Guest Blogger Maxwell: 2 more about me!

I thought you might like to know exactly what my job is at the stables.  I am ridden by people of all ages and sizes as I am not too tall but quite strong.  I’ve heard the staff say that I have a smooth pace so that my riders don’t get bounced about too much. My riders don’t need to do very much for me to understand what they want me to do – I’m really quick to pick things up.
I am also trained for the hoist, which means that I stand very still while my rider uses a buzzy thing to help them get into my saddle.  This is a very important job and I am proud that I can help folks in this way.  Not all of the horses at the Calvert Trust can do this!
Another job I do is pulling the 4 wheel carriage – I share this role with 2 others, Bruno and Hendrix.  I love trotting round the arena and hearing how much the guests are enjoying it; I think I must look rather smart!
I do the same exercises when pulling the carriage as I do when I’m ridden, although moving round the cones is a bit harder with the carriage!  




I’ve had a busy week; with a mix of being ridden and driving the carriage.  It’s been really warm and therefore I get rather hot and sweaty; thankfully we all get washed down with cool water before we go out into the field.Bliss!
I am really looking forward to a couple of days off so I can focus on finding the sweetest bits of grass.  The grass has started to grow a bit quicker and I think I know where to find some rather tasty fescue.  Have a good weekend everybody – I will ‘blog’ again next week.

Guest Blogger: Maxwell

Hello everyone.  My name is Maxwell - Pilgrim asked me to write for his blog for a week or two; I hope I can do it justice.  He told me that the idea of his blog is to let you all know what we are doing each week.  Apparently some of his followers have been to the Calvert Trust before and others might wish to in the future.  So here it goes…..

Maxwell

Firstly, let me tell you a bit about myself.  I am a black and white cob standing 14.2 hands; this means I am technically a pony but I feel much more like a horse.  I am capable of carrying people up to 14 stone in weight – there can’t be many ponies that can do that!  I have been at Calvert Trust Exmoor for almost a year; I’ve settled well into my work and feel that I pull my weight at the stables.   I’ll tell you a bit more next time as it’s time for me to get back to work.

clip clop

Hurray – my shoe got put back on today!   Now I’m just like the other guys doing the ‘clip clop’ sound in the yard & on my way to the field.  I look & feel great – can’t wait to get back to driving my carriage!


Oh by the way, just wanted to let you know that one of my friends is going to be my ‘guest blogger’ next week.  I asked Maxwell and once he thought about for a bit he said he would give it a go!   So the next blog will be from him – good luck Max!

New Shoes!

Here’s the latest news hot off the press from the stables at Calvert Trust!


Forgot to say last week that I had new metal shoes instead of the plastic ones I was wearing.  They look & sound great & I make almost as much noise when I walk as the bigger guys!
But guess what…….I managed to lose one at the weekend; not sure where or how it just came off!  I’m ok but it means I can’t do any driving until I get a new one – hope it’s soon.


I’ve been told that the internet is a powerful thing & blogging is very popular – that’s why I’m doing my bit!   But what I didn’t know is that if you ask for something ‘on a blog’ it could come true!
Remember in my blog the other day (Nice Weather for Ducks)  I was fed up with the rain & wanted someone to push the button marked sun?Well this cool kid asks & hey presto it happens!!! It’s started to get drier & the sun is trying to come out – how cool is that?   Mini Shetlands rule once again!

Nice weather for ducks!

Can I ask you something?    What‘s happening with the weather at the mo!?!   I’ve still got my rug on, and I’m fed up with all this mud!


I’m much closer to the ground than any of the other horses, so it’s harder for me to move about & you know how much I love to play in the field.  Even rolling isn’t much fun!


Could someone turn off the taps & push the button marked ‘SUN’ – please, please, please!!!!

This is what I'm missing! - sunset at Calvert Trust Exmoor

Bye Bye River

Do you remember my friend River? She helped me out with my blog a few weeks ago. Well, I‘m sad to say that she has gone back home to her owners.

I thought maybe I’d done something wrong – but no, it’s not that at all. She really liked it here and loved the work, but she didn’t get on very well with some of the other horses.

you might remember she had an injury a few weeks ago, well I think the staff here were worried that it could happen again & her owners agreed it was better that River went back home.

I shall miss the old girl – we got on really well & I know she liked me (remember she said I was a "talented pony?!"); but I’ve heard that her mum is very pleased to have her back home and will be riding her too.  

Horse Experience Weekend

Hi there guys…..it’s me again the mighty atom! AKA Pilgrim, from the stables at Calvert Trust Exmoor.  Been really busy but I just had to take some time out to fill you in on the latest news!

We’ve just had a group of guests that spend all weekend in the stables – they did loads of different stuff like grooming and practical things like putting the hay in the field & clearing up our mess! 

Grooming

One of the best bits was watching me & my friends play in the school. I just love showing everyone how good I am at rolling & how fast I can run from one end of the school to the other!

They also got to ride, and had a go at carriage driving with my friend Hendrix; he told me later that they all did a good job & he enjoyed doing the courses of cones they set up for him.

The final thing they did was the ‘Calvert Challenge’ – a course set up by the folks themselves!  I heard that everyone did a clear round – so well done to them! 

It was good getting to know the guests a bit better as they spent more time with us.  If you would like to spend a weekend with me & my friends then give reception a call – we’d love to meet you!