We're really proud to announce more great results from our four year old mare Doylan Dazzling Gift. She was 1st 4 and over under 14.2hh WPBR at the Brecon and Borders WPCS Bronze medal show and at her next outing the National Welsh Championship show she was 3rd overall in the WPBR National Championship final. Strong classes and for a pony who has not been specifically produced for in hand she has exceeded all our expectations. 'Delphi' is broken and riding sweetly and will be offered for sale as a 14hh shp/part bred to a top showing home. We will continue with in her education for as long as she stays with us and Autumn/Winter ridden shows are the aim.
Doylan Cafe au Lait (now sold) also appeared in The Showing Journal as she won both her classes at the Brecon and Borders WPCS Bronze medal show, Open and Novice WPBR. She is going really well in her new home and will be contesting her first dressage competitions with little jockey Freyja this month.

There was also a right up in the Welsh Breed News about Doylan Elegant Gift's successful start to her WHP career and Doylan Beau Jest had a successful return to competition (after a break due to MY broken foot!!) with a 72% dressage score and 4 faults jumping in the Allenshill combined training. Archfield Echo also won a big class there with 77% dressage and clear show jumping.

We wish to congratulate Anna Barratt and her daughter Freyja on their purchase of Doylan Cafe au Lait. She will be Freyja's new BYRDS pony and we look forward to following their success! Here is Gloriana at the last show we took her to, in the part bred Arab at the Midland Arab Group Summer Festival.

We have been working hard all winter and spring with young ponies and starting to see some great results. Doylan Elegant Gift has been jumping clear rounds and gaining placings in the Nursery stakes WHP classes with her fantastic little jockey Charlie Nott.
Doylan Cafe au Lait has continued to improve and go well in some tough RIHS qualifiers. She goes to Royal Three Counties on Sunday, Brecon Welsh show next week and the Midland Arab Summer gala the week after.
Doylan Dazzling Gift impressed at the High Horse Showing Society Show gaining two firsts in PBA and Riding Pony and taking overall in hand champion. We are slowly breaking her to saddle with a view to bringing her out later in the year.
Doylan Beau Jest has been consistantly getting great percentages and placings in Novice dressage tests but unfortunately had to have a 6 week break due to me breaking my foot and not being able to ride. He'll be back in work very soon and out at dressage show. xoxo

We've had a good few shows, Doylan Elegant Gift has behaved beautifully and did a walk trot dressage to music to music from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. She looked fab, went beautifully and the music was just perfect thanks to my mum. Georgie was a great sport dressing up as a dwarf and riding Lizzie so well.

Winter shows are tough on everyone. The ponies are clipped and rugged and grappling through the dark, cold and mud we are managing to turn them out and get to a show most weekends. Doylan Cafe Au Lait who is not long broken has now been to three ridden shows with varying results. At Gwent Welsh Show she was excited and bucked and at Midland Welsh after a long time waiting for her classes she decided half way through her second class she'd had enough. She is imporving every time she goes out though and that's all we can ask of a just broken 4 year old pony.

Our little princess Doylan Cafe au Lait went to her first show on Saturday. She was rather shocked at the length of time she had to stand and wait and then trotting around a ring with 15 others! Her behavior was fantastic and she produced the most beautiful show, we are so pleased with her and look forward to many more shows this winter. Doylan Elegant Gift completed two dressage tests on Sunday. She was very good but also pretty spooked by an indoor she had never been in before. All the more reason to get to as many places as possible. Georgie our stable jockey takes her pony to the MSJ Championships at Addington this weekend to compete in the Novice and Elementary dressage and the 90cm showjumping. She works extremely hard with everything she rides. I have been around now to a few shows with her and I have to say generally I am very disapointed with the level of horsemanship, clipped ponies standing in cold drizzly evenings with no rugs waiting to jump. How people expect their animals to perform when they cannot warm them up properly is beyond me, and that's just the start of it!! xoxo

Plugging away for some time is starting to bring us some great results...but there's always more hard work to come. Our jockey Georgie has had a great run on her own pony, Magic, a sec D, including a 7th in her school competition style jumping out of 133 starters!!! Things really coming together there. Doylan Elegant Gift has really come on jumping and is proving what a little worker she will be. We've had to work on the polishing aspects but her eagerness and kind attitude makes her a joy to work with and we are so pleased with her results so far. She completed her first dressage competition today with a 62.17% in Intro B and 57.5% in her first ever prelim. We couldn't ask for more and she along with Doylan Cafe Au Lait who is currently being broken will continue to campaign throughout the whole winter...a lot more hard work to follow!!! Winter showing can be tough but we feel it's worth it for these two ponies and we look forward to seeing how well they develop. xoxo

Doylan Elegant Gift was an absolute star these past weeks. She has never been ridden in a program, only sporadically as we don't always have a jockey for her. Despite this she performed fantastically in the open class under 138 at the Welsh Championship show, was a star at Equifest, gaining a 6th place ribbon in a large 4,5,6 year old SHP class up to 153 in only her second time in the ring and winning a class at the West Mercia Show with also a 2nd place in the novice to add to her tally! She then went on to jump a clear round show jumping at the Croome Valley Pony Club show, which was her second time jumping under saddle!! We are delighted with her and just look for a special home who will carry on in this way. Doylan Cafe Au Lait was second in the welsh part breds at the West Mercia Show and will now start her ridden career. Doylan Dazzling Gift and Claudia will continue their groundwork and be broken! We will continue showing and competing during the winter but look forward to the 2014 season with excitement! xoxo

The last two weekends have been spent at in hand shows with the gorgeous buckskin mare Doylan Cafe Au Lait.  So much nicer than last years cold and rain we do however feel the heat standing out in the ring in a waistcoat and flat cap!! Gloriana as shes known has behaved impeccably at her very first shows.  She is stunning and has the most fabulous paces. She has been well placed and also won her first trophy yesterday for the riding pony class.  Her in hand career will continue until August when she'll be given a break and then ridden on in preparation for next seasons ridden novice classes; we can't wait!! xoxo

We said a fond farewell to Beiligaer Starlight Express yesterday when delivering him to his new home at producers Martin Skelton and Joseph Thurston's yard in Milton Keynes. He has an absolutely top new home and rider and we're so pleased that finally he'll be able to contest the show pony classes. Can't wait to see his pic in Horse and Hound!!