left her in a field.
Even collecting Daisy was an interesting experience, despite leaving her in an unsuitable field full of rubbish and with no grazing or hay, her previous loaners decided they didn’t want to hand her over so it was a few weeks of battling to get her back to our yard (as per the owners request).
When we finally did manage to free her, load her and get her home, she was scared, nervous and a pretty blank canvas. Overall, a BIG project for me.
We started with having her feet done, for what seemed to be the first time in months, had her teeth done for the first time, had regular pamper sessions, physico and saddler, basically bled my bank account dry. BUT, she was worth every penny.
After laughter, and lots of tears, by 2023 I had a happy, relaxed and really dependable pony. She is a saint. She has had beginners and novices on her, been out to multiple fun rides and basically is a total legend. Although, she still has her cheeky personality. Our main goal for 2024 is to get her out competing, my main aim is unaffiliated dressage, but we shall see where the mood takes us!
Devon AKA Dippy Do Da (Woodland Miss Dior)
Just as I was making progress with Daisy, I got offered an unmissable opportunity from my friend. She needed to dedicate more time to her other horses and had a 2 year old she was willing to give me.
I could never express how grateful I was for this. My first horse I had ever fully owed, a beautiful Welsh D cross Hackney, PLUS she is a gorgeous palomino. I did say after Daisy I didn’t want another project, but who could say no to that beautiful face?
Dippy has definitely been an interesting project and completely different to Daisy. Dippy was terrified of life, she never meant to be nasty, however, she was well known for panicking and running people over in the process. I had one major incident where she panicked, ran me over, fully bending my back like a pretzel and somehow I managed to not break any bones!
After plenty of ground work, in-hand hacking and pampering her nerves calmed a little and I sent her off to be backed. As much as I was hoping to do the process myself, I didn’t have enough hours in the day (especially with my next project having just arrived). She was saddled, bitted and lent over at home before having a lovely four week holiday at South Coast Horses.
The team over there did a cracking job. Dippy was out hacking alone and in company, and was comfortable in walk, trot and canter under saddle. Once back home she had a week or so off work to settle back in before I took her for a little hack with her friends.
Now, at three and a half she is a lot more confident! I have turned her away, just doing the odd ground work session and hack, just letting her develop a bit more and enjoy being a young horse. Our plans for 2024, when she turns four, is to bring her into more consistent work and really start building her confidence. By the end of 2024, I would love to have her fit enough and confident enough to do some of the long hack routes alone and to develop her schooling.
Bam Bam (Outlaw UK) –
Last, but certainly not least, miss Bam Bam. Now, I didn’t want more than two horses, especially as one was a youngster, but somehow Bam Bam (aka Bam a Lam) came into my life.
She was 14 when we met. Her previous owner had owned her from a youngster, about 4 or 5 years old. Unfortunately, her owner passed away, her lovely husband stepped up and gave Bam the best field ornament life ever. She was loved dearly and cared for excellently.
However, after a few years, her owner’s parkinson’s worsened and he was left in a tricky position. Thankfully, my nephew was a family friend and popped us both in contact. Originally, I just wanted to have a look and maybe help find her a suitable home, but before I knew it I was taking Bam Bam home and she was fully signed over to me (2023).
Bam Bam was also a fair bit of a project, she is a fantastically bred horse out of Ennio Van Overis and Joyce De La Horse SF, but she came from an notorious local breeder that does not have the best reputation, on top of that she has had many years off.
Unfortunately, in April 2024, I had to make the difficult decision to put my beautiful girl to sleep. Once Bam was brought into work we noticed some concerning signs of pain. We stopped her ridden work whilst we investigated, however, she continued to decline and we had to put her to rest.
Although heart breaking, I was so glad to have support around us. Her previous rider came to be with her too on the day.
RIP Outlaw UK
2009 – 2024
Gone but not forgotten
I love you
Pushing On Daisy 