Holly went to her new home yesterday. She left from Crieff to go to Millport on Cumbrae with her new owners, Sheila and William. I know they are the right people for Holly and I hope they will all be happy with each other. She arrived safely yesterday afternoon and was munching grass.

5th September:

Yesterday was Central Scotland Highland Pony Club Show at Strathallan. I had entered a few ponies, but as Vicki wasn't able to help with showing (she has 3 wisdom teeth extraxted last week) I took only Rosemaree and her colt foal, Royal Strathearn. The weather was glorious and it's always such a socialble and well run show. I had a lovely day, catching up with friends. Rosie was 1st veteran and 5th brood mare; Strathearn was 4th foal.

2nd September:

Hermione

19th August:

At least the weather was good for the in hand classes. I felt really sorry for those in the ridden as the heavens opened on them. Really enjoyed my day at Blair and only purchases were a shirt and photos from Julia Shearwood Photography. Thanks for the lovely photos, Julia, and for shelter from the rain.

Vicki leading Elise, Nicola with Ewart

Nicola and Ewart

Ewart flying!

2nd July:

Jennifer Green's Hector was 3rd in hand and I hear he was 1st in the ridden. Alexander, my grandson, was helping to show sheep for the first time.He helped Nicola who helps me with the ponies, to show her Zwarbles sheep in both open clases and young handlers. He really enjoyed it and wants to do it again.

27th June:

Hallam and Holly are at Crieff Hyrdo stables being backed and ridden out and Honey has returned from Balcormo where she was AI'd to Fyfedene and has been scanned in foal.

7th June: Gargunnock Show was on Saturday and Fourmerk was well represented with Rosemaree, her colt foal by Kestrel, Eliza and Tiree who was being ridden by Vicki. Vicki and Nicola showed Rosemaree and her foal and they were both first. (The other foal in the class was by Kestrel, too). Tiree was second in the yeld mare class and Eliza was first 2/3 year old. The judge was John Reid from Aberdeen. I was really delighted whe Rosemaree was pulled forward as In Hand Champion. She is 18 now and hasn't been shown since 2006 till this year. Always in the tickets, she has been Reserve three times at NPS Scotland, amongst many other top placings, Rosie has never had a championship before. Vicki won the Pony/Rider combination class. My camera wasn't working but below is a photo from Kirsten Berry of Vicki and Tiree.

Vicki & Tiree

Elise foaled on 1st June. She has a lovely big colt foal by Kestrel. I think he'll be mouse dun. He was a bit slow to suck, but with a little help, he got there.

29th May: Took Rosemaree and her colt foal to Drymen yesterday and they were shown by Shona and Nicola, who did a great job, despite horrific downpours. Both were third and Rosemaree was 1st veteran.

Rosemaree & her colt foal at Drymen. Thanks to Kate Lawson for the use of this photo.

17th May: Misty (Cairns Rhoda) who was served by Kestrel last year after losing her part bred foal at a few days old, had a lovely dark coloured colt foal on Saturday 14th and all is well with mother and son. Misty is 18 and this is her first foal as she was ridden prior to this.

Misty's colt foal

28th April: Rosemaree foaled yesterday at about 5:00am. She has a colt and I think he'll be yellow dun. He's got curly ears!

Rosie's colt foal

25th April: On Friday, I was sure Jane's mare Hattie was about to foal. Jane really wanted to be here for the birth and had ordered a colt in advance!I decided that it would be best if Hattie foaled in the cattle court. Jane and I checked her regularly, but went to bed at midnight and got up to check at 5:00am and literally just missed the colt being born! He's a brownish colour at the moment. He took time to find where to suck, but with a bit of help, he found the milk bar. I was amazed at how good Hattie was in allowing me to strip milk from her, as she's not the calmest mare I've ever known. Jane and I toasted Hattie and her son with champers at lunch time. Jane left and came back again yesterday morning with Duncan and we turned Hattie and her boy out.

20th April: Lizzie (Fourmerk Elisabeth) has a filly foal. This is her first foal and I'm so glad I decided to bring her in last night.

Lizzie's filly foal

18th April: Honey has foaled this morning, only a day late by my reckoning. It's a cream dun filly by Haakon.

Honey's filly foal

13th April: I had an email a few days ago from the owner of the first foal I bred. James I of Boquhan, known as Jamie, aged 24, had just been brought out of retirement to give a five year old girl a little ride. The owner and her daughter have had Jamie for many years and he even went to school with the daughter. I was delighted to have an update on Jamie. However, yesterday I had another email to say he had taken colic and it was so bad that there was no option but to have him put down. RIP, Jamie.

10th April: Two ponies, both by Kestrel, have has show ring successes today. Comet of Glenairlie, out of Mary Lewis's Storm of Tower, won his in hand class and was In Hand Champion at a NSWPCG Show in Aberdeen area for his owner, Lyndsey Gunn from Caithness. Hector of Fourmerk, owned by Jennifer Green, won his ridden class, was M&M champion and Reserve overall Champion at Strathkelvin Show. I'm delighted for everyone concerned with these ponies. Well done!

Hector

Comet

Thanks to Emmie(Knockandy) for this photo.

12th February: It's been some winter! I survived being snowed in, iced in, the water pump freezing and cracking, the farm track disintegrating with frost heave,the limb of one of my trees falling and blocking the road, a chimney pot shattering and narrowly missing the Volvo and flashing from a dormer blowing down. The ponies were fine in the very cold weather. I am sure they prefer that to the mud we have now. There are four mares in foal for this year: Rosemaree to Kestrel, Honey to Haakon, Elise to Kestrel and Lizzie who is a maiden mare, to Haakon. Rosie, Honey and Lizzie are all due to foal in the same week in April. Elise, who didn't show in season till late is due end of May. They all look very much in foal.

31st December: I haven't been able to update for some time as my computer crashed, taking my html editing programmes with it.

Ebony, my black colt foal out of Elise, and Honeybee, my grey filly out of Honey, both went to their new homes at the end of November, before the freeze set in. Both new owners seem really pleased with them and I'm glad they have such good homes. Ebony will be kept entire.

The wintry conditions have made life here hard. I've survived being snowed in, stranded vehicles, the pickup being hit by a bus and the bus driver lying in his teeth that I hit him, burst pipes and a cracked water pump which was replaced on Christmas Eve. I still have no water to the troughs and steading but have managed to ensure all the ponies have water. They are thriving in these conditions and had frost and snow on their backs showing how well insulated they are.

17th September: I took Honey, Bee and Eliza to Central Scotland Highland Pony Club Show. Results not great, but Honeybee was 5th, led by Chrissy Pollock from Fintry, who is the owner of a visiting mare. Chrissy kindly agreed to help show to gain experience of foal handling and did a great job. Thanks to Jim Chrichton for allowing me to reproduce this photo.

Honeybee with Chrissy

2nd August: Two pieces of sad new recently: Brenda Dick emailed me to say that Heriot of Fourmerk had broken his leg in the field and had to be put down. Heriot was a lovely natured yellow dun gelding and I know that Brenda and her daughter had lots of fun riding Heriot.

The other was a case of cruelty in Holland. Fourmerk Flora, foaled in 1989, by Merlin of Orangefield and out of Catriona of Orangefield, was sold by me in 2000 to Angela Rhode in Germany. She was sold to someone in Holland a few years ago. When this man's premises and ponies were inspected, the ponies were taken to a rescue centre, but it was too late for Flora, who was put down. I was really sad to hear this and hope the owner will be prosecuted. Poor Flora.

30th June: Since last writing, I have had an accident. On 10th June, Shona and I were about to worm ponies when they all took fright at something and galloped towards Eliza who knocked me unconscious and stood on my leg. Shona phoned for an ambulance and the next thing I knew, there were 2 paramedics, 5 policemen and my neighbours, Robin and Gregor, all standing round me. I was taken to Stirling Royal where I had 14 stitches in my leg. I was given crutches and told not to put weight on my left leg. I was allowed to drive an automatic car, thank goodness. I am very lucky that Eliza only stood on my leg: it could have been much worse. I did keep saying to the paramedics,"Please tell me I don't have brain damage." They must have thought I was mad.

Lee Ann Bunn from Virginia arrived that day and we had booked a spa break at Knock Castle which I had to back out of.

I was determined that I would go to the Royal Highland Show, but knew I would be useless as far as doing things with ponies. Shona and Nicola took over with the ponies and both tried to make life easy for me for which I am truly grateful.

We got there despite my leg and the lorry's failing to start. Honey was unplaced;Honeybee, her foal, was 3rd; Lizzie, 3yo was 5th and Royal Caledonian was 5th. I was especially pleased that Cally behaved perfectly. I hired an electric scooter at the show which helped stop the swelling on my leg. Lee Ann lived with me in the lorry, but we had no power to the living. It was a good show, with scorching weather and I enjoyed the break.

6th June: Wonderful weather made Gargunnock Show a great event. I took Honey and her filly foal, Honeybee and 3 year old Elisabeth (Lizzie). I was delighted when all three were placed first by judge Sandy Baird and even more delighted when Honey was pulled forward as In Hand Champion.

29th May: Cally and Eliza, yearling colt and yearling filly, went to Drymen Show today. Shona and Nicola were handling them at their first show. (Well, Eliza was at RHS last year with her dam, but hasn't been shown since). They travelled well and behaved well after they had got used to the ring. Cally was 1st and Eliza was 2nd. I have to admit they were the only two yearlings forward but it was good experience for them.

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Eliza

19th May: The last Highland Cattle of my breeding have just been sold. The three heifers (a 3 year old, Annag, and two year olds, Annag and Maisie) have been sold to Vicki's sister-in-law, Morag. I had thought to put them away for beef, but they are all good heifers and should make good cows, so I was reluctant to beef them. I still have six young bullocks for beef.

14th May: Elise foaled this morning. She has a colt foal and I think he'll be black. She was 8 days late by my reckoning. He's a big boy!

1st May: Honey has foaled. I thought she might as she was waxing yesterday. All well with mother and daughter, who is grey dun and by Haakon.

Hope and Honeysuckle made the long journey to Caithness on Wednesday night and arrived safely with their mew owner, Lynn Cormack.

16th April: It's a while since I last updated. I survived through the extreme cold, lived without electricity, without water to the house or steading, had a leak from my cold water tank in the thaw and it had to be replaced. In February, my mother-in-law took seriously ill and so I had to visit her in Glasgow four times a week. She now has carers, who are great and that has taken the pressure off me and Vicki.

Hope and Honeysuckle have just been sold and will go together to their new home when their new owner finishes lambing.

Honey is due to foal on 20th April and is already bagged up. She's in foal to Haakon. Elise, in foal to Kestrel, is due at the beginning of May.

Last month, three ponies escaped from their field, gorged themselves on sheep and cattle feed and gave me a few worrying days. The liquid paraffin obviously worked as all three are fine and had no symptoms of colic, laminitis or anything. Thank goodness!

25th January: Happy New Year!

The pony who has been loaned is Rabbie Burns of Fourmerk, who is now with Mary and Colin Forsyth at Friockheim. Mary is delighted with him and Rabbie has a really good home with her. She's been riding him and he's been well behaved and friendly.