Happy International Women’s Day - let’s go fly our kites!!

How has our knowledge of #HorseBehaviourAndWelfare evolved? Listen to one of the foremost equine behavioural vets to find out!

A sneak peek at a fabulous new addition to @NaasRacecourse and the wider Naas community. Lily & Wild At The Post will be open 7 days a week for brunch/coffee/lunch - great location and a great team involved @LilyandWild

That’s probably my binge reading fest over for a while but what a great book to finish up the holidays - Playground by Richard Powers. A real multi-layered tour de force that makes you ponder long after you’ve put it down.

My non-fiction latest was Supercommunicators by Charles Duhigg - this one I’ll definitely read a few times - loads of nuggets about how to have meaningful conversations.

I often have two books on the go, one fiction and one non-fiction. The Amazing Grace Adams by Fran Littlewood is a cleverly crafted book about a pivotal day in the life of an overwhelmed woman. Great read!

I can absolutely see how the formula would work then, when many people had never heard other voices. I’ll be interested in an updated version in light of progress (?) since.

Book cover of two men in suits with a barefoot woman in an evening dress between them. They appear to be running across a broad hedge-sheltered lawn to imposing wrought-iron gates in the distance.

Beautifully written, wonderful prose: I found The Stranger’s Child by Alan Hollingshurst compelling (for the language) but ultimately unfulfilling (for the plot)

Another 2nd hand book purchase (on hols in S Africa). Race by @rylandfisher.bsky.social This one I skimmed as
(1) I didn’t like the format (interviews on race-related topics, interspersed with the author’s views) (2) it was written in 2007 so pretty outdated (I assume? Not my specialist subject!)

I’m not sure if there is any sphere with more polarized opinions than the horse world, and the topic of appropriation hoof care can definitely evoke heated debate. Have a listen to a voice of reason in this episode of @changingrein.bsky.social

Book cover of two women lying in the sun, only parts of their clothed bodies visible

I picked up Ann Patchett’s Truth and Beauty in a second hand bookshop. I knew nothing about it, but I’m so glad I read it: a compelling memoir of a complicated friendship between two writers. Highly recommended!

Book cover with fantastical image houses dotted among trees on a hill.

It doesn’t often happen, but I think I’m admitting defeat with One Hundred Years of Solitude and it will go on the ‘half-finished’ pile. Maybe another time…..

A book cover showing a farm silhouetted against a brooding sky.

There’s nothing like a holiday for an opportunity to read!! This my latest read of 2025 was These Are Not Gentle People by Andrew Harding - a gripping non-fiction retelling of events that tore apart a small South African farming community.

#AskTheAudience

Book cover with a photo of a silhouette of a man in one lit window of a high rise building.

The next book of 2025 is different: The Trading Game by Gary Stevenson (my husband was given it as a Christmas gift) - a fascinating insight into the (mostly toxic) life of a FX trader. I wish there was more about his pivot to attempting to solve wealth inequality - maybe there’ll be a sequel?

Book cover of a woman standing in a window just outside the cast of lamplight.

I’ve always been an avid reader and my sole simple resolution for 2025 is to read more books. First off was Graham Norton’s Frankie. No huge expectations but I absolutely loved it.

New Year, new tagline!

‘what' = evidence-based actions

‘we' = everyone of us involved in the horse community,

‘do' = the action word

‘next' reminds us that we can build on what we have already achieved.

Catch up on all the episodes on changingrein.com.au

Horses have their basic biological drives too, and where we see problem behaviours they are usually because these drives have been thwarted (and the behaviours are problematic for us, not the horses: the horses are just trying to communicate the best way they can!)

One for the long drive to visit family, the walk to feed the horses, or just while relaxing on the couch - a bumper Christmas episode!

I was in London for a day last Saturday, wandering around Marylebone and stumbled on the Selvedge Winter Fair - a feast of textiles, embroidery, ribbons, crewel work…..I’d make a special effort to go next year!

Ch-ch-change? Tools for constructive conversations about change with Bronwen Williams Changing Rein · Episode

I co-host a podcast about the future of #HorseSport using an #EquineWelfare lens. But you don’t need an interest in 🐴 to tune into our latest episode about having change conversations. In work, at school, with our families….these conversations happen everywhere open.spotify.com/episode/2hIH...

This study shows that it IS possible to provide the 3Fs (Forage, Freedom, Friends) to high-level sports horses (including Olympians) and that #EquineWelfare is enhanced as a result. Spread the word!!! frontiersin.org/journals/veter…

This is a guaranteed great night out, in aid of a great cause! #TreoEile #NewDirection
#ThoroughbredAftercare

I loved the original- saw the trailer and the CGI really jarred, but will probably give it a watch

Found the first season of #WolfHall - pure TV bliss!

All of the above 🤣but if I had to pick one it would be ginger

Big fan here - thanks for the heads-up!

Thanks Patti! Will look forward to hearing what you think.

Thanks Sue, but ohh, the algorithms! A fellow speaker from #TedXTralee has a (really good!) talk on sex & money that has 41k views 😳 already!

Saving Our World with One Welfare Education | Meta Osborne | TEDxTralee YouTube video by TEDx Talks

My first BlueSky post - and given that it launched this week, I thought I’d share my #TedX talk. It’s slightly outside my normal sphere (horses are only mentioned once!) but I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to spread the word about #OneWelfare youtu.be/HgyY4S7mEPo?...