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The pony express
Thornton Rose ride-ability group Winter newsletter
New Barefoot Saddles & Specialist Riding pad.
Everyone at the group was excited on hearing the news that the ACT FOUNDTION had awarded £1.037 towards the purchase of 3 barefoot saddles and a specialist riding pad. These saddles are treeless and will fit all of our horses and ponies this will allow us to be more flexible as the conventional saddle is more restrictive. A horse in training will change shape as the fat dwindles and the muscles develop. This can also happen due to the seasons, loosing weight over the Winter gaining weight in the Spring/Summer. A traditional saddle with a tree is unlikely to fit throughout these changes, while the Barefoot saddle will “grow” with the horse. Horses feel very comfortable under the lightweight Barefoot saddle right from the beginning, because their movements are hardly limited.
Happy Hooves & No More Lost wellies!
We are extremely grateful to the staff of Midlothian Council Contract Services based at Fushiebridge for donating materials and their time to create two platforms where our horses can stand and be fed without having to wallow in mud. These solid platforms will ultimately reduce the instances of Mud Fever and lost shoes and be of benefit to both the horse’s and volunteer’s.
25 Year Award
Congratulations to Joyce on achieving 25years of volunteering with the RDA. She was presented with her award at a special ceremony along with others to commemorate their achievements. She began working with the RDA in 1972 when she was at The Wirral Riding Centre. In 1975 she was instrumental in helping to set up an RDA Group at Grove Farm Riding School in Worlington, this group catered for adults and teenagers as other groups in the area only catered for school children. It soon became a successful group with riders entering competitions and winning rosettes and trophies. One of the riders was picked to represent GB in the first World Dressage Championships for disabled riders in Gothenburg Sweden in 1987. In 1988 she moved to work at the Edinburgh Veterinary School and helped at the Drum RDA group, until 1999 when she assisted in the training of a rider from Braidwood RDA to do competitive dressage to music. This started her association with our group as at that time we were Braidwood then Mosswood and now Thornton Rose. Why does she do it “ The RDA is an excellent social club where all people are treated equally and with the help of the horses and volunteers the riders gain experiences in the countryside, which gives them independence and confidence plus it keeps me fit with at least 8x 30min sessions of walking and running a week”.
Fundraising Focus
Did you know that although we charge a £5 lesson fee, it actually costs us nearly £15 for each rider in every class?
Thornton Rose RDA Group meets this extra cost through charitable donations and fund-raising activities.
As a parent, client, teacher, guardian, volunteer, sponsor or avid supporter or whatever your connection with Thornton Rose RDA there are lots of ways you, your family and friends can help us to fundraise and support us in running the Group.
Here are a few ideas -
Sponsor a Pony Scheme:
Our ‘Sponsor a Pony Scheme’ makes a great present for any pony loving fan and at the same time supports the Group.
Running your own event:
If you or one of your friends is running a fundraising event then please consider us as your charity of your choice!
Charity of the Year:
Do you work for an organisation where we could be nominated their Charity of the year? As a local charity, we would be delighted to hear from any organisations who would be interested in supporting us.
Who Do You Know?
We are planning to get in touch with local schools, businesses etc to raise awareness of the work that we do here at Thornton Rose RDA. We hope to gain support for fundraising activities; perhaps a sponsored silence at your Primary School, or a Race Night at your local pub. It is much easier to get in touch with these organisations if we have a contact name; so this is where you can help…! If you have contacts in local organisations Brownies, Guides etc and you think they will be interested in supporting us with local fundraising events, then please forward their name, occupation and contact details to the committee.
Volunteers Required
Hello, We are the horses who live at Thornton Farm in Rosewell.
We've been specially trained to work for Thornton Rose Ride-Ability Group so that disabled people and people with learning difficulties can ride us but there aren't enough adult volunteer helpers. These are the people who come to the stables to get us ready for our riders coming in. They also help the riders get on our backs and walk alongside us to make sure the riders are safe and know what to do. We also have to be groomed and our saddles and bridles have to be cleaned regularly. It's very important for our fields to be kept clean and safe we can get hurt if fences are broken or brambles grow into our fields and catch our legs or tails or manes. Sometimes weeds grow that aren't good for us so these have to be pulled out. These are just some of the jobs that have to be done. We are ready and willing to get moving and let our riders enjoy themselves BUT WE NEED LOTS MORE HELPERS! Is there anyone out there who would like to come and help us even just for one morning each week? We go out walking every Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. As you can see there is a variety of jobs to be done and the good news is that you don't have to have experience as you will be trained.
If you are 16 or over and think you can help us, please call our friend Mrs Ann Johnston for more information. 0845 450 6922 or e-mail us via our Website : www.thorntonroserda.com
Honestly we are Neigh-bother and easy to work with!
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