Benney, Bryn, and Rainbow

Arrival and Settling In

There is always a moment of slight trepidation when you drop the ramp at the back of the lorry to see how your horse travelled. Are they a frothing wild-eyed beast about to burst through the partitions? Are they still standing? Are they still in one piece?

No such worries with Bryn once we opened the lorry. There he was, munching on his hay net, looking at us and what he could see of his new surroundings. He was a little sweaty, but otherwise looked good. He stood at the top of the ramp and had a good look around. He sniffed the air and raised his top lip. There was something he liked. One and then two tentative steps on to the ramp. Whoops, a little slip of a hind foot. A few steps more and he was on Terra Firma.

We popped him into a stable for a few minutes with his hay net to give him time to settle and cool off. People came to see him to welcome him to his new home. He was a bit nervous and the slightest new noise would startle him, but not for long. We left him to sort himself out, including having a bit of a set to with Snowy in the next stable. That only lasted a few seconds and they both returned to their hay nets.

When we came back, Bryn had settled down. His coat had dried out to reveal a variegation of dark browns, grey browns, and shades of black. He was glowing.

Bryn’s temporary stable window looked over the mounting block. The first couple of times people brought their horses around to mount outside "his window," he would retreat to the front of the stable as their shadows appeared. Then, when one of our friends was mounting, Bryn ventured to the window, stretched his neck out, and sniffed the unsuspecting horse. It shied away from the block out of reach of the rider. No one got hurt and everyone laughed at this apparent cheeky behaviour. We think Bryn laughed as well.

Turnout and Seeing Rainbow and Benney Again

It was time to turn Bryn out to stretch his legs, kick his heels up, graze, and get to see his friends from 16 months ago: Rainbow and Benney.

Izzie and I led him to his paddock. He was tense. He was watching everything going on around him. His eyes were wide and staring as he took everything in. Ringo in the next paddock came down to the fence line to check him out. They seemed to make friends quickly. I walked him into his field and faced him away from where Benney, Rainbow, and Amber were grazing. I could feel his excitement through the lead rope. I got his head collar off at first attempt. He dipped as he turned away from me and galloped across his new field.

Benney, Bryn’s bestie, was the first to check him out. He came down the field at a walk, but as he got closer, he broke into a canter. We think he recognised Bryn and got excited about seeing him again. We are sure that if they could have hugged each other they would have. Rainbow followed on as quickly as she could. The reunion love fest began.

Sniffing, snorting, and a ménage trois of mutual grooming ensued with frequent bouts of excited and senseless—to humans at least—running around the paddock. Even veteran Amber joined in the general excitement.

They all settled down after 10 minutes. Amber and Rainbow—the two veterans—went off together while Benney and Bryn found their own patch to graze. Their mouthfuls of grass were interrupted by extended periods of mutual grooming. It was almost as if they kept having to make physical contact to make sure this was not a dream that would suddenly end. We left them to enjoy the rest of the day.

First Evening and First Pear

We went back to the yard later in the afternoon hoping to be able to help bring Bryn in to his new home. This had already been done by the time we arrived. There was Bryn at the far-end of the barn, opposite Benney. As soon as he saw us, he started a high-pitched whickering. He was pleased to see us. As a treat, we brought some pears for all our horses. Rainbow got through hers in two mouthfuls. Benney very nearly scoffed his in one go. Bryn sniffed his, took a small nibble, and then went back to his hay. I dropped his pear on to the hay pile for him. An hour later it was still there, exactly as I had left it. Goodness knows what he will think of parsnips.

Bryn looked happy and content, and that is how we left him on his first night at his new home.