Heidi i love your vision of the pair of them at school - heaven help the teachers. LOL!!
I know the two we had this year are different sexes, but they are also totally different in character too. One is a naughty little madam, but has no fear and will be easy to deal with. The little boy is really friendly too, loves scratches, but is also nervous so will need more time and careful handling when learning anything new. As you know, we dont bother with headcollars until after weaning and funnily enough have found that the more 'nervous' foals are much easier and co-operative once things are gently explained and introduced, than the bold, cheeky ones. LOL!!
We are getting near the time for a foot trim. Madam is fine with just scratches, but it will be the first time for the little lad and I think he will be one who will need quietly catching and holding to learn that humans are not to be feared whatever they do, coz he is not that happy with anyone round his back end, but we shall see!
I love reading the tales about Dinky and Cam - I was wondering when the 'I dont want to follow Momma into the stable' stint would start - be warned it is a habit that may last a lifetime. We had a colt foal who just loved doing this, he would run into the barn with all the other mares and foals, entering everyone elses stable, hiding behind the mare concerned until we spotted him and chased him back out. Whereupon he would race off across the field again and tear round and round before returning to the barn hoping to find another stable open. His Momma never bothered about him, in fact she would have been quite happy for him to go and annoy one of the other mares. Eventually we just used to leave her door open and hide from view waiting his next mad dash. He'd come zooming back in, dive through the open door without realising that it was his own stable and we would shoot out and shut it. LOL!! One morning we found him running up and down the barn annoying the other mares and foals - he had jumped over the sheep hurdle used for his doorway!
Ok here comes the point of this story. LOL!! I sold Neil or Sir Neil as he was known soon after her was weaned (what a sigh of relief we all gave!) His new owner had a few problems (ha ha!) until she too gave up and left him to it. Everytime she needed to get him in she would open the gate from his field to the stable yard and call - his young companion came running, Neil too, companion filed politely into his stable for his feed, Neil........not on your nellie! He had to do the whole rush off againn out into the field and race round as he had always done. She managed to hide behind a trailer carefully placed beside the gate, so when he ran in, she could slam the gate behind him and trap him in the yard, where he would go round and round visiting all her big horses before finally giving up and entering his own stable! He also found that if he laid down on the floor he could squeeze under the field gate and let himself in to prance about the yard annoying and nipping the noses of her big stabled horses. HOWEVER, being determind to punish herself she returned to us the next year and purchased Neil's brother!! Same Momma, different Daddy - and as Ned proved to be as quiet and as easy as any mini could be, we blamed Neil's temperament on his Daddy! Both boys now live in Scotland with their happy owner after she moved up there, but she did say to me that she was thinking of offering Neil's services to the local shooting folk, coz she felt sure he would be perfect for racing round and round the moors up there putting up the grouse for the annual shoots!!
So as both Dinky and Cam have more than a little mischief in their make up, beware the habit that could follow!!
Must just add that if you went out into a field with Neil, headcollar in hand, he was absolutely no trouble to catch, it was only when given the chance to do a loose run in that the fun started. LOL!! It was all down to an excessive sense of humour.
I know the two we had this year are different sexes, but they are also totally different in character too. One is a naughty little madam, but has no fear and will be easy to deal with. The little boy is really friendly too, loves scratches, but is also nervous so will need more time and careful handling when learning anything new. As you know, we dont bother with headcollars until after weaning and funnily enough have found that the more 'nervous' foals are much easier and co-operative once things are gently explained and introduced, than the bold, cheeky ones. LOL!!
We are getting near the time for a foot trim. Madam is fine with just scratches, but it will be the first time for the little lad and I think he will be one who will need quietly catching and holding to learn that humans are not to be feared whatever they do, coz he is not that happy with anyone round his back end, but we shall see!
I love reading the tales about Dinky and Cam - I was wondering when the 'I dont want to follow Momma into the stable' stint would start - be warned it is a habit that may last a lifetime. We had a colt foal who just loved doing this, he would run into the barn with all the other mares and foals, entering everyone elses stable, hiding behind the mare concerned until we spotted him and chased him back out. Whereupon he would race off across the field again and tear round and round before returning to the barn hoping to find another stable open. His Momma never bothered about him, in fact she would have been quite happy for him to go and annoy one of the other mares. Eventually we just used to leave her door open and hide from view waiting his next mad dash. He'd come zooming back in, dive through the open door without realising that it was his own stable and we would shoot out and shut it. LOL!! One morning we found him running up and down the barn annoying the other mares and foals - he had jumped over the sheep hurdle used for his doorway!
Ok here comes the point of this story. LOL!! I sold Neil or Sir Neil as he was known soon after her was weaned (what a sigh of relief we all gave!) His new owner had a few problems (ha ha!) until she too gave up and left him to it. Everytime she needed to get him in she would open the gate from his field to the stable yard and call - his young companion came running, Neil too, companion filed politely into his stable for his feed, Neil........not on your nellie! He had to do the whole rush off againn out into the field and race round as he had always done. She managed to hide behind a trailer carefully placed beside the gate, so when he ran in, she could slam the gate behind him and trap him in the yard, where he would go round and round visiting all her big horses before finally giving up and entering his own stable! He also found that if he laid down on the floor he could squeeze under the field gate and let himself in to prance about the yard annoying and nipping the noses of her big stabled horses. HOWEVER, being determind to punish herself she returned to us the next year and purchased Neil's brother!! Same Momma, different Daddy - and as Ned proved to be as quiet and as easy as any mini could be, we blamed Neil's temperament on his Daddy! Both boys now live in Scotland with their happy owner after she moved up there, but she did say to me that she was thinking of offering Neil's services to the local shooting folk, coz she felt sure he would be perfect for racing round and round the moors up there putting up the grouse for the annual shoots!!
So as both Dinky and Cam have more than a little mischief in their make up, beware the habit that could follow!!
Must just add that if you went out into a field with Neil, headcollar in hand, he was absolutely no trouble to catch, it was only when given the chance to do a loose run in that the fun started. LOL!! It was all down to an excessive sense of humour.
