Reservoir Ride

Just been catching up with Brin; he’d just come back from a ride with some of the others; they were Bruno, Bertie & Duke. 

They went by the reservoir: do you remember I did some driving along the tracks that way a while back? He said It was a bit blowy but it didn’t rain & they had a couple of nice trots.  He said the best bit was checking out the scenery as he doesn’t know the route very well.

Our reservoir: its a lovely place for a drive!

I wish I could do that again sometime……….I wonder who I have to ask?

Questions, Questions and more Questions!

I’ve been asked loads of questions by the others about my new friend, everyone wants to know all there is to know about Bailey!

It will be a while before he can go in with the others; once we know he’s staying here at Calvert Trust Exmoor the others will get a change to say Hi!

I can’t wait to see their faces!

I bet Bailey will find it a bit strange too, He’s used to being round horses his own size, so Teddy, Brin & Co will probably come as a bit of a shock!!!! I’d best be around when he meets them for the first time to make sure all’s OK; that’s if he stays. I hope he does…

...I’m keeping my hooves crossed!!

Shetland's coats are so cool!

I felt a bit sorry for Bailey (or the little man, as I call him) last night.  It poured with rain for ages & ages; now I’m OK with my nice warm rug but Bailey just stood there & got soaked!!

He said he was OK & doesn’t mind; he looked wet but not cold & there’s probably a good reason for that…

...you see us Mini Shetlands grow a ‘double coat’ in the winter, which means even if the top coat is soaking wet, underneath we are warm & dry!!   Pretty good, huh?

Our cousins in the North are really tough & stay out in the coldest & wettest weather you could think of. Not even Exmoor can be that bad (I hope!!)

My new friend Bailey

You’ll NEVER guess what’s happened!!!! I’ve got a new friend…

…..AND he’s just my size!!!!    


The best thing is that I already know him; we’ve both come from the same herd & he knows my mum, How cool is that!  
His name is Bailey; he’s much younger than me and a totally different colour and doesn’t yet wear a rug! 

I think the plan might be for me to help with his training so he can be as good at agility & driving as me one day!  I heard that he’s on trial for a bit to see if he fits in with us, so I best make sure all goes well!

As you might guess we are in the same field…it’s great being able to run with a horse that’s goes at my speed (which is pretty fast!) plus I don’t have to stick my nose right up in the air whenever I what to have a chat!

I’ll keep you posted as to how he gets on, and try and get a photo of him soon!

I've had a great day

I’ve just had a great day – it’s cheered me up no end!
What did I do?  Well, I drove again & the best bit was that I had a few guests working with me today.  How cool is that?
None of them had driven before, so they had a practice on ‘Neddy’ before they sat in my carriage & did some driving with me. I had help from the staff, who made sure that all was OK.

I love hearing how much each of them enjoyed driving me……..I think the best bit was when I trotted – no surprise there!

P.S. Have I told you how much I love my job?   Well, on days like today there’s nothing I’d rather be doing in the whole wide world………

I'm Back!

I’m back!!  

I thought Hendrix did a pretty good job on the blog for me, didn’t you? I’m sure he’ll do it again if I asked him to...

...but not for a while though!   

The trouble is he went on a bit about writing the blog, he even started to make ‘suggestions’ of what I should put in when I ‘take it over’!! Whose blog does he think it is anyway!

I like Hendrix & we get on really well, BUT he can get a bit full of himself at times! I think I’ll ask one of the others to write for me next time, but not just yet!

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I drove today & it was brill!!

It’s been a few weeks since I last worked in my carriage – been so busy with my agility work, I’ve just not had the time.
I worked in the indoor arena & had it all to myself, great fun!  I got warmed up by doing the ‘3 S’s’ (remember that’s Stop, Start & Steering) then had a wiz round in trot; fantastic!

I also got a chance to practice my turns in trot. I did a line of cones to finish with; I was weaving in & out of them in trot at a really good pace; great fun!

I love driving (& I’m getting pretty good at it too!!)

Bye Bye Pixie

I’ve just had a bit of a shock; my best friend Pixie has retired & gone back home to her owners who live somewhere called ‘Somerset’!

Pixie

I knew she was older than me, in fact she’s older than all of us horses here at Calvert Trust.  I remember her saying something a while back about looking forward to ‘putting her feet up’ – but I had no idea that she wouldn’t be doing that here!

I think Pixie knows me better than any of the others & I will miss her a lot.   Teddy said he’d make sure I’m OK & to let him know if he can help in anyway – how nice was that!  It won’t be the same without her but as long as Pixie is happy it’s OK with me.

Well, sort of…..ask me later.

Guest Blogger Hendrix 7: Bye for now

Had my shoes done today. I don’t always need new shoes each time, but they do need to come off & my feet are trimmed to look neat & tidy.

When I first had them done I didn’t like it at all – but the guys who do our shoes are very good & make sure I’m happy with what they are doing. In fact I heard them say how much better I am & that I was ‘as good as gold’ – cool huh? 

Pilgrim told me that he’s doing the blog again – I wonder if he’s worried that I’m doing too good a job!  Anyway, it’s been great chatting to you all – I might get the chance to do this again sometime, if I talk to Pilgrim nicely!  Bye for now.

Bye For Now!

Guest Blogger Hendrix 6: Look at my Lovely Legs!

We’ve got lots of folks around the centre this week, so we’re all keeping busy – suits me as I’m not good at doing nothing at all!

Pilgrim’s had to do his agility course in the indoor yard a few times. This means only one thing: it’s been raining!! 
He told me he quite likes working inside; 
no:1 he doesn’t get wet, and 
no:2 he often does some tighter turns which is good practice for him.   

He keeps saying things like "any chance I get to improve my turns is great. It might make all the difference to my time"; I'm not sure what he’s talking about, do you know?

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It’s got much colder, so we’re all glad to have our rugs on!    The fields have also got muddier, which means we have our legs washed off before we go into our stables.  
That’s not as bad as it sounds; the staff put something called ‘liquid paraffin’ on our legs every few weeks, which Teddy says protects them.   It feels a bit funny at first but I don’t mind that if it keeps my legs looking good!

Guest Blogger Hendix 5: Sharing with Pilgrim

Pilgrim said I could do the blog for a bit longer when I told him how much fun I’ve had talking to you guys.

He & I get on really well as we're about the same age.  We both love messing about & having fun (if you’ve watched us when we are loose in the school you will have seen us in action!!)

Big news this week – Pilgrim & I are in the same field!!   I bet they’ve put us together because the staff know how well we get on with each other. The best bit is that we’ve got the field to ourselves!  So no one’s moaning at me to stop messing about & ‘act your age’! the point is that’s exactly what I am doing – surely they must have been young once!

Guest Blogger Hendrix 4: Just a Quickie!

Bruno & Duke’s shoes have been put back on – so are they back to work. I’m sure I should be having my shoes done soon; better keep a tight hold of them until I do!

Guest Blogger Hendrix 3: Scrummy!

Big news!!  The fencing in my field got moved yesterday, which meant that me & the lads had more grass last night – scrummy!

There was a ’down side’ to it though. Part of this extra munching area can be a bit soft especially when it’s been raining! It’s a place where us boys can lose a shoe if we’ve not careful – I kept well away but both Duke & Bruno managed to lose a front shoe! I call that being a bit careless; though I wouldn’t say that to their faces (I don’t want to upset them now, do I?)

This meant they couldn’t work today but I don’t think either of them minded too much. I get bored if I’m not doing anything so I’ll keep away from the ‘boggy’ bit!