Tag Archives: Shetland

Interesting Experiment

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There is always someone around offering to “help”.  Today I was vacuuming my shed out and I suddenly thought “I wonder if I could vacuum off the horses’ winter coats. It would be so useful” and something I’ve never tried before.

And a little known fact, Iacs and Kolka do not want to be vacuumed.  They both rushed off saying the noise was too much.  Haakon, on the other hoof, stood stock still, had a look back at me and my machine, told me I was mad, but he never moved away and quite enjoyed it, I think.

Sadly the vacuum wasn’t much use – it didn’t work as well as I wanted it to, though, which was a shame. I could saved loads of time from all that brushing.

Never mind, I tried.  So back to brushing it is or maybe they could do it themselves.

On my way back into the house, I vacuumed Monster too but we all know he likes that.  So an interesting “experiment” today.  Knowledge is power and knowing I can vacuum Haakon if required is useful.

(Pepper lives in a constant state of war with the vacuum so we don’t go there.)

Lots of Lying Down

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The two cousins ate their breakfast together today (I love seeing them like this – never an argument, just two old friends eating together).

When I went back later on my dog-walk, I found Haakon lying down, resting so I opened the field gate for them and continued with my walk.

The dogs and I went over to our favourite spot, Clothie – a five acre croft with a derelict house (it was a school once).

While the dogs did their own thing – bunny hunting with no success, mostly – I went looking to see what flowers were now appearing.

Bogbean (Menyanthes trifoliata) – “Gulsa girse”.

Cuckooflower (Cardamine pratensis),  “mayflooer“.

Dandelion, Taraxacum palmeri -“eksis girse”.

Heath Spotted-orchid (Dactylorhiza maculata) – “curly Dodies”.

Red Campion (Silene dioica) – “clockie-flooers” –

After wandering around Clothie looking for more orchids – it is early days though, I went back to the horses’ field only to find they hadn’t moved so I showed one the open gate and the rest followed.  As Fivla and Vitamin weren’t around, I decided to shut the gate as those two don’t really need the extra.

After making my customary sheep, I came outside to poo-pick around the place only to find Haakon and Iacs lying down again.

I hope it was just the nice weather and the feeling of being full of grass rather than anything more sinister.

I told myself that the fact that Iacs was also having a snooze hopefully confirmed my original theory.

I don’t want sinister. I really don’t.

The Green Green Grass of Home

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Little Fivla was unexpectedly standing by the gate this morning when I went back in to collect the buckets.

The others were hanging around too.

I just thought they were full and couldn’t be bothered to go and find anything more to eat.

After my breakfast, I came back to clean out their big water bucket and refill them only to find the lurkers still a-lurking.

So, being the nice kind person that I am, I opened the gate and told the old folk they could spend their day eating the green grass around the house.  We have a lot and needs eating down.  This is cheaper than mowing and less effort too.

No one needed asking twice.  Zoom through the gate, they went.

After cleaning and refilling all the water buckets in the fields, I found Fivla and thought I would give her a little brush.  That winter fur is just not coming out on its own.  In the end I brushed everyone and collected up the fur in a bag.

I ended up sitting on the bag full of fur to keep my bottom dry and Fivla and I had a lovely chat and brush.  Fivla was grooming me back and listening to the classical music (Purcell) that was also playing on my phone in my back pocket.  Such a peaceful time.

Pepper was jealous of Fivla’s attention, obviously.

Fivla is a very gentle soul.  We’ve known each other for 30 years and she is the perfect pony.

There has been much stuffing of faces with grass all day.

Everywhere I look, there is someone outside to look at.

Even when Pepper and I went to my shed…..

I only had to look outside my window and smile.

There were also the creepy neighbour moments too.  Always Bibble.

Need a Rest

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I was going along quite well this morning.

Everyone was fed, put in fields where they should be, most home chores done (pickled some eggs and vacuumed) before I drove into town for a physiotherapy appointment.

As I was early, I popped into Jamiesons’s Knitwear to see if they needed more sheep.

I like to have spare with me just in case because a sale is a sale and I hate an empty field.

My field was already well-stocked but no matter my new bag of sheep will keep for another day.

Then my physio appointment which was very helpful, a quick run around with a trolley at Tesco’s trying to remember everything on my shopping list and I finally drove home.

And now I feel absolutely “cream-crackered” and have taken to my bed along with various animals who are hopeful I will get up and feed them their tea.

No chance – it’s an hour early and I need a rest.  So that’s my diary appointments for this week all done and I have absolutely nothing ahead – my idea of heaven.  I shall concentrate on my physio exercises.

The Saga Continues

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When I came outside this morning, I found Lambie was still very much attached to his marsh marigold boutonnière even though it was looking a bit more tired but definitely still attached.

I took a few more arty-farty photos just because I think Lambie looks lovely and very special.

He wears his flower well, I think.

And he found his charming Winning Smile too today (I had to work hard for that)…..

….as well as some other danglements – possibly a few stalks of heather.

(apologies for the photo over-load of one silly looking sheep wearing a flower but it is Lambie and he was smiling today – I have to make the most of that)

After my ridiculous photoshoot, OH and I finished the annual sheep shed muck out and putting down new bedding for another year.  It needed doing and as I type this, I am contemplating which painkiller to take.

Still, it is a job well done and it’s no longer looming over me.

I like to think I have made a lot of progress since my back going in December/January and am nearly back on track.  At the time, I did wonder if I could.