About Me - Aud Scott-Hopkins
Me with my husband's big boy - Rafferty. I stand at almost 6' 2" myself! He is 17.3+hh. My name is Aud Scott-Hopkins and I live with my husband - Michael - just outside Ringwood on a small farm inside the boundaries of the New Forest Park. We are incredibly lucky to live in such beautiful surroundings. We have a large garden, a useful range of farm buildings & approx 22 acres of pasture. I was born here in this house where I spent an incredibly happy childhood. My father bred Guernsey cattle, which he showed locally & with great success. I had pets galore and the farm to play on and I grew up realising just how lucky I was. I jumped at the chance to take it on from my parents. Me, rather short on front teeth with my dogs and one of our many cats. Sadly my father died suddenly in 1986 but my mother remained here on her own. We came to live here after she suffered a stroke in 2000 & could no longer stay here without supervision. I had never really wanted a big horse, but I had grown up on the stories of my grandmother's miniatures, so Michael & I had always agreed that when he retired from the Army he would have a hunter and I would have a couple of minis. It didn't quite work out like that as we soon had several minis and 2 big horses, one of which is mine. My husband considers that he has slipped a long way down the pecking order since he bought Victor for me.
The 4 of us going riding. My miniatures are a great joy to me. They are funny, beautiful and intelligent. Boo - a tiny mare - and I go bimbling around the local bridle ways in her little cart, which causes much amusement with the locals. I wouldn't like to think how many people have said that they thought that she was a big dog.
Boo and I - both in our winter woollies - on the old railway line below our house. We have just started to keep New Forest Ponies as well. They are to be my husband's retirement project, it is all very exciting!
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