Tag Archives: MyShetland

Haynets at Night

1 Reply

Really crap photos today and I’m sorry – it has barely been light all day and the weather has not improved (still freezing wind and rain).

Daisy has now seen the set up and agrees with me that the Shetland ponies need something or else they just stand around all day looking rather bleak and miserable in a muddy spot.

So the new regime is to give them three haynets hung on the gate for to share.

The ponies came racing up when they heard of this new plan.

Note how Newt has to have a cheeky nip at Waffle as he catches up in the race to the gate.

Tiddles and Albie brought up the rear with enthusiasm.

Clever Silver had already taken up pole position and was tucking in trying to shovel as much down as fast as possible before the others arrived.

I thought it was very sweet (or optimistic) that Newt would rather come and talk to me than eat his hay.

I told him to hurry back and go and get his ration before it vanished.  I know I said I didn’t want to give out hay and I know the ponies are rotund, but they don’t get a lot of hay (Daisy sized portions, so small), but I can sleep better knowing everyone had a little something to keep them warm at night.  Temperatures are going down to around – 8℃ tonight (windchill) which is not much fun, as well as the the wind and rain.

Grot Day With Hope

8 Replies

It remains horrible outside and I am beginning to feel sorry for the Shetland ponies.

Should I move them perhaps over to this field – 5 acres I was saving for the old horses and ponies.

Daisy arrives tomorrow to take over from Flossie and I will ask her then.  I could always give the Shetland ponies haynets hung on the gate.  That’s a possibility but it involves lugging.

Meanwhile, I remain pretty much bed-bound as I find sitting for long periods very difficult.  I try and do a different chore each morning just to see if I can, and mostly end up taking to my bed to lie flat because my back puts in it’s objections.  I feel sore all of the time and painkillers really are my last resort. I am trying to avoid them if I can.

I phoned the Pain Clinic to be told I might be seen in mid-March but was on the list if there was a cancellation.  I resigned myself to the long wait when the phone rang this afternoon, and I was told there have been a cancellation and I will now definitely be seen on the 16th February.  So that is excellent news.  I am hugely relieved and I know I said previously never again, but I’ve hopefully negotiated immense knock-out sedation this time so the procedure should be bearable.

But my worry now is the animals. There seems to be no let up in this weather for the time being.

On my inside, I threw some carrots at the Shetland ponies and told myself things could be a lot worse for them, and me.

Bed Wars (2)

5 Replies

The arguments continue and I am supposedly the referee – albeit an unwilling one.

Monster decided that all this arguing was beneath him and he will take over the world at a later date.  This morning, he contented himself with lying on the kitchen table (behaviour I try not to condone) while I made inedible soup for lunch.

This left Ted to reclaim his rightful bed.  Ted’s bed – look, it even rhymes beautifully.

Ted settled himself down for the day (you can almost hear him praying to his Gods that no one wants to take him on a dog walk but they did).

Later Monster continued to plot from his Fortress of Solitude located under the piano – he already has quite the property portfolio.

After lunch, Pepper decided enough was enough.  Having not ever been near the bed since its arrival, she picked it up and moved it around the room, like a professional Feng Shui Master trying to harmonize Chi for our improved health, prosperity, and well-being.

So the bed now has a new location – in front of the sofa, next to OH’s spot and Ted is very happy with this (mostly because he quickly reclaimed it) – and he’s even brought his much-beloved Christmas present too.  Love, indeed.

New problem, though, because now Pepper, having dragged the bed around the room, quite fancies it too,

And every time I look at this bed, I seriously wonder how it would fit a Border collie – the original intended recipient.

(Goes off to look at website wondering if I must seriously buy two more.)

Bed-Wars

4 Replies

I popped over to see a friend this morning. She had asked me if I wanted a bed she had recently bought for her dog (a Border collie), which had proven to be a bit small.  I said, yes, please.  After all, there will always be someone in our house who can use it.

We placed the bed amongst the others and Ted liked the look and promptly plonked himself in.

Yes, this definitely had a potential lovely-dog-bedness feeling about it.

And Ted happily settled knowing this was now Ted’s bed.

Definitely Ted’s perfect bed for Ted and no one else because it belongs to Ted now.  Them’s his rules.

But is it, though?

The bed could now be Monster’s perfect bed.

Monster promptly made himself comfortable and, feeling a little too relaxed and happy, decided to make it his own.

He had a wash.

So, it’s Monster’s bed now because Monster has decided that is the way it will be (and now Ted hasn’t got his bed and I feel awful…. For a short while, Ted was so happy.)

Escape for the Day

11 Replies

As Flossie hasn’t left the house since last year – just after Christmas to be precise – I thought we should have a day out.  It would do us both good. And I am also panicking about any potential snow dump that might happen.  After all, if there is a life-threatening snow storm about to hit the USA (please, all stay safe everyone) and mega-snow in Russia (Kamchatka peninsula), then I have to worry.

So I got the horsevan out (first offering up a prayer to the Gods of starting vans) and off we drove to Lerwick, sadly leaving Pepperpot behind.

It was cold, windy with occasional biting rain.  There’ve been no boats for many days so I couldn’t get some of the animal feed I wanted.   Never mind, we have enough for a while, no one is going to starve.  I did, however, get a big bale of hay so now we are well stocked with hay.

Everyone in town is gearing up for Up Helly Aa – held on the last Tuesday of the month.

 

I checked the sheep field in Jamieson’s and kicked myself for forgetting to bring any one. Never mind. OH will go in on Monday and I can send them in with him ready for the cruise ship full of tourists arriving specifically for Up Helly Aa.

We had a nice lunch – our reward for all our recent hard work – and then a quick nip around Tesco’s.  It was very obvious there had been no boats.

Apparently no one likes watermelon.

Or beetroot.

I think (but I could be wrong) the only local produce Tesco will sell here is milk from Shetland Farm Dairies.  There was absolutely no bread in the aisles – which is disappointing because there are at least 8 – 10 local bakeries scattered all over Shetland.  At least the local shops are well stocked with bread.

We went home feeling full (delicious lunch) and with a good supply of hay too.