Sunday 31st May - All 8 seen

At 15:20 this afternoon, having just checked the water trough and continuing on my loop around the site, I crossed the tarmac road and was greeted by the ponies on the track near ///detective.converter.ratty, close to the entrance gate. They emerged from behind the gorse bushes, having sensed my approach and come out to meet me, giving me a warm and friendly welcome. The ponies all enjoyed plenty of strokes and rubs, returning the affection with head rubs and gentle nuzzles. The foal waited patiently, then stepped forward for her turn, melting into the first of many neck and back scratches. All four were happy, relaxed, and looking well.

After a while, the ponies drifted off to graze, leaving me to spend some quiet, relaxing time with the little one. She thoroughly enjoyed being fussed over, leaning into gentle neck strokes and savouring the scratches along her back with obvious pleasure. After a good while, I walked her back to her mum so she could nurse.

I noticed that the cattle were grazing nearby in the thicket to the north, so I went to spend some time with them, receiving a chorus of friendly moos as I approached. They took turns coming over to say hello and enjoy plenty of strokes and rubs. By 16:15 the boys had all settled down to rest and chew their cud in the sunshine on the grass track near ///hands.pretty.outbound. The ponies drifted in their direction to graze, but kept a respectful distance. After a while, the boys decided that resting in the shade was a better plan, wandering off one by one to lie beneath the trees to the south.

I continued to spend lots of time with the foal, who was still happily soaking up the attention. Each time I went to spend some time with one of the other ponies, she would follow at my heels, nudging me now and then to make sure I hadn’t forgotten her. By 16:45, she was starting to tire and settled down beside me, eventually rolling onto her side and drifting off to sleep while I stroked her. I said my goodbyes at 17:00, leaving the ponies grazing, with Davinia close to her fast‑asleep little one. The boys were still resting and chewing their cud peacefully.

The cows and the ponies were all good today.

Sunday 31st May 26. (11.00 - 11.30). All Eight Seen. All Well.

 The ponies and cattle were all together this morning.   I believe that they were all just crossing the main sandy track in H6 & I6.  However, while I was there they seemed to spend a great deal of time actually on, or on the edge of the sandy track.  The little-un also laid down on the track for a short while.  It's very amusing watching her lay down & get up with those long legs.  They seem too long for her body at present.  Again, she was very friendly, making her own way over to where I was stood while Mum was very laid back. 

None of the marks I saw on the foal appeared to be of any issue, but I took some pictures.   There were more, but when I got home I found out I'd put the camera onto movie in error.

Saturday 30th May - All 8 seen

At 14:10 this afternoon, the ponies were resting under the shade of the trees in the woodland north of the ammo compound, with the foal curled up comfortably at her mum's feet, near ///coffee.beanbag.grub. I was greeted with a sweet chorus of soft nickers as the girls took turns wandering over to say hello and enjoy some strokes. The foal was quickly up on her feet and trotted over to greet me, giving me a gentle nudge to remind me she deserved plenty of fuss too. After our initial hellos, the ponies were perfectly happy to share the attention, taking turns to come back for longer neck and back scratches, fully relaxing — lowering their heads, resting a hind leg, and closing their eyes.

The little one was full of fun today — following me around, leaning into her neck scratches, and offering sweet, playful nibbles in return. Whenever I spent some time with the other ponies, she would wander over and give me a gentle bump to remind me she needed more neck and back scratches. Even when her mum wandered off to graze, she stayed with me, clearly loving being the centre of attention. I did notice a couple of minor grazes — a small graze at the top of her left leg where it looks like she’s caught herself on a branch; the hair is missing, and the skin underneath is slightly pink, but there's no sign of an open wound. She also has a little bald patch at the bottom of the hock on her rear left leg, again with no underlying injury. The injury that Howard spotted on Wednesday on her rear left leg also appears to be healing nicely.

By 15:20 the ponies had moved north to graze along the path by the paddock, before moving into the paddock itself. There they alternated between grazing and returning for more strokes, happily relaxing in the sunshine. They eventually climbed over the bank to graze in the pasture to the north. Davinia seemed perfectly happy for me to continue my babysitting duties, and the foal kept playing with me while her mum enjoyed some peaceful grazing time. She was having so much fun — racing around in circles, darting close to me before changing direction at the last second, and kicking up clouds of dust as she whizzed across the bank.  I tried to leave several times, only for her to chase after me each time. While she was nursing from her mum at 16:30, I slipped away to find the cattle.

At 16:35, the boys were just emerging from the woodland onto the path west of the paddock, having spent the afternoon resting under the trees and bushes along the western perimeter fence, northwest of the second set of tank pits. They were all very friendly, taking turns to come over to say hello and enjoy plenty of strokes and rubs. Afterwards, they gathered around me to rest and chew their cud, occasionally stepping forward for more neck scratches, which helped keep the many flies at bay. The boys were all happy, relaxed, and looking well. By 16:50 they had also climbed the bank and started to graze near the ponies, who had moved further south since I’d last seen them.

After spending a little more time with the boys, I wandered back towards the ponies and was greeted by the sweetest little neigh from the foal. She was lying down, taking a well‑deserved rest. However, after only a few minutes, she was back on her feet, eager for lots more strokes and rubs. I said my goodbyes to the boys and the girls at 17:20, leaving them all peacefully grazing, with the foal happily nibbling and exploring her surroundings.

The cows and the ponies were all good today.

Friday 29 May 2026. (12.45 - 13.30) All Eight Seen. All Well.

 The ponies were in H8 on the track in the trees that runs parallel with and to the north the Sailing Club access road.  They were just stood together in the shade relaxing and all seemed well.  The foal came right over to me without any encouragement.

The cattle out in the open in H5 and H6, but from their dark middy legs they'd obviously recently been in the duck pond.  They were all grazing on ground vegetation and appeared well.