Prison for equestrian auction fraudster, and other things the horse world is talking about

1. Prison for Australian fires fraudster

A woman who raised £34,000 supposedly for the victims of the Australian bushfires but spent it on clothes and beauty treatments in an “appalling case of fraud” has been sent to prison. Kerry Palin, 27, gave $5 AUD (£2.50) to four charities then spent the rest on herself. Palin, of Pemberton Street, Rushden, Northamptonshire, later pleaded guilty to fraud by false representation, concealing criminal property and acquiring criminal property. She was sentenced to one year and four months in prison at Peterborough Crown Court on Friday (11 August). PC Sam Dane, who investigated, said: “This was an appalling case of fraud where Palin not only deceived generous, kind-natured individuals, but deprived the wildlife victims of the wildfires of thousands of pounds in donations, which would have made a huge difference to their lives.”

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2. Farewell to a passionate carriage driver and countryman

Johnny Arden, the founder of carriage driving business Dartmoor Driving died on 25 July, aged 89. Mr Arden grew up on his family farm near Chagford, Devon, working the farm with horses. After the war he went on to ride pointers as an amateur jockey, and later joined the Royal Army Veterinary Corps, working with dogs and driving horses. He developed a passion for carriage driving, and turned this into a business. His passion was “getting a team of horses on the road and putting in the miles”, and he spent more than 30 years sharing his love of Dartmoor and teaching people to drive.

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How to keep stabled horses happy and healthy

Considerable research has been devoted to finding ways to mitigate the social, nutritional and health issues caused by stabling. While it is inevitable that many horses spend more time indoors over winter, we can greatly improve their lives with a little thought and a willingness to challenge the preconceived ideas of how they should be kept. Vet Kieran O’Brien suggests keeping horses happy and healthy indoors means ditching some of the more outdated ideas about stabling. “Many notions about stabling date from the Victorian age. One such concept is stable design that precludes continuous visual and tactile contact — where the only opportunity for a horse to see his companions is when he and another are looking over the stable door at the same time,” he says.

Find out what stabling changes you can make to ensure your horse is happy and healthy

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