Pony Detectives readers do their own detective work

It's great to see so many Pony Detective readers coming up with their own fabulous questions for author Belinda Rapley, and we're lucky enough to have her answers to these probing questions here.
Question 1 - If you had a dream pony or horse, what would it be like?

Fab question! Well, Zano is kind of my dream horse (I have to say that, don't I?!), but if I could have another dream horse, it would be gelding, just like Zano. I'm quite tall, so I'd like him to be about 16.2hh, skewbald (brown and white patches - my fave!), and he would be an amazing jumper! I've worked in a showjumping yard before and I love jumping - coloured poles and cross country fences - everything and anything, even just popping over a log on a hack. Zano can't jump, because he has arthritis in his off fore fetlock (check out my blog for more of an update on this!), so I really miss it. But, more than anything, my dream horse would have to be a real sweetie, love me spending lots of time grooming him, and would be willing to become my very best friend. That way, just like Zano, if anything happened which meant he couldn't be ridden, we'd still have a really lovely time together. How about you? Have you got a dream pony, too?

Question 2 - Will you write any other books about horses or not?

I would LOVE to write more pony books! I dream of ponies and horses, and most of my ideas involve a horse or pony somewhere, whether they're the main animal in the story or not. Basically, I love ALL animals, and I can't imagine writing books without animals in. I've got a fab idea for a new pony book that I'm working on at the moment - watch this space! Also, I got Scooby, my Labrador, about 5 months ago and he's just so adorable - he's like an overload of fun - he's inspiring me to think of doggy tales, too!

Question 3 - How many rosettes have you won?

Ooh, I've got a little stash of rosettes upstairs, in one of my pony 'memory boxes' - that's where I keep all the stuff from old riding holidays, old piccies, newspaper cuttings and that kind of thing. I didn't have my own pony when I was younger, so I didn't get to ride at shows - I just went to watch, so I haven't got as many as lots of other people. I used to look at pictures of riders in pony books with walls full of rosettes and wish that I could have that one day! Me and Zano are starting to get there - we've been to a couple of shows and won rosettes in each class we've entered. One judge described Zano as 'drop dead gorgeous' in the foreign breeds class - and I had to agree, ha ha! (Okay, I'm maybe just a teensy weensy bit biased?!). We haven't had much chance to really get going at shows yet though, because Zano's had so many things wrong with him, but I'm hoping that we're heading at a slow clop-clop towards the end of the long road to his recovery. Then, it'll be full on getting him back to fitness, and if - fingers crossed - he stays happy and sound, we'll be off to lots of shows. Mind you, after everything he's been through, just having fun at a show will feel like a result. A rosette would be the cherry on top!

Question 4 - I have read your latest book,and its great! Why did you make Pixie shy and quiet?

Yey! I'm so glad you liked Puzzle! And I love your interesting question! So, why did I make Pixie shy and quiet? Well, she's been through quite a bit; her dad's disappeared and she's lost her confidence at Compton Manor, and that has made her a little less sure about herself. It's made her unsure about others, too, and she's worried what they'll think of her. So it takes a while for her to relax around the Pony Detectives, and to trust them. I thought that if I was in Pixie's situation, I'd be pretty shy, too, and that's how her character developed in that way. And, she's quiet because of the big secret she's carrying around with her, which is weighing on her mind. I can't say too much about that bit, because I don't want to give Pixie's secret away for anyone reading this who hasn't yet opened the pages of Puzzle, the Runaway Pony! I really liked Pixie, and I loved writing her character - I think she's really sweet, and her quietness and shy nature contributed to that.
Please do keep your questions coming in and don't forget to visit our Pony Detectives website for more information about the series of books.

A long road to recovery ahead

Zano had his vet trip booked in. Before we went the vet had advised that I keep him working as normal, so that they could see what he was like in work. When we arrived at the hugely impressive and smart new equine practice, the vet, Chris, gave Zano an incredibly thorough check over. Starting at his neck, he ran his hands over each part of Zano, his legs, his back, his pelvis. Then he watched Zano walk and trot, then flexed his legs and watched him do it again. He was definitely still slightly lame when he trotted on the concrete. Then he trotted in a circle on a hard circle, before moving to the school. He was lame on the left rein then, too, when he was lunged. It was his off fore that was the problem, the one with the lump just above the fetlock.

Zano being a ‘patient’ patient during his
initial examination, good as gold (as ever).

So – next step? To nerve block the off fore fetlock. That gives a chance for a local anaesthetic to go into the joint, so that the seat of pain can be located pretty exactly. Then, if Zano became sound with the nerve block, Chris suggested that we should x-ray the joint to find out more about what was making it sore. That bit all made sense. It was kind of what I was expecting. But what he said next was a bolt from the blue, the very last thing I’d been expecting...

Chris said that Zano had a sore back when he’d examined him at the start. I said that he was often touchy about his back. Chris then said that he suspected Zano had kissing spine, given his short back and high withers. He suggested that when they x-ray Zano’s suspect foreleg, they should x-ray his back, too. I nodded, not quite knowing what to say. I’d heard about kissing spines before, where the vertebrae touch, rather than have a gap. But I’d never known any horses with it... and now Zano may have it??! I thought it was one of the worst things a horse could have, but I told myself just to wait for the results of the x-ray. My heart was beating faster already, though, and it wasn’t about to slow down...

Zano was taken into one of the treatment rooms and he had his nerve blocking done. Chris had a strong suspicion about where the problem in his fetlock lay, and he got it right first time. His nerve block made Zano nearly come sound. Then it was x-ray time. Zano was sedated, and me and Paul left the vets to it, knowing that Zano was in very trustworthy hands. Julie, one of the assistants, was so sweet with Zano, and really kind.

After waiting a while, sitting in the sun and feeling a bit stunned, the results of the x-rays were in. The diagnosis? Well, it wasn’t great news. The x-rays showed arthritic changes in his off fore fetlock joint. And his spine? It was confirmed, right there in black and white – kissing spines. There were about 4 vertebra that were very close. Once a rider was on his back they’d definitely be touching, and then there were about 4 more that were permanently touching, even without a rider on his back. This is what was causing Zano’s back pain. I felt shocked. But, as Chris explained more about the condition, everything began to fall into place. Zano’s resentment of the saddle, his stepping away from me getting on and the way he felt ready to explode for the first few minutes after I’d got into the saddle. I thought that was all to do with a memory of a bad experience, but instead, it was an everyday pain for him, and I couldn’t believe how stoic he must have been to put up with it. My heart went out to him, and it made me love him even more, if that was possible.

The next conversation Chris had with us was about treatment. The good thing was, we had options. I knew, standing there in the treatment room with a sleepy, sedated but still sweet Zano, that I’d be prepared to try anything to make him feel better, and give him the chance to hopefully lead the fulfilling life he deserved. One thing we did know: a potentially long road to recovery lay ahead of us... and we’d just taken the very first step.

Zano's Succes

Well, this has been a month of big ups and even bigger downs. But, I reckon we should start with the ups... Zano went to his second ever show as a competitor! It was a summer open show at one of the riding clubs I’ve joined, and the weather couldn’t have been better. Zano had been bathed and groomed until he sparkled, and I changed his browband from the plain leather to one with a bit of bling! He looked stunning.

We entered into two classes to begin with – the in hand foreign breeds (because he’s Spanish) and the ridden foreign breeds. The first class was a bit of a nightmare – Zano was hugely excited by all the other horses around him, and objected strongly to being followed at close quarters by a miniature pony!! His trot is so awesome I couldn’t keep up with him, and his head was in my way so I couldn’t even see where I was trying to run! Anyway, that kept my boyfriend, Paul, and best friend Fran, watching from the ringside, well entertained! In the end, it wasn’t that bad after all, and we managed a 5th! (Oh, hang on, there were only 5 of us in the ring... still, no-one needs to know that, do they??!)

In the ridden class I wasn’t sure what to expect. He’s never worked in a big open space on grass, trotting and cantering with lots of other horses. But he was awesome, and he really showed off. The judge described him as ‘drop dead gorgeous’, which I thought just about matched what he felt to ride, and how he looked and felt that day. The individual class wasn’t so hot though, and he got a bit attached to the horses around him (he didn’t want to leave them to begin with!). That meant we dropped down the order from 2nd to 4th, but I was still over the moon with our 4th placed rosette.

The proud pair

Just before we left, we thought we might as well enter for one last class – Handsomest Gelding. That was Zano’s idea, by the way, not mine. He must have got it right though, because we left with another rosette, 4th place out of a huge class. All in all, it was a fabulous day out and he behaved himself really, really well. I didn’t over ride him at the show, getting into the saddle just to warm up and for the ridden class. I made sure he had plenty of rest (and some grass time) between the classes, too, with his saddle off. But I did notice that just before the last class he started to shift his back legs quite a bit, and it was something I was a bit worried about. But that was okay. He was booked into the vets for the following week. He’d been slightly on-off lame for a few weeks. He’d been the same the year before, since I’d first started riding him soon after I bought him. He’d seemed better over the winter, when he’d had his shoes off, but it was back again. The lameness was hardly noticeable, and my boyfriend, Paul, couldn’t see what I was worried about, but I thought a trip to the vets would put my mind at rest. But instead, what was to happen at the vets was to have the complete opposite effect...

Zano had his first trip out to see one of my best friends, Fran. She owns Pinto, who I shared for a while before I got Zano. She also owns Doug, a big bay horse, and we thought it would be nice for Zano and Doug to go for a hack together so they could be best friends, too. So, up we got into the trailer and away we went!

Zano behaved beautifully at the yard, hardly blinking at the countless ducks and chickens pecking the ground all around him. Oh, and the three dogs trotting about. He tucked into his haynet without a care in the world, and wasn’t even overly concerned when Doug appeared on the scene. Mind you, Doug’s an experienced horse, and he wasn’t going to fuss over a new horse by the stables, especially not one all dressed in purple!

There’s always a cup of tea on the go at Fran’s,
and she makes them awesomely!

We decided that we should hack up to the local JumpX competition, so that’s where we headed. Zano had never seen so many horses and so much coming and going. He got to watch the other horses jump round the course, too. I tried to whisper in his ear for him to pay attention. After all, I’m hoping that by the end of the season it’ll be us flying round there! He did watch for a little bit, but he was secretly far more interested in sampling the grass...

Hacking to JumpX, with Zano and Dougie
getting on like besties!

Zano and Doug watching the jumping....

Before Zano decided it was time to do
a bit of ‘grass inspecting’....

After this ride was such a success, we took Zano over to see the horse dentist, Leigh. Her stables are near Dunwich, with lots and lots of bridleways through the woods to ride on. Zano wasn’t flustered by the turkeys, the sheep or the many cats and dogs mooching about. The only time he got really upset was when he was left alone on the yard, when his hacking companion Harvey was turned out. But Leigh soon sorted that, and brought one of her mares in. Ruby stood quietly in the next stable to him while he had his teeth done.

Heading into the woods....

Oh, and before I forget, I’ve got to introduce you to the newest addition to our household! His name is Scooby, and he’s the most adorable 5 year old golden Labrador – here he is.... ta-daa! What do you think? Isn’t he sweet??

Scooby’s settled in really, really well.

In fact, it feels like he’s made our home complete.
I adore him, and already I can’t imagine life without him ☺

On a less happy note...

...Zano’s got a sore back again. He suffered from this last summer, and he had some treatment for it then. I always like horses to have their back checked regularly. When you think about it, they have to take a lot with a rider sitting on them, so taking care of their backs is the least we can do in return!

It wasn’t long after Zano had his new dressage saddle fitted that his back started to get sore. I noticed it first when I was tacking him up. He was starting to get agitated when he saw the saddle, which is what he was like when I first had him. Then he got touchy just being groomed over his back. So I stopped using the new saddle, and went back to my trusty synthetic GP saddle instead. It seemed a bit odd though, the saddle was well fitted but, just like the leather one I tried last year, Zano didn’t seem able to tolerate it. He’s been a bit funny to get on ever since I had him, and he always feels a bit explosive when I first get into the saddle. I put that down to his sore back when he first arrived, and the remembered pain from that time. Anyway, Steve the chiropractor came out to see him again, and worked on him for over an hour and a half. He found a sore spot behind his withers. He needed a couple of days off, and I’d have to ask Kay the saddler to come back to check his saddle, but I was hopeful that Zano was fixed once more. I was soon to find out though, that sadly this wasn’t the case...

Zano always stands beautifully when anyone
comes to see him – the farrier, dentist, saddler, back man.
I think he loves the attention!

Zano’s first experience of jumping!

There has been lots going on recently. The BIGGEST thing is that Zano’s had his first experience of jumping! We started off loose schooling him, so that he could have a canter around the school and find his own balance over the fences. It’s much easier for a horse to do this without a rider on his back, to begin with at least. We started off just leading him over a pole on the ground, at walk and trot. We put poles up leading into the ground pole, and away from it. That’s to help Zano keep straight on the approach to the fence, and to stop him ducking out. The last thing I wanted was for Zano to learn any bad habits!

Zano closely inspecting the poles!

Next we put the fence up, and asked him to trot into it.
He was a bit unsure to begin with, as you can see in this piccie...

... but he soon got the knack and pricked his ears!

Then, after we’d loose schooled a couple of times, it was time for me to get on board. This is only a small fence, but he still looks like he’s enjoying himself. It felt like he wasn’t that bothered by the small fences, and he didn’t really put much effort in until the fences got a bit bigger. My hands are a bit high in this pic of him jumping a smaller fence, but the time before he’d clonked a pole and had nose dived a bit, so I was being a bit cautious! Anyway, it was a real thrill to get him jumping, and I think he’d make good jumping horse, being able to turn on a sixpence like he can. I’ve been looking through the fixtures and there are lots of jumping clinics and small shows coming up – oooh, so much to look forward to this summer!  

Mud baths in the melted snow!

Well, the snow melted here today and Zano had a whale of a time, literally! Now, this is a horse who will normally go out of his way to avoid the smallest of puddles in his path. He’s been led through some on the lanes during hacks, but in general he’s always been far from impressed by anything murky and puddle like. But today, he decided that water is good – in fact, he decided that water is AWESOME!

There were lots of puddles on the way to the paddock too. Maybe I should have been warned when he paused, uncharacteristically, to stomp in one. I moved him on then let him loose in his paddock. There was a melted snow mini-lake in the middle of it. I went back into the stables, only to be told by Nicky that Zano was ‘taking a bath’. I headed out to see Zano rolling over and over in the huge puddle. I stood next to him as he proceeded to paw the ground, while lying down! Water was splashing all over the place. He then scrambled up, only to vigorously stomp about, sending water flying everywhere. He turned round a bit, then repeated the exercise until he’d sput a full circle. He clearly then decided that there was yet more fun to be had getting back down for another roll, and another paw from his horizontal position.

At the end of ten minutes water play I had one drenched, heavyweight rug but one very, very pleased with himself and ecstatic horse. It was worth it just to see the delight on his face. The only downside? I didn’t have my camera!!!

I lunged him soon afterwards (he hasn’t been ridden for nearly 3 weeks because of the snow and ice!). When I took his rug off he was soaked and grey / brown with mud from half way up his chest all the way along to his rump. Looks like I’ll have lots of grooming to do later!