A Night on the Tiles?

Well a quiet week except for Saturday night - I know what you're thinking - two uppity fillies out on the town - well WRONG! It was all down to the Big T. We came in from our field in the evening and had our dinner and then Big T got all hot and bothered - literally, and began to sweat up a bit which The Gaffer and The Mrs decided wasn't normal. There was a bit of toing and froing and consultation with other people and the vet was called. Now being a Saturday night, she was out with someone else (no not on the town - another horse acutally) and couldn't get to us for a while. In the meantime The Mrs had to find a thermometer and take Thelma's temperature - not an elegant process I have to tell you! Her temperature was a bit high but nothing serious apparently. Anyway, the poor vet came at around 8.30 - now I'm not used to being up that late and was finding it all a bit of bore by this time and had a lie down - but I soon got up to see what was going on when the vet arrived.

The diagnosis - too much grass (well I might have had a guess at that myself as Big T knows how to put it away!). The vet (who is soooooo nice, by the way) said that she had been called out quite a few times in the last couple of days for the same problem as the grass had suddenly grown. A quick injection later and Big T was feeling much better and is now back to eating as normal. As for me I just had to catch up on my beauty sleep as quickly as possible - as a girl never knows who's going to drop in.

Love Louise

Pastures New

Well, we are in our new field and very nice it is too. We had our first look at it on Monday, which as it happened was the most gorgeous sunny day. We had to change our routine completely which was quite exciting. Every day since we have been here we have seen the older horses go out of the yard in the far corner through the big gate that mysteriously opens all by itself, and have wondered where they have been going. Well to our new field was the answer. Out of the gate we turned right, went through another field and then into this lovely new pasture. Its very nice with a water trough right in the middle and a field shelter - how smart is that! We now have lovely views right over the valley as we are on a slope and get a great view of the cricket ground as well. I wonder if we will still be here when they start playing - if so we can learn exactly what cricket is all about.

We are also right next to the field with the llama and go and talk to him over the fence every day - he's really quite a friendly chap and comes right up to rub noses with us. I wasn't too sure about this at first but am now quite used to him.

The weather has been so warm that we are starting to loose our lovely woolly winter coats, which means that our hair is coming out in great handfuls when we are groomed. I heard The Gaffer say that the birds would like it for nesting material! I suppose in our little way we are recycling. The only down side of all this moulting is that it makes us a bit itchy and sensitive when we're being groomed but I think that we will look very smart when we are in our shiny summer coats.

Bye for now Thelma

Sunny Times

Well - what a gorgeous, sunny week its been - lovely. Everything looks and feels so much better when the sun it out including worming and having our feet seen to!

Yes, it was worming this week again - it seems like only five minutes since the last dose, but I heard The Gaffer say it was three months ago - how time flies. This time it tasted really vile - so vile in fact that we both couldn't eat our breakfast afterwards. Now that's really saying something as Big T is NEVER off her food! But I'm pleased to say that after a day in the field we were well and truly ready for our dinner.

As if that wasn't enough, the following day the farrier came. Now we're really both getting quite good at this and he was in and out in about twently minutes having done both of us. I think The Gaffer and The Mrs were quite pleased with us.

The other thing about this lovely warm weather is that I am starting to come in my coat - some of my fluffy winter hair has come out, and in places I'm looking quite sleek. Thelma is losing her hair too, but hers was much thicker than mine in the first place so she is still quite woolly. I only hope it doesn't turn cold again as I might feel a bit chilly.

We didn't get to move fields after all this week but I think tomorrow might be the day - Big T will let you know how that goes next week. Au revoir Louise

Hunting for Answers

Well some funny things happened this week - the best of which is that the sun shone for the whole week and we have't had a drop of rain! The sun on our backs has been lovely and spring is in the air. And as if that wasn't celebration enough it was my birthday this week. Although Louise and I were officially one on January 1st and became yearlings then, my real birthday was the 6th March so I'm properly one now! Louise has still got 7 weeks until she catches me up.

Another strange thing was that the local Hunt came by - well we only knew what it was later when we heard The Mrs and The Gaffer talking about it. Lou Lou and I were quietly minding our own business in the field, when we heard all this noise and clatter on the road above fields and then noticed the other horses starting to get very excited. Then suddenly all these dogs came pouring down the hill from the road and ran along the hedges yelping and barking and getting altogether very excited. Now we played it a bit cool as, to be honest, we didn't have a clue as to what was going on. But the horses nearer the road went bananas - whinnying and charging up and down their fields in a state of great excitement. It didn't last long and we soon lost interest and went back to our grazing, but the older horses where in a bit of a lather for the rest of the afternoon.

And then yesterday there was the helicopter - now we are getting more used to this, and although we had a little gallop when it came down the valley to land, it was more of an excuse to have a run around rather than the fact that it scared us - in fact we didn't even give it a second glance as we walked past it on our way in for the night - it is a rather smart blue though, I just happened to notice in passing!

I heard someone say that the weather is supposed to be good for the next week - hooray - and also mention of the fact that we might be moving fields! That could be interesting.

Til next week love Thelma

Mud, Mud, Gl.......?

My turn this week (its me Louise!) - are we fed up or what!? - nothing but rain and mud. We now have a smart new hose that washes us down when we come in each evening - but it was hilarious this week as The Mrs had to be washed down as well!!!

We were near the gate in the field putting on our bridles to come in - and the mud there,I have to say, is particularly deep,sticky and soupy. Anyway, The Mrs was putting Big T's bridle on when Big T started itching against her - as she tried to move, her foot just got stuck in the mud and she went over backwards - SPLAT into the mud soup!!!!! Luckily, she saw the funny side and just lay there laughing while Big T stood there looking down at her in complete horror and suprise. We all just stood there in shock for a moment, before we started laughing as well. She got up and we went in as usual - now I was following behind them and there was mud all over her back! We got our wash down, and then it was the Mrs' turn - luckily she had been wearing a long coat and the mud didn't go quite everywhere - but almost.

But thats been the story of our week - whoever said mud was glorious didn't know what they were talking about, as we see it quite differently!

a bientot Lou Lou

A Firm Footing

Hello - its me Big T this week - we've decided to take it in turns updating you for a bit.

Its been a quiet week but wet again and, I must say, with frost followed by thaw keeping our feet as we walk out to our field has been difficult in places. The ground has been squelchy to say the least and the mud around the gate has been over our fetlocks at times and affecting our equilibrium! It hasn't just been us - yesterday as we were coming out of the field The Mrs got her foot in so deep that she couldn't get it out for a minute and I had to stand there while she tried to pull it out - it suddenly came with a great squelch and she nearly went over - that would have been interesting. Now The Gaffer, The Mrs and The Vickster continue to be very particular about keeping our feet clean and dry once we come in of an evening and so we now have this little routine going. Into the stables, wash the feet and legs down and then pick out the mud etc. I heard them say that its so we don't get foot rot (doesn't sound very nice to me) so we just let them get on with it although it does slightly delay us getting to our nosh - however, talking of which, the new food is now going down well.

This week we had the measuring tape - I've grown quite a bit and am weighing in at around 320 kilos - Louise, who of course is younger, is around 260 kilos so you see I really can throw my weight around when it comes to keeping her in her place and sometimes I really have to! I think next week it will be measuring how tall we are - now I'm taller than LouLou as well - but I will be interested to know by how much. They say size isn't everything but when it comes to being the boss out in the field it certainly helps.

Hope you are having better weather than we are wherever you are! love from Big T xxx

Mending Fences

Well at last we have had some better weather - it may have been cold but at least it has stopped raining - we think we are starting to sound like people as we seem to talk about the weather a lot, but it is rather important to us as we are out all day come what may! We're going to divide up telling you about our week between us - Thelma first.

Well this week The Gaffer, The Mrs and The Vickster have really been working on our feet - the mud in the field has made keeping them clean rather difficult and some days when we have been coming in we have really been getting our feet dirty. So every day this week we've had our feet and legs washed and had a really good clean out of our hooves in the evening as well as the morning. Its become quite the routine - and we're both quite good at it now. Louise has her moments, and has been a bit stubborn at times but has improved at lot. I've been generally good but I have one front foot that I'm not very keen on having done, so I've developed this technique of leaning on whoever is trying to do that particular foot and, because I'm so big, its quite hard for them to move me or the foot! Come on Louise, you do your bit now.

Ok, so they have started to give us some new mix for our meals this week as well - we really weren't too keen on it at first and even Thelma left a little the first night but we are getting used to it now and it really isn't as bad as we first thought. The other funny thing this week was Thelma's bum - she has quite a large one and this afternoon (sunday) it was a bit itchy and so she decided to rub it on one of the fence posts. Now it seems that she chose the wrong one because as she was having a good rub she gave a particularly big heave ho with her backside and the post broke at the base along with two of the rails - it was quite funny really - one minute the fence was there and then it was gone! Big T looked around all suprised and was a bit embarrased by the whole thing - in fact when everyone came to lead us in and saw the fence she just wandered away as though it had nothing at all to do with her - I think they all knew though! We think that The Gaffer will have to do some repairs tomorrow - that should be fun to watch.

love from the two of us - Thelma and Louise