Kappi and Waffle are going to the Icelandic Horse British Championships in Spalding, Lincolnshire in June – Kappi to compete with Daisy onboard and Waffle as company for Kappi.

We chose Waffle because he is the best behaved in any situation.  I trust him.

While we were going to the vet, we decided to carry another potential patient.

Dear Lambie.  He is lame on and off and it is worrying me.  I have cleaned and sprayed his feet (foot rot) but he still doesn’t run right.  A Muzzah knows.

So we collected Waffle en route from Lyradale drove down the road to Bixter.

Lambie was first up and he jumped out happy to be freed.  He has never been in the van and bleated every 10 seconds.  I led Lambie across the road to be examined.

Jim, our vet, made a thorough inspection of Lambie.  The diagnosis is that Lambie has arthritis.  Jim could feel crepitus in his left shoulder.   Poor Lamb-Lamb……

…who was furious (this is his very cross face).

Jim asked me to take a photo as it is rare for tame sheep to visit like this.  Lambie refused to co-operate.

Utterly.

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This is Lambie’s parting shot of complete loathing before I bundled him back into the van.

Next up, Jim introduced himself to Waffle.

And then Kappi.

The two boys had their jags – tetanus and flu – and we will back in a month for the rest.

I don’t think Waffle even noticed.

He was happy to come out of the van and eat the grass on the side of the road.

Jim could then inject Kappi.

Waffle loaded back in and we drove him back to his field.

Kappi said goodbye to his little friend.

The first ones up to Waffle were his original Minion friends (interesting to note).

Then everyone else arrived.

We went home to those we left behind.

Now, what to do for Lambie.  Arthritis is miserable.  I am looking into turmeric for him.    Do not Google “turmeric shoulder lamb”.  No good will come of it.

Poor Daisy.

It was drizzling in a non-stop Shetland way and she has to train her horse, Kappi.

Bjørn Roar Larsen, Daisy’s trainer, and I drove in the car to watch Daisy train her Icelandic horse, Kappi, on the straight road.

Before we arrived, Daisy had been warming up Kappi for a while and then Bjørn gave her instruction on the gaits and transitions.

(I liked the backdrop)

Both horse and rider worked hard.  From now on, it is all about getting Kappi fit.  Seriously fit.

In June, we go south for the Icelandic Horse British Championships so they have to be ready.

Daisy and Kappi are training hard.

It is not easy, in Shetland for either of them.  We do not have an oval track (the nearest is over 400 miles away) and it is nearly impossible for horse/rider to go south or go abroad to compete.

But still they train and they can only do their best, when the time comes.  I drove alongside Daisy and Kappi while Bjørn shouted instructions to them.  In Iceland, they have separate parallel riding tracks to the roads.  In Shetland, we are on single track roads with me trying not to either drive into the ditch or run the horse over!  Not easy I can tell you.

It’s getting to be that time of year again.

Soon there will be the pitter-patter of tiny hooves.

So, the supplies have arrived at Thordale.

First, we have an Emergency Kit – the mare’s milk replacer.  Included in the kit, is a rubber foal teat, sterilising tablets and mare’s milk replacer milk powder along with full emergency feeding instructions.  There is enough in the pack to cover for a few days and details are supplied of where to buy more.  This is supplied to me by The National Foaling Bank and costs a nominal £10 to anyone in Shetland who needs help.

I have used it on Albie, my orphan foal from last year.   I can thoroughly vouch for this kit – it was brilliant.  We did buckets because bottles were not working in our situation.

I have bought a couple of tubes of FoalStim.  I can vouch for this product as well – amazing stuff.  Although it is definitely not a replacement for colostrum or the vet, it can buy you time.  The FoalStim costs £14.50 (I paid £12.99 plus P&P) a tube and is worth every penny.

“A specially designed nutritional supplement of Colostrum, FoalStim is a complex blend of natural non-digestible carbohydrates including Prebiotic sources of FOS (fructo-oligosaccharides) and Polufructosans that are scientifically proven to induce beneficial results.”

If you want to know more – click this link

I also have a lifetime supply of Emergency Silver Foil blankets (always useful) – £1 each and very useful.

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And this year, I have bought in Protexin Quick Fix for horses/ponies.  I have some spare tubes, if you need.  I like this product and will use it when we travel south for competitions and also on the little ones when they are wormed.  I also spoke to Westgate Laboratories who said that there is more occurrences of liverfluke in horses.  I would definitely use Protexin Quick Fix, as well as a B12 injection, if I had to treat anyone for liverfluke.

“Quick Fix is a highly concentrated probiotic and prebiotic paste to rapidly re-establish the horses gut microflora in times of stress or change, including travelling, worming and antibiotic treatment.”

One treatment is £10.00 – click this link for more product information – give me a shout if you want a tube.

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So that is me, ready for action and if you need these products, shout.  Any time.  Any day.  (seriously, I mean it, 24/7 – foals can’t wait) 01595 809 432 – I am on the westside of Shetland.

For real help, though, ring Shetland Vet – 01595 810456 – I think they are keeping colostrum in stock.

Why do I do this?  – read this for the explanation – https://myshetland.co.uk/shetland-foal-milk-service/

You can also get The Emergency Foal Milk kit in Orkney from Sharon Williamson – 01856 741248 (home) and 01856 873535 (work)

 

Brá and I are negotiating an armed truce.  I have the carrots and, if she wants them, she has to have a headcollar taken on and off.  There is no discussion and I have been known to feed her carrot to Hetja, who is always willing to help.  Brá watches on in disgust and then gives in.

I will not back down.  It is too important.  Anyway, I think consistency is the key here and, hopefully, I am winning.

Meanwhile, the little ones are doing very well.

Vitamin is the boss.  Everyone knows this.

Fivla is her best friend and they are often together.

Lyra is not really interested in deposing her mother.  She likes spending her time with her Minion fan club.  Together, they are adventurous and often go on expeditions together round their huge field leaving the less brave (usually Vitamin) behind.

Waffle is a dude.

Silver can be aloof but will sometime come over, when no one else is looking, for a long hug and a chat. He hates a row.

These days, Tiddles is a very serious little chap.  He takes on the worries of the world and needs more of a sense of humour. Hopefully when he comes home, this will arrive in the form of two little needy friends – Newt and Albie.  They adore Tiddles.

Storm is, well, Storm.  There to irritate and annoy.

He plots and schemes to himself and takes either Tiddles with him for company or jumps on some poor unsuspecting friend.

The word “no” is not in his vocabulary.

Sometimes I feel really sorry for the others.

Putting all the boys together is going to be so much fun!

Flossie’s horse, Klængur, had lost a shoe so Daisy very kindly leant her little sister Iacs, her 22 year old Icelandic horse gelding, to ride.

However, there were spectators.

First, Floss and Iacs warmed up on a long rein.

Daisy thought she was the one giving the instruction.

Yer, right, but really, it was the woollies who were doing the training.

They took an interest.

Lambie watched every time Floss and Iacs went past – he was fascinated by this riding thing.

‘Ster made sure Daisy was doing it right.

The sheeples have probably seen more riding lessons than most.

And look how beautifully Iacs and Flossie went.

Someone must be telling them something.

These trainers want only perfection.

A textbook turn-on-the-forehand – Iacs’ pièce de résistance.

It was lovely to watch. Darling Iacs – he’s still got it.  A very special horse.

Iacs and Flossie did very well.

Rewards were handed out.

The Sheeples left with the knowledge of a job well done!

(Don’t tell Daisy – she thinks it was her!)