We've had pretty much constant rain since Thursday morning. It has left off a bit now but the air is still thick with "mizzle". The lovely little paddock that Boo has been has now been churned up by that little monster who is still zooming around as if he didn't go through a pretty major op on Thursday :frown: Consequently, his back end was totally mud-covered by last evening... we're not talking a spattering here, we are talking hip to toe you couldn't see any colour... and his tail was the same too!!! I'd spoken to the vet earlier in the day about how to clean him off.... figuring that despite his behaviour he'll be very guarding of the site and I didn't fancy trying to "pat gently" with a hoof precisely aimed at me!!! She also told me to wash his inner thighs. Whilst the idea of standing well back and hosing him was more appealing, I figured that would do more harm than good in terms of washing potential germs IN to the wounds as well as potentially knocking off any scabbing.
Well I was close to tears last night at the desperation of the situation. We ended up moving him down into the little pen at the end of the main field shelter again. He went in there the first night and managed to break a couple of the rails in that 15 hours! So with it tipping down and the light fading, poor Dom and I struggled to "make do" for the time being... a lack of time meant it has ended up looking a bit pikey - but it held him secure overnight. In a flash of inspiration I lugged all my rubber mats down to lay over the mud in the hope that he'd get a bit cleaner but the little s@d immediately dislodged a load by ROLLING on them and then flying around bucking and farting :banghead: Dom deduced that they were actually more slippery than the mud so we lugged them back UP to the stables (very slippery slope, thanks to the mud!) and instead I've chucked down a load of straw in the hope that it will remain a little cleaner than him churning up the ground directly. We had to walk the straw in quickly as the others think of it as a snack opportunity over the fence :redcarded: Meanwhile, last night I must have been chucking out stress vibes as the others were running around and generally acting up... not even settling to eat their hay - so THAT didn't help me!!!
Honestly, I do feel like I am thwarted at every corner just at the moment! We've had four weeks of dry weather and I can't believe nature has been so cruel to me. Boo is fine, he just wants to be out with his new mates, he doesn't understand that I'm trying to do the best for him. If he doesn't get an infection it will be a minor miracle!! This morning I approached his nether regions with a warm hibiscrub solution but I stood no chance! Even with Dom's help the best I could manage was to throw cupfuls of liquid in the general direction.... but he is a fair bit cleaner today anyway.
He didn't hold a grudge and was still cuddly afterwards... he even lay down on the fresh straw I'd distributed this morning. Meanwhile I'm trying not to stress......
And on top of that, our employers come back from their late-winter annual six-week sabbatical to their South African home this evening so it has been all systems go here to make everything look immaculate.
*wanders off to find darkened room*
And now I've noticed that I've spelt Hellish wrong in the title too!!!!!
Well I was close to tears last night at the desperation of the situation. We ended up moving him down into the little pen at the end of the main field shelter again. He went in there the first night and managed to break a couple of the rails in that 15 hours! So with it tipping down and the light fading, poor Dom and I struggled to "make do" for the time being... a lack of time meant it has ended up looking a bit pikey - but it held him secure overnight. In a flash of inspiration I lugged all my rubber mats down to lay over the mud in the hope that he'd get a bit cleaner but the little s@d immediately dislodged a load by ROLLING on them and then flying around bucking and farting :banghead: Dom deduced that they were actually more slippery than the mud so we lugged them back UP to the stables (very slippery slope, thanks to the mud!) and instead I've chucked down a load of straw in the hope that it will remain a little cleaner than him churning up the ground directly. We had to walk the straw in quickly as the others think of it as a snack opportunity over the fence :redcarded: Meanwhile, last night I must have been chucking out stress vibes as the others were running around and generally acting up... not even settling to eat their hay - so THAT didn't help me!!!
Honestly, I do feel like I am thwarted at every corner just at the moment! We've had four weeks of dry weather and I can't believe nature has been so cruel to me. Boo is fine, he just wants to be out with his new mates, he doesn't understand that I'm trying to do the best for him. If he doesn't get an infection it will be a minor miracle!! This morning I approached his nether regions with a warm hibiscrub solution but I stood no chance! Even with Dom's help the best I could manage was to throw cupfuls of liquid in the general direction.... but he is a fair bit cleaner today anyway.
He didn't hold a grudge and was still cuddly afterwards... he even lay down on the fresh straw I'd distributed this morning. Meanwhile I'm trying not to stress......
And on top of that, our employers come back from their late-winter annual six-week sabbatical to their South African home this evening so it has been all systems go here to make everything look immaculate.
*wanders off to find darkened room*
And now I've noticed that I've spelt Hellish wrong in the title too!!!!!
Last edited:
