For the love of a mare

I was warned before I bought my mare, that it would be a mistake something I would regret, “Remember tell a gelding ask a mare” but I laughed it off and ignored it all. A mare is exactly what is says on the tin. They are argumentative women, more hormonal, bossier and often believe that they are a highly independent creature that certainly does not need you! On certain days I believe that mine is the worst, the devil in reincarnate (and believe me many other names that I couldn’t possibly say) but if I had to do it all over again… I would.

Nina stood as bold as brass in her stable when I went to see her. It was her eyes that caught me first. They were the softest I’d ever seen, big doe eyes that were warm. She stood at just over 15.2 hands, bay with no white markings and the fluffiest coat known to man, and as the cliché goes at that moment I had fallen in love. I can, however never forget my dad’s face as soon as we were told she was a mare. And not just a mare but a baby. Nina was only 5 when we bought her despite her (Irish) passport telling us she was six. My dad, like a lot of other people had experienced mares before and warned me about them their attitude and temperament, but that didn’t put me off I had fought for the past two years a rearing, bucking, bronking 14.2 Connemara gelding, I felt I could handle anything.

We put Nina through her paces in her owners indoor arena, where we jumped everything and I gained back the confidence in that half an hour that I had lost in two years. The animal beneath me was willing to work with me and for me. Nina arrived home with us on the 28th of December 2012 and that was where the fun began. What I was not prepared for was the length my new horse would go to test me. She settled in well and had all the girls on the yard falling for her but that didn’t last long. Her first run in came when she managed to blunt my instructors clippers. That fluffy coat was so thick that we had to take if off in two layers but before that we soon found out that this “easy to clip” horse was in fact a nightmare. Mistake number one: there is really only one top dog between you and her and if you don’t prove that it’s you from the outset you will be found standing in the middle of a stable with a semi sedated horse still trying to bite you, head collar around her neck.

Once the coat was removed Nina and I set about working on our flat work. Her jumping was perfect, but her flat work, terrible- I rode an alpaca for the first month. One day, however, we took a break and set up a small course of jumps. Jumping was the time we really worked best together. Nina’s willingness to work was incredible and nothing like I had seen before. Mistake number two came when I thought I could control her at something she felt she knew best. Jumping. We came into an upright jump of planks and I felt I could hold for the stride. This was not the case for Nina. I wasn’t accurate enough and she leaped for it leaving her front to legs to hook around the top plank, bringing the two of us to the ground. Lesson two learned.

My favourite lesson of all time came in the form of something she doesn’t like she is going to tell you in the biggest overreaction possible. Tacking her up outside her stable and apparently this was all too much, quicker than I could get anywhere near her, she pulls back snaps the blank of wood she’s tied too and heads for the gate. On realisation that the gate was closed and too high to jump Nina took off at a rate of knots to the open field behind the yard, plank of wood in toe. After five minutes of running I finally caught her dripping in sweat, plank of wood beside her and bridle in bits hanging around her ears. What I should really mention is that, that wasn’t my bridle, but a friends. Another lesson learned- tack up in the stable.

There have been many lesson learnt over the past two years and believe me I am still learning. Nina should never have been a horse. When she was created she fell into the wrong pile, she should have been a human. My latest lesson happened when I moved to universi

ty and I was fortunate enough for Nina to come with me and she really is my best friend. Lesson 107453 (I loose count)… Never underestimate a horse never mind a mare. Nina has settled into uni life. She has been moved for home to uni, to my friends for the summer back to university and someday she’ll move again but she has settled like a dream and complained about very little. Christmas last year she developed cysts on her ovaries where her follicles hadn’t burst for roughly 5 months to release an egg. My poor girl did little complaining. She took her tantrums clearly expressing pain when I wasn’t riding, I’m sure she had her own reason behind this but I like to think that she was looking after me.

There is absolutely nothing Nina can’t achieve. All through the summer she jumped out her field constantly jumping fences just under six foot without toughing them or breaking them something I didn’t think was possible but something I and most definitely Kate could have killed her for. She’s been with me through thick and thin and tries her best every day and if I had to do it all over again… I would.