Horse Hound – 6 November 2025

Summary

Twenty-two-year-old Billy Angelo, once Britain's top international showjumper, headlines the 6 November 2025 Horse & Hound 'Happy golden oldies' issue, with veteran-care features spanning vet sidebone, snaffle-bit grand prix dressage, and Josh Newman's point-to-point tips. Bridget Skelton's retired horse hacks daily.

This 6 November 2025 issue puts veteran horse care at the centre, anchored by Billy Angelo, the 22-year-old former international showjumper now hacking and jumping small courses with Bridget Skelton. Editor Sarah Jenkins leads on 'Happy golden oldies', tying retirement planning to costlier feed, farriery and veterinary bills. The vet clinic explains sidebone diagnosis, while Anna Ross argues for competing grand prix dressage in a snaffle under the FEI's proposed rule changes.

News pages track hunting's response to a Government ban push, plus pushback on laminitis 'misinformation' claims and debate over blood-rule proposals. Point-to-point champion Josh Newman shares why his string enjoy their work, and Tessa Waugh returns with her hunting diary as wetter autumns rewrite fixture planning. Kit pages test Keratex Thermal Hoof Clay at £23.94 and the Evoke Callisto Classic helmet from £166.66.

Show reports cover Dressage Associated championships at Onley Grounds, showjumping at Bury Farm and Allens Hill, plus Wetherby's racing card and Breeders' Cup notes from Del Mar. Kim Bailey and Graham Fletcher add racing and showjumping columns, while letters tackle rule frustrations. Classified ads close with Irish sport horses near Reading from £3,500.

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Content Guide

▸ Cover Story

p.32 · 'They owe us nothing'

Billy Angelo, 22, headlines the veterans package, still hacking daily with Bridget Skelton after retiring from international showjumping. Contributors weigh feed, farriery and vet bills for horses in their late teens and twenties. Read this for owner checklists on retirement planning, common age-related conditions, and yard routines that keep older horses in light, happy work rather than field ornament status. Page 32 anchors the issue.

▸ Veterinary & Kit

p.24 · A side issue

The vet clinic unpacks sidebone in horses, from early ossification signs to farriery workarounds and ridden-career prognosis. Adjacent research covers therapy-horse welfare protocols and how girth design affects forelimb action. Read this for diagnostic red flags owners can spot before lameness shows, plus shoeing adjustments that buy comfortable working years. Use the action notes when fitting saddlery and assessing stride.

p.28 · New in the ring

Kit focus tests autumn-ready gear including Keratex Thermal Hoof Clay at £23.94 for 400g, the Evoke Callisto Classic peaked helmet from £166.66 (sizes 53-61cm, PAS 015:2011), and the Georgie Campbell base layer at £35. Read this for the temperature-tested winners, price benchmarks, and which items genuinely earn a spot in a winter grooming kit. Buy with confidence.

▸ Dressage & Opinion

p.14 · Anna Ross: why I'll be doing grand prix in a snaffle

British international grand prix rider Anna Ross argues the FEI's proposed snaffle-bit, lameness-check and noseband-tightness rules will modernise dressage. She highlights rising stars Jemima Green and Herning CDI winner Harrison Ashton as the discipline's bridge to social-media audiences. Read this for her take on why adapt or die, plus why Snoop Dog did more for dressage PR at Paris 2024 than Clarkson-style publicity ever could.

p.12 · Letters of the week

Readers write in about rule frustrations, blood-rule proposals, hunting ban anxieties, and the cost of keeping veterans in work. Letters editors pick the strongest arguments from across eventing, dressage and showing. Read this for the temperature of the grassroots and which causes are gaining traction before the next BHA or FEI consultation window.

▸ People & Horses

p.18 · 'We get horses enjoying life': Josh Newman's tips for success

Point-to-point champion Josh Newman explains the routines that keep his string happy and competing through long seasons. He shares yard habits, feeding principles, and race-day prep that produce winners without burning out young horses. Read this for actionable pointers on turnout, gallop work, and the mindset he uses with owners. Riders considering buying a project pointer get a frank yard view.

p.22 · All in a day's work

A working day with an equestrian centre owner juggling liveries, lessons, and arena hires across a multi-discipline yard. The piece captures staff rotas, client management, and the small business maths that keep riding schools profitable. Read this if you run or plan to open a centre; the routines and cost lines translate directly to a mid-size yard.

p.16 · Kim Bailey

Trainer Kim Bailey's racing column sets out his take on the early National Hunt season, sires to follow, and Cheltenham trials worth marking. Read this for handicapper-style angles on staying chases, plus yard notes from his Cotswold base. Owners and form students get actionable pointers, and the trainer's pacing calls for two-milers are unusually frank for the column.

p.15 · Graham Fletcher

Showjumping columnist Graham Fletcher tackles the autumn international circuit, course-builder trends, and British team selections. Read this for frank opinions on rider form and horse supply after a busy summer. Riders buying young horses get his take on bloodlines worth tracking through the winter stallion seasons, plus a scoring check on World Cup qualifiers heading into the December majors.

▸ Hunting & Field

p.40 · Weathering the storm

Reportage tracks how wetter winters and shrinking frost days are rewriting hunting fixtures, with cancellations forcing fixture secretaries to chase alternative country. Read this for the practical adaptations hunts are making to drained land, and the implications for followers' counts, terrier work, and autumn cubbing calendars. Essential reading if you fixture, follow, or simply wonder why meets keep shifting dates.

p.46 · Masterless are magnificent

Round-up of autumn team chasing, where 'masterless' riders without a hunt affiliation field competitive teams. The piece captures course conditions, fastest times, and the social culture that makes the discipline a pathway for amateur riders. Read this if you fancy entering a team or vetting a master's guest rider. The volunteer organiser profiles are gold for newcomers.

p.66 · Goodnight: Tessa Waugh's hunting diary

Tessa Waugh's regular hunting diary closes the issue with country-house reflections on autumn days in the field, capping the 6 November magazine on page 66. Read this for the tone reset and a reminder that the sport is, ultimately, about friends, horses and weather. Pick it up after the racing reports and before the classifieds.

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Editor's Take

Issue-led by Billy Angelo's 22-year-old retirement, the 6 November Horse & Hound earns its keep on the veterans feature, where Bridget Skelton's hacking routine pairs with hard numbers on feed, farriery and vet bills. The sidebone clinic is the next best thing: diagnostic, shoeing and girth-action notes that an owner applies tomorrow. Anna Ross's grand prix snaffle column is bold and well-sourced; Tessa Waugh and Josh Newman deliver the issue's personality. Weakest section is the classifieds-heavy rear half, where reports from Onley Grounds and Wetherby feel rushed. Buy this for owners of horses aged 15-plus, and dressage supporters tracking the FEI rule consultation.

Strengths
• Veterans feature with real cost numbers and Skelton's Billy Angelo routine
• Sidebone vet clinic gives diagnostic and shoeing moves you use tomorrow
• Anna Ross's FEI snaffle column is bold and well-sourced

Weaknesses
• Classifieds-heavy rear reports from Onley and Wetherby read rushed
• Hunting climate piece leans on anecdote over weather data

Verdict: Recommended — Worth buying for the veterans package, sidebone vet clinic, and Anna Ross dressage column; reports feel rushed.