Dahlia and Gussie are now very settled.  It’s like they’ve always been here and have fitted me into their routine beautifully.

They mostly, I think, live in a field but come home every morning for their breakfast, which they eat in the shed.  I like everyone to eat in a contained area so that they get used to it and don’t panic if they have to go inside for shearing or drenching.

After breakfast, everyone follows me back into the field.  Another rule –  go into a field during the daytime, please, except of course if it is vile weather then you can loaf around the shed.

Little Gussie is enchanting and very optimistic that I always have treats.

His mother is not far behind.

They are still together and, if they were in the hill, they would’ve been split up today.  One going to the freezer next month and one possibly going somewhere else.

As for the others, Dahlia and Gussie are slowly infiltrating a rather close-knit flock. Some might say spoilt.

Also, these two are thick as thieves despite Dahlia’s best efforts to keep her son away from bad influences.

It was good to see Edna being friends too.  She knows what the hill is like in winter.  She was dumped there (ear tags cut out) with Madge, her daughter a few years’ back.

So, it is still work-in-progress but I think they will soon be one happy flock.   I am hopeful.

‘Ster assures me he is doing his very best.

I am not convinced at all by Maggie.

And as for Lambie…… who even knows what is going on in there!

And in other news, ‘Bert’s eyes have completely cleared up and I am very relieved.

The ponies knew I was up to something. I could feel their eyes from the other side of the field and track while I was moving electric fence posts and wire.

I was busy making an eating area so they could have a bit more grass.

Once finished, I called them over to go and find it.

They cantered up the hill and bombed off in a hurry.

There was even a good trot from Fivla and Vitamin, which was surprising.

It is a tough decision because now is what is known as an Autumn Flush – a high-risk period, much like spring, because the perfect mix of warm weather and the sudden onset of autumn rain can lead to the rapid growth of grass packed full of water-soluble carbohydrate (WSC) and high intakes of these WSC’s can trigger laminitis.

So I only gave the ponies a small corner to eat down of new track and the grass is pretty old, mixed with lots of other edible plants too.

They dived in.

I feel bad if there is nothing to eat and everyone gets very bored of hay but then I worry that they will all now have laminitis because I gave them something to eat.  I can’t win.

I could not be happier.  Everything was ready for the containers…..

I was told that they could appear at any time with very little notice……

And I was trying to be hopeful that it would be today when I got a message saying the lorry had magically appeared and they were on their way.

I stayed well out of the way of the heavy lifting.

Though, it was brilliant to watch.

One container easily landed. Bish-bosh.  (I could live in there, I thought – so clean).

Perfect.

The lorry went away and I told the ponies just how lucky they all were.

After lunch, the next container arrived.

This was slightly more tricky to position but it was achieved relatively easily.

The ground had been prepared so that each container will drain downwards very slightly, hopefully preventing pooling.  We (when I say We, I mean OH) will paint the floors with bitumen paint and then rubber mats will be put down.

Hopefully there are no nasty little spaces for Storm to get stuck in.  Both containers are very close to the fences.

Pepper’s not talking to me as she wanted to join in with this far too much and at one stage appeared out of nowhere to go home with the lorry driver.

Anyway, I could not be happier. This is a good set-up.  The containers can act as wind-breaks, shelter, and there is enough room for either herd.  Definitely worth every penny and made to be impervious to the Shetland weather.  I will sleep better knowing the animals can easily find shelter if they want it.

When I put the Ancients outside, after their brief sojourn in the shed during the bad weather, I decided to give them a “new” field.  One with lots of grass and a bit more shelter.  It hasn’t been grazed all year.

Everyone always likes this field.

It is an easy field for us too as its situated just below the house and I can keep a good eye on everyone very easily, mostly from the bedroom window!

Kolka, surprisingly, was with Iacs which is rare.  Maybe it’s her turn to look after this pea-sized brain of a horse.

There is very little going on up there. The lights are on…… Still, he’s very handsome in his own way.

Care in the Community.

Kolka keeps Iacs on his (toes) hooves!  There are no flies on Kolka.  They wouldn’t dare.

This morning I was greeted by happy and dry little horses and ponies who would like to go outside now, please thank you.

But the weather wasn’t great – gusting strong winds accompanied by severe bursts of hard rain.  I deliberated and decided the Ancient Icelandics could go out without rugs into a new field full of long grass.  They didn’t need asking twice. I led Haakon while Iacs cantered past towards freedom, then realised he was on his own and sensibly followed behind with Kolka.

I gave the little ones all the unfinished haynets and told they they were staying inside for the morning.  I wanted to check the electric fence in their field was still fully functional first after the horrendous flooding but I had to go to work at Turriefield.  They didn’t seem to mind staying indoors.

When I got home at lunchtime, I led them outside two at a time.

During the morning dog-walk, OH had made sure the electric fence was working so I felt confident it would contain everyone.  I also opened up a new bit of ground as the mud was bad on the slope down to the burn.  A new layby.

They quickly all squished in to the new area to eat it down.

So that’s us.  All alive and very glad that the storm has passed over.  I am also relieved to know that putting them all in the shed is a sensible solution during extreme bad weather.  They all got on fine and just settled down for 24 hours. Skippy only needed emptying once this morning so easily.  Press Button B at the muck heap!