Busy Week

Its been a fairly busy week.

Monday the computer arrived so we spent plenty of time setting that up and having a play. I'm pleased to say that it works fine and is full of new gadgets which are great fun to use.

Tuesday we went on a Stock Checkers Course run by the Grazing Animals Project. The morning was spent in a classroom learning about legal aspects, the welfare needs and the checking needs of sheep, cows, goats and ponies. We then went out to some beautiful SSSI land at Hutchinsons Bank in Surrey to look more closely at sheep and goats. Then it was back to the classroom for an evaluation test for which we are still awaiting the results (I already know I have got at least one wrong) then hopefully we will get certificates. It was a very interesting day and nice to meet some other stock checkers but it is a long time since I have had to concentrate on something solidly for a whole day so by the time I had also been to the stables and ridden Molly, who was her usual awkward self, I was totally exhausted so to round off a good day we treated ourselves to fish and chips..yummy.

Wednesday we took my elderly mother out for a pub lunch which was very nice but when we returned there were messages on all our phones asking if we could check the ponies as it had been reported that Tavey(found out on the course that his name is not Tivy) had been showing signs of colic which can sometimes be fatal. We got over to him about 4 pm and he was looking very sorry for himself but he was no longer rolling and he wasn't kicking or biting at his abdomen so we reckoned he was recovering. The grazing officer for the Old Surrey Downs Project made lots of phone calls to various people including the vet and it was decided that if we could stay and watch him until night fall and providing he didn't get any worse the vet wouldn't come out. It was rather nice sitting in the field watching the sun go down and listening to the birds singing their goodnight songs and watching the rabbits venture out for their dinners. Tavey didn't get any worse so when we could hardly see him anymore we crept through the dark woods back home. Needless to say I found it difficult to sleep that night and at first light the next morning I dragged my husband out of bed and we went back to see if he had survived the night. Peter, the grazing officer, arrived just after us with a tarpaulin in the back of his land rover 'just in case' but thankfully we had judged it right and Tavey was fully recovered and back to the business of eating the contents of the field.

Thursday, after the early start, was a quiet, relaxing day where we did some shopping and checked on Tavey again.

So here we are at Friday. After checking the ponies this morning and eating a tasty hot cross bun with a cup of coffee when we got back, we have been busy planting seeds. The greenhouse was lovely and warm, the robin was singing outside and the lambs were calling on the hill so it was a real pleasure AND I have at last got my 150 lavender seeds sown:-)))

Soggy Saturday

I have just come back from a weekend in my favourite place, the New Forest. Unfortunately it poured with rain. Bad weather never stops us enjoying our walks through the forest, although, on this occasion wellies would have been more practical than walking boots because as you can see from this picture even the paths were giant puddles.

We tried to base most of our walking in woody areas for shelter and because that is where most of the ponies and deer go when it is wet. Inevitably we got lost a few times (there are so many tracks in the woods it is hard to tell which is an animal track and which is a human track) so our short walks always ended up as very long walks. On one of these unplanned detours we came across this lovely old tree that had bracken and a holly tree growing out off one of it's branches.

It put me in mind of the gravel area in our garden. The idea was to have an area, free from plants, for the clothes line but the plants had other ideas and have self sown themselves all over the gravel and seem to thrive there a lot better than in the flower beds:-)

Talking of plants, now the weather is a bit warmer it is time I started sowing some seeds. I had great intentions of starting the sowing earlier this year but because the weather has been so cold and my husband doesn't like heating the greenhouse I have put it off. The consequence is that I have loads to do all at once (including my 150 Lavender seeds) and very little time to do it. It will be worth it though when I can sit back and see the bees and butterflies enjoying the results of my hard work.

We have just this minute taken delivery of a new, up to date, computer so if I don't post for a while it will be because of teething problems (I have no faith when it comes to new things working first time, especially computers). Thank goodness we have a son (with a Computer Science degree) still living at home:-)

Spring has Sprung

The lambs are bleating on the hill, the bees are buzzing on the crocuses and at last the frogs have started croaking in the ponds..oh and the sun is still shining..hooray spring has sprung :-)

I love this time of year as it fills me with feelings of anticipation and this year more so than usual as we have the new area of SSSI land to watch over as it starts to unfold its previously hidden flora and fauna. Every time we check the ponies now we notice new shoots sprouting up. The ponies have done and are still doing an excellent job of eating the unwanted rough grass and scrub. It has been a hard winter for them but as you can see from this photo of Tivy looking the picture of health, they have come through it very well.

Sadly the sheep have now been moved so we will not be stock checking them until they are returned again, probably in the late summer. I will miss my tickle sessions with Rambo but it's another place where it will be interesting to see which wild flowers appear. I am dreading the day when they move the ponies as I will miss them so much. I keep thinking about getting a pony/horse of my own but I am not sure I can really afford it.

I have now put the fleece that I collected from the sheep's field around the garden for the birds to use for their nests but so far I haven't seen any takers. It is perhaps still a bit early. Friendly robin and partner have now been joined by a blackbird who is also getting quite friendly and is usually waiting with the robins in the Elderberry for me to restock the bird table in the morning.

Luckily my cat, Lizzy, at 19 years old, is past the age of wanting to catch birds and is just happy to sit in the sun watching them flutter around. It is strange how the birds seem to know that she is not a threat to them anymore. I have seen the same in Namibia where springbok will sometimes happily graze really close to resting lions and it is this body language that Monty Roberts (horse whisperer) uses when working with horses.

Sunny Days

I have at last got round to cleaning up the fish ponds and have been rewarded with the fish making an appearance to bathe in the warmth of the sun. Despite the freezing temperatures we've had this winter I have only lost two fish and one of those was very old. As I stood on the bridge admiring my tidy pond, I was surprised to count 4 new baby fish that had also survived the hard winter. I really don't want anymore fish as I already have too many (that is why we've ended up with two fish ponds) but I can't help enjoying watching them grow especially when they start to develop their colours. We only bought 5 fish when we built the first pond but from that 5 we now have well over 30 fish and two ponds. We also have a wildlife pond but for some reason the frogs prefer to spawn in the fish ponds.

The birds in the garden have also been very busy and I am pleased to see friendly robin seems to have a mate. I have already seen the pigeons collecting bits for nest building so it won't be long before the other birds are at it too. When we do our sheep check I have been gathering some of the fleece that is caught on the brambles and trees. I have then cleaned and dried it in the green house ready to put out around the garden for any birds wanting a cosy, warm nest.

It has made such a change to do the stock checks in the sun. On Friday it was so lovely when we visited the ponies that my husband and I sat on a fallen tree trunk for a while to enjoy the warmth of the sun. Tivy and Rufus who were grazing close by came over to investigate what we were doing. Rufus was too timid to come very close but Tivy spent about 30 mins investigating us. As a small pony I don't think he had ever seen the top of a human head before as he kept smelling our hair which had been freshly washed that morning. Bit of luck we hadn't used apple scented shampoo :-)

ONE Sunny Day

Friday was a remarkable day...the sun shone!! I don't mind rain too much but when it is cold, muddy and wet day after day it does get me down a bit. Guess what...it is pouring with rain again today in the south, with a strong bitterly cold wind.

It has been a hard winter for the ponies grazing the SSSI land, especially for little Rufus as this is his first year without his mum or a herd of other horses to shelter him. He seems to be coping well though and as the picture below shows he has grown a thick winter coat. A horse's coat is double layered. The first layer is dense,warm and grease laden and the second layer is made of long shiny hairs which stick out and direct the rain away from the body. In addition, the skin over the loins and hindquarters is thicker so provides good insulation...this is one of the reasons horses turn their backs to the wind.

The ponies are doing an excellent job clearing the unwanted scrub and long grass in readiness for the spring chalk downland flowers. It is interesting to watch them pick out what they want to eat and how they shake their mouthful and bang it on the ground to end up with just the tasty bit they wanted. Very clever when all they have to rely on is their sensitive little mouth.

The wild plants are beginning to make an appearance now but this also brings a few problems as some, like bluebells and cuckoo pint, are poisonous to horses and both are beginning to make an appearance in the woody area.

Luckily they are not desperately poisonous, unlike the Yew tree that I also came across last week in the woody area, which can kill a pony within a very short time. Needless to say it is no longer there.

During our last few stock checks we have seen a person standing, motionless, in an area of neighbouring SSSI land that is in the process of being cleared. We have assumed him to be a keen bird watcher or maybe someone trying to photo the deer that frequent the area but as he was there again on Friday and as the weather was so nice we decided to investigate. We quietly crept along the track so as not to disturb his viewing too much...no wonder he wasn't moving...he turned out to be a wooden man someone had cleverly made out of logs :-))

Wildlife Returns

After commenting on the lack of wildlife visiting the garden in my last post, things have suddenly started to look up but sadly not altogether in a nice way.

A couple of days ago, I was just settling down for my lunch when I noticed something flash past the patio doors. On investigation I found it to be a very thin and very mangy fox who was searching the garden for food. Unfortunately I haven't seen him again so not much I can do to help him. I hope it wasn't the handsome fox that used to trot through the garden last year.

I think I have solved the mystery of my missing snowdrops. I used to have quite a few planted around the lower fish pond but this year only one has appeared. However yesterday I saw a rather plump vole running around the rockery that surrounds the pond and judging by his size I'm guessing he has been enjoying a snowdrop salad:-) I don't mind at all as I have quite a few primroses that are adding a nice touch of spring colour and he is very cute.

I am also pleased to say that at last we have some pheasants visiting us again.

Where's Our Wildlife Gone?

We seem to be missing a lot of wildlife just lately here in Biggin Hill. In previous years I'd open my curtains in the morning and there would always be pheasants in the garden or a deer in the field but this winter I've only had 2 pheasants visit us on one occasion and three sightings of deer. The fox that regularly visited the garden to drink from the wildlife pond has gone and even the heron hasn't bothered to stop off lately to grab a fish from the fish pond. Hmmm...all very strange.

Thankfully there is plenty of wildlife to be seen when we are stock checking the ponies and the sheep. The sheep have just been moved to graze another area of overgrown chalk downland. It is quite difficult walking through the scrub to check the fences but very entertaining as nearly every step disturbs a mouse, vole or rabbit.

I also love checking the sheep as it gives me a chance to give a very friendly Jacob Ram (I call him Rambo) a scratch behind his horns. He loves it and pulls faces of pure ecstasy:-)

I have been very busy just lately producing some course notes for a friend who is running a course in stable management. The area around my computer is now covered in horse reference books and magazines but at last I have finished with them so I suppose I should now tidy up. It was enjoyable doing the notes though as it refreshed my memory of all things horsey and I also learnt quite a few new things.

Talking of learning new things, my husband and I spent Valentines day attending a Monty Roberts demonstration. He is an incredible man, the original horse whisperer. After suffering many beatings (and broken bones) inflicted by his father and hating the way his father used to inflict similar beatings while training horses, he followed the mustang herds and came to understand their 'language'. He then used that knowledge to train horses without the need of inflicting pain. He has since spread this knowledge throughout the world and it has made such a difference to the way horses are treated. Monty is now 75 and is still going strong in his mission to leave the world a better place for horses. A great man and an honor to see him work.