The Good, The Bad & The Ugly For November…
It feels like just yesterday that I was enjoying the sun (under the shade – I am ginger let’s face it) and watching my daughter have the time of her life in Disney World. Fast forward what feels like a nano second and we’re well and truly in winter. Evenings are darker than the bags under my eyes and the mud and wet weather has made itself known, mainly on my clothes and car interior. It felt like November arrived at the click of a finger although that could have something to do with the fact that I haven’t stopped this month.
November began with a rowdy haylage delivery in which the sweet smelling rye decided to dismount the lorry prematurely. This resulted in us rolling two super large bales of haylage along a country lane, into the entrance of the yard, along a particularly wet muddy path and finally up on to the pallets. Although it was hideously sweaty business, the haylage man (I’m not sure if that’s his official name) took £10 off the bill so all’s well that ends well I guess.
Shortly after the haylage delivery, or non-delivery as it were, it was time to jump in the car (with snacks) and whiz myself and fellow “horsey-girl” Kerry, to Your Horse Live. I’d never been to this event before and as a result, rather naively went with a £100 budget thanks to being on very limiting maternity pay…Oh.Silly.Me. In between enjoying two dinners and a dessert, we managed to shop quite literally until we dropped without seeing a single demonstration but what we did see was every single stand. We were pretty chuffed with our goods so it was well worth the drive from Essex. I’m not sure my bank account was so happy though.
November wasn’t all fun and games however as we had a failed farrier attempt, yet again, for Hattie. After allowing someone new to stand within her personal space for more than 5 seconds, she decided she couldn’t quite cope once again and fled. Thankfully this time around, the farrier and vet suggested a short-term solution; a sedative called Domasedin gel – now just to be get the damn stuff under her tongue and we’ll be away. Thankfully, I have a pretty handy trick up my sleeve in the form of apple sauce and a used wormer syringe. Fingers crossed it works for the simple fact, it’s all I have!
While there may still be a day or two until the end of the month, November’s shenanigans aren’t over just yet. It’s been almost 7 weeks since the two boys, Danny and Steve were gelded and we’ve been given the go ahead to allow them in with mares; namely Hattie. If it were any other mare, I’d likely be a lot more relaxed about it, but as it’s Hattie, who knows what will happen. We plan on allowing them to meet over the fence for the first week or two and then seeing what happens. Either way, I’m preparing for her to take this change badly and return to her feral state for another month or so. Who knows though, maybe she’ll be feeling in the festive spirit and give me a break this time. It’s unlikely but maybe if I’m a good girl, Santa will deliver some sanity for her as an early Christmas gift to me. Argh, the water feels warm in Africa’s longest river. You know where I’m going with this…