Hi Everyone!
This week I have been based in Kildare Yard, which houses all the mares that foaled in the INS foaling unit this season. It is my 4th rotation in this yard, and dont tell anyone, but its my favourite!! There is alot of handling of the foals, who arrive from the foaling unit at 2 or 3 days old if they are fit and healthy. As the weather has gotten better in the last few weeks, the older foals born in January, February or March are living out or "camping in Australia" as the Irish call it here! They only come in to the stables if the mare is needed for teasing or vetting, so we may have to bring them down to the yard once or twice a week. The mare is always led from your left hand and the foal from your right hand. But it is a fair walk, so we have time to get them walking and leading properly, they dont get too feral!
They are so used to people handling them, that you can walk up to them in paddock and give them a cuddle or a pat and they wont move a muscle. The other day we lay down next to one of the foals while he was sleeping and rested our head on his tummy and he just kept on snoring! Moments like those make you realise how lucky you are to be working with horses!
Kildare Yard is in the main area of the stud where tourists come through on tours and just on their walks. So once again, the foremen are strict on the yard being as neat and tidy as possible. Working in this yard you come across people from all sorts of backgrounds. I have met plenty of Aussie's, who are nearly always asking after Vintage Crop (Melbourne Cup winner 1993). You can get throughbred people asking after which foals are by which stallions, or you can get the opposite; people asking what is the difference between a stallion and a mare! So obviously you need to have plenty of tact and be polite to everyone! Sometimes you feel like a movie star, when you walk around a corner and there are 60 people standing there from a tour, each one with a camera snapping away!! And you are trying to keep a hold of the foal and the mare!!! Its very challenging!
During our time in Kildare yard we are required to complete a week of "teasing duty". So we are in charge of deciding which mares are needed for teasing and vetting. We are given each mares teasing records, and based on those have to make up the list for each day. Every stud is different in every country around the world, so this was done differently here to what i was used to at Swettenham. But having been around the vetting during the breeding season gives you a fair idea of what is going on, its just a matter of learning the different symbols and pregnancy testing days. This week is my week on teasing, and its great learning the different ways of doing things.
Having lots of fun with the foals, although some of them are getting quite big!!
Hope all is well back in OZ!
Courtney
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Stallions
Hi Everyone,
I am on my last day of stallions, and have had a very enjoyable week. As the covering barn is "front of house" the whole place must kept clean and tidy at all times. We have to be presentable, the stables have to be presentable and the horses have to be presentable! There is lots of grooming and brasso-ing done in between covers, which occur 4 times a day maximum. Covers are at approx 7am, 11am, 4pm and 8pm. I have been lucky enough to handle all the stallions at some stage during the week, being allowed to take out or bring in from the paddock Jeremy, Amadeous Wolf, Rakti, Verglas & Art Connoissuer. I was also asked to hold Indian Haven and Invincible Spirit while they were having their manes pulled. In the breeding shed our duties as students include holding the mares, holding the foals in the foal pen, or holding the head or tail. Luckily I gained experience in the covering barn at Swettenham Stud prior to coming to the INS, and it has helped me greatly. Although back home we dont have to hold the foals during the cover, and this is a job that requires strength and the ability to sustain a few kicks, bites and hooves on the head! I highly recommend getting as much experience as you can by getting involved in as many aspects of the stud workings as possible. At the end of the day experience and making mistakes is the only way to learn!
Hope all is well
Courtney
I am on my last day of stallions, and have had a very enjoyable week. As the covering barn is "front of house" the whole place must kept clean and tidy at all times. We have to be presentable, the stables have to be presentable and the horses have to be presentable! There is lots of grooming and brasso-ing done in between covers, which occur 4 times a day maximum. Covers are at approx 7am, 11am, 4pm and 8pm. I have been lucky enough to handle all the stallions at some stage during the week, being allowed to take out or bring in from the paddock Jeremy, Amadeous Wolf, Rakti, Verglas & Art Connoissuer. I was also asked to hold Indian Haven and Invincible Spirit while they were having their manes pulled. In the breeding shed our duties as students include holding the mares, holding the foals in the foal pen, or holding the head or tail. Luckily I gained experience in the covering barn at Swettenham Stud prior to coming to the INS, and it has helped me greatly. Although back home we dont have to hold the foals during the cover, and this is a job that requires strength and the ability to sustain a few kicks, bites and hooves on the head! I highly recommend getting as much experience as you can by getting involved in as many aspects of the stud workings as possible. At the end of the day experience and making mistakes is the only way to learn!
Hope all is well
Courtney
Thursday, April 15, 2010
HH The Aga Khan's Gilltown Stud
Hi Everyone!
We went on our first trip today to the immaculate Gilltown (part of the Aga Khan Studs), which is owned by HH The Aga Khan. We were introduced to the manager Pat Downes, who took us around the stud and to look at the stallions. This year they are standing Azamour, Dalakhani and in particular Sea The Stars who was born and raised at the Irish National Stud. In his 3yo career he won 6 Group 1's in 6 months, including the 2,000 Guineas, the Epsom Derby, Eclipse Stakes, International Stakes, Irish Champion Stakes and the Prix de L'Arc de Triomphe. So he is a huge favourite among the Irish people! His dam Urban Sea resided at the INS for may years, and sadly passed away post foaling in 2009 after producing an Invincible Spirit colt. She was a much loved part of the farm, and is also the dam of the great Coolmore sire Galileo (by Sadler's Wells).
In short, to see Sea The Stars was a huge thrill, and even I got goosebumps, so I can hardly imagine how excited the Irish students were! We were all privileged enough to be allowed to get a single photo with him, and then a group shot. Sea The Stars took it all in his stride, and stood for us as if he knew just how good he was! He is a beautifully conformed horse, with a lovely big loose walk, and once he lets down from his race condition it is easy to see the impressive horse he will become!
Looking forward to the Punchestown Race Festival next week (the premier jumps racing carnival in Ireland) as we all get to go on one of the days.
Hoping all is well back home,
Courtney
We went on our first trip today to the immaculate Gilltown (part of the Aga Khan Studs), which is owned by HH The Aga Khan. We were introduced to the manager Pat Downes, who took us around the stud and to look at the stallions. This year they are standing Azamour, Dalakhani and in particular Sea The Stars who was born and raised at the Irish National Stud. In his 3yo career he won 6 Group 1's in 6 months, including the 2,000 Guineas, the Epsom Derby, Eclipse Stakes, International Stakes, Irish Champion Stakes and the Prix de L'Arc de Triomphe. So he is a huge favourite among the Irish people! His dam Urban Sea resided at the INS for may years, and sadly passed away post foaling in 2009 after producing an Invincible Spirit colt. She was a much loved part of the farm, and is also the dam of the great Coolmore sire Galileo (by Sadler's Wells).
In short, to see Sea The Stars was a huge thrill, and even I got goosebumps, so I can hardly imagine how excited the Irish students were! We were all privileged enough to be allowed to get a single photo with him, and then a group shot. Sea The Stars took it all in his stride, and stood for us as if he knew just how good he was! He is a beautifully conformed horse, with a lovely big loose walk, and once he lets down from his race condition it is easy to see the impressive horse he will become!
Looking forward to the Punchestown Race Festival next week (the premier jumps racing carnival in Ireland) as we all get to go on one of the days.
Hoping all is well back home,
Courtney
Letter to Oz 2
Hi All!
Well no more snow! The weather has been lovely since the 1st of March! We have 50 foals on the ground and the "boys on the hill" are busy, busy, busy! There aer 7 stallions standing at the INS this year. The hugely popular Invincible Spirit, the tough guy Rakti, Verglas the beautiful grey, Indian Haven who is by the late INS patriach Indian Ridge, Amadeus Wolf and Jeremy who have their first crop of foals on the ground this year, and new kid on the block Art Conoissuer.
There are quite a few very well connected students this year, and listening to their stories is sometimes like what you would see in a movie! Although we are a small group, everyone gets along really well. The stud is absolutely beautiful and the tourism side of the farm is very interesting. I really like all the tourists coming around, and the thrill they get out out of being able to touch a mare or foal or get their picture taken with one. There are several tours that run daily, and on weekends the stud is crawling with visitors! Trying to get all the work done when there are 50 people hanging around the gateways or inside the stables is very challenging, but meeting people from all over the world makes up for it! The weather hasn't been as bad as I had expected, and since the 1st of March it has only rained once! The lectures have been coming thick and fast, and I'm very grateful for having studied previously at the NCEE as I really feel it has given me a huge head start.
I was lucky enough that my first weekend off in a month fell on the Curragh's first race meet of the year! The Curragh is Irelands premier racetrack, and is only a 5 minute drive from the INS. Aiden O'Brien (Coolmore's top trainer) had a team of 25 horses do trackwork after the last race, showcasing St Nicholas Abbey, Fame and Glory and Rip Van Winkle. Can't wait til we start our field trips; especially to Kildangan (Darley), Coolmore and Gilltown to see "Sea The Stars"!
Hope all is well back in Oz!
Courtney
Well no more snow! The weather has been lovely since the 1st of March! We have 50 foals on the ground and the "boys on the hill" are busy, busy, busy! There aer 7 stallions standing at the INS this year. The hugely popular Invincible Spirit, the tough guy Rakti, Verglas the beautiful grey, Indian Haven who is by the late INS patriach Indian Ridge, Amadeus Wolf and Jeremy who have their first crop of foals on the ground this year, and new kid on the block Art Conoissuer.
There are quite a few very well connected students this year, and listening to their stories is sometimes like what you would see in a movie! Although we are a small group, everyone gets along really well. The stud is absolutely beautiful and the tourism side of the farm is very interesting. I really like all the tourists coming around, and the thrill they get out out of being able to touch a mare or foal or get their picture taken with one. There are several tours that run daily, and on weekends the stud is crawling with visitors! Trying to get all the work done when there are 50 people hanging around the gateways or inside the stables is very challenging, but meeting people from all over the world makes up for it! The weather hasn't been as bad as I had expected, and since the 1st of March it has only rained once! The lectures have been coming thick and fast, and I'm very grateful for having studied previously at the NCEE as I really feel it has given me a huge head start.
I was lucky enough that my first weekend off in a month fell on the Curragh's first race meet of the year! The Curragh is Irelands premier racetrack, and is only a 5 minute drive from the INS. Aiden O'Brien (Coolmore's top trainer) had a team of 25 horses do trackwork after the last race, showcasing St Nicholas Abbey, Fame and Glory and Rip Van Winkle. Can't wait til we start our field trips; especially to Kildangan (Darley), Coolmore and Gilltown to see "Sea The Stars"!
Hope all is well back in Oz!
Courtney
Letter to Oz 1
Hi All!
I thought in my first letter i would tell everyone about the Irish National Stud, the students and how the course basically works. This year due to the economic crisis there are fewer students, down from the usual 27 to 17. There are 3 Australians, a New Zealander, French and Indian, 3 from America (mainly the Kentucky area), 3 English and 6 Irish students.The stud is spread out into many different yards, named after exceptional horses the stud bred, which all serve different purposes, such as the stallion barn, the foaling unit, pregnant mares, yearlings, barren mares etc. All have their own foreman and staff. The first week involves inductions into each of the yards. Students are assigned a different yard to work in each week, and are put to work straight away! On day one I can definately give one peice of advice, and that is to practise straw boxes, they take some getting used to and there are plenty of them as every horse on the stud is boxed overnight. Students are also put on foal watch either 3 or 4 nights a week throughout the season. Each weeknight there are lectures from industry leaders from all fields and projects are given out regularly. For my first week I am based in Strawhall, which houses all pregnant mares and does the foaling down. So far the INS staff are great, the accommodation is toasty warm and the food is brilliant. I am heading back to work now in the SNOW!!!
Courtney
I thought in my first letter i would tell everyone about the Irish National Stud, the students and how the course basically works. This year due to the economic crisis there are fewer students, down from the usual 27 to 17. There are 3 Australians, a New Zealander, French and Indian, 3 from America (mainly the Kentucky area), 3 English and 6 Irish students.The stud is spread out into many different yards, named after exceptional horses the stud bred, which all serve different purposes, such as the stallion barn, the foaling unit, pregnant mares, yearlings, barren mares etc. All have their own foreman and staff. The first week involves inductions into each of the yards. Students are assigned a different yard to work in each week, and are put to work straight away! On day one I can definately give one peice of advice, and that is to practise straw boxes, they take some getting used to and there are plenty of them as every horse on the stud is boxed overnight. Students are also put on foal watch either 3 or 4 nights a week throughout the season. Each weeknight there are lectures from industry leaders from all fields and projects are given out regularly. For my first week I am based in Strawhall, which houses all pregnant mares and does the foaling down. So far the INS staff are great, the accommodation is toasty warm and the food is brilliant. I am heading back to work now in the SNOW!!!
Courtney
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