THACKLEY TRUMPIT DECEMBER 2013

Bridleways

By Christine Hardaker

A number of interesting things have happened this month, apart from some people taking up riding on the Commercial again by those that missed out over the last eighteen months!

I’ve sent an e-mail to the director, Ian Bairstow to ask him to ensure the sign and post is removed from the entrance to the land within a certain timescale, as it has become inappropriate now the council have admitted they were wrong to ban horse riding. I really hope I don’t have to go through the same old rigmarole of following the complaints procedure and then complaining to the Ombudsman in order for the council to comply with their duty to the public.

Also, I have submitted a request under the Freedom of Information Act for the total costs to be revealed, of work undertaken by officers and consultants in relation to the Birkhill issue, in the hope that highlighting the enormous costs to the council taxpayers of fighting this inevitably fruitless battle, they might be deterred from carrying on the search for any historical evidence that might enable them to apply the ban once again. I am fairly unconcerned about their being able to find anything though, as I spoke to a solicitor in the legal department back in July and he had already been working on that task prior to our conversation and still had not found anything when I spoke to the same person again in October. My request will have to be      responded to within a certain timescale with either a full answer or a reason why they need more time to collate the information, or a good reason why it is not possible to give me the information. You can follow the progress of this request here www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/total_cost_of_banning_horse_ridi/new.

As a result of Cllr Sunderland’s assurance to the committee back in January that she would investigate the         possibility of opening up more tracks for horse riders in Thackley, a representative from the council rights of way, Friends of Buck Woods and Cllr Sunderland discussed opening up one of the old tracks from the entrance to the woods opposite Birkhill Farm livery and re-emerging on Thackley Road near the horse style leading down to the canal and river. It would be really nice if they re-opened it as it would mean riders would save at least one journey down or up the narrow and busy Thackley Road. They are trying to find funding from various pots of money, but to be honest, I can’t see why it should cost anything other than creating a gateway at the horse stile end of the track. It mustn’t have cost anything to close the route so why not just undo the barriers put up in the first place?

Planning application has been submitted and opened to the public for their comments or objections, for building approximately 270 dwellings on Cote Farm. I met with  Darren Hinchliffe from rights of way department along with Robert Lucas who owns the livery yard there, to walk the bridleway and discuss what impact the plans had on the track and also on Roberts business. Unfortunately, a lot of the land used at present for grazing the livery horses is ultimately going to be lost to building land. The plans are to keep the bridleway to the original line but to rebuild walls and trim back vegetation, but, as I said in my      comments submitted on line, hopefully the old hawthorn trees and the original character would be left undisturbed as much as possible.

I reported in the October issue that I had started riding my old gelding, just ten to fifteen minutes every other day or so to try bring him slowly back into work. It was all going very well and he was coping and enjoying the outings. But since it began to rain late in October, he began to look stiff and uncomfortable coming in from the field after being turned out. It has always been a mystery as to why he gets these spells and initially years ago, it was thought it was his feet. Although as he was no different if I put his boots on with pads in to cushion his soles, I didn’t think it was his feet but probably higher up in his body. He has always found some difficulty in lifting his hind legs for picking his feet out or the farrier, so I suspect he had an injury when he was young before I bought him and it’s probably arthritis setting in. So he is back to being a field ornament again and he has found some relief more recently when I give him a daily sachet of ‘bute, or the horsey equivalent to paracetemol.

Also, I had found that he had stayed remarkably well when I reduced and eventually stopped giving him Pergolide for his Cushings back in December last year. Normally once Cushings is diagnosed, they need to be on medication for the rest of their life so the fact that he had improved so much whilst I was reducing the doseage and was continuing to do well without the drugs was very puzzling, even to the vets!  But I had still had him blood tested periodically and the first two taken in early and late spring came back normal. Horses diagnosed with PPID, (the abbreviation for the vets name for Cushings), generally have the highest levels of the hormone ACTH in their system at late October and the lowest in spring so I was prepared for a positive result when he was tested last month, so I wasn’t shocked when it came back as a high result – one which would mean a definite diagnosis of PPID. His clinical signs-or signs that you can see have not changed, apart from him becoming stiff when the ground is wet so I have been hanging back and waiting and watching him closely before I decide whether to put him back onto Pergolide. I’ve       decided to wait until spring and if he still has a positive blood test, I will have to decide then what to do.

I hope you all have a very happy horsey Christmas and see you in the New Year!

Contact me as usual on christinehardaker@supanet.com or mobile 07739708727 or I’m on Facebook now so you can “friend” me to receive any more updates about the Commercial.