Horse Rider UK – October 2026

Summary

Horse&Rider October 2026 opens with atypical myopathy: sycamore seeds, seedlings and leaves carry the toxin hypoglycin A, and muscles tremble, the heart rate rises and breath turns laboured, often fatally. Most horses surviving the first few days recover fully, though it can take months.

Editor Louise Kittle hands the confidence section to rider confidence coach Alison Buttery, who explains the rider-instructor relationship and why it is fine to leave one that no longer fits. She points to governing body and British Horse Society listings of qualified coaches.

The 21-page rug guide is the cover's bulk, running from waterproof and no-fill turnouts through 100g turnouts, exercise sheets, therapy rugs, fleeces and 100g stable rugs, with cleaning and care at p88. Soaked feeds, clipping perfection, lameness and pasture biodiversity fill care, and competitive jouster Emma closes the magazine.

—————

Content Guide

▸ Health

p.8 · Atypical myopathy — Be in the know about this dangerous disease
Atypical myopathy comes from eating sycamore seeds, seedlings or leaves, which carry the toxin hypoglycin A. Seeds fall in autumn and winter and germinate in spring, making those the exposure peaks. Signs include muscle tremors, a raised heart rate, laboured breathing, colic-like symptoms, weakness or difficulty standing, depression and dark urine, appearing quickly and often proving fatal. Vets usually hospitalise symptomatic horses and start fluid therapy, metabolic support and pain relief with 24/7 monitoring, since test results take days; most horses surviving the first few days make a full recovery, though it may take months. Walk your pasture today and pick up every sycamore seed you find.

p.56 · Emergency vet visits — What to do if your horse becomes lame
Emergency vet visits cover what to do when a horse goes lame, the cover's lameness promise. Lameness is the call most owners get wrong by waiting. Take a video of the horse moving before the vet arrives.

p.62 · Be laminitis ready
Laminitis readiness gets its own page in the care section. Preparation beats reaction with laminitis. Keep a laminitis kit and your vet's number where you can find them at night.

▸ Rugging Guide

p.82 · All about waterproof rugs
The 21-page rug guide opens on waterproof rugs, the first stop for autumn turnout. Waterproofing fails before the filling does on most rugs. Run water on your rug's outer and see whether it beads or soaks in.

p.96 · All about therapy rugs
Therapy rugs get an explainer within the guide, followed by a second therapy rugs page. Therapy rugs are the fastest-growing corner of the market. Ask your vet whether a therapy rug suits your horse's problem before buying.

p.102 · Fleeces
Fleeces close the rug guide's main run. Fleeces suit travelling and cooling off rather than wet weather. Use a fleece for travel and change it as soon as your horse is dry.

p.88 · Cleaning & care
Rug cleaning and care gets its own page between the Q&A and the 100g turnouts. A badly washed rug loses its waterproofing. Follow the manufacturer's wash instructions rather than a yard habit.

▸ Training and Confidence

p.50 · Finding the right instructor — What you need to consider
Rider confidence coach Alison Buttery examines the rider-instructor relationship and why leaving one that no longer fits is allowed. Louise Kittle recalls from her own schooling that the right educator-student pairing changes outcomes, and points to governing body and British Horse Society listings of qualified coaches. Write down what you want from a lesson before you book the next one.

p.20 · Building blocks — Exercises to develop your horse's training
The cover training feature sets out exercises that develop a horse's training. Foundations decide what a horse can do later. Pick one exercise and ride it for two weeks before changing.

p.42 · Improve your riding superpowers — How sensory perception shapes your riding
Sensory perception and how it shapes riding is the cover's superpower piece. Riding is a sense-based skill, not a strength one. Close your eyes for one walk lap and feel what your pony does.

▸ Care and Good Reads

p.124 · Soaked feeds — Everything you need to know
Soaked feeds get the full treatment, asking whether they are the new feedroom essential. Soaking changes what a horse actually eats. Weigh a scoop dry and then soaked to see the difference.

p.110 · Clipping perfection — Top tips for your best clip yet
Clipping tips promise your best clip yet. Clipping is a skill most owners learn by ruining one clip. Practise one small area before you commit to a full clip.

p.145 · My life with horses — Competitive jouster Emma shares her busy week
Competitive jouster Emma shares her week, closing the magazine. Jousting is the discipline readers know least about. Look up one jousting event and watch a full pass.

—————

Editor's Take

The atypical myopathy page is the strongest in Horse&Rider October 2026, because naming hypoglycin A, the autumn and spring exposure peaks, and the fact that most horses surviving the first few days recover gives owners something to act on with a bucket and a field walk. Alison Buttery's instructor piece is the best feature, since telling readers they may leave an unsuitable coach is advice few magazines give. Weakest is the rug guide: 21 pages of turnouts, therapy rugs and fleeces is a buying supplement dressed as a feature, and the yard boots and joint supplement pages are clearly advertiser-led. The soaked feeds page answers a question few asked. Buy this for the myopathy warning and the coaching advice.

Strengths
• Myopathy page names the toxin and exposure peaks
• Buttery's piece says you can leave a coach
• Lameness and laminitis pages are practical
• Jousting profile covers an unusual discipline

Weaknesses
• 21-page rug guide is a buying supplement
• Yard boots and supplement pages are ad-led

Verdict: Selective read — the health warning and coaching piece, skip the rug guide.