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Tootie tries to gain acceptance
Tootie hangs out on the fringe of the herd, as always trying to fit in and be accepted. The first two days after Tootie arrived she stayed penned with Oatsie (her half sister, 2 years older). They quickly became friends, and were getting along very well so they were released into the herd. Oatsie initially was very protective of Cody and Nacho, frequently chasing Tootie away from them if she approached. It was a hard couple of days for Tootie; Amber chased her frequently, sometimes for five minutes without rest and at a furious pace. Many rents were torn in the fences. After a few days of this however, things settled down. The herd (8 now) has broken into 2 sub-herds with Betsy and Ty Bo often off in a group with Amber and Shy. Cody and Nacho usually hang out with Oatsie and Tootie. Tootie has become quite dependent on Oatsie’s friendship I think. She had never been separated from her mother (Lady, who is also Oatsie’s dam) before and was very frightened at first. Tootie will stay here till next spring or summer learning about riding and riders; she seems calm for a three year old and eager to please on first analysis. I have started doing groundwork with her, but will not try to ride her for about a month.
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Shy lounges around at morning haying time (above left), keeping a careful eye on the camera and photographer. Shy often plays with Ty Bo now, and tries to engage Nacho in games too. Shy is unfortunately learning to be standoffish from his mother (Amber), but has a gentle and smart demeanor. Linden has been working with Shy on halter and lead. He still has a dun stripe on his back, and appears to be a red dun with lots of white on him. The above right shot shows Kiara's colorful brood. Kiara is a calico tabby (a type of tortoiseshell cat) and almost all her kittens are multi-colored). Kiara lost her first litter in May because she hid the kittens in the woods and there was a terrible hailstorm the next night. She apparently got pregnant immediately after that for by the end of June she was a wide as a sofa. She delivered eight kittens in her second litter (in the hay stack this time), and has been an exemplary mother to them.
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