THE old saying "necessity is the mother of invention" is certainly true as far as a Wychbold family is concerned.

Pauline Stewart and her daughter Maxine have combined their talents to start up a company which makes natural product for horses.

These include shampoos, a fly repellent and a unique mane and tail de-tangle serum formula which you apply to your horse with your hands instead of using the hit and miss spray-on method.

Natural Equine was formed a couple of years ago after Pauline retired as landlady of The Boot pub at Flyford Flavel, Worcestershire, which she ran with her husband, Michael.

Although she has been in the licensing trade for 35 years, Pauline says it was an extremely stressful life and it was time to move on.

Daughter Maxine is a successful dressage rider and teaches the discipline from the family home at Wychbold so there are always plenty of horses in residence.

Maxine's equestrian knowledge and Pauline's business brain make the perfect partnership.

"We are all fond of horses and have supported Maxine since she was riding in the pony club as a youngster," explained Pauline.

"We had a tack room full of products but they didn't do the job we wanted them to do. I love mixing with people and am very sociable so this seemed the perfect new business venture."

She travels the country to equine shows including Hickstead, Weston Park and the Equine Experience, which has recently taken place at the Three Counties Showground, Malvern. Pauline sells the products herself because she wants to tell people exactly how they work.

"It's a real family affair," she said. "We have access to a factory where we have been able to perfect our products which are tried on Maxine's favourite horse who is allergic to everything.

"We know that if the product suits him, it will be OK for the most sensitive equine.

"They took us 12 months to formulate."

The couple choose their ingredients carefully, making sure that they are all as natural as possible. Pauline is horrified that some people still use ordinary washing up liquid designed to remove grease.

This is disastrous for a horse's coats because it strips it of all its natural oils.

As far as possible, Natural Equine products contains plenty of oils to replenish the horse's coat. Even the cleanser is vegetable based. Lavender, tea tree oil, nettle and calendular are among the natural plants they use.

The popular Equi Wash includes antiseptic and an anti-fungal preparation but, because this would be dry and harsh on its own, they have added nettle, which is both soothing and healing.

The owners of grey horses everywhere (and I include myself in this category) know how difficult it is to get their horse's coats looking really fresh and bright.

Maxine and Pauline have developed a special "White Wash" for greys and white horses. It contains calendular and nettle to enhance the coat and promote a natural optical brightener.

They have produced an aptly named "Bay Wash" for brown horses which contains walnut oil to enhance the colour of their coats.

The natural fly repellent - which should please every horse - has a small amount of citronella and eucalyptus.

Because it is insecticide free, it is non-allergenic but keeps the flies at bay.

"I have always supported Maxine and her horses and she has been going to local shows and the pony club since she was a child," said Pauline.

"But when we were running the pub I didn't have much time for myself so I decided that when I retired, I would do something for me. I have a good business brain so we make the ideal combination."

Maxine has six horses in the yard at home. She does some teaching and concentrates on dressage, where she has reached Prix St George's level on Gemma, her Danish Warmblood mare.

She teaches classical riding and the Alexander Technique to both riders and non-riders.

The technique teaches you how to use your body correctly and be balanced.

Gemma trials the products for the business, but it was a 17.2 hand high Warmblood gelding called Stanley who was the catalyst for the business.

"We couldn't put anything on him," said Pauline. "All we could use was water, not even fly spray.

"He ended up with some huge bites. It was a real battle but we know that if something suits him, we are on to a winner," laughed Pauline.