Round the Bend Tack Shop

All this rain is bringing on a nice batch of mosquitoes in these parts!  Are you prepared with good fly sheets to protect your precious steeds?  We like the Shire’s choices a lot, but we can find you anything your heart desires if you call.  Fly spray should be on hand too, shouldn’ t it?  Less is better, and the natural ones are the best if you don’t like the idea of you or your horse ingesting poisonous fumes.

For those of you who haven’t lost interest in the fact that Stars in Her Eyes joined us last November – I think it’s time I posted a before and now picture.  She is looking SO good, and a pretty happy camper – even if a bit of a Calamity Jane.  But more on this later….

Don’t forget we are here!  It will be 31 years for InterLeather/RoundtheBend Tack Shop this year.  I am hoping to have an open house – stay tuned!

Stars really is a star!  3 yrs. old, off the track, two months off so far this winter.  Got on her out of the blue yesterday just because I couldn’t t wait any longer.  Stood while I mounted, moved off like it was nothing.  A lot of bit chewing though!  She is SO cool!!

Lots of new items ordered for the Shop…….. British racing helmet covers, silk stock ties, bits, cotton sheets, NeuSchule bits – and so much more.

Want to wash off some of that mud – mend a halter??  Call me!

I seem to have been missing in space for a while!  I would like to give all my readers an update.

First of all I have a new iMac.  Everyone told me it would be easier than my old PC….. WRONG!  Secondly, I have a new horse to keep the fabulous Oz company, having lost my 29 yr. old, Woody.  She is a 3 yr. old TB off the track having had a win at Belmont as a 2 yr. old.  Yikes!  Her name is Stars in Her Eyes and I think I am almost as besotted with her as I am with Oz.  We will see…….

I have to also tell you all that Dansko has dropped me from the very elite list of retailers apparently.  I wasn’t selling enough million pairs of shoes for them…..  Am I a sloppy shopkeeper or what?  We will overcome!  Meanwhile I have a few pairs left which will be very much discounted – take that Dansko!

My chickens have laid eggs all winter, bless their cotton socks!  And apparently eggs are what make you lose the dreaded belly fat!  My electricity bill is lower for January as I can hang clothes (and horse blankets) on the line on a regular basis – unlike last year.

The shop is a mess, but I have things coming in and out thank goodness….  Give me some ideas of what you need for spring.  It will  be upon us before we know it.

I am liking Mark Todd’s products a lot….. his 5-way breastplate is pretty nice – not to mention his breeches…..

Have another Black Country saddle – hard to find, but this one is in really good shape and waiting for someone to love it as much as I do!

I think we are all having to use a lot of fly spray right now….. the bugs have been TERRIBLE…. Can’t wait for a proper ride in the woods again soon!

Having got July 4th out of the way we can now breathe a sigh of relief that no one jumped the fence last weekend due to over-enthusiastic revelers with their own firework parties, and then the big crashing thunderstorm…..

So now to combat the throngs of biting bugs……. and we have plenty of bug spray on hand in the shop, plus I like the fly whisk a lot when I am riding, so does Oz!

Mrs. Brown has been broody for weeks it seems, but she might be coming out of it soon, I hope.  She takes breaks from nest sitting to come outside and stand in the water bowl.  So cooling to those fevered feet!

Ella Plum and the Rhode Island Red still do their jousting occasionally, but Ella really doesn’t like her attitude, and backs off fairly quickly.

Keep those comments rolling in…. I need to hear from you all as to what you are needing in your barn these days…..

The handsome Oz seems to have had another experience of being attacked by the bug that remains a mystery to me.  He suddenly got an allergic reaction to something in his mane which caused him great discomfort to the point he nearly killed me when I tried to mount and unknowingly touched him on the sore spot.  After a major operation of cleaning and even hogging (roaching) his mane he seems much recovered.   But I am curious as to how many other horses are suffering from this reaction….

Using Equinature’s tea tree shampoo, and tea tree ointment seems to be the most efficaceous in clearing this problem up quickly.  And now Equinatures bug repellent is a good defense!

Don’t forget to look for me at Groton House on June 24th for another fun filled weekend of eventing!

They are here!  Time to think about your horse’s defense system.  Look at our Shire’s fly sheets, or even the Kingshead fly sheets.  We also have sprays in natural formulas and also the nasty poisonous stuff which works better on deer flies.  Call us for support in your choices that meet your particular horse’s needs.

Now that the sun is out the blankets are drying on the line again…..  Maybe we will get summer after all.

Thanks to my very good friend Belinda I think we are on the right track now as far as giving proper information on my products. We are tweaking a little of this and a little of that so that you will soon be quite sure as to what I am offering.

New puppy rather a distraction at the moment, but in a good way. Ella Plum from Georgia joined us on April 13 and is growing at a rate of knots. She will have her picture posted soon, so stay tuned. She is a very good greeter for the shop when she is not being called away by Mrs. Borwn the chicken or some trespassing squirrel.

While ever increasing numbers of horse blankets dry on the line these days, I am glad to report that Mrs. Brown the chicken finally won! After weeks of bloody duels with Big Bertha the Rhode Island Red she found a solution, once and for all, in the fact that she learnt to crow like a rooster, so now Big Bertha has accepted her superiority!! And it doesn’t seem to have disrupted egg laying….

Meanwhile, the Shop is getting busier every day, and people are starting to look at bridles and coolers like they are really back in action now that spring has finally sprung…

Come and visit to see what we have to offer, and if nothing else you can see Mrs. Brown!

Just got another shipment in from the UK.  All sorts of goodies, one of which is the 17-1/2″ Black Country saddle.  Sat on it just for fun and can’t believe how comfortable it is.  Call me if you have any interest in it.

Even though the weather is threatening to do rude things again today it hasn’t put off the chickens who are still duelling to the death at every opportunity.

Looking out of the window the squirrels are pretty inspired today too….  zooming from tree to tree trying to get a date!