Vet!

Oh that Merlin! He had to go and frighten me on a Saturday morning when the vet's call out would be twice as expensive!!! I was breathless with fear when I saw how lame he was. I was convinced he'd broken his leg, or worse, his back. Now I know I'm a complete worry wort, even at the best of times, so I took a few deep breaths, and then shot off home to phone the vet!

My vet's practice has several really good vet's and luckily, it was one of my favourites. It was the first time he'd met Merlin, and being from Scotland himself, was extremely fascinated by the Eriskays. He'd never met one in person before and as Merlin behaved impeccably, he seemed quite won over by him.

It would appear that Merlin had strained his stifle, probably during one of his more lively battles with Toffee, and after much trotting in circles and swift direction changes, we decided that it wasn't life threatening! Phew!!! The only time Merlin objected was when his stifle was manipulated, but I don't blame him for that, he was clearly in a bit of discomfort. The vet stayed for over 40minutes, examining and checking Merlin thoroughly, and when he left, he was pretty clued up about Eriskays and what a sweet nature they have. I couldn't have been more proud of Merlin, he was quite a little Ambassador :)

Forum.

If you love Eriskay ponies, or just horses in general then why not check out this new Forum , it's only just started, so the people that join, are the ones who will help create it :)

Summer.

Today I opened an email to discover to my delight a picture of this stunning little mare. She is RBF Cholderton Summer, Merlin's full sister. I've kept in touch with the farm that bred Merlin and they've emailed me to say that she is currently for sale!




I would so desperately love to buy her, as she's a stunner and if Merlin's lovely nature is anything to go by, I'll bet she's a poppet too! She has a typical strong neck and low dock, with a generous rib cage. Her body is a little longer than Merlin's, which is perfect for breeding as the Stallion should be short backed and the mare needs the extra length to carry her young in comfort.

Obviously we couldn't have her, being so closely related to Merlin, and I wouldn't part with him now for anything in the World, and for people who know me, know I'm not saying this lightly, I wouldn't give him up for all the tea in China.

Bridles and bits.

Well, plaiting the mane worked to make it lay on the correct side and I think it looks rather nice, but can you see what Merlin has in his mouth? Yes, he is wearing his bit and bridle. I was sooo pleased with him. He took the bit with no trouble and stood so quietly as I adjusted the straps and checked the fit.



He turned the bit around in his mouth and had a good old chew,



then much yawning and thinking, before I gave him a rest and took it all off.



After five minutes, I popped it back in for a brief moment, just to see if he would take it again. No problem, and he deserved his little treat for a reward.

Mud!

The weather has been too mucky and yukky to take any pictures this last week, but I'm hoping to get some nice ones when the plaits come out! Merlin's Winter coat has come in thick and dark grey, and soft as cotton. He looks soooo much like a cuddly pyjama case at the moment, I want to snuffle him all up in my arms! It's a good thing he can't read, because he'd be soooo offended, what with being the man and all that! Anyhoo, there was noooo way I getting within arms length of him tonight as he'd found something nice and smelly to roll in! I ask you, is this normal behaviour for a stallion? because it seems more like puppy behaviour to me! :)

Merlin is looking soooo good at the moment, so I'm indulging myself with some lovely pictures.

This one and the next were from last week.



Now that his mane is getting to a decent length, I decided that I wanted on the right side, for when I break him in!



So I plaited it, and I think he looks lovely with little plaits. It also show off his gorgeous neck :)

He's not meant to be in this paddock with lovely grass, but he jumped through the tape this morning (naughty boy!)

The Man!

Oh my poor boy was terrorized by the most appalling apparition today. But don't worry, he was very brave and walked safely behind me until Andrew removed the fire breathing, pony eating LEEKS!!! Yes, I did say leeks. I'd picked them for tea and left them on a bucket outside the tin shed that we use for storage. I swear to goodness that Merlin was almost 14hands high as he pranced across the paddock to confront the monsters. I tried valiantly (sort of) not to laugh at him, but it was very hard. Especially as the wind lifted a few leaves as I was brushing him and he nearly took me out in fright. He came at me broadside, and when we connected he leaped almost vertically upwards, because he'd forgotten that I was there - brushing him! Poor baby, I nearly hugged him, but you don't do that to Stallions, they don't like it, wounds their pride or something. So I gave him a manly pat and we carried on.

The neck reining was fabulous though, and I was steering him with a light tug on the rein. He's picked it up so quickly is really loving the work, and when I bring him his bucket, he shouts 'Yes! I am the man!'

Neck reining.

In a fit of tidyness, I sorted all my harnesses and reins and took them home to organise. So when we decided to do some more neck reining today, everything was at home!!! I improvised with an old stirrup leather and some rug straps and we used the old headcollar. Merlin wasn't so keen today, but we still did well.



He was listening to front and back, and got over his need to hang back and walk with me, despite a little unfair jeering from Toffee!



The session only lasted 10 minutes today, but afterwards, Merlin was yawning a lot, so I'm glad I didn't overdo it. Small steps now make the biggest difference in the long term.

Fun!

Well, we had a fun time today, we started neck reining with Merlin. This is a gentle introduction to long reining, where the long line is attached to a strap around the neck, instead of the head. I wanted to give this a go, because I wanted to see how well Merlin responds to voice aids. He leads very well from the head and halts and backs up well with hardly any commands as I've taught him to follow the parelli methods. This means that I only use my voice occasionally to reinforce the request.

So, we were walking around the school, Andrew leading and me on the long line. Andrew wasn't giving any commands, but I was. It was ok until the line, which was whipping around like a noisy flag, touched Merlin on the flank. 'Shot from a gun' sprang to my mind. But he didn't run off, oh no. He surged forwards so that Andrew could save him, or at the least distract the monster that was chasing him! We quickly regained control and I spent 5 minutes on either side, stroking Merlin with the line, all over. No problem, he said, and we carried on. This time, all of the control came from me and Merlin was really paying attention, especially as I've never moved him forwards from the hindquarters before. When I wanted him to stop, I just gave a tiny tug on the line, which pulled the neck rein, told him to stand and he stopped instantly. Was he pleased with himself? I think you could say that, especially after much fuss and cuddles. The whole session took less than 15 minutes, but he believed he'd earned his lunch!

He's very enjoyable to teach, as he picks everything up so quickly. I'm glad I decided to do this instead of lungeing, as I've got far more control and it's a much gentler start to schooling. The backing was going well, but not something I want to do every day, especially when the weather is so appalling. I need to build on that a little at a time. Now that I'm finding what works best for Merlin, I'm going to work out a proper training program with lessons that can have a progression from one thing to another. I'm not sure if I may ultimately have to send him away to have his schooling finished, but if that's what I decide, then I want him to be as prepared as possible.

UhOh!!!

Oh dear! Despite a stinking headache, I took the time out today to do a rough sketch of Merlin and it struck me that unless I've been paid, the only other portraits I've ever done of horses were of Oliver! It feels very much that in the last few weeks I've become very smitten again with Merlin and hopefully I can move on and enjoy my time with the two ponies that I do have rather than missing the one I don't.

This is a very rough sketch, but I'm going to ink it in and post the finished picture in a day or two. Who knows, if it turns out well, I may frame it. Maybe I shouldn't leave Toffee out either :)

Backed.

Well I've started backing him and the first day went really well, despite my phone going off as I was leaning across his back, but the second time he was a bit skitty. That could have been because Poppy was helping and she was a bit tense. He's so comfortable with me doing things that now he has to get used to Poppy so that she can get on him. It's not going to be a quick process, but that's ok, we have all winter :)

By request.

After a request by Jenny for some pictures of Merlin, I realise that I've hardly taken any of him this Summer. So here are a couple from last week. He's a little wet on his back and the field shelter hasn't got the Winter bed down, but he's looking pretty good, IMHO!

Angel.

I'm more than pleased with Merlin's behaviour lately, I think Autumn seems to be his favourite time of year. He's just been soooo good and very willing to learn. We went for a lovely walk around the lane today, and he was a complete Angel. He was trotting and halting almost as the words were out of my mouth and he coped really well with an assortment of hedge cutters, strimmers and leaf blowers! He did try and nip my behind a couple of times, but that's just normal behaviour for him :)

Now that he has finally finished cutting his front tooth, I can start to think about bitting him properly. I know it's necessary for his breaking in, but he goes so well in his rope halter that I've been reluctant to muck about with his mouth too much. I just know that if I take him to a show, the bit is compulsory, so I may as well get him used to it now.

I'm also planning to back him this week, although the weather forecast is grim and my tough little pony so hates to get wet!!!

Progress again!

Well, we are coming along nicely with Merlin these days, and I seem to be getting along nicely with some of his training. Unfortunately the harness just didn't fit, but we did have fun trying it on him, and I was very impressed by his patience. I guess all that ground work is starting to pay off now, as I can do most things with him and he seems to enjoy the fussing. I still haven't tried the long reining, but that will be soon, as he's clearly ready for a challenge.

Guess what???

Well, Merlin's training is still in it's infancy, and guess what I got for him yesterday? A HARNESS!!! It's only a cheap little training harness, but I'm going to get him going in it anyway and start long reining, well, that's the idea anyway. I can't wait to try it on him and take some photos. This should be really good :)

Breaking.

Well, I don't like the term 'breaking in' a horse, as it conjures all sorts of nasty images, but it's the first word that pops into my mind when I talk of education. I suppose it's because everyone understands what I mean by it. It's the important part of being a working horse. If I simply say 'educating' it doesn't have the same impact, as Merlin has been learning right from the moment he arrived at our field. From understanding our boundaries to simple commands and learning to accept rugs and halters and fly sprays and ointments, it's all education.

Now however, it's going up a step and wouldn't you believe it, the weather has turned wet and uncooperative! Still, Merlin had a leather strap buckled around his middle last week, in preparation for the roller and he took no notice whatever as I led him around the field. He has been bitted, but I've noticed he's having a few teeth issues, so I want to take that carefully. Poor little mite has one adult front tooth, but the other is still a baby tooth, giving him a bit of an Austen Powers look.

We are getting there, but slowly and at an easy pace :)

Sorry!

I'd like to appologise to everyone who drops by to see how Merlin is going, just to find that I haven't posted for a while. Thank you for still visiting, and I'll try to update weekly, but honestly, he's going so well at the moment, you would all get sick of reading about 'darling this' and 'darling that' :)

I will however, be sure to get lots of pictures of him lungeing, which should be worth a laugh :)

Today he had a version of a bath! He's very wary of water, or anything dripping down his legs or body, so I started with a damp sponge and took it from there. When I look back at how I just lunged at Oliver with a hose, the first time I bathed him, I wonder that that poor horse wasn't traumatised for life! Maybe I should just 'go for it' with Merlin, but he's soooo sensitive and precious that I want to get it completely right. It's not how the modern horse trainers (Monty Roberts, Parelli, Mark Rashid) would do things and I don't want to undo all my good work by being heavy handed at this stage. It's just not worth mucking it all up, to get the job done quickly!!!!

Update

Well, Merlin has been going from strength to strength and I can do just about anything with him now. I've learned that stallions are sensitive and need a lot of respect. When I take new things slowly, Merlin goes through the same routine every time, just to let me know he's wary. My routine is the same every time. I approach and retreat. I show him the respect by letting him move away from the 'threat' if he wants to, and then stand patiently while he works it out. Then I beckon with my right hand, and he will come to me, at his own pace. If the object is REALLY scary, then this will happen several times, but if it's simply fly repellent or antiseptic cream, then he does it as a token gesture.

He's so good at coming when I beckon, that on occasion, I've got him to come to me in the field, just with a gesture. His reward is a scratch on the forehead, and then to be left to munch in peace.

This week I put the bit on Merlin's bridle and he wore it for a few minutes before starting to fidget. I quickly ended the session on a good note and with lots of praise. We always do leading practices, regardless of what else I've been doing, and this is for a good reason. To get the habit deep in Merlin's brain, so that whatever else goes on, as soon as I go into my routine, he should respond in the expected way. I think it worked this week when we were out on a walk and a lawnmower upset him. I stopped him and did some back-ups and walk-ons and he seemed to forget his need to run away or kill the mower (personally I could have killed the man wielding it)!

Parelli says that getting a horse to back up, when all it wants is to run away, switches off the adrenaline and therefore the need to bolt. This seems to be the case in my limited experience so I'll keep on doing it until it proves not to be the case :)

Anyhoo, he's still my little star at the moment and we still plan to have him partially broken in by the end of the Summer. Next year will be the time of the really hard work!

Still here

Merlin is still doing really well, and we are completely over any issues that I had. I realise it was a bit of a knee-jerk reaction due to losing Oliver, and now that I've accepted that, I'm building a much stronger relationship with Merlin. He's sooo loving, and teaching him is a lot of fun, as he's very quick to pick up on what I'm showing him. Every day he tests the boundaries, but that's how it should be with a stallion, so I have no problems with that. The day he stops is the day I'll worry :)

So far, so good

Well, I've had another lovely few days with Merlin, and if anything, he seems to be getting so much better. He definitely likes our new routine, of a few hours on the grass and then a lovely long sleep in his shelter. A little more grass in the afternoon, after a short lesson. This week we have learned NOT to pick up our feet. This may sound odd, but I just want to be able to run my hands up and down his legs without hooves being thrown at me. He has totally the wrong idea about feet lifting, so I've completely undone everything he thought he knew. Next week, I'll teach him to lift his feet when I (gently) squeeze him at the chestnuts (I know how that sounds, but you know what I mean! :) )


(Aaaw, couldn't you just eat him all up?)

Also, this week, we have learned to accept fly spray and not to use our head as a weapon!!! Oh, and not to have a hissy fit when our mane is brushed. Gawd, but this boy is sensitive!!!

Next week, more lessons, including another attempt at lungeing. The last attempt was like swinging a tiger by the tail. All very well whilst you're swinging, but what do you do when you stop! RUN! ha,ha, ha!!

Do I dare???

Every time I say things are going well, something usually happens to throw me off balance! But I'll risk saying it, Merlin has been absolutely lovely lately. He's started calling out to me when I pull up in the car and has stopped throwing his weight around. I'm able to do more with him and he's started to be affectionate again, YAAY (please let it last)!

My neighbour has a very boisterous two year old gelding, and we sort of discussed putting the two boys in together for a bit of a yar, to let off steam. I think it will do Merlin a lot of good to have a playmate, but I'm reluctant to upset our current state of calm. So I'm still thinking it through. I'll try and get some pictures of the little lad, because he is sweet and Merlin would so enjoy dominating him!!!

Progress

I'm really beginning to see a difference in Merlin since I've started the Parelli. I'm not doing too much with Merlin, as I'm still learning the techniques myself, but the principles have gone a long way to understanding how he views the World. One of my favourite quotes is "Take the time it takes, so that it takes less time".

Basically this means, put the work in today, and tomorrow there will be less effort needed. An example is Merlin's fear of all kinds of fly repellent. Obviously he's been forced to have it put on him in order to save time. Coming from a busy farm, as he did, I doubt that there was much time to introduce him gradually to these things. Unfortunately the result is a battle that gets bigger every time the issue is raised, so a quick fix to save time, costs more in the long run. I followed the principles of putting on the pressure and then removing it immediately I got the desired response. I moved the pot of cream towards Merlin and kept it in place all the time he darted around (he even tried to bite me), then when he stood still, I took it away by an arms length. This was repeated until I could get almost to his neck, and then finally I was able to touch him with the pot. I then started the whole process from the beginning with the cream on my fingers, and was able, without too much stress, to put it on him. Next time it should happen quicker and so on until the whole issue is forgotten, and then we'll move onto the next problem. I'm already able to touch his feet now without explosions, so this system really suits Merlin and me!

School holidays

We spent an awful lot of time at the field over the holidays and Merlin is definitely happier when we are around a lot.

Whilst we worked in the vegetable plot, he and Toffee spent their time in the adjoining paddock and Merlin relaxed a great deal and often stood with his head over the fence watching us. He has finally learned a little about personal boundaries, although he likes to check daily in case we let things slip. A few well aimed 'blocks' puts him back where he should be and although flapping my arms like a chicken isn't the most attractive way to walk, it sure is the most effective!

Work with Merlin will continue now the children are back at school and I have a little more purpose :)

Snow 06/04/08

It was sooo beautiful at the field this morning, and the boys had a thoroughly good time, rolling and playing. Unfortunately my camera ran out of juice, so I couldn't get all the pictures I wanted.







Amazingly, this afternoon the snow had thawed enough for me to do a little work with Toffee and Merlin, and Merlin seemed to catch on at last to being touched gently with a carrot stick, although this still needs a lot of work!

Good game!

Merlin has taught me to play fetch! At first I thought it was a coincidence, but after three times, I realised he was bringing the ball back for me to throw. He even crouched like a dog, waiting for the ball to go! He's realised that it's safer to dribble with his nose (!) than his feet, and in this way he can travel a lot faster without tripping on the ball. It makes me wonder how much time he plays with it when I'm not there. At first I couldn't find the ball anywhere, until after a thorough search I discovered it behind the field shelter, almost like it had been put away!

We had a great time and Merlin seems to like going past Toffee, at high speed, with his ball, whilst Toffee, bless his little heart, just ignores him :)

Starting over!

After taking some advice at the weekend, we decided to set some clear boundaries for Merlin. One of these involved play, he can do as much of this as he wants, so long as it doesn't include us! We have ordered a ball from mail order, that is specially designed for horses, but until it arrives, we let Merlin have the old space hopper. I doubt that it will last more than 24hours, as it was getting a good old chew as well as a good kicking. What these pictures don't show, is that Merlin was actually dribbling the ball around the field, pretty fast at times too!








A good while later (when he had calmed down) I decided to play a little confidence building game with a bag tied around a leather cane. At first Merlin was quite wary and gave it a suspicious look.



Then he gave it a little sniff, and I rewarded him by taking it away, to remove the pressure and also let him know that being still was the correct response. We did this several times and it worked very well, until I approached his shoulder.



The tension in the rope says it all. I kept the cane at the same distance from him until he stopped moving, and only then moved it away. This is a really tricky thing to do, in case I accidentally reward him for running away from the 'threat' by taking the cane away too quickly.



After a couple of times Merlin stopped retreating and let the cane get to about 6inches from his shoulder, each time he received the reward in the form of the cane moving away from him. I was keen to end on a good note, with him looking happy and interested as I moved away from him. I'll repeat this in a day or two, but I need to practice more with Toffee as he has less of a hair trigger!



Merlin was very well behaved today, but I didn't take my eyes off him for a second. I think it will take a while for both of us to get our confidence back again, but this time, I don't want to give up on him :)

Maybe it's not all over!

Today I met an amazingly kind and patient lady who heard my call for help and came to the rescue. Merlin so obviously liked her, because he knew exactly where he stood with her. I feel very differently about the whole situation now, so maybe, just maybe it's not all lost!

For now!

It is with a hugely heavy heart, that I've decided to close this blog. For the time being Merlin will be staying with us, so to keep up with what's going on, you can check out my other blog, Oakmoon.

There have been many reasons for this decision, other than his recent behavior but that's all I'll say for now!


Thank you for visiting and leaving messages :)

Today - 14/03/08

As predicted, Merlin was far worse today than yesterday. He wasn't biting me though, oh no! He was throwing his weight at me as hard as he could. The sessions didn't go well and then I tore a chunk out of my finger somehow, maybe on the lead rope clasp. Anyway, I don't do blood, and there was lots!!! So I halted the lesson, fed the boys and fled home with several plasters holding the hole closed!

Feeling despondent again today now :(

Today - 13/03/08

Well, the little monster is on reprieve, for now. I can't be angry with him, it's his hormones. But I'm not making excuses, oh no, he came within a hair's breadth of being sold, but Andrew stepped in with a plea for clemency! I was just too despondent to deal with this latest blow. After all, I kept thinking, who the hell am I to be able to handle a stallion. Yes, I have over 20 years experience, but that was with geldings and mostly the same ones. It was a downward spiral, with more and more negative thoughts heaping on top of each other until all I wanted to do was either give up completely or buy a big,old nag that wouldn't say boo to a goose! I'm not sure what changed my mind, or maybe I'm just to darn stubborn, but anyway, I agreed to give Merlin a chance!

Last night I separated Merlin and Toffee for a bit so that I could fit some new tack on Toffee. They weren't happy, but soon settled.

Today, I separated them again for a short time and Merlin squinnied a lot, so I gave him some hay, and he quietened down a bit. I then took Toffee for a ride around the lane and although Merlin neighed a lot to start with, he soon settled down. The lane runs a complete circuit around our field and the ones beside us, so that when we reached the top, I could see over the hedge and down into Yarrow. Merlin was watching me and seemed pretty calm.

After letting Toffee loose on the grass as a reward for his terribly hard work (10 minutes!) I then put the Dually on Merlin and took him in the school for a 'lesson'.

Every time he tried to bite me, I halted and backed him up. At one point when I asked for 'over' he threw his entire weight on me to push ME over. I stuck my backside to his tummy and planted my feet, so he reared up! More 'back up', change direction, change rein and then asked again for 'over'. He backed up and tried to bite. Repeated the leading and direction change, asked for 'over' and he did it perfectly.

I continued with this for about 15mins until he was just too really tired to try and bite me. I couldn't have worked him for any longer because I think that would have been overkill. I think it was mental tiredness, as he was digesting the fact that biting equals hard work. When he did get it right, he got plenty of praise and a nice scratch on his neck, but again, I didn't overdo it, because I didn't want to overplay things too much.

I let him loose and he instantly ran up to me, so I squared my shoulders, raised my hands and made him back up. I don't want him invading my space without being invited, and besides, I think he was aiming to bite me on the butt! Just a hunch!

He seems to want to be in my space a lot and I'm not sure what his motives are. Is it a genuine need for a companion that won't beat him up the way Toffee does, or am I just fresh meat to play with and torment? After all, Toffee is pretty patient, but Merlin really does push his buttons. I'm keeping an open mind on the answer to that, but for now, today, I feel less despondent. Mind you, tomorrow I'm sure won't be so easy as Merlin will probably be expecting me to school him and my distractions may not be so effective. I'm going to buy some really nasty gel that's used to stop crib biters, and if the schooling hits a snag, then I'll put a smear of it on my gloves and see if that deters him.

Today - 10/03/08

Right, I said that this was an honest account of Merlin's life with us, and I meant it. No punches pulled here. Above is a picture of Merlin's replacement if he continues to play up.

On the whole Merlin has been a model pony, doing everything I asked and leading and backing up perfectly, in the school and out on the roads. Unfortunately his behavior today was unforgivable. He has been touchy because of the weather, but as he's been so attentive and even calling across the field to me, I let my guard drop. I was fooled into thinking he was behaving like Oliver, but he isn't Oliver, he's a little stallion with raging hormones.

As I was mucking out the field shelter Merlin made to grab at me a couple of times, even coming close to my face. I growled at him and he backed off. But then as my back was to him he grabbed my coat and unfortunately a chunk of my back and bit me damn hard. I shouted at him and threw a rubber glove right at him as he ran out of the shelter and hid round by the water butts.

The fact that he ran away and hid , gave me no satisfaction as he shouldn't have done it in the first place. I have an excellent book by a lady that keeps Arab stallions, and I've been in correspondence with her too. I agree with her statements that they don't think we are human shaped horses - they know we are different otherwise we would seriously be in the pooh! The trouble is, he now thinks I am 'his' and therefore he can boss me around and I'm not having it. I know that already his 'services' are in demand, as there are no others like him in the South, but that's not the point. If he does this again, I'm selling him, and someone else can have the problem.

What's upsetting me the most is that I've gone from my gentle giant who always protected me, regardless of his own safety, to this little ****. I'm not joking when I say I'd rather have another kitten!

Today - 04/03/08

How very odd! Merlin seems to have taken on several of Oliver's traits which has actually unnerved me a bit . Lets face it, he's a stallion, so he's going to be sharp enough to figure out if the electric fence is on or off. Oliver showed him how to listen to it ticking, but Merlin has worked out how to undo it with his teeth! What has surprised me is that Merlin has started to run to me when I whistle and he's taken on Oliver's habit of calling and chuntering when I appear with the buckets. So yesterday and this morning he was cantering around, watching me and neighing 'Look at me, are you looking?' and 'where's my bucket, is it ready yet?' Toffee as always, stands patiently knowing that I'll get there eventually and he'll never go hungry or without anything!

I've started my search for harness for them both, as this will be the year that Toffee is broken to cart and all going well, Merlin will be too. Although breaking Merlin to saddle will come first for him. A few shows for them both is on the cards too, although I may have to sweet talk Andrew into buying a trailer. Not sure how that one will go down, if at all! He may just laugh, a lot, and that will be the end of it!

Today - 03/03/08

What fickle weather we have in this country. And they say there's no such thing as global warming! Last week sunny and hot, the boys without their rugs, sweating as I brushed them free of their winter coats. Now today, sleety, snowy stuff!

Large buckets of feed, a bundle of haylage and a deep strawy bed. Next week a heatwave I expect!!!

Today - 28/02/08

I've not posted all week because I'm having a hard 'horsey' time of it. Merlin has been my constant pleasure at the field and we've had some enormous laughs at his antics. But I'm just missing my 'boy' soooo much that even Merlin hasn't been able to cheer me up. I'm having a good wallow in it today, and then back to work with Merlin tomorrow. A walk round the lanes is on the cards and Andrew will come with us and bring Toffee.

Today 21/02/08

For some reason, Merlin soooo loves to roll in his hay, and then eat a little of it. Maybe he knows that Toffee won't want it now :)

Today 19/02/08

No, Merlin and Toffee haven't had a make over! I was watching a Natural History program with my daughter a couple of days ago and was amazed to see a bachelor herd of Zebras indulging in a game of 'bitey-face'. Many of their games and movements were the same as Toffee and Merlin as they took turns in being 'boss'.

The next day, I noticed the same behavior in the two geldings in the next field. Since beginning to study equine behavior I realise just how much I've learned and how easy it is to learn their language simply by sitting and 'being' with them. I watch my own body as much as theirs so that I can discover which movements they respond to. It's a great journey, and the further along the path I walk, the more I am able to communicate with my dear Merlin, and I can appreciate just how hard it has been for Toffee to understand me when I've been 'muttering' in his language.

Today - 17/02/08

Yaaay, Merlin is ok. His cut had stopped bleeding yesterday, and he wasn't in any noticeable pain when I put on his headcollar. I did some of his leading exercises, which he carried out perfectly and I even made some progress with picking up his feet. This has been very hard for him, as he went from being a good boy with his feet, to kicking out whenever I went near him. Something happened to put him off, but as it was before he came to live with us, I guess I'll never know.

The new buckets I bought are great. They're made from recycled car tyres, so fit very nicely with my recycling ethics, and also are completely safe for silly ponies that love to roll on buckets!!!



What is very interesting is that the new buckets prove the theory that horses can see most colours as we do. When I went into the field with the boys' feeds, they completely ignored me, as I wasn't carrying their brightly coloured buckets. I had to walk right up to them before they showed the least bit of interest.

Today 14/02/08

I've spent most of this evening, either close to, or in tears. My poor little Merlin has managed to cut his jaw somehow and was sooo well behaved as I examined it. He let me put on a headcollar, even though the strap was almost touching the cut, and then he stood pretty still as I pulled the hair back and examined the wound. He threw his head up high when I found it, but I managed to have a good enough look to see that it was clean and didn't need a stitch.

I worry about him so much as he's such a little bruiser and always getting into scraps and scrapes. I'm probably a bit overprotective of him, after losing Oliver, but you know, he could TRY and stay out of trouble, couldn't he? He's still such a baby and was so glad to see me, he gave me the loveliest cuddle and stood leaning against my legs after he'd eaten his supper.
I know I shall worry all night now!!!

Today 13/02/08

A few photos from the weekend. The weather was amazingly warm, so the rugs came off!

'Bitey-face' game quickly turns to 'bitey-bum'



Merlin's too good at this one, so Toffee sees him off.




There's too much grass to waste time playing.



While Toffee's not looking, a quick chew on his rug :)

Today 10/02/08

Well, it's been a busy week, what with me getting to grips with setting up the vegetable plot. So Merlin has had another quiet week. I still go through a few routines with him before he gets his bucket, but they only take a few minutes. Mostly reinforcing his good manners and respecting personal space, but good groundwork for the lessons to come.

But eeerrrkkk, did he stink today! I think he found the smelliest pile of fox pooh and rolled until he was plastered. Then wondered why I was less than enthusiastic for a cuddle. After giving him a good brush, he gave me one of his special hugs that could melt even the coldest heart. As I was standing by his shoulder, he tilted his head up, nose pointing skyward and rubbed his forehead up and down my cheek, and then just stayed there for a moment. Priceless! What made it even better was that his cheek was the only part of him that didn't pong, so I was doubly grateful.

A bit later, he and Toffee indulged in a long game of 'bitey face' which turned into 'bitey bum' and then 'stand on your hind legs for as long as possible', which Merlin of course won because it's his favorite discipline :)

Part six - Autumn 2007

As the colder days arrived, Merlin's snowy Summer coat moulted out, and his darker winter coat grew in. We are so lucky to have a dapple grey in the Winter, and a white charger in the Summer,the best of both World's in my humble opinion! Merlin's temperament continued to be charming and easy going, but he was showing that he was always ready to learn. We've had to be sooo careful not to accidentally teach him bad habits as well as good ones, as he picks things up really quickly. His manners on the lead rein are so good, with 'walk on', 'stand' and 'back up' flowing so smoothly that he now responds to the commands when he's loose in the field. 'Trot on' is still a bit hairy though as sometimes he leaps into trot from his hind legs. Oh how he loves to be airborne! We have to be careful to give him plenty of rein for 'trot on', so that we don't inadvertently give him a tug on the rein and then confuse him. Phew, it's hard remembering it all!!

Today - 02/02/08

It was a beautiful day today, but the wind was bitterly cold, so I rushed around doing the mucking out, hay and buckets as quickly as possible.

Merlin and Toffee went up on the spare paddock for a couple of hours, despite the ground being sooo boggy. Our time was spent digging a trench around the field shelter to divert the water when it rains again. Well, actually, Andrew dug the trench and I filled it with dirty great flint stones to aid the drainage.

Merlin and Toffee were in very high spirits and ran from the very top field down to the bottom one when I called them for their tea. They then indulged in a long game of 'bitey-face' as they were obviously too stuffed for anything more energetic. As dusk settled on the field, I was lucky enough to witness a most unusual occurrence. Toffee seemed to check his mental watch, and decided that it was bedtime. He herded Merlin off up to the field shelter, where they each went into their separate sides and tucked into their hay. As I was shutting the gate to leave, in the twilight, I could just make out a little white face watching me from the warm depth of the shelter, 'Sleep Tight', I whispered.

Today - 01/02/08

Still not much happening at the field at the moment, due mostly to the weather. Merlin however has been extremely affectionate this week and has decided this will be his primary means of communication. Which can't be at all bad.

Even on the days that I can't work him in the school, I still ask him to back up, stand and walk on before he approaches his food bucket. Sometimes I don't even need to give the command verbally as he is so used to my hand signals that I can see him watching me to anticipate what comes next. I especially love it when I give the walk on signal from right across the field and he comes straight to me. I know he is responding to me and wasn't simply heading my way to start with, because he has this way of swinging his head when he's pleased with himself. I don't mean the arab style figure of eight, that can mean anything from impatience to mischief (although Monty Roberts suggests this is a form of apology), no Merlin's head swing is more like John Travolta doing his 'walk' in Saturday Night Fever! Am I suggesting that Merlin is a bit of a show off? You betcha!!!

Oh, I nearly forgot to add, that when I was in the Tack shop today, I got talking to a lady about our horses. She started asking about Merlin and suddenly shrieked when I mentioned that he was a stallion. Long story short, she has asked that I contact her when he is older, so that she may put him to her Highland mare. Wow, a possible wife already and he's still only two!!!!

Part five - Summer

It was lovely, watching Merlin change into such a companionable pony over the Summer months, and we all adored his snowy white coat. Our little bachelor herd had settled down, and between Toffee and Merlin there existed something of a truce, so long as a certain distance was kept!

As the weather cooled towards late Summer, we took Merlin for plenty of walks around the lanes.



When we take Merlin out on the roads, he wears his 'Monty Roberts' Dually, which gives me a little more control than just a simple head collar, but doesn't have any impact on his mouth in the way a bridle would. I've used the Dually on all my boys and can't praise it enough as it is soooo effective, but not harsh at all and as you can see from this picture, Merlin is nice and relaxed :)

part four

Due to all the wet horrible weather we had last year, which in late February turned to frost and snow, Merlin had to have a rug. I know he's a tough Highland pony and his breed are used to rough climates, but Merlin had been brought up living in stables and cosy shelters. We had neither, at that time, so a rug it was. He was brilliant and seemed to be thrilled when I put the rug on him, as finally he was the same as the other two, in their rugs. I know it sounds like I'm humanising him, but when Toffee had his rug first on for the season, Merlin chased him and chewed the rug at every opportunity. Is it any wonder then, that Toffee was still less than enamoured with him!
I started slowly with a towel on his back and finally when I got the rug on him, it reached his knees with great gaping areas at front and back. Back to the saddlers I went, clutching his measurements on a scrap of feed sack. The smallest rug I could get was a foal slip, fortunately it was also the cheapest in the shop! This fitted pretty well, although after only a few weeks, his rump was beginning to show. By March he was wearing a proper pony rug which actually still fits him this year, although the straps have all been let out :)



By June the weather was dry and most of the time hot. Most worrying was the lack of rainfall and we were ferrying water to the field in a big container on the truck. After filling every possible container, we decided we had enough for the luxury of baths for the boys. Toffee just stood and submitted, Oliver loved the water and was bathed and scrubbed enough for all three of them and Merlin made it perfectly clear that his tail was all that was getting wet, thank you very much! Wet sponges, apparently, were monstrous and anything soapy was just downright wrong. It was a fun time for us all, even if Merlin's beautiful summer coat was a little less than pure white ~:)

Today - 26/01/08

Well, I've not done a whole lot with Merlin this week because it's either been too wet or windy, and I'm not about to play silly devils in a slippery paddock, surrounded by madly waving trees!

Today, we had a marvelous time though and Merlin played around as we cleared some old wood for a fire. He helped me strip some hawthorn berries from a pruned branch and even tasted a few. Then he chased me up the muck heap, as he wanted to see what the view was like from the top! It was full of lovely, stinking smells and he spent ages sniffing and snuffling around, and then wiped his yukky face on the truck windows. All of this was because we opened up the top paddocks and gave both ponies the free run of them.



This was what he spent most of his time doing though!!!


When he'd calmed down, I gave him his supper and he gave me the loveliest of cuddles. As he was tucking into his hay, I leant over his back and he turned his head right around and snuffled my hands. I stayed there for ages gradually increasing the weight, but he ignored me, apart from the occasional sniff on my hands, and to see what I was doing I suppose.

In all a very good day, although at first glance it may appear unremarkable, I feel like Merlin is starting to treat us very differently and is seeking out our company more and more.

Today 23/01/08

I haven't posted for a while because I've hit a stumbling block! The next part of Merlin's story involves Oliver quite a lot, and I've been missing my boy soooo much this last week that I haven't been able to write it!

The weather has still been atrocious so Merlin's education has ground to a halt, although in general his manners have improved greatly, and he's not quite so territorial in his half of the shelter. In fact he seems to positively encourage me to muck out, so long as I don't turf him out in the rain. I refused to bring him breakfast in bed yesterday, as the sun was out and I thought he should be too. Reluctantly he ventured out in search of his bucket, and then indulged in a good game of shove with Toffee. They were very amusing, but sadly for Toffee, Merlin has the edge over him in both speed and maneuverability. It's a bit like comparing a tank with a sports car!

Today - 17/01/08

Not much to report today. The weather is still foul, and when we arrived at the field, Merlin was very reluctant to leave his bed. He peeped around the corner of the shelter and waited for breakfast in bed! Which of course he got, but meant that I had to muck out around him. This was all well and good until my sixth sense kicked in and I looked around to see a set of teeth aiming to bite my rear end as I bent over the wheelbarrow. When he saw that he'd been caught out, he quickly went back to his hay. A pony pretending nonchalance is a fine thing to see indeed!

Part 3

Merlin very quickly settled in to his new home and it wasn't long before he started to show his true personality, as this photo shows. As I was fiddling with my camera, he decided to creep up on me, thinking that I couldn't see him! I love the shape of his little back foot as he creeps closer. If I'd been quick enough, the next photo would have been of his belly as he did a little cat jump up at me before tearing off around the paddock in glee.



Merlin got along very nicely with Oliver, but Toffee had his nose put sooo far out of joint. Strangely, Oliver decided to look after Merlin and even let him eat from his bucket, which was incredible as Oliver NEVER shared food. They were often to be found eating from the same hay pile and if Toffee ever got too bossy, then Merlin would run and hide behind Oliver. They soon became known as 'Oliver and his mini-me', especially when they wore matching rugs.



Merlin also has a funny habit of rolling in his bucket when he's finished eating his dinner. One particular day, I'd put a little brewers yeast in his feed and he loved it sooo much that he rolled clear across the field and landed in Oliver's hay pile. I'm not sure who was more shocked, but golly did we laugh. Here he is rolling after a good feed! Mind you,it can't be good for his digestion!!!!



And rolling in his hay in the snow!

Part two

Sorry for the poor quality of this photo, but it was taken with my phone camera on the day that Merlin arrived at Yarrow Field.

I'm going to mix in daily happenings along with recounting our early days with Merlin. After all, we've had him just over a year and if I were to write it all in order, I would be forever playing catch-up!

Merlin arrived, excited, nervous and looking very small and fragile compare to Toffee and Oliver, our big, robust New Foresters. At over 15hands, Oliver made Merlin look like a foal, but Merlin wasn't phased. He'd been kept in a paddock with a 17hands grey shire horse! I'd already decided to keep the boys in a bachelor herd as I felt it would help Merlin to be sociable and less likely to defend his paddock. Although in the first few weeks, he had a small paddock alongside Toffee and Oliver, so that they could acquaint themselves safely.



Straight away Merlin decided that adoration was very good for him, and he does love being with the children.