It is totally official. I am obssessed with the weather and now I think I have good reason – over four days of a storm, with gusts of Force 11 which is one off a hurricane.
I am not sure what to do, ie how to manage this. Today, I changed my mind while looking at four weather webpages and we battened down every hatch we could find.
For the old men, we decided they could go into the stable at night with a supply of hay. During the day, they can come out and be around the house with Haakon wearing a rug, if required. I want him to move about and have fresh air but not to have to stand outside in god-knows-what being miserable. Floss and I will diligently poo-pick afterwards.
So is it better to:
- have the youngsters outside with rugs in a sheltered field (hills) and some grazing giving them hay, as and when we can get down to them? Thicker rugs will stay on better (they don’t have leg straps – just fillet strings behind the tail).Or:
- Have them up in a huge field with less shelter (go find a wall to stand behind it) with very little grazing, bringing them into the stable for hay for, say, a morning to rest and eat? It is easier to change rugs daily like that as they will be nearer the stable.
Decisions, decisions. Today, I went with Option 1 as it will be windy, rain but warm. As the wind turns around, I might go for Option 2. Floss and I are going day-by-day as safety allows.
I have sorted my rugs into piles according to size and who needs to wear what. There is even one for Dreki if he needs but I couldn’t feel a rib this morning.
Rugs are still drying from the last onslaught. Gah!
(Efstur’s wee pile)
We have 12 bales (£7.60 a bale – yes, you heard right) of hay cut from the Elysian Fields and then imported to Shetland on the golden wings of unicorns – words fail considering it was a good year for hay. Hay prices always go up, they never come down.
So that’s me. I hope the electricity lasts. xx
Whatever arrangement is going to work out best for you and your daughter having to go into the storm would be the best. Wherever is easiest for you to get to and care for the herds in the nasty weather would be my vote! Is your indoor riding area large enough that you could temporarily house several/most of the herd there? They’d be in one place and it is dry indoors to check on and care for them!!
I think the noise would be phenomenal and they prefer to be outside for the most part. Once, I opened the stable and gave them free access to it so they all stood outside. I put a bale of hay inside so they went in to eat it and then went back outside to stand in the hurricane! When the wind is changing direction so much, I would rather shut the stable door as I could lose the roof!
Oh, dear……………..you’ve done all the right things and all that you can do. Good luck and we’ll be thinking about you and hoping things will be all right.
Not a nice situation for you. I hope it blows itself out sooner than predicted and I hope, too, that the wind direction doesn’t change and turn wintery. Will be thinking about you.
Boy, do I hear you on hay! In our area it was a BAD year for hay, and we didn’t get enough in the barn to last us the hay-feeding season. And I desperately want to buy a young prospect because my gelding is practically unrideable now, but must find more hay (and convince my husband) before seriously considering that.
Our struggle is real x