Barbara Haddrill
My name is Barbara and for the last sixteen years my main passion in life has been working with horses. From my first training, to getting my first horse and learning on the job, it has been a wild adventure with many ups and downs. Lots of people contact me and ask how they can become a horselogger. To get to where we are, where working with my horses is my full time job, has involved I think being tenacious, bloody minded, passionate and kind. Loving being outdoors whatever the weather and ultimately the joy from seeing the animals give their all. It is a hard life, and it does take up my whole life, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. I work with small coloured cobs, partly as they look cool, but mostly as they are incredibly nimble when it comes to navigating tricky and steep terrain.
Tyler
Tyler is twenty-three and is the first large animal I ever owned and getting her was a huge step and changed my life forever. I was so lucky to choose her as she has been so incredibly loyal, hardworking, intelligent and willing and put up a lot with me stumbling along behind her. I would never have got where I am now if I hadn’t had Tyler. She is so perfectly reliable and also quite aggressively possessive of me, but I love it! She still works doing light duties and comes in handy on certain jobs for her intelligence and also for trainees to learn with. She will remain with me for life.
Molly
Molly is now eleven and I have had her since she was 4. She came with the basics of trotting along in a cart but hadn’t really been fully schooled. Tyler helped and we started from scratch with her really for both work and being ridden. She is now the most reliable horse I have for bracken rolling and is also very dependable for training courses. She works either as a single or as a pair and has worked with Tyler and Bluebell. She is the bottom of the herd from the horses point of view but she is the gentlest and sweetest natured of them all and I try to treat her to extra love and treats when the others are not around.
Bluebell
Bluebell is 9 and is the newest member of the team, and I didn’t think I could get a more strong-willed horse than Tyler until Bluebell came along. She has had a patchy past being moved from pillar to post so I think she learnt to stand up for herself and to stand out. She makes her opinions known and she is a very striking horse so wherever we are, she is the one that gets all the attention. She is nicknamed Tank Girl as she is small but wide and when she wants to can pull her socks off and gives her all. She works on some bracken jobs, but I am not sure she is a fan. She works as a single or as a pair and is still a bit keen for me to use for any trainees, but she is good for demonstrating and keeping me on my toes.