InFocus

Travelling the world with a well-regarded polo player is amazing, but can at times be a lot less glamorous than it sounds. Dating this man is great, but also has its downfalls, such as putting your own career on hold and often dealing with fans clambering for a photo or autograph! As a polo player’s girlfriend, you have to be all in, or all out.

Polo is played all over the world. It involves many car, truck and plane journeys for both players and their horses. I never knew much about it and just thought it was a pretentious sport the princes’ played. NZ was where I first encountered polo, when I needed a job and became a polo groom with a friend.  In a way I....

Since when did most of our top event riders pack up and move their stables overseas? What do countries like England have that New Zealand is lacking? Is it the competition or the atmosphere that lures people in? The obsession with riding amongst the professionals? The 2004 Olympic team consisted of only two kiwi based riders, Matthew Grayling and Heelan Tompkins. Both Revo and Glengarrick were flown to Athens on Sunday 4th July, with competition commencing on the 14th August. Yes, both riders had spent time in England prior to 2004, gaining international experience to compete against some of the world’s best. However, the point of difference for Matthew and....

A horse we bred, who incidentally carries genes extremely important to us, suffered repeated bouts of colic for more than a year.  Lou had lost half his body weight and was on the brink of a very invasive surgery or the alternative…  actually, I can’t bear to mention the alternative as it was not a pleasant prospect for any of us. Certainly not for Lou, and at the very least would have involved tears and earth works. 

More than a year ago I was a slightly late, no more than 30 minutes, with Lou’s breakfast. When I finally appeared, feed bucket in hand, he began burning around the paddock with excitement. It was winter. It was muddy. He slipped....

When asked about what happened to pony club, I had to pause and think. What really did happen to this once prestigious group of horse enthusiasts? Pony club started out as a place for people to learn about horses, and fundamentally it gave the opportunity for kids to have a horse and ride. It was a place for building knowledge around the dynamics of owning a horse and caring for it. Horse masters were instructors and parents were at the forefront of volunteering. It was generations of knowledge being poured into the success of the group. This somewhat changed years later. Nowadays, one could say Pony Club has lost its ‘prestigious’ title it once....

Horses. There are so many stereotypes about these unpredictable animals, one being they are therapeutic for humans. Now I’m not saying this isn’t true. There have been so many horses in my life that have done wonders in the way of strengthening my personality, teaching me determination and the ability to care for another needy living thing, other than myself. Essential to this is to have the right horse. The horses that have been therapeutic for me (if you can call it that) have been horses that I trust and know aren’t out to hurt me. I have absolute faith that my parents would never have put me on a horse that was going to intentionally hurt me. But that is....

I have been very lucky with my small breeding programme, having bred six beautiful healthy foals with very few problems.

However, that all changed when our latest foal (by Valentino out of a Grosvenor mare) was born in a red bag delivery. Being deprived of oxygen, he was resuscitated by the vet who was thankfully present at the delivery. The colt was very weak, needing to be given colostrum, plasma and was bottle fed. Two days later our little guy was declining so he was moved into intensive care at Veterinary Associates in Karaka.   

Jenny, the vet in charge of our foal's care, gave us a moderate chance of him pulling through if we....

Olivia Dalton recently returned to New Zealand from what was to be a very exciting time away in Australia, particularly for a thirteen year old show jump rider, who in her mother’s words ‘is not overly established as yet’. 

The New Zealand FEI Children’s Gold Tour Class trial was held last January, when Olivia was simply not ready to be jumping the heights of 1.20.  But she had another shot at trialing when her highly regarded show jump coach, Vaughn Jefferis (NZ) suggested she go to Camden, and trial there for a chance to make the finals in Mexico.  Bling Du Rouet, a 16hh Warmblood Sportaloosa Stallion, previously owned and ridden by....