Narrawin Stud

27/07/2025

I'm sure she uses eye-liner :-)
Paso Fino mare Chica (AuSome Chica de Plata by Don Cristobal Mako (Imp USA) and out of La Tentacion Mako (Imp USA)). She has an interesting pedigree with Alicante, El Aguila de San Felipe and other great horses.

21/07/2025

Brief little lunchtime ride with Keldan, before the wind gets worse. A nice little outing and a break for him and me from the arena work we have been focused on recently. We are working on trot laterals, walk pirouette to canter transitions and piaffe. While out riding, I was reminded again of how much those things help horses and lead to better balance and better toelt.

12/07/2025

A little ride on Rev while it wasn't raining, and a groundwork session with Pixie. It was her first time wearing a saddle and she was all cool about it. I won't be rushing things with her as she isn't quite 4 yet, but a little play around here and there will help us get to know each other better before we get to the riding stuff.

12/07/2025

Romeo's two pretty daughters: Adelina NS (partbred Morgan filly from Paso Fino mare Esmeralda NS) and Loretta NS (partbred Morgan filly from partbred Morgan mare Mt Tawonga Cricket).

23/06/2025

Yesterday was winter solstice, and while the coldest part of winter is still ahead, increasing day length is a good morale boost. We have had a few sunny days but thankfully we are due to get more rain this week.

Here are Brana and Eyrun sharing some lucerne. Brana's filly Miska was weaned a couple of days ago and I moved some horses. The mares all had a good run around but all is settled now.

09/06/2025

The drought in VIC and SA is making things tough. This last weekend we finally had some substantial rain. Paddocks awash, water in the dam and the prospect that the weather patterns may have changed and we'll get more rain and a decent spring break.

Today the rain stopped, the sun came out for a bit, and I took Romeo and Elmo out for some puddle splashing. It was enjoyed by all participants.

19/04/2025

And here is another one from Becks Nairn, showing damage to the sacroiliac area.

19/04/2025

Excellent video explaining some of the damage that can be caused by riding and working immature horses, particularly in the sacroiliac region.

Dissections like this show the skeletal and soft tissue damage that causes pain and prevents normal functioning, and it shows how early hard work leads to this damage.

A great follow up on the skeletal maturity article by Dr. Deb Bennett that I just posted.

19/04/2025

I will not start riding horses under 4 years of age, not mine and not client horses, and prefer to do it when they are 5 or 6. Of course there is a lot of other things that can be worked on much earlier, which all lead into being ridden when ready.

It saddens me to see how many people still think it is OK, or even good, to ride horses as two year olds (or even earlier!). Some out of ignorance, others despite better knowledge. I'm also dismayed that so many competitions don't set minimum age limits, or worse, encourage and promote juvenile horses to be worked hard, be it in racing or various futurities.

So here is a link to Dr.Deb Bennett's full 2008 article titled "Timing and Rate of Skeletal Maturation in Horses", which should be essential reading for every rider, trainer, breeder and judge.

https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/view/4920721/timing-and-rate-of-skeletal-maturation-in-horses-equine-studies-

*Edit: if that link doesn't work, you may need to copy and paste it into a browser. FB works in mysterious ways.

Send a message to learn more

24/03/2025

I highly recommend Anke Hawke, who just held another clinic at Narrawin Stud last weekend. Anke is a fully accredited teacher who is comfortable and experienced with Gaited Horses. She can help horses and riders with various levels of experience and education, both with groundwork and riding.

In this and prior clinics at Narrawin Stud, she has worked with various breeds of Gaited horses including Icelandic, Paso Fino, Paso Creole, Gaited Morgan and Gaited Standardbred.

Anke is based in NSW. If you are interested in participating in a clinic in Victoria, we can add you to our mailing list for future clinics.

12/03/2025

An evening thunderstorm brought the first decent drop of rain in a while. It was nice to see puddles again. I took Romeo our for a ride and some splashing in puddles. The bush smells were amazing, from earthy to eucalyptus oil. And the setting sun looked lovely through the trees and lit up the distant storm clouds in the evening sky.

19/02/2025

A little ride out last night with Romeo. Elmo came along and I had a good chuckle about the fact that those two are equally well gaited.

I think that stallions benefit so much from some work and being treated like any other riding horse. He needs to cope with the fact that one day he comes into the barn to chat up a mare and maybe get to know her really well, and then next time, it's a ride or a foot trim or groundwork. And that other horses around are normal and often none of his business.

He was a good sport on the ride and we did long sections of a very comfortable toelt, but also some great canter stretches, sometimes adding a bit of speed as we competed with Elmo for lead position. A lot of the canter was on a loose or long rein, now that he has better balance and more experience. Canter isn't always easy for gaited horses. I also like an uphill canter, not some low, forehand heavy stuff.It just takes time for a horse to develop the muscles and the coordination, but it is worth the time to allow them to develop and figure it all out. He was started around 5 years of age but had chunks of time off. So his brain and body had plenty of time to mature and I took my time with his education. So now we are enjoying the benefits of that approach.

I'm also in favour of exploring and encouraging all gaits, the idea to only ride a gaited horse in the saddle gaits is (to my mind) anathema to good education and building up a well balanced happy riding horse. So arena work includes trot and canter and rides out are predominantly toelt and canter. And of course plenty of walking.

Anyway, some pictures of Romeo's ears, Elmo, and the next in line patiently waiting for Romeo to finish his after-ride snack.