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Cunning little devil

Bonnie
 

I have formed the habit of walking all around my pony's track twice a day. First: check for hazards e.g. tree damaged by wind and ready to fall on electric fence, toxic plants or berries falling onto track, grass springing up and needing vinegar/salt spray.
Now there is a new issue. What exactly has he been doing to amuse himself? He has learned to carefully reach under the fence and take hold of a tendril of bindweed (our local version of morning glory) and pull it carefully out. With it he sometimes bags a forbidden treat. One day it was a tangle of vetch intertwined with the bindweed. Yesterday it was two tall thistle plants, roots and all. Even if the "fishing" behavior doesn't catch a big prize, he enjoys the bindweed itself.
I have called for a big man with a massive weed eater to cut back the plants, two feet clear outside the fence.
What is your equine doing when you are not watching?
--
Bonnie and Lad
North Ontario
Dec 2008
Case History: https://ecir.groups.io/g/CaseHistory/files/Bonnie%20and%20Lad
 

Maxine McArthur
 

Clever pony! I think my gelding spends a lot of time shaking expensive hay out of his haynets so he can pee in it. The mare stands around plotting emotional blackmail. 
--
Maxine and Indy (PPID) and Dangles (PPID)

Canberra, Australia 2010
ECIR Primary Response

https://ecir.groups.io/g/CaseHistory/files/Maxine%20and%20Indy%20and%20Dangles 
https://ecir.groups.io/g/CaseHistory/album?id=933

 

Frances C.
 

The cunning little devils are watching me intently as I fix the fence they just broke through. Is she going to forget to turn the juice back on? Maybe we can all learn to just walk through the wires sideways the way the pony does. Look! maybe she'll forget to close the gate again. Panels! not a problem, just stick your neck through and lift and carry the panel around with you.
--
- Frances C.
December 2017, Washington & California
Case history: https://ecir.groups.io/g/CaseHistory/files/Frances%20and%20Phoenix
Phoenix's Photo Album: https://ecir.groups.io/g/CaseHistory/album?id=12382

Bonnie
 

The panel part cracked me up, Frances.

--
Bonnie and Lad
North Ontario
Dec 2008
Case History: https://ecir.groups.io/g/CaseHistory/files/Bonnie%20and%20Lad
 

Kim Rice
 

Maxine....I can see the comic strip on that one!!  Thanks for the giggle!
--
Kim R, Lafayette, CA  2019
https://ecir.groups.io/g/CaseHistory/files/Kim%20and%20Shomee

Lynn
 

After secretly testing the strength of his paddock's fence boards Relevante found a weak one that he was able to break allowing him to slip his head through the opening and grab a morsel of grass with his very dexterous lips. Off I marched to Tractor Supply to purchase enough 16 gauge wire mesh fencing to line the inside of his paddock from top to bottom. Now he's taken to chewing the wood above the gate closure of his stall door. Because the wood is rough-hewn I didn't notice it until the vet was out for vaccinations and showed me that his incisors on the left side of his mouth had significant wear. An investigation soon revealed the source of the problem. Tomorrow I'll be painting his doorway with Ultra Chew Guard like the Israelites covered their lintels and doorposts with blood during the 10 plagues of Eygpt as I mutter under my breath, "Your killin' me Smalls." (From the 1993 movie Sandlot).
--
Lynn
Beavercreek, Ohio
March 2018
Relevante Case History
Relevante Photo Album

Ω

Nancy & Vinnie & Summer
 

Sherry Morse
 

I'm a bit late to the party but you might want to have the 'big man' cut at least 3 feet back depending on what your fence is.  I say this because when I was in HS (back in the dark ages) we rented a house on a farm and I got to take care of the shetland ponies (and then later a horse) who lived there.  The fencing was all old boxwire and I came home from school one time and found the pony with his hind legs stuck in the fence 6" off the ground and the front end was happily eating all the grass he could reach.  He'd been there long enough to have mowed down a good size area.  So if the fence is anything that Lad can get through in any way shape or form, make sure those plants are still out of reach if he goes most of the way out and then back in :-)

Thanks,
Sherry and Scutch (and Scarlet over the bridge)
EC Primary Response 
PA 2014
https://ecir.groups.io/g/CaseHistory/files/Sherry%20and%20Scutch_Scarlet 
https://ecir.groups.io/g/CaseHistory/album?id=78891

Bonnie
 

Thanks for the warning, Sherry. The fence here is 3 (and in places 4) strands of polywire. He does know that in fall/spring when wearing a rain sheet he can lean his chest against it and reach over. Today I raked up shredded plants left by Weed Whacker Man - 3 wheelbarrow loads - and disposed of it. That's half the track, done while the other half was temporarily closed. I will use weed spray to widen the de-weeded area after raking the rest of the track.
--
Bonnie and Lad
North Ontario
Dec 2008
Case History: https://ecir.groups.io/g/CaseHistory/files/Bonnie%20and%20Lad
 

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