Our Horses
2017 - L-R : Murf, Carmen, Cookie, Maisie (rehabbing with us), and MacAttack in the far distance in his sweet itch rug
Kelso
I couldn't start this page without Kelso at the top of it, as without Kelso there would be no EquiNatural. Aka Big-K, Kelso was the reason EquiNatural was born - see Our Story.
'Allergy' was his middle-name - spring pollens (chronic headshaker), sweet itch, summer grass pollens, and anything dusty - he had to have a dust-free bed and his hay steamed. If I knew then what I know now, he was a classic KPU candidate.
Kelso was entirely responsible for our very first herbal blend, BreathePlus, our SwItchTonic blend, and our original barefoot hoof-support blend, BareEssential, which then morphed into our EquiVita/VitaComplete forage-balanced mineral solutions range, as well as being chief test-pilot for many of our other blends.
Thanks to Kelso we've been able to help so many horses over the years, and hopefully will continue to do so for many more years to come.
RIP Kelso - 1990-2013
Bally-Murphy (Murf)
Connemara Murphy is my now-retired riding horse, who came into my life aged 7 back in the summer of 2001. I can't believe we've been together more than 20-years - he's now nearly 30 and living the retired Life of Riley which he thoroughly deserves.
I met Murf at the West Sussex Horse Rescue, following the wonderful care he received from the sanctuary after his very grim journey from Ireland. He's my absolute heart-horse, having given me years of trail-riding and XC fun, always with a sharp edge to keep things interesting.
He's also my most metabolically challenged. Diagnosed IR aged 7, with a very sensitive gut, he's also been my most challenging for barefoot hoof soundness.
Murf is wholly responsible for the creation of our MetaTonic, SIBO-CARE and OptimaCARE blends.
Cookie
We found little gypsy cob Cookie in a trekking centre back in 2006, aged 6, when my husband's daughter, Tabatha, was ready for her third pony. She wasn't in a good way - she was covered in lice with a matted mane and tail, and front shoes literally hanging off.
However, it was love at first sight and once we got her home and tidied up, we soon realised that she was the kindest, sweetest girl, and OhBoy could she jump. It was a match made in heaven - Tabs and Cookie whizzed round the junior XC circuits, with Cookie clearing every jump with a foot to spare.
A typical EMS pony, grass management was essential for her, and she'd also get itchy eyes during heavy summer pollens, so she initiated our EyeTonic blend. In 2014 she was diagnosed with Cushing's; as soon as we saw the signs we got her straight onto our CushTonic blend, and within a month she was back to her former cheery self and hasn't looked back since.
October'22 - Sadly Cookie's Cushing's took a final hold over her, and we had to make the desperately tough decision to let her go. There's now an enormous hole in our world without her in it, but we take small comfort knowing that she's not suffering anymore, and we know we'll relish the wonderful memories of her forever 💖.
RIP Cookie - 2000-2022
Carmen
Carmen started her life as a prospective racer, beautifully bred to fly and win. However, she was born with a twisted LF pastern and hoof, and apparently she was discarded to life as a brood mare.
She was not well-looked after, passed from home to home - she still bears deep whip scars from where idiots tried to ride her hard (with a twisted hoof?!). By pure chance she crossed my path aged 7 in 2014, and I took her on in a blink.
Carmen is a wise, thoughtful and sensitive mare, very ladylike, but also authorative, and when she has an opinion she'll let you know with plenty of sass!
Carms has one heck of a story - see her Case Study. She's also totally responsible for our BioCARE and JointReflexa, because even though she's officially 2/10 lame, she doesn't agree and is our most energetic field-hooner, often resulting in her becoming 3-legged for a while 🙄.
We've always kept Carms unridden to avoid any excess strain on her musculoskeletal frame.
