Tag: horse

Working towards the BHS stage 5 Care and Welfare Section

So today 10th December 2024 I officially started working towards my stage 5 Care and Welfare Section. I completed my stage 4 care a long time ago. I have been out of the horse industry for the last 10 years and still do not work within it.

I liked this style of certificate. Or maybe it was just the feeling of getting it!

I need to recap the syllabus contents of the Stage 4 Senior Care section first. I have signed up to 2 different online courses that are covering topics from the stage 4 syllabus. I also have 10 other webinars focusing towards Stage 4 to go through in my own time.

The first lecture today was on competition tack. There is lots more scientific research on how it affects the comfort of the horse. Welfare is paramount, and there are also new designs and products. I was pleased that the majority of the lecture was purely revision and very little new information for me.

But looking towards to the stage 5 there is plenty of research to be done. Things I need to work on. Becoming more familiar with brands of saddle and bridles and associated cost. Also need to look up on the rule books to see what is legal and illegal in competitions. Looking at the anatomy of the head for the purpose of bridle fitting. plus more work on saddle fitting. I need to know the majority of different brands of saddles for example. Plus their new and second-hand value. Along with which type of horse they would likely fit and how to fit them.

That means I get to have a good look around tack shops. The added advantage is that I have no horse, so I won’t be tempted into buying anything. I can always do a wish list of the perfect tack I would like I suppose.

So why didn’t I do the stage 5 years ago?

When I completed my Stage 4 care, I was busy running a riding school and livery yard. Most of my time was taken up with teaching and managing the yard. The amount of work that I needed to do to achieve the then Stable managers exam was just too much. I still always hoped that I would find time to dedicate to studying it. As life progressed, circumstances changed. The yard was sold. I spent the next 5 years at university forging a different career.

My aim is to work towards the exam. I hope to achieve my goal by the time I’m 50 in 2027. They only hold 2 or 3 exams at this level a year. The earlier exam is less than 18 months away. The later one is just under 2 years. If it takes a little longer, that’s fine. If I fail well hopefully I’ve enjoyed the process. If I go about things correctly with right support then fingers crossed I won’t. Of course, I can keep trying. There’s no actual age limit on it or limits on amount of times I can sit it. Although at around £500 a time will be very costly.

So what happened to Remi?

Those that know me well understand that I’ve faced more than my share of unfortunate events. I’ve also experienced the loss of loved ones in recent years. 2024 had even more to give in this department. Not only losing a childhood friend and another friend both long before a normal life expectancy. I started the year losing my horse very suddenly from an illness. I was off work because it was the anniversary of my son’s death at that time. When those mysterious powers decided to give a little more crap to me.

So I arrived at the yard early morning as usual to find Remi had only passed one bowel motion. He looked reasonable in himself and this had not been the first time he had done this. Remi had an out of hours vet call maybe 18 months previously. There was also a close call on whether to call the vet at Somerford camp the previous year. Luckily, he was just kidding that time.

I have had a lot of experience with colicky horses over the years running a yard. I got him out and started to gently mobilize him in the school. Came back a little later and he still didn’t seem right. As soon as vets opened I called them and they were not on their way. He then decided a small poo which gave me me hope. Also I’m now thinking typical vet bill for nothing now.

Vet examined him and he had temperature of over 40 degrees. A small amount of stool was felt on examination. Medication was administered. There are no major concerns at this point. I chose to keep him home that day regularly moving him around school and monitoring him. The vet returned that night and we thought he was going in the right direction. He seemed to have picked up.

The next day he had taken a turn for the worse. I took him straight to the veterinary hospital.

At the veterinary hospital
In ICU having antibiotics and fluids

He was investigated over the next few days, blood tests, multiple examinations, belly taps, scans. No clear diagnosis. He was placed in ICU and given multiple IV antibiotics and fluids. I visited, and he became worse. At one point, he looked like a horse with tetanus or a cow with staggers. He couldn’t get up properly. His calcium was out and this was corrected but still no improvement.

I decided that enough was enough. We will give a final try at changing the antibiotic overnight. If his condition worsens or shows no improvement, he was to be put to sleep.

The next morning that would be the case. The vets asked if an autopsy could be performed as they were baffled at what the issue was. This showed that he whole 18 metres of small intestine had died. They agreed that no surgery would have saved him. They only see this about once every 10 years.

My now rising 10 year old was no longer here. I was now left with some wonderful vets bills to pay and some decisions to make…