Hannah and Kai have done a few ODE’s over February & March, Pony Club as well as Secondary Schools competitions – our College is Form 1 to 7 so Hannah gets to go even though she’s much younger than most of the others. Her and Kai did well at the SS ODE coming 4th in pre-training out of about 60 competitors with clear SJ and XC, and at the SS Showjumping day they came 5th in TYOL again out of about 60 kids – an awesome achievement. She almost won the Tauranga Pony Club Championship ODE in pre-training by winning the dressage way ahead of the others, clear SJ, but she had a stop at the water and a run out at a corner jump on XC – they still came 4th.
At the Tauranga Pony Club Championship Gymkhana, Hannah won Champion Junior Rider, and Kai won the trophy for Cleverest Hunter. They were also going well in the SJ when in the jump off Kai stood on her front heel with a back foot and went down quite badly, Hannah managed to stay on so they continued and finished clear and only 4 seconds behind the winner, however, when Kai left the ring she was quite lame having strained her fetlock – we were stunned at how courageous she was to keep jumping even though she must have been hurting quite bad, many people commented on her honesty and courage.
She then had a few weeks off but recovered really quickly and was sound again within a couple of days. The last event at our closing gymkhana on Sunday was the 3 Bar Challenge, where the height of the nominated jump keeps going up until the horse knocks a rail or stops. Hannah and Kai came 3rd jumping just under 1.25m, the winner and second placegetters were both hacks and only jumped 2 holes higher than Kai, around 1.35 and 1.30. Kai’s jumps were the technically the best clearing each attempt with barely a rattle, whereas the others gave the jump quite hard knocks at times. Kai
refused her attempt at 1.30 but we forgave her as she had had a long day and was really tired. Her efforts were the talk of everyone there as it was such a big jump for such a seemingly small pony.
Kai will have a bit of a break for a month or so now – she has more
than earned it. Hannah’s goals for next year are to compete for a space in the Tauranga team for the North Island SJ Champs that are held in Cambridge, and to move up a grade in ODE’s to do Training level. Unfortunately Hannah is getting quite tall and will probably only get one more season on Kai, but then my other daughter Abby will be able to go on to her – she did a Beginners ODE on her when her own pony went lame and came 3rd so she’s already quite keen. Kai is certainly doing the Kaimanawas proud and we would certainly look at others if they’ve had the correct start.
Kaimai Keeper (previously known as Tamworth Tales) & Hannah Eagle - 3rd from left.
Selenium and Kaimanawa Horses
October 2003
Having handled many Kaimanawa wild horses direct from several musters, I have observed that by feeding them 1tsp (5mls) Selovet (selenium) once every 3 weeks, appears to have a calming effect on their nervous systems (3mls for youngsters).
1Tbsp of dolomite is also fed on a regular basis (food quality dolomite, not garden variety). 1/2 tsp sulphur (flowers of sulphur) is fed twice weekly as is 1/2 tsp of copper sulphate. the dolomite, sulphur and copper sulphate need to be fed in conjunction with the selenium for assimilation.
Care needs to be taken as selenium is dangerous if used in excess - a deficiency is also dangerous to the horses health, so if in doubt, consult your vet and ask for a blood sample to be taken.
If anyone has noticed similar effects or has other interesting observations, we would love to hear about them. Please contact Robyn Sisley Ph: 07 843 5360.
By Shirley Calder EMRT Practitioner and Equine Dentist.
EMRTTM (Equine Muscle Release Therapy) is a very gentle non-invasive treatment based on the Australian Bowen Technique for humans. It consists of a series of rolling moves on the edges of muscles at key points of the body to release muscle tension and bring the horse into balance. Horses become very relaxed during a treatment and trust between the horse and therapist builds quickly.
