Saturday 28th September - All 8 seen

Five ponies were grazing in the pasture near ///envoy.lake.ratty at 14:25 this afternoon. They were all very friendly, taking turns to come over and say hello. Several made soft nickering sounds as they approached, giving me head rubs and nuzzles. They enjoyed plenty of neck and back strokes. When the sun came out from behind the clouds, they paused to bask in its warmth. Most of the ponies had gorse tangled in their manes, but they were happy for me to remove it.

The other three ponies appeared near the main path to the northeast at around 14:45. One came all the way over to greet me, enjoying a long neck rub. Fifteen minutes later, I walked over to meet the two ponies by the path. They were happily grazing but stopped to say hello. Two of the ponies from the first group had followed me over, and soon, all four resumed grazing, slowly moving south towards the entrance gate by the car park. They would regularly come over to see me and enjoy more strokes.

At 15:30, I returned to the first group of ponies who were grazing near ///going.this.lilac. They greeted me again, enjoying more strokes. They were all happy, relaxed and looking really well in the sunshine. 

By 16:05, the other four ponies were resting in the sunshine by the path. I spent some time with each of them. One pony, after a long back rub, lay down right in front of me and encouraged me to keep stroking her. This group were also happy and healthy. I said my goodbyes just after 16:30, having thoroughly enjoyed the quiet time with them.

The ponies were all good today.