Veterinary Notes for Horse Owners

"This is a book I have had since I was a teenager, and I now have the updated version. It is a real encyclopedia of equine veterinary problems. Obviously I would ask a vet to come and see a horse, but it is a very good manual to use to get information about what the problem might be. Competition horses – as with any athlete who is very fit – are prone to strains of tendons, muscles and ligaments. That is one of the injuries we always dread our horses getting, because it means time out. “Obviously with horses there is a whole different element involved. You need a lot of luck for it to work.” Horses are very good at having all sorts of things wrong with them, even on a day-to-day basis. Things like treading on a stone and having a bruised sole. They might pick up a virus or infection, or a little cut that leads to an infection. There are all sorts of injuries that can happen to them. That is the end of that, depending on what is causing the lameness. If it has strained a tendon two weeks before the Olympics, that is your chance of the Olympics gone. I am fortunate enough at the moment to have three horses short-listed for the Olympics. Realistically, two are neck and neck as to which one I will ride. Only me and William Fox-Pitt are in that situation. The other top riders all have one horse. You can’t look at it like that. You just have to do your best, prepare to the best of your ability, and what will be, will be. He was the most wonderful horse to have in my career. He gave me my first ever win at Badminton Horse Trials, which is any event rider’s dream. We won it in 1992 and that made him a very special horse for me. That first Badminton win still feels like the highlight of my career, although I did win it again in 2000. And he took me to two Olympic Games. He was an amazing cross country horse, really brave and bold. He was also a very handsome horse, beautiful and proud, and the crowds could recognise him because he had a big white blaze on his face. He had a huge fan club."