First Time Out

This week I took my 'new' car and float out for the first time with actual ponies on board.

Dusty and Ava went to a local equine clinic. Ava had a scan to confirm her pregnancy, and Dusty got a microchip so that I can apply for her UK Partbred New Forest Pony registration.

I was nervous. This was not only my first time towing live cargo with my new rig, but also the first time I have taken any horse anywhere but home in a very long time.

I knew Dusty would leap straight onto the float, like she did when we picked her up in January. That day she walked straight on despite not having seen a float in over ten years. Ava also has a good record with float loading. I did a practice run the night before just to make sure.

I led both mares out, tied Dusty to the side of the float, loaded Ava then loaded Dusty. No problems. Ava was a bit unsure unloading, but with Dusty unloaded first there was room to move the divider over and let her turn around before disembarking.

The morning of our appointment both ponies loaded again with no issues. Unloading at our destination was a little trickier, as the slope of the car park meant that the divider would not stay on the left hand side of the float, but with some insistence Ava managed to back slowly down the ramp.

Those girls walked straight into the strange building, and stood while I filled in the client information form. The only time either of them gave me a 'hang on a minute' was when I asked Ava to walk onto the wet concrete to access the crush.

The vet asked whether Ava had been scanned before, and I told her she was a maiden mare who had run with the stallion - no veterinary interventions. On establishing that she was well-handled and 'basically sensible', the vet performed the scan with little more than a wide-eyed expression from Ava, who was confirmed in foal. Knowing this will allow me to manage her through the spring flush while making sure she gets adequate nutrition. The vet nurse handled Dusty, who stood like a rock while she was inspected, had her shoulders clipped to see her brands through her shaggy coat, and then had the microchip inserted following an injection of local anaesthetic.

Inside half an hour we were reloaded and headed for home.

It was so nice to feel like I knew what I was doing. To have ponies who were well able to cope with the strange location and strange people doing strange things to them. While Dusty had a pony club career over a decade ago, she is a pony who can wriggle a lot when she is nervous. Ava arrived here four years ago after nine days of handling with a lot of distrust for humans. She is by nature very tuned into her surroundings, but was able to focus on me and work through the new experiences as they came up.

My fear is always that I'll find myself with an anxious pony in my hands and that I will quickly run out of puff trying to manage them and keep them under control. To have both ponies stand quietly in a new environment and keep everything within my capabilities was a real confidence booster and made me feel like my training is actually effective.

The positive pregnancy scan was a bonus.