Bitless & Natural Equestrian Centre

Horses living at BEC Livery are iron-free & live as a natural, mixed herd, eating a fibre-based diet, having unrestricted movement and with access to natural and man-made shelter. Every effort is made to reduce exposure to chemicals, synthetic substances and man-made stress to an absolute minimum.

Domestication will always be a compromise for the horse but we can offer more of a choice than is currently available through conventional yard management. All it takes is the courage to step out of the box and take a look at evolution. Horses require a simple set of essentials. After all if they can look after themselves for all that time, surely, we should be able to meet their needs?

We take your horse’s health and happiness very seriously. All horses are treated as individuals and will be catered for individually. What suits one horse may not suit another. It is fully understood that some will cope with a ‘natural’ lifestyle better than others – each requiring a different level of care. We aim to allow horses to be horses as much as possible – our ongoing work with equines has shown us that this is absolutely the best for them, emotionally & physically. In addition to a lifetime experience of caring for animals, including 15 years running a large-breed specialist boarding kennels, the yard owner obtained 100% pass in the Equine Nutrition course run by the Royal Dick School of Veterinary Studies and has a CPD Certificate of Attendance from Joe Nasr, medical herbalist for a 2-day seminar on the preparation, properties and uses of aromatic waters, spirituous waters, aromatic tinctures and creams.

In the incredibly soggy winter of 2015/16 we added another dimension to our hybrid track/rotational grazing system by opening a large concrete yard, sheltered by buildings on one side & trees on the other, specifically for winter feeding out of the driving rain which was a feature of that winter. That is an element of the equi-central system and we have found that it works very well in combination with the existing track & herbal grazing paddocks. During the summer we have forage available on that concrete yard too (as well as more on the track); the horses like to take advantage of the cool shade there. The concrete yard is easily accessible from the track at all times.

You can see from the photographs that our land is quite high up – there is always a breeze at this altitude, which makes it ideal for horses prone to sweet-itch. One of our retired ‘ladies’ has never needed her fly sheet since she arrived 8 years ago!

Full Livery includes
* 24 hr turnout on hybrid track/rotational grazing/ equi-central system with free access to large man-made shelter and natural shelter
* All hay, haylage, Himalayan salt, Redmond Rock (containing minerals), Salt Granules (additive free), seaweed
* Minimum twice daily check –
* Monthly Herbal worming
* Use of indoor manege & riding paddocks
* Use of covered area / large, airy stables for grooming etc
*Applied Zoopharmacognosy consultations by appointment

Wholistic Horsemanship – Pioneering a Kinder Way with Horses

Get to know your horse better through body language, observation within the herd and working at liberty. Lessons can be booked with Rosemary Carrington-Rogers BHSAI, our Training Manager, for those wishing to learn more about the horse’s own language of body movement, eye contact, intention and intuition. Rosemary also loves to teach jumping, starting in-hand and gradually building up as far and as high as you / your horse want to go.

NB: We are no longer operating a riding school, however livery clients are welcome to book any freelance instructor to work with them and/or their horse(s). The indoor school is available now exclusively to livery clients 🙂

Free schooling (working at liberty) increases body awareness, reaction time and safety as the horse learns to balance himself and approach obstacles without the added load of a rider. This can be done individually or in groups for an additional weekly charge.

Access to our ‘herb bar’ on a regular basis where herbs which are not currently growing in the paddocks are available in fresh or dried form – up to 20 different herbs are offered ad lib & above average intake is invoiced weekly or monthly.

The yard owner & family live on site and Bitless Equestrian Centre is fully insured as a livery & training yard.