Week 8 - Still in Mauritius

Week 8 still in Mauritius

This was another very eventful week in Poste LaFayette.

On Sunday the 30th October, Bailie decided that he should show us how he can use a race track, and off he went. Peri tried his best to stay with Bailie, but he ran out of “steam” long before Bailie. I am still totally amazed that Fat Bailie can run so fast.

We were also given a little puppy on Sunday, by one of the grooms, he was full of fleas, worms and was absolutely starved, so off to the shops we went, to get food. We bathed and dipped the little thing, and gave him some food, and by the evening he was playing around like a puppy should. We have decided to call him Rascal.

On Monday morning (31st October 2011) we were up early once again (the sun shines in our bedroom window at 5.30, so you have no other choice but to get up, after all you can’t let the sun catch you in bed), we got our horses grass picked – you got that right, we pick our horses green grass, every day, as there seems to be a shortage of grass on this island. I must just quickly tell all the people in South Africa how blessed you are with all the different grass suppliers and grass types available there.

Now back on to Monday – we were off to swim in the sea again – we still look forward to it every time, even if we do it often now. We asked one of the grooms to take Bailie for us, so that we could get some pictures of the horses in the water – it is always difficult to get pictures while you are attached to a horse. The grooms were really helpful and away we went. Kayla got some good pictures, and then the fun started. There were 8 horses in total, and amongst them was another stallion called Frozen Fire, or “Mallie” (Afrikaans for mad) as we call him. Bailie was dragging the groom around very happily – in fact there were times when I thought he was skiing next to Bailie, and Bailie got a little too close to Mallie. Mallie decided that he would mount Bailie, and then there was chaos, and a few seconds later the two horses were separated and even had changed grooms – still not quite sure how that happened. We all had a good laugh, especially as nobody was hurt – it is just as well Bailie is used to Peri play mounting him. We all went back to swimming and having fun once again.

After about an hour of playing it was now time to head back and rinse and groom all the horses.

Tuesday and Wednesday we went for rides on the beach, and it was enjoyed by both horses and humans alike.

Thursday the 3rd November we went to a ride in the bushes and forest area, it was really nice, and it is also soft for our boys feet. While we were riding we came across a dried out area, that used to be a mangrove swamp. We decided that would be a nice place to ride, and that is where the fun began. It was very soft, and our boys sank in until just above their fetlocks, and then they panicked and took off – it was the strangest sensation riding on horses, who are trying to walk over sinking sand. We had a really good laugh when we came out the other side, and then we realized it had to be done again, as there was no other way out – so off we went again, and again we went charging across the soft area, and again Kayla and I had a good laugh. We then found a path that led to the sea, so we had a trot and slow canter on the beach, and a slow walk back, letting our boys eat, after all they always seem to think we starve them.

The rest of the week was spent riding on the beach and in the bushes. Our boys are really starting to get a little fitter, but please don’t get me wrong, they have a long way to go before they are properly fit again.

Well that was all the interesting news for this week, and we are looking forward to another fun filled week ahead of us.