Horse Rider UK – July 2026

Summary

Horse&Rider July 2026 (Issue 686, £4.99, 11 June to 8 July) asks the cover question — happy horse? how to tell — and answers it at page 60 with assessing your horse's welfare. Sara Bates opens the issue: an MS diagnosis pushed her into para dressage.

The team spent all summer 2025 testing fly masks for fit, comfort and durability, with the winner staying put, protecting well and leaving room around the eyes. Nicola Wilson gives cross-country 101 at p32, Jay Buxton teaches jumping on an angle at p42, and canter leads get a fast fix at p38.

Meg Elphick's second show-day piece covers recovery and reset, and nutrition, weight and summer travelling fill care. Emergency vet visits handle colic at p70. Readers can win a GFS saddle and Blenheim tickets at p66, and claim a free Leovet detangler and leather care bundle worth £20 at p130.

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Content Guide

▸ Cover — Welfare

p.60 · Assessing your horse's welfare
The cover asks how to tell if a horse is happy, and this page sets out how to assess welfare properly. Welfare assessment is a skill owners can learn rather than a feeling. Watch your horse's ears, eating and interest in the field for five minutes today.

p.8 · The power of positive thinking — Sara Bates shares her MS diagnosis story
Sara Bates tells how being diagnosed with MS spurred her on to become a successful para dressage rider. Her story ties to the issue's para classification feature. Read her account before you assume a diagnosis ends a riding career.

p.20 · Classified information — Discover the process of para equestrian classification
Para equestrian classification gets explained in the good reads section. Classification decides which class a para rider enters. Look up your governing body's classification rules before entering.

▸ Training

p.26 · Moving on up — Introduce more advanced flatwork skills
The cover training feature introduces more advanced flatwork skills, taking a horse past the basics. Advanced moves fail when the basics are not settled. Master one shoulder-in in walk before asking for trot.

p.32 · Cross-country 101 — Nicola Wilson's tips for a successful session
Nicola Wilson gives her tips for a successful cross-country schooling session. A plan matters more than bravery over solid fences. Walk your line and decide your stride before the first fence.

p.42 · Straight to it — Jay Buxton helps you introduce jumping on an angle
Jay Buxton teaches jumping on an angle, the skill most riders avoid. Angled fences expose straightness faults faster than uprights. Set one winged fence and approach it slightly off the centre line.

p.38 · Leading the way — Canter leads sorted
The cover's fast fix sorts canter leads. A wrong lead costs marks and balance through a corner. Ask for the lead one stride earlier than you think you need to.

p.56 · Back to it — Train your back muscles and become a better rider
Rider back muscles get their own training page. Rider fitness is the cheapest performance gain available. Do two minutes of back mobility before you ride today.

▸ Care and Shopping

p.70 · Emergency vet visits — Coping with colic
The vet's guide to colic covers emergency visits, the call no owner wants to make. Colic outcomes depend on how fast the vet is called. Take your horse's pulse, gums and droppings record before you dial.

p.108 · Tried and tested — Fly masks
The fly masks on test were worn through summer 2025 and judged on fit, comfort and durability, with the winner staying put, protecting well and leaving plenty of room around the eyes. Louise Kittle points readers there and to sweet itch rug advice at p115. Check your own mask's eye clearance before the next fly season.

p.96 · Perfect condition — Weight management tips from our expert nutritionist
Weight management gets advice from the title's nutritionist. Weight is the health problem most owners under-manage. Weigh tape your horse and write the number down this week.

p.128 · My life with horses — A week with RDA volunteer Olivia Shenton-Taylor
RDA volunteer Olivia Shenton-Taylor shares her week, closing the magazine. Volunteering is how most riders give something back. Offer one morning a month to your local RDA group.

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Editor's Take

The welfare cover story is the strongest thing in Horse&Rider July 2026, because "happy horse? how to tell" is the question that matters and page 60 answers it with assessment rather than sentiment. Sara Bates riding para dressage after an MS diagnosis is the best read, and the fly mask test earns its place by being worn through a whole summer of 2025 before judging. Weakest is the shopping section, where fly season essentials, a buyer's guide to sweet itch rugs and Dream horse homes carry more advertising than testing. The lateral work and canter lead pieces are competent but shorter than the cover promises. Buy this for the welfare and colic pages; the gear pages are for browsing.

Strengths
• Welfare feature answers the cover question properly
• Sara Bates's MS story is genuinely motivating
• Fly masks were tested across a full summer
• Colic guide covers the emergency call

Weaknesses
• Shopping section is advertising over testing
• Lateral work and leads pages run short

Verdict: Recommended — the welfare, para dressage and colic content earn the £4.99.