News stories
Mirror, mirror, on the stable wall
Redwings is fitting special mirrors in stables and horseboxes at all eight of its UK sites.
We began trialling the specially designed stable mirrors with some of the horses and ponies at our Reception Centre in Norfolk, and found them to be so effective that we are now extending their use across the Sanctuary.
While the majority of Redwings residents live out in natural herds all year round, stabling is required when veterinary treatment is needed or sometimes for long periods during quarantine. Our staff have found that the mirrors, made of acrylic for safety, have a dramatic calming effect, particularly for those horses that are timid or suffer from separation anxiety.
We are also looking at using them regularly in our horseboxes after some very successful initial trials. One recent arrival, a pony called Flash, was known to have severe problems loading and travelling, so staff used a mirror in the horsebox to ‘keep her company’ and the 27-year-old chestnut mare travelled all the way from Bradford to Norfolk without any problems at all, even when the lorry was forced to stop to change a tyre!
Redwings Welfare Officer Rachel Fairhead said: “The mirrors have been excellent and we have seen some incredible results, even with the most extreme cases. The horses respond very well to having what they perceive as a ‘friend’ in their stable and instantly become calmer and generally happier.
"The only word of caution we would offer is with horses that are known to be aggressive, as they don’t always take too kindly to having an ‘intruder’ in their stable! And of course, there is no substitute for providing your horse with a real companion wherever possible.”
Redwings would like to extend our immense gratitude to The Stable Mirror Company, www.stable-mirrors.co.uk, who have very kindly donated enough mirrors for every stable here at the Sanctuary and who have offered their support and expertise from the start.
For more information about the effective use of stable mirrors, please contact our Welfare helpline on 01508 481008.
