Britain is a country mercifully bereft of threatening fauna–or so you might believe. John Lewis-Stempel provides a miscellany of our otherwise benign land’s more fearsome critters

Nature’s spiky deterrents–thorns, spines and prickles–may be quick to catch us out, but they can also prove to be a useful ally, discovers Laura Parker

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Sunny days and cold nights increases the amount of non-structural carbohydrates in grass, potentially putting any laminitis-prone horses at increased risk of an autumnal episode. Equine nutritionist Tracey Hammond explains how to keep your equine safe

Oaks and sycamores are stalwart trees, but both pose risks to horses in the shape of acorn toxicity and atypical myopathy respectively. Angela Jones MRCVS and Karen Coumbe MRCVS explain

Many UK horse owners will find themselves navigating a hay shortage and higher prices this winter, after a prolonged dry summer dramatically affected farmers’ yields. Lauren Williamson finds out what the forage alternatives are and how to keep a horse’s stomach full this season