Pfingstfest in Bavaria

I already told you about this bavarian tradition (here). I have some pics to show you guys from this years event.

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter Friends!

I hope you will have a beautiful Easter and everything that you wish for!

Grooming a Horse

Regular, thorough grooming is necessary to keep your horse clean and healthy.

This also stimulates circulation, keeps your horse looking good and can help to build a relationship between the two of you. By doing this, you have a perfect chance to check your horse over for any lumps, bumps, or heat, and because of this, you should not wear gloves when grooming so you can feel any abnormalities. You should always tie your horse up before beginning this.

Grooming kit:

1. Body brush - is a soft-bristled brush that removes dust and grease from deep down in the coat. It is rarely used on the grasskept horse, and always used in conjunction with the metal curry comp.
   
2. Dandy brush - is a hard-bristled brush that removes caked mud and sweat from the coat, and is the primary tool used for grooming the grasskept horse. The dandy brush should not be used on the mane and tail because it will break the hairs.
   
3. Water Brush - ideal would be to have 2 water brushes:

• one to use it when you are finished with the grooming. This way you can take all the remained dust off the coat and you can arrange the mane on a side of the neck.
• the second one you can use only when you want to clean the feet
  

                                                              ......TO BE CONTINUED.....

You may want to see:

• The second part of this post
• The last part of this post

Kötzting's Whit Ride in Germany

Kötzting's Whit Ride or "der Pfingstritt in Bad Koetzting" (in german language)

Kötzting's Whit Ride ranks amongst the biggest mounted pilgrimage processions in Europe and goes back to an incident in 1412: A man lay dying in the village of Steinbühl about seven kilometres away from Kötzting and asked for the comfort of the church. But the priest was not prepared to go there without protection.     So the young men from Kötzting accompanied the priest spontaneously on his visit to the dying man.

   

After their return unscathed they vowed to repeat this ride each year. Thus it has been carried down, so that every year on Whit Monday some 900 riders form a procession riding and praying through the blooming Zellertal to Steinbühl on their festively bedecked horses and in old traditional costumes.

 
The riders´procession  

 
At 8 a.m. on Whit Monday, accompanied by the ringing of the church bells, the riders leave the town praying on festively bedecked horses. The procession is led by the cross bearer, followed by lantern bearers, fanfare players, a spiritual officiator with sextons and servers. Riding behind them is the "Whit groom" with his two best men.  

The previous year's Whit groom carrying the market town banner, with his best men and representatives of the young men end the official head of the procession. The remaining riders follow. Many of them bear memorial banners that they have received for their long years of participation in this pilgrim ride. One of them carries the venerable county banner. On the way, the riders say their rosaries.
 

The officiator preaches the gospel at the four stations. At the end of there journey, a church service for the riders is held in St. Nikolaus, the Whit riders' pilgrimage church in Steinbühl. After a rest for the horses and riders the procession returns to Bad Kötzting.

• source: http://www.bad-koetzting.de/110.html

Choosing and buying a horse

When you buy a horse, it is likely that you will have it for several years. Because of that it is very important you are buying a horse that is suitable for you, your circumstances, your knowledge, and your ability.
For the novice or first-time owner it is a good idea to take along an experienced friend when viewing a horse. Often they will spot something that you overlook.  It is also helpful to make a list of points that you want in a horse before you even start looking. You can then focus on the type of horse you need and ignore ones you don't need. Buying a horse can be a lengthy process and you may spend months looking at different kids before finding the one that suits you best. However, it is well worth taking the time to do this rather that rushing in to buy something for the sake of it. 
When looking at horses, it is often what the seller does tell yo that is important, so try to ask as many relevant questions as possible in order to find out as much about the horse and its history as you can.

• this short description was made according to "The Encyclopedia of  Horses & Ponies" by Tamsin Pickeral

The anatomy of the Horse-Part II

Something about a good conformation

The first thing when judging a horse's conformation is to identify what type or breed of horse you are looking at. Every breed has some special characteristics that you should search for, and mainly if you do not find them, there is some kind of conformational fault. For example, Arabs have a high-set and carried tail because they have one less vertebra in the back than other breeds. Therefore, if you are looking at an Arab horse, and it had a low and poorly-set tail, then it is safe to assume that this is an area of poor conformation

Next, you should know what sex is the horse. Mares invariably have a slightly longer back than geldings, and it is a good idea to don't forget this. Secondly, you should know how old is the horse too. A very old one sags naturally in the back and will have lost muscle tone. This point is also very important in discussing the conformation.

The head: should appear to be in proportion to the rest of the body. The ears should be alert and pricked. The horse should have a broad and flat forehead (a bulging forehead may tell you he has a bad temper and he is unpredictabil), with large "kind" eyes well apart to allow good peripheral vision. The nostrils should be large enough to allow for maximum intake of air, and the mouth should be neither too long, but also too short. A horse with a very small mouth may be difficult to fit bits to, and one with a long mouth can often be strong and a "puller". The incisors of the top and the bottom jaw should meet exactly at the front of the mouth, with the top jaw somewhat wider than the bottom jaw. There should be at least a fist-sized space between the 2 bones of the lower jaw, indicating unrestricted room for the start of the respiratory tract.

The head should be "well set" to the neck, meaning that the horse should not be thick in the jowl and gullet region, which would restrict flexion. The neck should be long enough to allow for a "good length of rein" m with a well-developed top line and a gentle curve from the withers to the poll. In this direction, the length of the neck should be equal to one-and-a-half times the front of the face to the lower lip. The neck should be  also "well set" to the shoulder, being neither too low nor too high.

You may want to see also:

• The first part of this post
• The last part of this post

this short description was made according to "The Encyclopedia of  Horses & Ponies" by Tamsin Pickeral

Have you ever been to Romania?

Romania Land of Choice!

So I already told you about a beautiful city from Romania, named Alba Iulia. I want you to tell something about the hole country.
Romania is a country not so big but not so small....from eastern Europe. It has a various relief, it has the Carpathian mountains that somehow protect the beautiful inside area called Transylvania. Well you may heard about it about the Dracula's Tale. In this region you can see a lot of castles in with Vlad Tepes (the real person from whom we have this tail of Dracula,but he was not really exactly as described there). Going further we find a plain area in the south and in the right we have the Danube Delta and the Black See. We can also add that the southern border is mainly made from the course of this big river, Danube, that comes from the Black Forest Mountains in Germany and crosses 10 countries and four capitals.

Here you can see a short description of Transylvania --->>>click here!!!

Here you can see a short description of Danube River --->>>click here!!!
                                                                                         and also --->>>click here!!!

For more about this country and tourism tips              --->>>click here!!!


You can also try to see the Wild Carpathia short movies that have several parts

• The first part                              --->>> here!!!
• The second part                         --->>> here!!!

And so on...

Besides this a great experience is driving on 2 mountain roads: Transalpina and Transfagarasan.Some say...the best driving road in the world is the Transfagarasan. Other say the best one is the Transalpina. What do you think? 

click here!!!

Also if you visit Transalpina you will be amazed of the free horses on top, near the road and also about the donkies.

For a beautiful horse slideshow --->>> click here!!!

The anatomy of the Horse - Part I

The skeleton of the horse is intrinsically linked to the horse's performance, well-being and appearance. It supports the body, maintains body shape, allows for movement, and provides points of attachment for the muscles and tendons. 

Conformation

1. How tall is a Horse?

Horses and Ponies are measured in units called "hands". One hand is the equivalent of four inches or ten centimeters. For example if we have a pony that has 15.5 hh (hands high) that means 15 hands and 5 inches high. Whether being measured in hands and inches, or in centimeters, the height is always taken from the ground to the hightest point of the withers, and for an accurate reading, the horse should be measured standing on a flat level surface, and without shoes. 

    2.  Conformation

The conformation of a horse is the way the horse has been put together, which is effectively the bone structure beneath the skin. A horse can be described as having "good conformation", meaning that he is considered to have been put together correctly, and in proportion and balance for the job he has been bred to do. On the other hand, "bad/poor conformation" describes a horse that has certain weakness in its frame, and that may lead to injury, or at the very least, an impaired ability to do his job.

   3.  Condition

The condition of a horse is governed by several factors like:

• what type pf work he is doing
• what he is fed
• his state of health
• how well he is being looked after

So taking in consideration, a horse that is eventing fit, in good health and eating the correct amont of food, will have good solid muscle development, and could be described as being in "good/hard condition". Also, a well-fed, healthy horse that is not working hard, and , therefore, does not have well-developed muscles, cold be described in "good, but soft condition". To the untrained eye, it is easy to mistake a horse lacking in muscle development and having poor conformation. The same is with an overweight horse with an excess of fatty tissue around the stifle and on the crest can be mistaken for being of "good conformation". 

As a conclusion it is very important to not forget that "conformation" and "condition" are two totally different things.

You may want to see:

• The second part of this post
• The last part of this post

• this short description was made according to "The Encyclopedia of  Horses & Ponies" by Tamsin Pickeral

What a great morning I had!

Hello guys!

So I don't know how it is the weather at you...but we are waiting for 2 months to snow and nothing. Only a little bit, once or twice. So today when I woke up it was so great view on my window. There was a lot of snow everywhere and some beautiful horses. I is nothing compared to have a walk in a snowy weather and stare at a lot of beautiful horses. They were really enjoying the weather too!!!

Kizoa slideshow: horses in snow - Slideshow

The Spanish Riding School Vienna

The world of Lipizzans!

In one of my trips I arrived in Vienna. It is a wonderful city full of history, parks and a lot of things to see and do. As I was going for a walk in the city, I discovered The Spanish Riding School, right in the middle of the town, in a place called Hofburg. I didn't had much time, but I went to the "Morning Exercise", which they do every morning from Tuesday to Friday between 10:00 and 12:00. I think it was the greatest way to start my day. I was really amazed about their beautiful white horses, as they were accompanied by classical Viennese Music. I could see the specific strengthening and building up of the muscles, the horses natural movements, which were developed into the perfect figures of the "High School of the classical Horsemanchip". 

The most important thing is that they have only Lipizzans, which are Europe's oldest horse breed.They are bread from Spanish, Italian and Arab bloodlines, very intelligent and lively, with their classic physique and grace. These horses are perfectly suited for the representative style of the High School of Classical Horsemanship.

There you can also see the performances of those incredible creatures.You will be very impressed to really see the result of years of training of horse and rider in more than 70 classical performances a year.

Another great thing is that you can be apart of a guided tour, behind the scenes of this incredible school. You can have an insight into the most important areas and the stables.

For more infos --->>>click here!!!

A wonderful city and an equestrian opportunity

Horse riding in a historical city : Alba Iulia

Alba Iulia is a not so big town in Transylvania, Romania. It is the place where The Big National Reunion had place on 1st of December 1918 which made possible the final union ,of Transylvania and Banat (two romanian regions that were first independent) with the Romanian Kingdom.

For more historical details --->>>click here!!!!

For more pictures and events --->>>click here!!!!

Being a historical city, we can here be part of a lot of events presenting it's legacy. This includes various horse parades with roman soldiers and remakings of different important fights that also include horse riding. Besides this you can also go and take horse riding lessons with some great horses.

Kizoa slideshow: Cetatea Alba Iulia - Slideshow

Horse myths

Myths...

From the early beginnings of men, myths remained, describing the pure and proud figure, the speed, strength, courage and grace. No other domestic pet created such of  a fable as the horse did.
In China the oldest myths speak like the horse was a divine creature. The people worship him and the emperors came to him asking for counsel.
In Japan the legend says that the sun goddess sent her brother to teach men farming. He was killed and from his head came to life a horse.
Arabs considered the horse the most precious gift made by the creator of the world.
Greeks thought that the horse was made by Poseidon, when he came from sea and put his trident on to earth.
And our list can continue, but the important thing is that "The Horse" had a big impact on the men king from its beginnings.

The history of :The Horse

Horse Evolution

Can you imagine a world in which horses of all kind of colors, shapes and sizes (even a bit larger than a small dog) were present everywhere? Well, nowadays, horses are just one small part of an huge family tree that spans millions of years. Unfortunately a lot of branches of the horse family are now extinct.
About 55 million years ago, the dog-sized "Hyracotherium" (known as the first members of the horse family), were present through the forests in North America. Along their history, most horses remained small, but when the climate conditions changed, new species rapidly appeared. That is how some of them became larger and had the familiar hooves and grazing diets that we call today "horses". Only those branches survived to the present days.