Floss came home today.

We are all thrilled to see her.

Collecting Flossie from the airport was quite an ordeal.  There was torrential rain and fog resulting in some fairly hazardous driving conditions but we’re home safe and that’s all that matters.

After lunch, Flossie and I went for a walk. I had missed feeding the animals due to the airport run so I just wanted to see for myself that everyone was ok as the fields are heavily flooded.

And, yes, now I am glad the Shetland ponies broke through their fence to better pasture. I think they would’ve been utterly miserable living on their track like this.  But no one came up to the containers, despite the heavy rain.  I guess food makes everything better.

Like I said, everyone was pleased to see Floss.

(‘Bert’s “Happy Tail” – sheep wag their tails when they are truly happy, like dogs).

The Shetland ponies were divided into two groups.

With the flooded stream splitting them up.

Newt, Albie, Vitamoobag……

And Fivla were one side.

While Waffe, Storm, Silver and Tiddles were over the other side.

We threw them their share of carrots so they didn’t feel left out.

And now it’s stopped raining, it won’t take long for the burn to go down again.

And then we walked back up the hill with Monster, because he came too.

Today is an indoor day.  It’s vile outside, though warm – wind and rain.  The Shetland ponies swallowed down their breakfast, which I had to take to them as they refused to leave their newly-found field.  I served it on the grass.  No buckets. I only have two arms for lugging.  The old ladies got their’s in buckets, though because although we have few standards here, that is the one we have.  Anyway, they didn’t finish – probably because they were too stuffed from the grass.  As you may be able to tell from my tone, I still have not got over the blatent disregard for my authority or the electric fence.

So I went to town for supplies as Floss is coming home for a long week tomorrow.  It was grey and grim so I just went in, did messages, and left, not even lingering to take any photos – sorry.

But, to make up for this dearth of pics, here are some of Monster in various guises.

He loves my iPad.

When it wasn’t wet and windy and we were all outside.

Waiting patiently, trying to catch my eye.

Being shouted at as eye not caught.

Making his point – food now, please!

Having been severely told off for previous behaviour.  We try to keep meal-times on a strict timetable.

And Lambie is coming into the house more looking for carrots.

He only leaves when I threaten to hug him.  That’s the only way to get him out of the porch!

My legs ache.  According to my phone, I’ve walked over 11,500 steps.

I started first thing moving the Ancients closer to home as they had an appointment with the equine dentist.

My tried and trusted method was to lead Haakon.

And hope everyone else followed.

At one stage, I shouted at Iacs to focus and not have an independant thought!

Then it was the little ones turn.  Four were on the track and four were in the field.  I had no idea how they got there so I put the good four in the paddock where they could eat everyone’s breakfasts.  I managed to get the other four out of the field and they  re-joined their friends, who had eaten their breakfast.  “Serve you right”, I told them.

The dentist came, did some work on all the old equines. Vitamoobag (she was a cow!) and a quick travel around with a drill and wash out on everyone else.  A huge thank you to Stuart Lindsay, Equine Dentist.

So I put everyone back in their respective fields/track only to find all the Shetland ponies had managed to break into the field again.

All except for Waffle, (surprise!) who was a good boy, if panicking he wasn’t with his friends.

I tried to catch the friends but they wouldn’t be caught. Oh no, they ran around and around giggling, bucking and farting.  It was hopeless.  I am not one to give up but I had to give up, raging.

And I went and let Waffle in with them because I knew he would panic and do more damage to the fence.

Plan B now: I’m going to have to leave the ponies for a few days and pray the autumn flush is over.  Bloody ponies.  They will be moved Friday.

The latest thing the Shetland ponies do is to stand as far away as possible, far, far away in the distance and just look at me while I shout until I am a little hoarse (see what I did there, geddit?) for them to all come up for their breakfast.

And they do nothing.  Just stand there.

Eventually one of them gets the message that they should come up for their food.  Once one starts, they all start moving.

I find this very frustrating.  The ponies always used to be standing by their buckets pointing to their watches at breakfast time.

I think the problem is the mud.  A few days of rain and the whole track has disintegrated into a muddy mess, just about everywhere.  I do feel for them, especially Newt, as he is so small and getting through it is becoming a problem.

Here is another muddy bit which I can see they all hate.

Eventually they all arrive.

I spent the morning in the rain trying to make more lay-bys around the muddy bits, which hopefully the ponies will appreciate but I know it won’t take long before that turns into more mud.  This track is not going to hold up in winter.  So much for my plan.   Floss is home on Thursday for a week so I think between us, we will put the ponies on the far hill for a month, or until the really bad weather starts.  I am hoping the Autumn Flush is finally over and they won’t get laminitis.  It will also give the track a much needed rest too.  What to do? Pros and cons with every plan.

Yesterday, we had a lot of rain – it was cold and windy too.  So I put up lots of haynets inside the containers and left everyone to it.

They ate lots and made a some mess which I duly cleared up.

Last night, I struggled out in the dark to find the containers full of ponies.  Great, I thought as I hung up more haynets inside, they are getting the message.  While I was turning on the red lights, and tried to get any stragglers inside (it was shitting down by then), they all took umbrage, walked out and left.  “Rot in Hell”, I shouted after them, “you ungrateful lot!” and I turned off the lights wondering whether they preferred no light after all.

My “scientific experiment”, such as it was, proved that Shetland ponies do not like me spending money on unnecessary lights, worrying about what frequency best suits their eyes and driving miles for a selection of coloured coverings.

No, because this morning, when I went to collect up any empty haynets, I was greeted by almost ankle-deep poop.  The most ever I’ve seen since the containers arrived.

Which is scientific proof that ponies use containers for shelter if there are no lights.  And yet they remain ungrateful.

(and Ted, for anyone’s who has been missing him).