HiEveryone!Howareyoutoday?ThingsherearebacktonormalafterthebestestPonyCampofalltimes!!!SometimesImissSamanthaandPhilipbutthenIthinkofhowmuchfunwehadanditmakesmehappyagain.Thegroomsarebackintotheirusualroutinesaswell，asarethetrainers and we have all the regular Equitation School Japan riders are around. Isn’t “equitation” a great word? I asked Mum and she said that it means the practice of horse riding itself but Pucci said that training a rider is an art that takes practice not a practice. Sometimes he’s confusing.I asked Takako what she’d like me to talk about today and she said “Horses!” so I’ve been talking to Pucci. Mum said that was a very silly question because all Takako ever wants to talk about is horses. She’s probably right.Still – horses!!! I’ve asked Pucci. He knows everything but he does talk for a long time if you listen. He said that there are over 300 breeds of horses， many with specific skills and uses. We are separated into three loose categories: hot bloods， cold bloods and warm bloods. Apparently this is based on temperament. When I’m naughty， Mum says I’m hot blooded， which Pucci and Melty say is a good thing. I’m not sure Mum means it that way though! Pucci and Melty are hot bloods because they’ve been bred for speed and endurance. Ponies like me are cold bloods as are draft horses because we can do heavy repetitive work but I much prefer pony camps! There is a middle category as well of warm bloods which are crosses between hot and cold blood horses but Pucci says they are mainly in Europe. The average horse weighs 500 kilograms (Pucci’s HUGE!) and eats about 10 kilograms of hay and grains per day. In the wild， horses will graze 60-70% of their waking hours. There are many different types of hays and grains for feed. Some horses are really really picky about what they’ll eat but Mum says I’m not allowed to be. Some of the horses’ only like really really thin hay but I prefer carrots. Dad says they’re a “sometimes” food though so we don’t get them every day. We usually drink about 35 liters of water a day as well but I bet most other horses don’t get fantastic Nihon Alps fresh water! Pucci says horses are herd animals that need exercise each day. He said we can get really lonely without any friends around but they don’t always have to be other horses. He once had a very good friend who was a cat and Samantha said she’d been at a stable where the horses had dogs! I think that would be really cool. I’d be lonely if I didn’t have all the other ponies around and the horses and all the people but I think I’d like a dog or a cat. I wonder if Master Ippei would let me have one?Ooooh – the grooms are coming for our exercise. We get free time running around the main arena! No sad horses or ponies here at Nihon Trekking!