This blog is sponsored by the PRO FEET range of hoof care products from NAF
Having never worked outside before, I’m now much more sensitive to the seasons. The mornings are cooler and this week, I found myself using a head torch on our last shoeing job.
It’s a slightly foreboding feeling knowing that winter is on its way. I’ve noticed that there are plenty of berries in the hedgerows and that the swallows are already migrating. All signs point to an early winter and there’s quite a bit of speculation that it will be a hard one too.
Oh well, it will be what it will be, but for me, it will definitely be a shock to the system as I learn to put up with cold wet feet (my own as well as the horse’s), holding cold metal tools and competing for space at the furnace to keep the circulation going!
New things happen to me all the time — not all of them pleasant! Twice this week I was directly hit by fresh droppings. My training farrier Kris tells me that you can tell when there’s “movement” afoot, because the hind leg you’re working on is shifted outwards very slightly. Then you know it’s the real deal and not just hot air!
Good new things happen too though. This week I enjoyed a rather nice piece of homemade chocolate cake, provided by my new favourite customer. Nothing unusual there, except it was served on a china plate, with a matching jug of cream. As I delicately ate my cake with a fork, I could almost imagine being at a garden party. The only thing spoiling the illusion was the smell of manure emanating from my right boot!
Until next week,
Roland
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Sponsor’s message
The market-leading PRO FEET range of hoof care products offers formulas designed to nourish and protect your horse’s feet.
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Developed by veterinary scientists, with the help of farriers, PRO FEET offers the most concentrated, fast acting, nutritional support for quality horn growth and strong healthy hooves. Available in a powder and a liquid, giving you the choice of how to feed this highly specified formula to your horse. PRO FEET Liquid is available from £26.95, while PRO FEET Powder costs from £27.50.
The PRO FEET range is available from NAF stockists nationwide. For more details call the NAF Freephone Advice line: 0800 373106 or email info@naf-uk.com
