Saturday 16th May - All 8 seen

At 13:30 this afternoon, the ponies were grazing near ///manages.bogus.bath, east of the ammo dump, with the foal exploring close to her mum. Davinia was the first to come over to say hello, greeting me with soft nickers before happily settling in for a long neck scratch. The little one was very friendly, approaching me straight away with a few curious sniffs before leaning in for plenty of scratches of her own. After spending some time with them, I went over to see the other two ponies, who had been waiting patiently. They both thoroughly enjoyed long neck and back scratches, returning the affection with gentle nuzzles and cuddles. All four were happy, relaxed, and looking well.

By 14:40, the ponies had made their way across the path into the secluded area surrounded by gorse bushes, near ///diver.splints.fund. After nursing from her mum, the little one came over again to enjoy more strokes and rubs. After a while, she settled down at my feet, continuing to lean in for gentle strokes as she rested. Soon afterwards, she rolled onto her side and drifted off to sleep while I softly stroked her. The whole time, Davinia grazed peacefully close by, nibbling on fresh grass, while the other two ponies grazed a little closer to the compound, all of them calm and content.

By 15:30, a few spots of rain had fallen, and the ponies had drifted south towards the woodland near ///scale.owls.obligated, where the trees would offer shelter if the weather worsened. The ponies continued grazing contentedly, each enjoying a back rub while they ate. After another snack from mum, the foal settled down to rest again, but was happy to be approached for some more strokes. I did notice on a couple of occasions during my visit that the foal seemed keen to get to know her aunties, but Davinia still wasn't ready for them to get too close to her. I said my goodbyes just after 16:00, leaving them all peacefully grazing, with the foal resting nearby.

At 16:15, the cattle were grazing in the thicket near ///escape.ironic.sport, having spent the afternoon grazing and resting around the duck pond. They were all very friendly, wandering over to join me on the grass strip to the south to say hello and enjoy plenty of strokes and rubs. I had only been with them for around ten minutes when a spell of persistent light rain began, but they didn’t seem too bothered. After greeting me, they gathered around me to rest and chew their cud, leaning in one at a time for neck and back scratches. The boys were happy, relaxed, and in good condition.

I had just started to say my goodbyes at 17:00 when I was surprised to see the ponies arriving and moving into the pasture east of the paddock, near ///prepped.cans.cigar. Despite the continuing rain, I made my way over to check on them. They were all rather wet and seemed happy to have the rainwater brushed from their backs. About ten minutes later, the boys wandered over and began grazing near the ponies. Gradually, they all made their way towards the ammo compound, passing through the area where the foal had been resting earlier. I said my goodbyes at 17:30 as they rounded the path south of the compound, heading off searching for shelter.

The cows and the ponies were all good today.