Due to the snow we were unable to ride on Saturday so we had a best turned out show day instead. The standard was very high as for many people it was the first time they had done a best turned out show. This may become a regular event with the horses particularly during the holidays as it is useful practice for getting horses prepared for local shows. Many thanks for everyone who got involved with the day, everyone put in a huge amount of effort into making the day a huge success. The rosettes had to be specially ordered so they and the certificates will be handed out next week.

Getting prepared. The ponies had their manes tails and legs washed in warm water and dried off quickly with towels.

The little ponies were very patient but many had to wear rugs while waiting as it was a cold day.

There was some help with the plaiting but everyone was encouraged to have a go. Justine was particularly helpful in plaiting tails!

Indy won first prize overall as she had a good overall turnout with the bridle having been cleaned, legs being washed and mane and tail cleaned and plaited. It was also taken into account that Indy's legs had been coverd in stable stains as she is currently on box rest and also Tom had been working on his own and had not had practice preparing a horse for a show before. Tom also won best individual effort.

Belle won second prize overall with Alice Teah and Jade getting her ready. Her mane had been plaited by Alice and Teah with no outside help and her tail had been very difficult to plait as she is a sweet itch sufferer in the summer so her tail had not fully grown back. All three of her helpers had worked hard getting her coat clean as she has very poor skin so suffers from dandruff. Bell won the best improved overall as she had looked quite poor to start with but looked great afterwards!

Tara was third overall with Jasmine and Penny. Tara also won the prize for the best plaited mane and tail as both her tail and mane had been well washed and plaited with a feather in her tail which the judges felt matched Tara's personality well.

Coco came fourth overall with Shona and Ellie. He also won the best legs as a lot of work went in to getting his legs clean as they were covered in stable stains and mud. His mane was very difficult to plait but a good effort was made with very little help.

Maisey came fifth overall with Maria and Tarin and was the most improved little pony. She had been very dirty and so had been difficult to clean up. Her tail was particularly good as it had been filthy but was cleaned up nicely. her mane also had been nicely plaited.

Toby came sixth with Kezzia and Leanne. He looked great and also had the best coat overall (despite the bites from playing with Ted). His legs were clean with his socks coming out as particularly white and his mane and tail had been well finished with two pink bows. Heidi had her first go at plaiting a mane which looked great! He had been very patient to be washed and plaited which was good as patience is not Toby's best quality!

Minnie with Katy and Amelia won the special prize for the best legs for the small pony as his had been washed particularly well and had no shampoo left in. His coat also looked great as he had used lots of coat conditioner.

Freddy with Sophie and Amelia got a special prize for the best mane and tail for a little pony. he looked lovely and his legs were also very clean.

Bess with Shona and Ellie won the Special prize for best tack as she was one of the few who remembered to clean her bridle. Bess looked stunning but ran out of time as Shona and Elly had two horses to do.

Bobby with Kezzia and Leanne had a special prize for the cleanest head. Unfortunately Bobby only joined in at the last minute as he was feeling left out so he did not have the same amount of washing as the others but he still looked good.

Toby and Coco are settling in. Coco has been lightly ridden and Toby is starting lunge work. They are getting used to their new neighbors Mini and Freddie.

This was the day of the spring bank holiday and the Kings Heath Show. As the weather was due to be so bad we took the little ponies for the in hand showing classes. We took Maisey, Ted, Minnie and Freddie. They went in lots of classes including the fun classes at the end of the show and really enjoyed the day even though it was very wet and cold!