So why did we choose Fivla for the photoshoot, I hear you ask?  Well, mainly because she is such a dear sweet lovely little pony.

I bought Fivla from her breeder (Irene Rutherford of Finnister Stud) back in 1996.  I swapped her for a complete nightmare of a pony I had stupidly purchased at the sales.  Irene said she would do a swap and give me in return “this lovely super-tame filly foal”.  She was about 6 months old and completely black bar one white eyelash.

She has exemplary parentage with Chatsworth, Mousa and Berry breedlines – all highly prized.

Fivla lived with my other ponies as a family pet.  She has always been quiet, easy to work and live with.  Never a nasty word. My daughters have ridden her and we trained her to harness when the girls had grown out of her – in about ten minutes (seriously).  Fivla has always been 100% reliable.

Over the years, we have used her for any pony-related necessity, including carrying hay up with a traditional Shetland klibber (available from Thordale – shameless plug) to the fields for other ponies, ….

taming down recently purchased wild nervous ponies and

trying our antique basket saddle.

She has even brought wild ponies down from the open hill that needed urgent treatment by request of the SSPCA, our RSPCA.  Basically, if there is a crisis, get Fivla because she will always help.

Fivla has had two foals – Thordale Noggin the Nog

(or Snoggin as he is known)

and Thordale Olympus (Lumpy to his friends)

Both have been enchanting and Snoggin is driven too (so proud, sniff).  Fivvie loved her bebbies. She always brought them up beautifully and was a good mother.

So that is why we chose Fivla for the job.  We know her very well and we know she would never mind wearing her cardie because she the right Shetland pony for the job.

(Tomorrow I will tell you all about Vitamin)