Novice ruiter = gebreekte neus
Elsabé Fouché van Nietverdiend skryf:

Blues maak dit toe nie na Fauresmith. Op Wollies uitgeval na 60 km met 'n kramp, links agter. Baie trane en so dog ek toe dit is nou die einde van ons uithouritdae. Ek is mal oor perde en sal selfs af en toe 'n geldjie daarop waag, maar ek is nie 'n camper nie en ek is só bang iemand kom iets oor.

Sal jy glo wat gebeur? Die Ouma koop vir Ousus, die naamgenoot, haar eie Nooitgedachter en Skatjie koop vir my 'n vos plaasperd met die verruklike naam van Appel! Hoekom? Sodat ek saam met Ousus kan begin uithourit ry!
As kind kon ek goed perdry. Ek het ook geen vrees of fobies gehad nie, maar nou, 'n hele paar kilogram swaarder en baie ouer, is ek in 'n toestand om weer perd te ry. Nietemin, so durf ek en Ousus die narit op Schweizer-Reneke aan met ons splinternuwe perde. Nogal my plek waar ek grootgeword het.

'n Nag sonder slaap
Die vorige nag slaap ek niks nie. Om 4:00 die oggend staan ek op met 'n "wat nou moet gebeur moet maar gebeur"-houding. Ek skakel die perdewinkeltjie se mense om 05:00 om vir my asb kamaste te bring, want ek dink ek het dit ook nodig – ek probeer my so uitrus om my teen alle moontlike breuke en wonde te beskerm.

Ons spring weg, ek op Appel, Ousus op Shaka, my niggie, haar man en twee seuns, my sus, haar man en hulle twee kinders. Almal glimlag en is opgewonde, net ek is in 'n toestand. Appel hou glad nie by die reëls nie. Hy wil voor wees. Hy hou sy kop laag en ek spook om nie by sy nek af te gly nie.

Ek ry met 'n stokou saal – hoe verder ons vorder, hoe meer val daar stukke van die saal af. In 'n stadium moes ek stop om darem net weer die belangrikste parte met 'n stukkie binddraad vas te maak. Die buikgord is ook maar in 'n toestand en spring twee keer los. Hugo moet elke keer sy hings tot bedaring bring en my eers kom help. Ek kan buikgord vasmaak – die probleem is net as ek eers af is, kom ek nie weer op nie!

Net toe dit lekker gaan ...
Na 20 km begin ek dit werklik geniet. Ek ontspan, begin dink ek sal dalk van uithouritte hou, kry ritme en besef Appel is eintlik 'n yster. Hy sweet nie naastenby soos die ander perde nie en lyk vir my sommer fris en agtermekaar. So 5 km van die skougronde af, is dit toe sulke tyd ...

Appel slaan gat oor kop en ek volg dieselfde paadjie. Jy sien net stof! Appel skuur al sy hare op sy voorkop af en ek? Ek kom redelik lig daarvan af – 'n gekneusde linkerknieg, woes gekneusde ribbekas en 'n gebreekte neus! Opgeklim en verder gery, my 30 km voltooi, maar die volgende dag het ek erge rigor mortis gehad, of wat jy dit ook al noem: Verskriklik styf en seer, gedaan, moeg en der dagen sat!

A miracle cure for African Horse Sickness?
Concerned horse owner from the Southern Cape writes:

I refer to the advertisement of "The African Horse Sickness Solution" in your March edition.

Wow – a miracle cure has been found – this has to be the biggest news in the history of African Horse Sickness! Lately adverts and articles have appeared in many horse magazines and on the internet, about this incredible new treatment.

As an interested horse owner, I made some direct enquiries to the supplier and did some further investigation. I learned that, although it is a new name on the market and only recently experimented with on horses as a "cure for AHS", it is the same chemical concoction known as MMS – Miracle Mineral Solution.

MMS (not to be confused with MSM) has been doing the rounds among humans for years – with impressive claims of curing cancer, malaria, Aids and most fatal diseases known to man – amazingly, with "no side effects".

The first question any intelligent person should ask, is why such a product has not been registered as a human or animal treatment and why all the doctors, scientists, vets and governments in the world, have not taken heed of a treatment that can cure everything?

Investigate exactly what MMS is – not only from the promotional material written by many suppliers on the internet, but from qualified experts. You will then understand why it has been rejected by scientists as a treatment and recently banned in Canada!

Basically the "miracle cure" contains sodium chlorite and citric acid which, when mixed, becomes chlorine dioxide – something which is toxic to all forms of life and mainly used as an industrial bleach, cleaner and disinfectant. Also study some of the dangerous possible side effects and you will discover that it can cause a variety of long-term health problems.

Yet, after only starting experiments during the last year on a few horses (nine are mentioned but current numbers don’t seem to be available), the "experimenters" (not vets, chemists or scientists), are already producing a bottled treatment, advertising on a large scale and claiming it is "safe, natural, and has no side effects".

I hope many people read the article in SA Horseman entitled "Therapy or Quackery" (May 2009 edition) by Dr Louis Gouws, public relations officer for the Equine Veterinary Association of SA, giving strong warnings about certain unregistered treatments for AHS, including the type in question.

Something else I find disturbing in the "miracle" article, is that the author suggests a connection with the African Horse Sickness Trust, saying that they are "working with them". Knowing the AHS Trust well, I personally doubt they would want their name involved in the promotional advertising of this product.

I'd like to urge horse owners to look beyond the thick wad of promotional material on MMS.

SA Horseman has meanwhile learned that AHS Solution has closed its doors to further trading.