Q&A

with Equestrienne Magazine’s ambassador

Kate @mypilbaraequestrianlife

Do you worry about sharks?

This question comes up almost daily, so I thought it was worth answering! We definitely get sharks here I’m pretty sure we get sharks everywhere in Australia? (Correct me if I’m wrong!) I however don’t worry about them or really even think about them if I’m being honest. My dad was an avid free diver here for over 30 years, so as kids we spent so much time under the water diving with him where we would often see sharks of all kinds and sizes. Dad always assured us that we were not their natural prey here as we were much bigger than anything they would normally eat. Also due to us being in a fairly unpopulated area, it wasn’t overfished so the sharks always had plenty of food. I guess when it’s something you have always done and never encountered an incident you lose any kind of fear that may be present for someone else.

That’s not to say something is never going to happen but I think what a boring life it would have been living up here if I had been too scared to get in the water just in case some- thing could happen eventually. How much would my horses have missed out on if I was too scared to let them go to the beach, the place they love more than anywhere in our super-hot climate? That’s my take on it any way!

The only shark I have ever seen at the cove is a giant hammer head. He does the rounds usually in September every year for about a month. I’ve been quite far offshore when I have seen him hunting sting rays and although my heart did skip a beat for a second, I just lead the horses a bit closer to the shore and kept an eye on him. He never came anywhere near us. He’s amazing to watch cruise around. I’d love to know exactly how big he is because from afar he looks an impressive size!

Crocodiles on the other hand I do not like one bit! They eat anything and are sneaky hunters. We luckily don’t really get them here but if there has been a sighting I’ll just stay away from the mangroves and only go in where it’s clear enough to see!

How do you train the horses to follow off-lead at the beach?

I often get asked this but the truth is I have never actually “trained” them to do it. I do put a few precautions in place when trying it with a new horse for the first time such as -

1. The beach is quiet (no dogs that may chase or anything going on that may spook them)

2. The tide is out far enough that we can walk out into the water a distance and have them in chest deep so they are not too fast to catch if they are going to take off out to sea or back to shore (some horses will keep going out to the horizon and not stop!)

3. And lastly that I have established a respectful relationship with them at home first, as in they are happy to be caught or preferably will come up to you on their own to be caught even in a large, open paddock .

The first few times I take a new horse to the beach I will keep it on the lead just so they become familiar with the area and what’s going on around us but that’s about it!

I do allow the horses to almost choose freely what they want to do when we are there which I also think helps make it enjoyable for them and they are just such well-behaved ponies when they have the freedom they wish for.

I’m lucky that over the years Prada has become a kind of natural babysitter for the other horses. He will keep the others in line if they are going too far away. I also never taught him this but I can actually whistle and call his name and then say go get the girls and he will take off and herd the others back around to us. It’s such a fun thing to do, I have no idea how he understands what’s being asked but it works 9 times out of 10 and I love it! EM