Equine Head to Tail by Billie Morris

Equine Head to Tail by Billie Morris Equine massage therapist & bit fitter. With over 40 years experience riding in most equine disciplines, I worked as a work rider in all types of racing yards.

I have managed polo yards and race yards. I have extensive equine medical knowledge.

09/06/2025

SUBSIDISED REGIONAL TRAINING RUNNING DURING THE NEXT TWO WEEKS AND BEYOND.

FOR THOSE WISHING TO BOOK INTO SESSIONS RUNNING WITHIN THE NEXT 14 DAYS PLEASE ENTER THEM AS SOON AS POSSIBLE SO THAT WE CAN SCHEDULE TIMINGS

TRAINING SESSIONS START AT JUST £25 PER HORSE :
please visit our website for all available TAP dates where you just need to sign up for free and book yourselves onto the session you would like to attend.

https://thehowdenway.com/tap/find-training

12th June - Wix Hill Stables, Surrey with Claire Edwards (Flatwork, Jumping)
18th June - Ledbury Equestrian with Joanne Alderton-Whitworth (Flatwork and Gymnastic poles)
19th June - Marwood Equestrian, Durham with Sarah Tubbs (Flatwork, Polework, Jumping)
21st June - Courtway Equestrian, Devon with Mandy Frost (polework and jumping)
21st June - Plumpton College, Sussex with Sam Champney Warrener (flatwork, polework and jumping)
22nd June - Tweseldown with Carl Belson (showjumping and cross-country)
22nd June - Prospect Arena, Lincs with Jo Burns Firth (polework and jumping)
24th June - CCR Equestrian, Gloucs with Lucy Jackson (Flatwork, Poles and jumping)
24th June - Bromyard, Hereford with Karen Nicholas (flatwork and poles)
28th June - Dragaons Stud, W.Sussex with Sam Champney-Warrener (Flatwork, Polework and jumping)

Thank you to programme partners Dodson & Horrell HarryHall.com HorseQuest Unibed - High Performance Equine Bedding

How is any of this right? It needs to be stopped.
08/06/2025

How is any of this right? It needs to be stopped.

📢 Attention horse lovers and animal advocates! Let's talk about the truth behind the "Big Lick" in Tennessee Walking Horses. 💔

The "Big Lick" isn't natural; it's the result of a horrific process called "soring."

⚠️ What is soring? Soring involves intentionally inflicting pain to a horse's legs and hooves. Caustic chemicals, blisters, or other devices are applied to make the horse's lower legs extremely sensitive. When the horse moves, chains or other objects are often used to agitate these already sensitive areas, causing the horse to lift its legs higher in an attempt to avoid the pain. This painful action is what creates the "Big Lick."

The "Big Lick" we see in some shows is not a display of natural talent, but a product of abuse and suffering. These horses endure immense pain for the sake of a showy gait. 😢

We need to be the voice for these horses! Help us spread awareness about soring and the cruelty behind the "Big Lick." Share this post and let's work together to protect these beautiful animals from this inhumane practice.

This merits a read. I saw a TB horse of 19 years old for sale on fb the other day. The advert saying the usual bullsh!t ...
06/06/2025

This merits a read.

I saw a TB horse of 19 years old for sale on fb the other day. The advert saying the usual bullsh!t of still having plenty of use left. I wanted to write on the advert ‘how about doing the decent thing?’ But I guess they wouldn’t have a clue what I was on about.

Written and sent in by dm by a follower. It made me cry I had to share with kind permission 😭

I Was Only Meant to Be a Friend by Ruth Waken
(The voice of a non-ridden companion horse)

I wasn’t there to carry weight, or gallop through the fields.
I wasn’t made for ribbons, rosettes, or showground thrills.
I was the one who stood beside, while others chased their dreams,
A comfort, soft and steady-eyed, stitched into the quiet seams.

They said I wasn’t “ridden,” but I mattered all the same.
I was the heart that held the herd, the peace beneath the name.
They promised forever, that word, so wide and deep
A home where I could just exist, and age, and rest, and sleep.

The field was calm, the water clear, the hands were kind and true
I memorised the shape of days, the faces that I knew.
But then came change the money tight, the reasons vague but grim,
And though I limped and couldn’t heal, they passed me on a whim.

She cried, my person, yes, she wept. I felt the trembling in her grip.
She said, “You’ll find another home,” and gave one final groom.
But I had only ever asked to stay where I belonged
To be a friend, not passed again… and oh, how she was wrong. Passed to a home that passed me on.

They led me to a dealer’s gate, with concrete, cold and bare,
Where pain was masked and truth was blurred, just sell him, they don’t care.
“He’s quiet,” “Sweet,” “No trouble much” the labels changed each time.
But no one said, this horse can’t work. This horse is past his prime.

Still they tried to ride me, crop in hand, as if I’d never hurt
I flinched beneath the pressure and my hocks ground in the dirt.
Each stop I made, the care declined, the fear became my skin
A “companion” they kept calling me, but no one let me in.

They didn’t want a soul like mine who couldn’t earn his hay.
A horse who needed gentleness, and time, and space to stay.
So they passed me on again, again until I barely stood.
And no one said, “He needs to stop.” And no one understood.

The truth? She should’ve let me go when I still felt the breeze,
When grass was green beneath my feet, and time moved with such ease.
Yes, it would have broken her, to lead me down that field to say goodbye ,
But better kind hands at the end than what I never got back.

Because now the lorry waits in dusk, with rust along the side,
And voices loud and hands too rough will take me for that ride.
The one we all know far too well, the final, cruel route
Where once-loved souls go silent, and the last lights flicker out.

I was only ever meant to be a friend.
Not bought, not sold, not forced to bend.
Not pushed through pain to prove my worth
My only gift, a gentle birth.

This is happening every day
To horses kind and thrown away.
To non-ridden friends, whose jobs are done,
But still get passed till there’s no one.

If love is real, then see it through.
Don’t send us off, we live it too.
And if you can’t, then let us sleep.
It’s better that, than wounds too deep.

Forever should be more than words.
It’s care, it’s choice. It’s what we’ve earned.
So let the next one be the end
And not like me, who broke to bend

Photo: from google images.

05/06/2025

Is it any wonder that incorrectly fitting tack and rugs cause so many problems. Sore skin can result in sore muscles and vice versa.

29/05/2025
29/05/2025

📣 Calling all thoroughbred riders!

Join us for the first-ever Thoroughbred Aftercare Programme Two-Day Camp 🐎
🗓 4–5 June
📍 Aston le Walls

Whether you're just starting or already competing, there's something for everyone — from flatwork & jumping to XC & polework.

🎯 Day 1: 2 mounted sessions + nutrition & weigh-in with Dodson & Horrell
🎯 Day 2: 2 mounted sessions OR swap one for an unmounted session
🌙 Evening food & fun with a community feel!

Come ride, learn & relax with like-minded equestrians.
£150 for the two days or £100 for the first day only
Book your space here : https://thehowdenway.com/tap/find-training?page=2

Spaces are limited

To find out more about the first TAP camp visit https://thehowdenway.com/news/announcing-our-first-thoroughbred-aftercare-programme-two-day-camp

Weight. Now there is a thorny subject for both horses and riders.With horses, they often appear obese, over fed and unco...
27/05/2025

Weight.

Now there is a thorny subject for both horses and riders.

With horses, they often appear obese, over fed and uncontrollable or so it seems. Then, the other end of the scale are the thoroughbreds who despite being fit for the most part are described as being too thin. Then when they leave racing, they are fed inappropriate feed and then when they explode, they are labelled as dangerous.

Next we come to the riders. Why are so many riders overweight? I’m going to stick my neck out here and suggest that if you are a larger rider, then ride a horse who can actually carry your weight. There are some brilliant cobs and other breeds of weight carrying horses such as Irish Draughts. It’s the bone density that determines how much weight a horse can carry. Think of the 20% rule. A horse can safely carry 20% of his own weight, yet horses are often expected to carry more.

In flat yards there is a weight limit of 9 stone or approximately 57 kilos. A young, small b***d horse, which a thoroughbred is, small b***d, are not expected to be carrying a rider above this weight. Also before the keyboard warriors get stuck into the riding of young horses, they, the racehorses are only actually ridden for a very short period of time and by light riders. Most racehorses weigh between 425k and 540k.

I knew of someone a few years ago who was quite a heavy lady, she had an ex racehorse. Despite being clearly too heavy for this particular horse she would regularly ride for hours at a time. What I found very sad was that the horse was ridden practically everyday and her back was so dipped, yet it wasn’t dipped when she first got this horse. How is that right? When the weight subject was mentioned, their mental health was clearly highlighted as more important than the damage being done on a daily basis and the welfare of the horse.

This horse was ridden until her last days. There are so many more horses in this situation. Please get a horse who is suitable for you and put the mental health issues if any, on the back burner. Your horse is that. A horse, plain and simple.

25/05/2025

This is well worth a view, especially if your horse has back/ pelvis issues. Don’t be afraid to ask your vet questions.

Finally some common sense. Stop starving your horse and let him graze. If he gets too fat, work him. Also something to c...
24/05/2025

Finally some common sense. Stop starving your horse and let him graze. If he gets too fat, work him. Also something to consider, that a horse is supposed to put some weight on during the summer months, it tides him over the winter when there is supposedly less forage.

Not a joke...

Have you ever wondered why you can have a 15 acre field and part of it is chewed down to nubs and the other part has grass a hand high, But your horse is constantly grazing in the chewed down part?

Grass 6 inches and taller has less sugars than grass under 6 inches.

For every inch drop below 6 inches, the fructan (sugar) content rises.

Grass under 6 inches is stressed like it's a Monday morning with a project deadline. It uses sugar to repair itself.

Stop mowing your fields short.

Stop grazing your chubbys on chewed down grass. (this is why grazing muzzles are so touted...they keep the horse from being able to get much short grass)

(We aren't saying let your fields be 3 feet tall, by the way. The optimal thing to do is keep them 6-8 inches tall and graze them in small areas there)

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