No Horsing Around

Last year I got to meet Snoopy, the London Horse.

He was calm and curious about me. I, on the other hand was a little nervous … but I kept my cool.

When the first Lockdown came into effect in late March, Snoopy kept our friend Tammy busy all through the months. Since the stables at Ham House closed, just like walking dogs was an essential, so was exercising horses.

And as the streets became quieter and public transportation was best avoided, Tammy decide to try riding Snoopy as her transportation!!!

They rode all the way from Richmond to Wimbledon so they could pick up essentials for their dog, Bruno! Calm, clever Snoopy did really well!

But that was not all … we’ll let Tammy tell you how Lockdown motivated her to organise riding lessons on Zoom for participants around the world from her riding instructor.

May’s comment: I’ve always loved horses. I tried riding them but hadn’t realised that my arthritic hips made it a painful activity. I eventually gave it up. In our Lockdown Achievement Stories, we wanted to show some of the many good thing that have emerged with lockdown. Some of these positives have communal impact while others have been personal goals achieved. Today Tammy and her London horse, Snoopy share what they got up to during lockdown.

We met through our dogs via this blog when we realised we have a few things in common, as in our dogs went to the same beauty parlour and they go to the House of Mutt. And she loves horses and riding.

Then one birthday, Tammy got herself a horse in London with the same name as that famous beagle, Snoopy! And I definitely had to meet him,

So what does all this have to do with Lockdown Achievements? This is Tammy’s story.

Unlike many in London/UK, Covid-19 was my reality as of late January, as my husband is a doctor working in Singapore.  Once the virus surfaced so aggressively in Asia, and having lived through the worst of SARS before, we knew it would only be a matter of time before the UK  would be affected.  And so it was in the winter, before lockdown, that I already began preparing for the worst.

My nature is not to dwell.  I’m action driven.  Lockdown was not the impetus that drove my pursuits this year.  By looking eastwards at Asia, and by observing the manner in which respective governments made decisions, I already prepared myself for a change in lifestyle, and accepting that the pandemic would unfortunately not be a short term experience.  I did not want to waste any time.  I cannot sort out this crisis, but what I felt and still feel is that I could look at this difficult period as a gift of time instead.  So then I asked myself – now that I had the time, what would I really want to explore?

Because I am a horse owner, I was able in Lockdown to continue visiting my horse to exercise him, in keeping with both the rules of daily exercise and the ensuring of animal welfare.  The yard that my horse is kept at (Ham House Stables), as with all equestrian establishments in the country, had to cease regular operations like offering lessons to the general public.  This as you can imagine, is a severe blow to income. 

As people turned to zoom for work matters, I started exploring the platform myself, then came up with the idea of creating and facilitating a series of lectures taught by my teacher (proprietor of Ham House Stables), Minette Rice-Edwards, on equitation and horsemanship.  Minette is a wonderful, wise teacher, and a charismatic communicator.  Often in my lessons on horse-back, I want to write down what she is saying to me.  “Zoom with Minette” allows this – the writing of shared knowledge, and in so doing, my learning (as with the other participants’) is enriched further.  Besides the heightened learning experience, this also provides some income for the Stables.

“Zoom with Minette” has continued through the year, at one point, an additional group was added and at the peak of Lockdown, there were 40 participants from all over the world.

This month (December), “Zoom with Minette” is themed, “Home for the Holidays”.  For anyone keen on horses, architecture, and history, do get in touch on Ham House Stables Instagram page.  We meet on Thursdays at 6pm for 45 minutes.  Cost is 25 pounds for 3 sessions.”

And that wasn’t all of Tammy’s “Lockdown Achievement” …

During the 1st Lockdown, the city became much quieter.  As public transportation was no longer an option, I started exploring the reality of riding my horse to run errands instead 🙂  As we were spending so much more time together, along with another friend on horseback, we thought of different activities we could do with our horses. 

As with dogs, the more engaged we allow them to be in our lives, the deeper the relationship as well as a better trained, behaved dog.  So one day, we journeyed with our horses from Richmond to Wimbledon Village where I used to live, to buy Bruno (my dog) food.

This shopping excursion has since become a regular activity I do with Snoopy, my horse.  It just adds variety to his routine and training, and it further cements our relationship. 

Now that’s so much fun. Makes me want to get back on a horse with my bionic hips! You can follow the adventures of Snoopy on his Instagram page – @londonhorsesnoopy