An odd scenario today worth mentioning just because it was so…… well, odd!

Newt and Pepper are good friends. They always have been and she makes a point of going up to him to say hello, have a sniff and a chat.  She licks his nose sometimes.

But Silver is not one of Pepper’s fans. Instead when she ran past he tried to chase and stamp on her.  Pepper is fast on the uptake and she quickly made it into a game, where he would meanly chase her, and she was just that bit too far away for contact. She was circling him, like she does Maggie (who is also spiteful towards Pepper).  I watched on concerned but reckoned Pepper can look after herself and she wasn’t worried about being chased.

This is Silver’s cross face.

So Newt, went up to Silver, swung round in a threatening kicking manner giving a small bounce and then swung back to explain that he should now be nice to Pepper, who watched on with interest.

I could almost hear the conversation – “Be nice to Pepper please or I will kick you in the teeth!” was basically said.

So Silver made a huge effort and was nice to Pepper while Newt watched close by, touching Silver’s flank with possibly teeth.  He was not letting this behaviour go on.

Like I said, most odd.  Newt meant business, Pepper was just being Pepper and Silver was forced into being a friend.

The Shetland ponies are all very happy being together at Leradale.

I fed the old ladies and then took the dogs for a walk – this is my back view….

And my front (two dots of hi-viz = the doglets, Ted and Pepper).

The ponies were playing, galloping about, giggling and farting.

So lovely to see.

They ran one way…..

And then the other.

A wee film

I talked to Tiddles who promised me he felt completely better and he would do his best not to get laminitis again.

Waffle was thrilled to see his friends again.

Newt was not.  He has to work harder to maintain his current Reign of Terror.

And I left them all munching on grotty old hill grass.

And I made a promise to Fivla and Vitamin that their old-lady-buckets would still continue and, if they needed to, I would move them next door to the field with all the grass.  The others would not be joining them.

Anyway, it is so nice to have the ponies all back together again.  Seeing Albie gallop about out of sheer happiness made my heart sing.

This morning was just so, so much better.  Tiddles was perky and back to his “normal” (and I use this word in it’s loosest sense) self.  The happy smiley can-I-have-my-breakfast-bucket Tiddles. I  managed to get some pre and pro biotics down him and I think they really helped.

Storm was an idiot – that is his norm, too.

A complete twerp.

And you can see from the way Tiddles holds himself, he is feeling better.

Relieved muchly. I may sleep tonight.

So I took the boys on my dog walk because exercise is good, right?

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And then I took the cat just because…..

The afternoon was spent with our farrier.

Before photos (Tiddles) …..

And after (so much nicer).

It was deemed that Tiddles, Albie and Storm could rejoin their herd if (and only if) they live in the impoverished hill part of Leradale.  So they went out and I will keep my eagle eye on them all.

Albie is borderline but we will see…… (he was so pleased to see Fivla again).   So maybe we are through the colic (please God) and through the laminitis (for the time being, please God again).

Tiddles was better this morning. His smiley face greeted me saying he could manage a bucket and thank you very much. So, relieved, feeling we might’ve turned a corner, I put him with his friends into a big field.

I did notice that Tiddles was still a bit subdued but he was more animated so I was hopeful this would do the trick.

And off they went.

They were all happy – Albie and Storm were thrilled.

This is Albie rolling with happiness, not colic.

And then, after lunch, I saw Tiddles lying down, rolling, kicking his belly, lying flat with legs straight out and I so brought him back up into the school to run him round.  He is passing a fairly loose stool but he is uncomfortable and miserable again.

The vet is on his way……  Everything crossed for Tiddles, please. I hate seeing him like this.

A little known fact – colic trumps laminitis and Tiddles has colic.

I know this because he wouldn’t eat his supper (bucket of nothing with chaff), then he  lay down beside it and rolled and then sat.  So I threw them all outside in the hope he would be so pleased he would eat.

Nothing. So the emergency on-call costs-a-million-dollars-a-minute vet was phoned and she came out to see Tiddles.

While we were waiting for her arrival I caught Tiddles and put him by himself – he was furious and cantered up and down.

Storm was his moral-support friend from the other side of the fence.

And I worried about Tiddles.

But he was passing splats and I could hear vague bowel sounds. He was feeling very sorry for himself, too.

While we were waiting, I put him in the school and walked him round and round. More splats.

Anywho, veterinary came and fully examined Tiddles. She saw the splats, gave her opinion and medication (painkillers, anti-inflammatory) was given too.  The verdict:  Mild colic from bowel irritation and to get him eating again.  The drugs should help.

So Albie, Storm and Tiddles are around the house (outside) and I will pop in and out, keeping an eye and working out if I can put Daisy (first born) on Ebay to pay the vet bill (Sunday afternoon/evening vets ain’t gonna come cheap – I swear the ponies know.)

*** sigh *** it is such a toss-up between colic and laminits.  My nerves are shredded.