Newsletter September 2010
Post Office Box 37
Denmark WA 6333
EFA AFFLIATION NUMBER: 8007553
DATES FOR YOUR DIARY




19 September – Rally at club grounds. Details next newsletter.
9 October – DEC Trek. Details below.
8 November – Committee meeting
21 November – Rally at club grounds
RALLY AT CLUB GROUNDS – SUNDAY 13 SEPTEMBER
11.00 - Hoof Care Corner, with Lisa and Mel. Any hoof issues? Or had any hoof successes/
experiences you’d like to share? The aim of this session is to increase our knowledge
and understanding of our horses’ feet, leading to better care and hopefully, less hoof
problems.
11.30 - Leap frog, around the track. This game is to help horses who get over-excited when
being passed, by a change in gait by another horse/s within the group, and/or who
have problems being in different positions in a group. Riding in single file we will do
one and a half laps in one direction, do a figure eight in the middle, then one and a
half laps in the other direction. The horse and rider at the back of the group trots to
take front position, returning to a walk when at least 3 horse lengths in front; then the
next horse and rider from the back overtakes, as long as all horses in the front have
settled down; all horse and riders to stop should any horse become over-excited. Let
Dee or Judy know if you wish to join in, and/or put your name on the chalk board.
13.00 - ‘Bombproofing’ Obstacle Course. Please feel free to bring or set up something to
challenge our horses. Expect tarpaulins, Michelle’s famous ribbon-flapping dome,
flags, balloons, hoola hoops, bubble blowing, and anything else we can come up with.
HOUSE KEEPING REMINDER FOR RALLY DAYS
Sign in.
Consult chalk board for what’s on; enter your name if you wish to join in.
Clean Yards.
Take rubbish home.
From Emma and Carl ...
“We are the elated parents of Heidi Margaret, the most beautiful girl,
born 7lb 13oz/3.5kg via emergency caesarean. We are bowled over
with love.”
Warmest congratulations to you both. Heidi is now nearly 2 weeks
old; mother and baby are doing well.
PRESIDENT’S REPORT – 2010 AGM
Dear Members,
I would like to say thank you to all our hard working committee members for the past year. As
you can see from our list of committee members we have a few new faces for the 2010/11year. Michelle Lott who has been our fantastic secretary is taking a break from the committee.
She has been a dedicated committee member for many years and I thank her sincerely for her
efforts. Heather Carter has been our events coordinator for 3 years and she has done a
marvellous job coordinating many original and fun events for the club. New committee
members include Ruth and Azure. Welcome and thank you for joining the committee. I look
forward to another year as President of the Denmark Equestrian Club. I am proud of how
many memberships we now have and look forward to another really positive year. If you have
any ideas for our club please feel free to contact the committee! I look forward to seeing
everyone at the September rally or the famous DEC TREK!
2010/2011 COMMITTEE
President: Robyn Hyland
Vice President: Roger Seeney
Secretary: Ruth McConigley
Treasurer: Janine Bell
Rally Coordinator: Dee Wild
Events Coordinator: Vacant Position
Minutes Secretary: Mary Lou Small
Safety Officers: Lisa Clarke, Ruth McConigley
Editor: Judy Jarass/Azure Sea
Fundraising and Publicity Coordinator: Azure Sea
Grounds and Maintenance Coordinator: Melanie Hoessle
COMMITTEE POSITION VACANT
If you would like to be on the club’s committee, the position of
Events Coordinator was not filled at the AGM. Please contact
Robyn for details.
EQUINE VETERINARY DENTISTRY
Dr. Lisa Clarke BSc. BVMS
P.O Box 786
Denmark 6333
Phone: 0451 950 682
Email: [email protected]
Also routine veterinary care for horses, stock and domestic pets.
DEC TREK
SATURDAY AND SUNDAY 9-10 OCTOBER 2010




The Trek will start at Dee and Mark’s place on Mcleod Road, with three departure
times.
We will ride along the Mundabidi Trail to Kent River Siding Road, where we will
stay on a farm (horse paddocks available).
Saturday night is a sleep-over, with end-of-season wind-up and presentations.
Family members welcome.
Sunday: three rides to choose from:
1. More challenging ride – 3hr to Irwin Inlet
2. A more gentle ride, 2hr around the farm
3. Ride back to Dee and Mark’s place
Further information regearing cost, times and ride details will be sent out in early
September to members. If you have any queries prior to this, please email Heather on
[email protected] or phone 98481384.
Please note: the DEC Trek is for members that are financially paid up prior to the
trek. Day membership is not available for this event, and membership cannot be
paid for on the day. As the trek is the first event of the new financial year you will
need to either pay online, or see the Membership Secretary at the September rally.
Many of us ride in remote areas, sometimes alone. Wendy has
sent us a useful article on some of the uses of a mobile phone
in an emergency, which has been attached to the newsletter.
If you have anything you think would be of interest to members
of our club (jokes, photos, book reviews, etc), please forward
to the editor at [email protected]
AUGUST RALLY REPORT
First up we rode into town, visiting our local stock
feeder on route
… on to the Bistro for morning tea …
…then back to the club
for lunch, ‘hoof care
corner’ (yep, Roger is
using an angle grinder
on Mr. Smoothy) … a
few laps of ‘leap frog’...
… and then we all
went home
Two club members have recently had an experience with equine choke, which is
apparently not uncommon. Here is an article from Lisa.
EQUINE HEALTH CORNER WITH LISA
All about . . . . .
Choke
Choke is a relatively common problem in domestic horses. The term choke refers to the partial
or full obstruction of the horse’s oesophagus by food or a foreign object.
Cause: choke usually occurs if the horse is eating dry food too quickly or if the horse is unable
to chew their food due to a painful mouth (sharp teeth) or trauma/disease that prevents normal
chewing or swallowing.
Signs of choke: saliva and food material coming from mouth and possibly nostrils, depression,
not wanting to eat, stretching/arching neck, possible cough and sometimes signs of colic –
sweating, general irritation, anxiety.
Treatment: choke should always be treated as an emergency and veterinary attention sought.
Most chokes can be cleared with a sedation to relax the oesophagus but sometimes also
requires passing a nasogastric tube via the nostril to gently flush out the obstruction. Rarely
surgery is also required. If left untreated, the horse is left in severe distress and the
oesophagus can be severely and permanently damaged or can rupture. Also the horse may
suffer from pneumonia if any feed material is aspirated into the lungs during choke, so
antibiotic medication may be required. After an episode of choke the horse should be fed only
small amounts of soft wet feed or green pasture for several days.
s
Choke can be prevented by always wetting feed just prior to feeding (including hay if the horse
has repeat episodes); routine dental care to ensure horse can adequately chew food; removal
of food items from diet that cause repeated bouts of choke such as carrots, beetroot pulp.
PHOTOGRAPHIC COMPETITION
Photographic entries for the club’s 2011
calendar competition should have been
taken at any DEC event since the club’s
inception, and should be taken by or set up
by the entrant. Members can submit up to
three pictures of themselves and/or their
horses, plus several pictures of other
members and/or their horses. The closing
date for the competition is 31 October 2010.
Photo submissions can be sent digitally to
Please
[email protected]
send entries reduced as attachments, but
with access to a high resolution digital copy
if required. Please include titles or captions
for entries if possible. Depending on the
number of entries, a short list will be
displayed at the club’s Xmas Party to be
held this year at Robyn’s place, to be voted
on by those present. The prizes for the top
three entries are:
First prize - $100
Second prize - $75
Third prize - $50
All entries will go into the digital photo
album/club record which Michelle is
currently collating. If you have any other
suitable photos - please contact Michelle.
MOBILE PHONE TIPS FOR EMERGENCIES
There are a few things that can be done in times of grave emergencies. Your mobile phone
can actually be a life saver or an emergency tool for survival. Check out the things that you
can do with it: -
I The Emergency Number worldwide for **Mobile** is 112.*
If you find yourself out of coverage area of your mobile network and there is an emergency,
dial 112 and the mobile will search any existing network to establish the emergency
number for you, and interestingly this number 112 can be dialled even if the keypad is
locked. **Try it out.**
II Keys locked in the car? Does your car have remote keys?*
If you lock your keys in the car and the spare keys are at home, call someone at home on
their cell phone from your cell phone. Hold your cell phone about a foot from your car door
and have the person at your home press the unlock button, holding it near the mobile
phone on their end. Your car will unlock. Distance is no object. You could be hundreds of
miles away, and if you can reach someone who has the other "remote" for your car, you
can unlock the doors (or the trunk).
III Hidden Battery power.
Imagine your cell battery is very low, you are expecting an important call and you don't
have a charger. Nokia instrument comes with a reserve battery. To activate, press the keys
3370. Your cell will restart with this reserve, and the instrument will show a 50% increase
in battery. This reserve will get charged when you charge your cell next time.
IV How to disable a STOLEN mobile phone?
To check your Mobile phone's serial number, key in the digits 06 on your phone. A 15 digit
code will appear on the screen. This number is unique to your handset. Write it down and
keep it somewhere safe. If your phone gets stolen, you can phone your service provider
and give them this code. They will then be able to block your handset so even if the thief
changes the SIM card, your phone will be totally useless. You probably won't get your
phone back, but at least you know that whoever stole it can't use/sell it either.