New arrivals, prehistoric matchy-matchy, and different issues the horse world is speaking about

Congratulations!

The H&H staff want to congratulate two occasion riders who’ve just lately welcomed their first kids. Coral Hardman (née Eager) and her husband Oliver’s son, Rupert Oscar Hardman, was born on 15 February, whereas Lissa Inexperienced and Giorgio Audino’s new arrival, Emilia Rose Audino, was born on 20 March. Coral mentioned that they “couldn’t be happier”, including “our hearts are very full as we head into this thrilling new chapter of our lives”, whereas Lissa described motherhood as “our most enjoyable and necessary journey but… my coronary heart/mind/eyes are full to the brim.”

Discover out what Coral’s plans are for this season

April fools – or are they?

This yr, our April idiot story was concerning the earliest instance of “matchy-matchy” horse and rider gear, relationship from about 35,000 BC. Expedition chief Dr Rob Graves, of the Superior Prehistoric Analysis Institute Laboratory (APRIL – see what we did there?), described discovering the horse and rider, full with tack together with a pad below the saddle produced from sabre-tooth tiger’s pores and skin, as a “startling discovery” and “a serious anthropomorphological discover”.

Whereas most readers accurately recognized this as a spoof story to mark the day, some assumed that the story printed later the identical day concerning the BSPS introducing a passion horse championship was additionally an April idiot, when it was not.

Take a look at our April idiot story and the BSPS’s passion horse championships

A tragic farewell

Our ideas are with proprietor John Fairley, coach John Quinn and all of Highfield Princess’s connections after the home-bred mare died, aged seven, having sustained an inoperable fracture whereas in her secure. Regardless of the perfect efforts of the Rainbow Equine Hospital vets and their staff, she couldn’t be saved.

Highfield Princess, pictured profitable the Flying 5 Stakes on the Curragh in 2022.

Mr Fairley mentioned: “Highfield Princess was the delight of Yorkshire, a celebrity on the racecourse and adored by so many, for her irrepressible spirit at dwelling and on the racecourse. We’re pondering of everybody who cherished and admired her, within the UK and all all over the world. She can be for ever held in our hearts.”

Learn full tribute to this particular horse

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H&H web site editor

Carol is an skilled journalist and editor, who can also be a passionate beginner rider and devoted horse proprietor, having ridden since childhood. She has a specific curiosity within the emotional well-being and moral coaching of horses, alongside veterinary issues, having garnered intensive first-hand expertise of quite a few equine well being circumstances by means of greater than 30 years of horse possession.