Totally Horse

Here's a few of your special faces for y'all

So relateable! 🤩

Catch-up time with a few of our TH girls for the weekend 🙂 Although the weather was bitterly cold, windy and rainy for most of it, they still got to spend time with their favourites, check out the Aria gang's new grazing and even try out the road ride which is so pretty ... Isla also found her riding mojo again with her big horse sisters and her giant smile said it all. Thanks so much also to Anna Low giving us some time today meeting her and the beautiful Grail and Zen .. just stunning! Jaya is looking to her future and this was a step towards the pathway to her dreams .. excited to see where it leads!

A new destination for Aria, Farran and Bonnie today a minute away from home .. it's a beautiful block with a lot of grass! Feeling 🌟

Beach day with Lily and Skye ❤️ Muriwai holds so many wonderful historic Totally Horse memories from our Auckland years, so it really felt like home being back on the beach with ponies and horse girls.
We could tell Lily was also feeling the familiar vibes as she is a Helensville born and bred girl and used to trek out to Muriwai forest and beach. In fact I first met Lily at the Muriwai horse park many years ago, and fell in love with her then, so was very excited when Shani offered her to TH Kaiwaka. She's come full circle now as we have and I think the beach and forest trips will become one of her favourite things again too.
Thanks Sarah and Kevin for the float use, making this special day possible ... Graeme has definitely got horse transport on his radar again now!

We've missed our TH Saturdays and girls so much since moving, so the only thing to do was hold Lawn Camp! It's so important to be able to realign your compass when those you care about move and be able to visualise new environments, so the girls got to spend some good time with all of their favourite horses and reset us all firmly in their hearts. We crammed so much fun into a weekend ... from horsing around, swims, an epic sing and dance off, late night fire pit, catch-up conversations and an amazing trip out to Muriwai Beach with the house ponies which made me really feel like I'm home again. Special thanks to all those that helped make it happen, especially Toni arranging transport (I love a big Totally Horse van) and Bex and James for accommodating a houseful of girls in and out all weekend. Too good not to do again .. we're already planning the next one!! And thank you girls for filling up Isla's happy cup too .. I asked her what her favourite part of the weekend was and she said seeing you all again

What a move!! Definitely feels like the biggest we've done, but here we are again all in one piece in a new place to call home. The herds are settling into their new life ... we're a bit separated with Lily and Skye being our house ponies as they are 'extra' with their metabolic needs and the others are at Muriwai split into three herd groups. I've taken some snaps of each of them, especially for our TH girls who are missing these faces very much .. as we are theirs!

Our hearts are full with loss and sorrow today. Still feeling fragile with all of our goodbyes leaving Oneriri and saying goodbye to Treasure, we now face a devastating loss with Gideon, such a beloved member of our equine family, to an unforgiving paddock injury. There is now a great empty space left behind with his passing deep in our hearts, in the hearts of our Totally Horse girls who have loved him so deeply and also our dear friend Kim, who loved him before us. We know he’ll be running with our spirit herd tonight with eyes that can see again …
Where there is great grief, there was great love and Gideon, our collective grief shows how very, very loved you are

“It is a fearful thing to love what death can touch … we who choose to surround ourselves with lives even more temporary than our own, live within a fragile circle, easily and often breached. Unable to accept its awful gaps, we would still live no other way”
It is with great sadness that we have said goodbye to a most special member of the Totally Horse team …Treasure you are unforgettable! You were our very first TH pony and we have been doing life together now for 19 years. Your ornery pony ways are legendary, but still unconditionally loved so very much by so many. You’ve always lived life on your own terms, so in your 30th year you let us know it was time to let you go on your next adventure without us. We love you Treas .. our little Anam Cara, soul friend .. our one eyed wild Welshie

The day had to come we know when we held our very last Horsing Around session Oneriri styles. I think the skies felt our sadness as the sunshine suddenly turned into a torrential downpour through our ride out, then back to sun again … an accurate reflection of the mood. A very special day throughout to tell all the good TH stories and memories, talk about our favourite horses past and present and celebrate the girls achievements, hopes and horsey dreams, of which there are many. Super special to have Kellie and Tegan join us too – Tegan was one of our original TH Auckland girls who now lives up here .. and still lives for horses!
This is not the end of our story ... I’ll keep posting herd updates and pics through the move and our new adventures along the way. I think one of the most life changing gifts the horses have brought to all our TH girls through the years is friendship .. with each other and us. It’s such a beautiful and unexpected bond that weaves through the tapestry of all our lives and we’ve always felt incredibly honoured to be a chapter in your stories as well

“Sometimes small memories cover a large part of our hearts” ❤
It was one of those Alex super surprise days which the girls always love and although a crazy windy one, was heaps of fun still. So impressed with all of our horses taking the extreme wind in their stride, they’re such a cool herd! … And we even managed a windy ride to the hidden lake which is somewhere the girls have been asking to ride to for ages .. so many cherished moments and memories right now.

Gonna miss these days …..

Summer day favourites from last week …

“It ain’t the clothes that make the cowgirl .. it’s the attitude and heart”
Things turned a little western when Mollie and Orna channelled their inner cowgirl teaching Esky how to be a cool roping pony

We’re on the countdown to leaving now so mining these moments as much as we can …we had the best day with all the kiwi summer feels, it was so hot! We discovered we have a couple of water loving swimming superstar ponies who really upped their game for their riders and spectators alike - they put on quite the entertaining show!
Super special also having Abbie along for the day with the coolest little swimming mini Coal for a play date with his friend Skye, she loved seeing him again and getting out for an adventure with everyone too .. another day to remember for sure

Some of my Horsing Around favourites from the last session of 2023 and the first session in 2024

“You are a piece of the puzzle in someone else’s life. You may never know where you fit, but others will fill the holes in their lives with pieces of you.”

A fantastic end of year Christmas fun day with our Totally Horse girls and their favourite equine friends. Along with Christmasy themed games, including of course our TH traditions of Pooper Scooper races and Apple Bobbing, we had a surprise visit from a very special Santa for a festive barn photoshoot … so much fun! Special thanks to Jo also for bringing along her polaroid camera to give the girls instant snaps to take away

Where has this year gone? I can’t believe it’s nearly Christmas again! Some Horsing Around moments from the last two sessions of the year before our Christmas fun day on Saturday … time to get your festive on girls!

A special Horsing Around with a visit from one of our favourite people - Alex! He always puts a little extra into our day

Boston had his third ConTact CARE session this week. He started seeing Pepe with so many issues to address, from the physical bodywork in his first session, through to locked up stress and emotional trauma. This modality has been really effective for him, he’s a very different boy these days and has released so much tension through his system over the weeks. His ridden work has improved dramatically, although he can still be a little reactive at times. He’s a sensitive soul, that’s his inherent nature, but we are starting to see a more grounded Boston emerging.

And thank you Sarah for still being his biggest supporter in all ways, we know you have so much love in your heart for him … he’ll always be your special unicorn

"It all starts ... all of it ... with one heart opening to another"

We’ve had Pepe back for several more ConTact CARE sessions with our horses and once again they were all significantly different, amazing to watch and then to see positive changes for each of them. I’m posting Gideon’s one first as I think his one affects my heart the most … this was his third session, he acknowledged Pepe like an old friend and stepped into a shared space of respect and knowing. We truly were just observers watching something beautiful happening in front of us, not needing to understand the process, just knowing it was so special.
There have been significant changes in Gideon over the weeks since his first session … we’ve observed a change in his internal eye colour, better balance walking through paddocks and a confidence walking within his herd again, but mostly we feel we have his essence back, some essential part of him that we thought was lost forever to his blindness over the last couple of years. He feels present again and just ‘himself’… and that brings us so much joy! He’s still a blind horse we know, but have to say so many times I swear he was really 'seeing' Pepe

A bit of a grey day ride out this week .. my pics look like it’s winter! Where’s summer gone? What a change in a week for Boston though! Flynn is the ultimate teacher for a personality like his. He sets clear boundaries, oozing non reactive and calm chill and doesn’t buy into any crazy behaviour! The opposite of what he’s been used to with Spud. We’ve seen him decompress and relax into the beginning of a very different version of himself .. we saw some big changes through the ride out too, showing he can be a calm, independent ride and that he has a very playful nature. He really had the best time playing in the water and sand .. so exciting to see a different personality emerging in our little friend

“Change is like breath – if it isn’t part of the process, it is the process”
Following on from Lyla’s fall and injury and after much soul searching, our TH family have decided that Boston wasn’t going to be the right fit for them. Although he has progressed a long way through our sessions and we’d addressed many of his issues, his highly sensitive and reactive nature was always going to cause them concern for Lyla’s safety and confidence. So what next for both Boston and his little sidekick Spud, who himself is such a feisty character with a big personality .. both needing the perfect outcome.
Sarah ended up connecting with Spud’s original owner from several years ago and it turns out he was hiding a big secret underneath his fluffy coat! He has a pretty fancy history in the show ring and photos of many ribbons around his neck to prove it. We were all pretty gobsmacked it’s fair to say ... he’d presented as such an unruly little guy with terrible manners and all along he was an undercover show boy!! She was super happy to have him returned to her and we’re sure he’ll be looking and acting show ready in no time. We wish you the best life Spud … along with your inner mini demon side you and your antics also brought a lot of joy

One of our most beloved horses we have shared our life with is our big grey boy Gideon .. he has stolen many hearts through his Totally Horse years, there is just something so very special about him. Nearly three years ago his world started to go dark and after many vet visits, tests and medications, we were told nothing more could be done and best to euthanize. We started learning all we could about the blind horse and decided if he had the will to adapt, then we were committed to walking this journey with him. Since then he has continued to amaze us all with his ability to neural map his paddocks, live in harmony with his herd, see his other senses activate and still continue to show us his beautiful self with the will to live the best life he can.
When Pepe was here with Boston and Esky’s Contact C.A.R.E. sessions, she asked about Gideon as she’d heard we had a blind horse in our herd and could she take a look from her perspective. She could feel several Flinchlocks across his face, causing a lot of pressure in his head which she was then able to release. We’ve been aware when you looked through his eyeballs from behind that there was a reddy colour in there which was definitely gone after that session. We are also very mindful of his herd dynamics and could see at times he would be feeling anxious when aware of movements within his herd around him, but this also changed after his session to presenting in a more confident and calm way within the herd. We never separated Gideon through his blindness journey, his herd were incredibly aware and supportive as he lost his sight and being a tightly connected band we felt he was better emotionally to be with them as long as possible, although we are always reviewing that.
We gave him a couple of weeks to process his Pepe time and wow, his next session was also amazing! He definitely remembered her and what was coming and totally leaned into his session. So much release and re-balancing through his body .. we notice for him now he looks significantly more balanced and grounded walking through pasture, along with the continued chill factor amongst his herd.
Gideon’s story is so special and we are very grateful we’ve connected with Pepe, her intuitive expertise and the life changing modality of Contact C.A.R.E. We're very excited to see what comes out of his next session in a couple of weeks

Horsing Around Saturdays … doing what horse girls do best

We’ve also recently had some amazing Contact C.A.R.E sessions on our own herd with Pepe Ewen and this one with Esky ended up becoming a very personal one for me.
She had taken a rather spectacular paddock flip a while ago and although shook herself off and seemed absolutely okay, her ridden work over a period of time was starting to get a little erratic and wild. I call her my wild magic pony anyway, but we wanted to get her checked out for any ongoing pain issues she was feeling that might contribute to her behaviour with someone on her back. As Flinchlock happens with a surprise impact to your bone, I was sure she would be in this state somewhere in her body after her fall and concussion did come up for her. During her session one of the movements she kept returning to looked like an unwinding (refer to pics). Watching her do this I started to feel a deep emotional reaction in my chest area and it instantly took me to the time of my trampling.
For those of you who may not know, in March 2020 I was accidentally knocked to the ground behind Moni and Esky and they trampled over me, Esky doing most of the damage. I received numerous fractured ribs and vertebrae, a broken collar bone and on the way through Esky kicked my head giving me concussion. It was a major trauma event for me and I’ve been left with ongoing PTS around horses!! Of course my life is centered around horses so that has become really challenging over the years and I’ve have had to find ways to manage those overwhelming feelings when I’m with and around them.
I told Pepe about my accident and how Esky’s unwinding was triggering me back to the accident and through Contact C.A.R.E she connected us both with the trauma and through the process released it for us both. I can honestly say my PTS has gone from that moment. I’ve been carefully testing myself with single horses, then a group, then walking amongst the herd .. I don’t feel that ni**le of fear sitting heavy in my chest about to explode into panic, or constantly micromanaging where I’m standing or watching for the slightest movement, or reliving the video in my head of it happening and the sound of my bones breaking in my ears .. it has truly gone!
I just don’t have enough words to thank Pepe and the gift of Contact C.A.R.E .. this has given me back my heart connected life with my horses without fear .. absolutely priceless ❤
And for Esky, she is emanating a deep calm and centeredness we haven’t felt from her in a long while now so we are looking forward to seeing how she feels about a rider again.

Not what I was hoping to post for Lyla and Boston’s journey at all, but this is what happened from one breath to the next … a quiet ride out with some gentle arena work to an unexpected negative reaction from Boston and Lyla hit the ground hard, unfortunately fracturing her wrist :-( There’s many thoughts and emotions being felt around this from us all which we will sit with and process over the next few days as to how we progress.

Catching up with Lyla’s third and fourth sessions –
Boston was calm and centered again throughout his ground and ridden work and I think we’re seeing the true Boston now. We started to introduce more work at trot and giving Lyla a feeling of confidence and independent riding.
The next day we surprised Lyla with a hack down the farm road - it was time for them both to leave the safety of the closed space and lean more into relationship building. It could not have gone better, this was a totally different combination of horse and rider than when they started.
This is also such a journey for Lyla .. she is having to put aside her horse girl dreams (for now) and learn how to be a very different human for Boston. We are proud of her, we’ve seen her struggles and disappointments here and we also know she’s trying hard to understand Boston and make changes in herself for him. We really feel a sense of our original commitment to the family happening now to make something that was wrong, right!