Helping the horses at Packridge Farm

The weather outside was windy and raining but being a horse lover is not just a fair-weather hobby as four young volunteers from Southampton found out.

The school girls from Oasis Academy, Lordshill spent a wet afternoon on 23rd Feb learning the skills of looking after horses and ponies at Packridge Farm in Southampton.

Accompanied by their little assistants aged 4 and 5, the girls were shown how to groom Mary Poppins, a show pony, before having to remove the mud from her hooves. Usually a bright white colour, Mary patiently stood still and allowed the girls to spruce up her winter coat as all the other horses looked on.

The stables house six horses with Elvis the youngest at 4 years old and the girls soon established their favorites. Even Garfield the cat joined in; as he watched the action in the comfort of a dry stable sat on top of Bessie the horse.

After grooming Mary, the winner of 14 rosettes last year, was allowed to roam free in the paddock whilst the girls cleaned her stable. Her bedding is changed every two days and replaced with bales of hay and sawdust.

Once the hard grafting was done, the volunteers replaced Mary's water and food then she was back in the comfort of her warm, clean stable.

After an hour of being covered in mud with cold, numb feet, the girls all decided that having a horse was hard work but it definitely hasn't put them off: "It was really fun and brilliant" said Kayley Fredericks. "The Best" said Sophie Parker.

The volunteers aged 11-13 years old had chosen to work with horses as part of their volunteering with the Take Action project, which cover a range of volunteering activities in the Southampton and Eastleigh area.

Solent Youth Action runs activities like this throughout the year. If this sounds like something you'd like to be involved with next time, please get in touch!