Behind the Scenes with Badger: Life on the Farm
Hello, my name is Badger and I’m a 27 year old shire x Irish cob at 15.3 hands high.
I live on a farm in a lovely little village called Disley; with a gorgeous view of New Mills, Hayfield and the well known Kinder Scout in the Peak District.
A Typical Day in Badger's Life
My devoted mum Alison comes to tend to my various needs daily (I mostly get a visit twice a day),this includes applying sun cream if it’s sunny, as I have a delicate pink muzzle, fly repellent (I have sweet itch) and of course an abundance of treats and snuggles!
For those of you who know sweet itch is anything but ‘sweet’. It’s an allergic reaction to the bite of the culicids midge (those tiny pests you can hardly see), therefore I also have to wear a fly rug.
We have walkers coming through our fields and I often hear them saying ‘Look at that poor horse wearing a rug in the sun!‘ If only they knew- if I didn’t, I would be itchy and rubbing my poor mane and tail all away.
Recently I’ve been having a great time training Alison (mum) in a new game which involves her walking across two fields to see me and then following her all the way back; as I know she’s going to put me in my lovely straw filled bed with some hay and water (if I stand at the gate and look cute!).
Once or twice a week I’m ridden by Alison or my other mum Sarah, who loves me very much too. Alison’s hubby John also rides me, but I mostly enjoy being pampered and looking at the beautiful view!
I share the fields with a herd of horses who are my friends who range from a little welsh pony to an Irish Draught (16 of us in total). My best friend is a handsome Hanoverian named Zeb but Mum is always glad that I like my own company and stay away from any nonsense, so there are no bites or kicks to deal with!
Alison is busy at the moment as she’s a gardener and always smells of lovely cut grass; it keeps her fit enough to look after me as I know she has to come every day at 7.30 in the morning to see me (I could set my watch by her if they made them for horses), it’s a nice warm up to her day!
A Horse's Wardrobe
You will notice at the beginning I am a Shire horse crossed with an Irish Cob. I always mention this as I’m immensely proud of my beautiful feathers from my knees down, that my mum brushes out regularly with a lot of huffing and ‘this is back breaking’ comments (a lot of fuss if you ask me).
I also have to have an extensive wardrobe of rugs, from rain rugs to medium-weight rugs and heavy-weight rugs that have to be put on according to the weather and time of year. When it gets to October I start to come into the stable every night for winter which is lovely as I’m fond of my lovely bed and when it’s time to hunker down and listen to the rain on the roof and chill out with my hooves up in comfort.
I hope this gives you an insight into the loving partnership between me and my slave (ahem, I mean owner). Watch out for my next diary entry soon!
Badger x
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