Posted: 10th June 2020 | Back to news feed

Most horse owners have been - and continue to - pay strict attention to the British Horse Society guidelines which now state that: “horse riding and carriage driving can now resume” along with hacking which can “be with members of your household, or with up to, but no more than 5 other people from outside your household. To maintain social distancing, riders should hack in single file.”

SEIB training 2m apart

As is often the way with horses, we cannot always ensure everything with them goes to plan. After all, our horses do not understand the restrictions we face and that they must behave sensibly.

Homebred thoroughbred, and ex-racehorse, Max proved the truth of this recently. Whilst only being 6 years old, Max is the epitome of a sensible, well-behaved horse. His owner and breeder, Tim O’Callaghan said: “Max is ridden out daily and lives in his everyday surroundings, staying out in the field with other horses just over the fence. Last Thursday morning, after he had been ridden out, Max was moved to the adjacent field – where he spent a large part of the winter – still able to see other horses over the fence and no big change to his routine.” What started as a canter down the hill in his new patch, resulted in Max spooking, becoming unsettled, running at and trying to jump the field gate. Tim added: “In his whole life, Max has never done anything like this. Alarmingly, as he hit it, the metal gate bent violently and the horse got one of his hind legs stuck right through it. As he struggled to get free, I feared the worst”.

Max was exceptionally lucky. He has some horrible scrapes on his legs that – owing to quick thinking, a lot of hosing and having a decent first-aid kit to hand – have managed to, so far, avoid a vet call out. But it is a stark reminder that horses can be very unpredictable. Even when at home, out in the field, unforeseen accidents can and do happen. It is when accidents such as this happen that effective horse insurance is so important to have.

In the current climate of lockdown and with finances being stretched, cancelling or downgrading an insurance policy can seem a way to save a few pounds. Tim said: “Max has raced before and since retiring from the track has done a bit of show-jumping. You normally think that if an accident is going to happen, it’d be when you are out and about. Something like this field accident could have turned out really nasty for the horse. It makes me feel reassured that I haven’t considered changing Max’s insurance since we haven’t been able to go out competing this spring.”

SEIB have been providing insurance for horses for over 50 years. This experience allows us to tailor policies to suit your circumstances and ensure that you and your horses are covered should the worst happen. If you’d like advice on your insurance please call us on 01708 850000.

The Equestrian Index newsfeed is compiled from articles submitted by advertising members and expresses the opinions of those members. Watsons Directories Ltd shall not be held liable for any inaccuracies or mis-statements therein.

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