It’s believed that Icelandic Horses arrived around 860 and 935 AD when brought over by Norse settlers’ ships. It’s believed that this horse was selected because they are short and sturdy, making them easier to transport via ship. Since arriving in Iceland, these horses have further been selectively bred for the conditions. Putting down a straw pad (as long as your horse does not have a dust allergy), which can provide a comfy, dry area for eating hay or even snoozing. This will need completely removing in the spring and will kill the grass underneath so needs to be thought through first.

What a splendid description of the manifestation of fear: “Fear lives in the guts. That's where it makes its home. It moves in, shifts stuff around; empties a space for itself—it likes the echoes its wingbeats make. It likes the smell of its own farts.” This premise is a big part of what makes Slow Horses such a stand-out drama. Thrillers about spies are nothing new, but we tend to expect them to be on the James Bond spectrum of suaveness – not real, fallible humans having a crisis of confidence after messing up at work.Many owners of warm or hot blooded horses tend to stable them overnight as shelter from the weather. Even in a stable, they will need a rug and additional energy in the form of extra feeds. There is no reason, however, why even a pure bred Arab or Thoroughbred cannot live out all year round with appropriate care. By providing a field shelter, a good quality winter rug and a well thought out diet, the balance between energy intake and energy output should be manageable throughout the colder months. Wintertime can be lots of fun for all the family but only if you’re prepared for the hazards that come with it. Read our advice to help keep your horse warm, happy and safe from danger during the cold spell… Horse winter guide: As for any time of year, always wear reflective clothing when you’re out riding and take a mobile phone with you for emergencies. Drive-in studs are relatively simple to install–first, a hole of corresponding circumference is drilled into the shoe. Then the stud is driven home with a soft-face hammer. If a hard-face hammer is used, the stud can easily be chipped.

Slow Horses is Herron’s first book in the Slough House series, recently re-released in conjunction with the release of book 4, Spook Street.The first book in CWA Gold Dagger Award-winning British espionage series starring a team of MI5 agents united by one common bond: They've screwed up royally and will do anything to redeem themselves. Most of the characters aren't precisely what you'd call reliable, though they're certainly realistic, but none of the one's we're meant to come away liking are entirely irredeemable. Even the villains are less moustache-twirlers and more bureaucrats, though to write off their evil as banal would be to ignore the real world examples of exactly how much damage that particular brand of evil is capable of spreading around. I made the mistake of reading the second in the series Dead Lions before this one. I'm going to have to at least skim this before going on to Real Tigers