We are exhausted. It’s been a busy morning.

I started by moving the three Ancients into a field across the hill where they could stay well away from the track creation and the electric fence.  There’s lots of grass and shelter in their new field so they were happy to oblige.

Then came the hard work.  There were three of us working – OH, a kind friend and me.  The 120 wooden “stabs” were already in place but needed a plastic post or two in between to support the one strand of electric wire.  OH went all the way round putting 120 plastic insulators in with his drill, which makes life far easier.  By hand, it is a nightmare.  The dogs were about and we told them this was the equivalent of a dog-walk. They were very good and just pootled about while we worked.  The whole fence is 700 metres long all the way round the field.  That’s a long way and a lot of wire.

The battery is now on charge but I am not sure when to move the Minions into their field.

The spring grass is about to come in so I will possibly put them in tomorrow and hopefully we will avoid laminitis.  I am dithering because it’s not really spring, their existing field is doing the job perfectly well and I don’t want to peak too early, run out of grass and have to put hay out for them.  Oh, what to do?

And back with the Ancients – I went over to check their water – they are all fine.

And they’re all looking good considering they don’t wear rugs and are 28, 29 and 30 years old (Iacs, Kolka and Haakon).

It was a good day – we achieved great things and I feel happy that the track is all set and ready to be used. It looks good and I think everyone will sleep well tonight. So much walking round and round the track.

Vitamin is back on course (fingers and toes crossed, please) and I am beginning to think about moving the Shetland ponies onto their Spring/Summer/Autumn track sometime soon.

(Vitamin eats in the old sticks as she decided this is what she wants to be and no one will bother her).

Note Tiddles and his bucket! *** sigh ***.

Anyway, the track is all laid out around the edge of this field and the Ancients are meant to be eating it down for me first.

Grabbing my Sharpie pen and electric fencing post, I went round each post and put a large black X where I want the insulator to be drilled (tomorrow’s job).  The fence wire will not be very high because Shetland ponies will slip underneath it if they think they can so it is low enough for Newt to not do this and high enough for no one to jump – that’s the theory.

I had observers with opinions.

And the small Minions watched on.

“I’m watching you, Wazowski. Always watching. Always.”

Once all my X’s were on the fence posts, I emptied out the Eggbox’s boot to fill it up with fence posts that needed returning to their rightful owners.  I hate borrowing and keeping things. It makes me worry.

More help – but so very cute.

Everything was organised and stacked to go back.

Tomorrow will be Insulator Day. I won’t put the electric fence wire on yet as if anyone can totally walk into an electric fence wire, it is Kolka. I swear she just doesn’t see it and I want the horses to eat a bit more of the grass down before the Minions move in.

The dogs haven’t sat still all afternoon – just play, play and more playing.  I think it is because when I was in Tesco’s yesterday filling in time waiting for Ted, I bought a rather fun squeaky duckie.  The squeak was out in seconds and most of the filling, but duckie lives on as a very good toy to argue over.

When, exhausted, the dogs did eventually sit still, I took a few photos.

(so clean and smart, Ted)

I like this photo and this is one of those moments that I wish I could show it to Mum.  She would like it too.

While the dogs were busy playing, I was fighting with Photoshop trying to make a new sign for my field in the shop. The current one has done it’s job and is looking tired.

Two hours later and much cursing because for some reason I couldn’t cut and paste the label picture, I created this banner and I think it is quite good, even if I do say so myself.  I think it will grab passing attention just because ‘Bert is so handsome and looks like an honest secondhand car salesman (if there is such a thing!)

And so to Scalloway for Ted’s four-times-a-year hair-cut because he is part Yorkie and part Schnauzer and so he tends towards the greasy Muppet look, which I hate.

See what I mean?   I left him at the dog groomers for 2 hours and went shopping in Lerwick to pass the time.

First I did a quick swoop round Tesco’s buying all the things OH never buys because I always forget to put them on the list.

Then I popped into Jamieson’s Knitwear on the street.

I wanted to measure my original sign as I am trying to replace it with a more up-to-date sheep-themed version.  It’s currently work-in-progress.

Then onward to buy serious electric fencing stuff to use on the Minion track system and I drove back to Scalloway for Ted.

I waited patiently in the dog groomer’s reception area while Ted’s beautiful haircut was finished by Sharon, who said he wasn’t too badly behaved, which was kind.  He can be awful.  We both know this.

And then Ted and I drove home with Ted sitting quietly next to all my electric fence stuff in the back.

Ted had missed his supper, which he was very much aware and told me all about so it had been set aside for him.

I also bought Ted a squeaky toy in Tesco’s to make up for his ordeal and the squeaker lasted exactly 10 seconds long and there is stuffing everywhere.

And Ted’s not sorry!

Funnily enough, Pepper is all over the place when Ted’s away being made beautiful.  She doesn’t like her friend not being there.

I am trying to avoid (read hide from) the horses and ponies. They have all become a bit too used to an afternoon snack when I gave Vitamin her injections and put the rugs on.  There are no more injections (the antibiotic course has finished and we are seeing how she gets on without analgesia) and it isn’t raining, so this morning I took off the rainsheets.  Everyone has moved off into their fields and my theory is that if they can’t see me, they can’t come rushing up for food!

So, I snuck into my shed to make my daily felted sheep.  I chose a small bag of wool that I hadn’t seen for a while but appeared after a massive tidying up from the other day.

As I worked with the wool, I realised it was incredibly soft and very definitely ‘Ster’s so obviously I made a ‘Ster.

It took longer than usual just because I was not used to the wool and the needle would bounce off.

And I used my new stamp/label combo so now my sheep is shop-ready.

And all this reminded me of when ‘Ster first came to us back in the winter of 2015 and so I had to go and find his baby pictures.

Oh, he was sweet as a little lamb.

This was Day 1 when he first met BeAnne and then a few days later, he talked to Flossie (his first human contact).

He was very wary of everything but it didn’t take long – just a couple of packets of ginger biscuits and he soon got the point.

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Well you would, wouldn’t you?

On a diet of other things apart from biscuits, ‘Ster grew and grew and is pretty huge now.  A dear boy.  He has separation anxiety and likes to be hugged all the time.