Summer Work Experience - Brantome Police Horses

Northhavon

This summer I spent around two weeks working for Brantome Police Horses, which is an institution that takes in retired police horses (that would otherwise have been put down) and looks after them in their old age. These horses are looked after by Roland and Alison Phillips and are situated in the Dordogne area in France. I really admire what this family is doing, most people don't understand what police horses have to endure throughout their careers and how much it affects them (both mentally and physically). I learnt a lot about businesses and the world of work during this time - for example how much publicity Roland and Alison had to give the centre. During my time with them they did this through cream teas on Wednesday afternoons, a fair, an art class visiting to draw the horses, and a ball. I want to work for a charity organisation like this in the future as it is so beneficial for the animals, and I get to be involved with the animals (clearly) and people that share the same values as me.

A friend and I with Copperfield

Some of the horses were:
- Johnny Johnston
- Lewis
- St Michael
- Matthew
- Northhavon
- Copperfield
- Comic

I contacted Roland and Alison when I was in Nairobi and expressed my desire to come down and do some volunteer work for them for a month or so. They were very happy to get my email and said they would appreciate my help greatly (after all, there are 18 horses to look after and only a few people working on the farm). I ended up going for four weeks, from July 14th to August 6th. I would arrive at 9:30 in the morning and get picked up at 5:00.

Dolly and I

Roland and Alison were also very kind to offer to pay for me to do a horse care course with Susan Rainbird, where I learnt how to muck out, set fresh straw down, groom, use bandages, make up feeds, and much more. The group was made up of about seven or six kids (ages 5-16) and there was a very friendly and welcoming atmosphere throughout the time there. Susan allowed us to consider things from different viewpoints, showing us exactly how the bit hurts the horse and how much pressure we should put on their feet when cleaning them, etc. During my first week in the course I was with my friend, though on the following Friday I was helping Susan out more (I was less of a student and more of an assistant). I liked this course as it allowed us to participate and get involved a lot and see the horses for ourselves. After the end of the two days we would get a certificate and have a quiz on the information. This went on from 9:30 to 1:00 and I would stay another 4 hours to do work in the stables.

I bring in Walter

My weeks were broken down as so:

Week one: Monday to Friday working
Week two: Monday, Thursday and Friday - Thursday and Friday including the horse care course in the morning
Week three: Monday and Friday - Friday including the horse care course for part of the day
Week four: Monday and Tuesday - Tuesday from 9:30 - 1:00

When I first arrived at the stables I didn't know much about how to look after horses and what was required of an employee. Roland showed me the basics and another girl helping out taught me how to muck out, make hay bales, etc. As the days went by I learnt how to do everything a lot better, and could eventually come in and work without instruction the whole day. The work was long and physically tiring but definitely worthwhile. It meant everything to me seeing the horses so happy and well cared for and being able to interact with them on a daily basis.

Jobs included:
- Making hay bales and putting hay in the stables
- Making feeds - 1 scoop conditioning cubes, half scoop chaff, half scoop cereal
- Grooming the horses (I learnt about the various brushes and their uses throughout my time at the stables)
- Mucking out - I got to know the different equipment and how to save the expensive bedding in the stall while getting out the dirt
- Feeding the sheep
- Putting horses in and out - I learnt how to hold them, how to put on their head gear, the dangers, etc
- Cleaning the feed bowls and filling water buckets

Susan teaches me how to groom

- Cleaning out their water bowls - I had to empty out the containers and get out all of the dirt accumulating at the bottom manually
- Sweeping the stables
- Helping with the cream teas - I helped set out the tables and serve people when they came and sat down, this was very stressful as there were so many people all waiting to be served and only about 5 of us. However, it got me to get more used to interacting with people I didn't know and being more confident in myself.

Copperfield

- Helping at the fair the first day - They did cream teas at this fair and also needed someone to watch their two granddaughters - Izzie and Chloe.

Some of my best memories of this experience were all the free range chickens wandering about the stables and laying eggs in the straw for us to find, their seven dogs (Angus, Bessie, Cooper, Henry, etc), and Alison and her daughter Debby preparing delicious lunches and cream teas for everyone. Roland was so kind and gentle with me, teaching me how to do the work around the stable with infinite patience and good humour and my favourite horse Comic was so affectionate, often coming over and licking my hand, or falling asleep while I was stroking him. I also loved seeing how well looked after these police horses were - Comic, for example, had a recurring eye infection and his antibiotics weren't working so Roland and Alison got a woman over who did reiki on him and another who did healing touches for all of the horses.

Comic and Copperfield - inseparable

This was an amazing experience for me, and one of the best things I've ever done. It taught me so much about determination and having confidence in myself. I loved that I was making a direct and clear difference for these animals, who have been so hardworking and dedicated throughout their lives and who deserve a retirement more than anyone. They have endured so much throughout their lives, like the underground stables in police stations (Roland told me that one of their horses, upon arrival, had never been in an outside field before and didn't know how to graze) and the violent protests that they go into (often getting objects thrown at their eyes and faces).

Free range chickens!

Having this job made me understand what it's like to have something I'm passionate about to work for, and what it means to mean something to someone and have people depending on you. I also recognised the transition between being in school and in work - in school you do it because you must get good grades, not necessarily because you like it. However when you're working you're doing it because you believe in the message it sends and enjoy spending your time in a certain way. Furthermore, it allowed me to acknowledge what is required of an employee (respect, timeliness, determination, friendliness, etc) and how to properly follow instructions and work well with others.

I was pleased because this relates to what I want to do in the future - it's a charity organisation that works to help those who cannot speak out for themselves, and allows you to be in contact with the animals themselves. It therefore let me get a feeling of what it's like and gave me a chance to see if it was what I really wanted to do with my life - it definitely made me more sure of my choices. Furthermore, my confidence was boosted by the fact that I was treated like an adult. I was expected to know certain things and function independently, and I surprised myself with how hard I worked and how well I responded to this. I feel like I really made a difference for Roland and Alison as looking after so many horses is very challenging (there are so many things that need to be done in one day).

I can't wait to see the horses again next summer - I already miss them all so much!

For more information about Brantome Police Horses you can look at their website:
http://www.brantomepolicehorses.com/about-us.php