Back In The Saddle!

Finally!  It's over a year since FH placed her foot in my stirrup and climbed onboard.... that was until today.  I have been trying my best to encourage FH on board but she's been busy.... one thing us
mules are good at though is patience so I figured I could wait a little longer.  Me and Smiley Human have been going out and about together but it's always nice to have two riders, not that I'm greedy or anything ;-)

So this morning FH appeared with saddle in hand, I was a good muletta having all my straps done up (I'm extra good these days as FH sometimes has the Baby One attached to her so I have to be very careful).  And I waited, ears pricked and wondered where Smiley Human was...... and I waited..... but then FH said WE were going out together.

FH was a little twitchy, she was wondering if she'd forgotten how to ride in all that time? What if she had lost her balance (hehe...) We had a little walk first and then it was time, FH gingerly placed a foot in the stirrup (I stood VERY still like a good muletta) and hoisted on board and we were off :-)

FH is a kilo or two heavier than before (we'll soon get that off her) but all the gear fitted and she sat onboard like she'd never been away.  She sat quietly and chattered away to me, mostly about my mulificent ears, I could tell she was a little on edge but that was fine cos I am brave enough for both of us.  FH soon relaxed and we were off climbing steep tracks and looking at the lovely Autumn views. I could tell FH was beaming away behind me, I was very proud, we call it her 'riding face' :-)

We didn't go far but that's fine, there is plenty more time for longer rides.  A wonderful time was had by us both, it was pretty nice to have FH back in the saddle!

First Ride!

Well Muleteer friends it's been a while but we just had to come back to report our excitement at our first ride by HF :-)

HF is rather pleased with our furry handsomeness and is never happier than when allowed to stroke and touch us all, apparently we are much more satisfying to stroke than those hairless humans ;-) We knew that we'd trained her well!  She does look really happy with herself doesn't she?

FH reckons that 19 weeks is old enough for a ride surely? OK so it was more of a sit but we reckon it still counts?

Roller was first to get in on the action... apparently he has been sanctioned as the first mount as he is 'bombproof'.... well he wouldn't notice anything anyway as his head is firmly attached to the grass in front of him!

I was not to be outdone though, whatever they say about me I know my job and it is to look after my herd and most especially my new rider - come on FH I told you when you were growing my new rider that she was MINE!

So come on HF hop on over, get off that ponio and discover the delights of looking through an amazing set of ears!

Yep there we go, don't I look just right with her on top!  Watch out FH if you grin anymore you'll split your face :-)

I'm off to plan some adventures for my new rider..... I have had a few folks say I look like a medieval jousting mule in my bug armour?  It befits my brave nature!

And finally apologies for our absence.... our human foal has been unwell (she is now getting better by the day) and we sadly lost MH's Mum recently so things have been a little difficult.  We are pleased to report that all inhabitants of Muleteer HQ - furry and non furry are well and enjoying life, we will update on all of their fun and frolics soon!

Ears Waves, Snuffles, Miaows, Woofs, Gurgles and of course Neigh-Brays to you all xxx

Wonderful Weekend

What a wonderful weekend was had by all!  Let me tell you all about it.... have you got a minute or two to spend with us Muleteers?

Let me tell you about the fun I had!

There was lots of chilling out and doing things that we all like, all topped off by sunshine which isn't bad for the first day of September :-)  So here's a quick resume of our fun and frolics!

Work, Work and More Work

Dragon is soooo happy because she has been working (which in her mind = pleasure) a lot this week, four times in one week, good job Dragon has two riders in FH and Smiley Human!  Lovely potters around the lanes, FH was happy this Sunday morning even though she did get up very early.... apparently it's the best time of day to ride Dragon and appreciate the best view in the world.... something to do with those mulificent ears?

Probably.... the best view in the world!

Dragon's ears are starting to get rather fluffy, the sleek lady is turning in to a fluffy one... best not tell her that though... she will breathe fire else.

In true Dragon style she celebrated a job well done by munching the local tree branches!

Is that snack big enough Dragon?

Reunion

When she got home we had a reunion over a snack.  How many ears can you fit in one shot?

Grocery Delivery!

Then we had a grocery delivery from our friendly farmer.  Roller was busy checking out the quality, honestly he wasn't trying to munch it or nothing....

Quality Control

Scuppered

Oops! Rumbled by the Dragon! Not sure there's room at the door for both of you!

Rumbled!

The Cat Police

It's OK because the Cat Police are in town and have commandeered this straw bale for their own purposes!

Anyone that's brave enough to take on this Puss In Boots alike is welcome to try.... ;-) She may be small but I have trained her in ninja mule ways well!

Mini Racing

I heard all the commotion and came running, FH has set up this track grazing thingy so in honour of it being a track I have made it in to a Mini Racetrack!  I love it!  My cornering abilities are legendary, FH closes her eyes every time I do this.... I think it's cause she sooo excited?

Full....

......steam

......ahead!

It's a Dogs Life

On the other side of the fence the Cloth Dog was trying out his latest look of exasperation.... if he gets the look just right he gets food and / or attention... he is the master of this, I must learn and try harder if this is the result.  GH says that Murph is the master of 'begging with style' we'll see about that I think I could excel at this too!

Look in to my woeful eyes... all this could be solved by food or strokes!

The puppyteer is still a little broken (not that you'd know it) and has been busy stealing FH's clothes again.... I think he has secretly been jealous of my shield of steel rug and decided to get himself some clothes too?

The puppyteer is also very pleased with himself as he has a sparkly new 'big boy' collar.  Hmmm I'd like one of those..... FH is rather fond of bugs so Milo is sporting a bugtastic collar with a ladybug, dragonfly and bee, somehow it seems to suit him?  

After a busy day us Muleteers need to get our rest.  Some us like to snooze on the job (guess we'll let her off after four rides).

While others stay on guard duty.... albeit sitting down.

Hope you had a lovely weekend and here's wishing you a happy week ahead!

Catching Up With The Girls!

Don't you just love a good catch up with pals?  I had a lovely weekend catching up with the girls :-)  It's been ages since I've been out for a lovely long ride with my short eared hero Breeze and her human, we'd almost forgotten what Dartmoor looks like!

So we put our ears together and hatched a plan and made the humans promise to take us out this weekend!  It was a long holiday weekend so there was no excuse.

My Hero and I carried our humans all the way to the moor, can you believe how much they talk?  Honestly blah, blah, blah, do they not realise that my ears are delicate and all that noise... but it was good to listen in to the tales of silly humans (best not to even think about...), the weather (not bad for the UK!), the hay crop (apparently good - phew!), friends (mostly good), acquaintances (mostly puzzling) and just odd things.... Breeze and I exchanged our own news, I told her about my win at Mule Agility, she told me about her new task teaching a new short eared friend the ropes and her sessions with the dancing teacher - very impressive!

Most of all the four of us just went *sigh* isn't it pretty, ah isn't it peaceful, ah why don't we do this more often (what's stopping you humans?) and we must get to the top of that VERY steep hill before the end of the Autumn (hmmm looks like a jolly steep climb and it's not the picture below that's a tiny mound in comparison).

So we splashed (well I mostly got wet as My Hero is such a good aim with her splashing) and pranced and had a jolly old time....

It's coming up to the best time of year for riding on the moor, not too many flies, cooler breezes, clear skies (please) and hopefully less rain than the winter - here's hoping!

Alas it was time for home, I was sad and a little deflated to have to wave my ears goodbye to my pal, it was secretly nice to have a girl to discuss stuff with.  

FH promised a little something to say thank you for a nice time though... I wonder what she has in there for me?

Aha!  A lovely carroty treat, I am very gentle really and didn't chomp her fingers as it might look like in the picture....

Finally ears of relaxation and happiness. I'm dreaming of the next work day!  

 Until next time Muleteers I wish you a good week ahead!

Mula Exploradora!

Mule Explorer!

The sun's shining, the breeze is blowing and this mule has energy! Come on FH let's go check out the wilds of Dartmoor!

I do so love it up on Dartmoor, it is made for mules!  Dartmoor is nearly 400 square miles of open moorland with herds of ponies, cattle and sheep (and the occasional Pixie aka Piskies in this area).

I have been exploring on the moor before but normally I have to wait for a more mature short ears friend to go with me as I get a bit excited!  FH reckons I'm ready to go on my own though now.

So let's get tacked up and out early..... we don't get blue skies like that very often here you know.









That looks like a mule track to me, need to go up hill and over yonder, hang on FH I'll get you there.

Dartmoor Mule!

I've noticed on Dartmoor that there are lots of these stone things everywhere.... FH tells me that some of them are the ruins of old houses (maybe we could come live up here FH, there's lots of grass), some are burial mounds (spooky!) and some are monuments that no one really knows what they are. These things have been here since the Bronze age, that's about 5000 mule years ago, wow!  They are all made out of granite and have a habit of popping up out of nowhere, I had to give some of those stones a good mule stare to put them in their place.... can't have those rocks thinking they've scared me...

Sometimes all is not as it seems, I noticed that quite a few of those stones actually moved when I passed them.  They was sheeps disguised as stones!  Naughty sheep!  This little lambykins wasn't that well disguised though, he had got left behind by his Mom.  Run, sheepy run.

After a few miles I was starting to get a bit thirsty, it was OK though as we were about to happen upon one of Dartmoor's many streams for a little drink.  We had to tip toe around a blanket bog first though.  Dartmoor has lots of bogs.... nasty squelchy things that suck your hooves off, thank goodness FH seems to know where they are as I wouldn't like to lose my pretty muletta hooves, good job I invited her along, humans are useful sometimes.

Bog tackled we neared the stream but what is this?  Some of the cattle had the same idea.  These are Belted Galloway cattle, I thought they were rather pretty, FH was not so convinced, she is a little bit nervous of them.  Apparently this herd are known to be fairly quiet but they got calves with them so we needed to be careful and not upset them.  FH needed to hide so she got off me and hid behind my mulificent self.  I gave those cows some stern mule stares and they quickly created a path for Queen Dragon to proceed through.  I don't know why FH is bothered by this lot they seemed pretty friendly to me.  I would've enjoyed staying to chat a bit longer but places to go people to see!

Just a second FH before we go I just gotta check under the bridge for the Piskies (this is the proper Devon word for pixies, those little fairy folk that live on the moor and have a mischievous time, us Muleteers love them, our humans don't believe they exist, they have no imagination sometimes).  

These old bridges are called clapper bridges, some nice person mules years ago put them up so you humans don't need to get your feet wet when crossing.  Us mules have superior waterproof hooves, you lot really need to evolve some too.

Checking for Piskies

OK bye now my bovine friends, I'll be back again soon.  What a nice view!  You can see where the farmer's fields end and the moor begins, they're such different colours.

Onwards we must go!  This is so much fun!  FH walks a bit and rides a bit and inspects the view while I inspect the plant life (mmm tasty).  We both sigh deeply and enjoy the sunshine, aahh bliss :-)

Nearly back to the track home and I came across this most interesting bunch of stones, I was desperate to climb all over it while FH had to get off to open one of the super difficult gates. This is called a 'Barrow', apparently not one of the wheeled ones but this is a name for an ancient monument sometimes a tomb or burial chamber.  These are found all over the moor, this is one of the oldest ones but alas it is now just a collection of big granite rocks. 

Perfect for a Mula Exploradora to pose on!

Homeward bound now, I'm sure I can hear The Mini bellowing from miles down the lane!  I'm having such a nice time do I have to go home?  Guess the boys need might need me.... oh well if we're going we might as well GO!  What do you mean FH that I really shouldn't canter down this path? It's only steep and rocky and narrow.... no problems for a Mula Exploradora but as you asked nicely I guess I'll carry you down it at a walk.  There is an advantage to that, I can snack along the way!

Next stop home.  Just time for a Mula Exploradora to replenish her energy levels with cow parsley, hogweed and campion - yummy!

I'm ready for my next adventure, where to FH?  I love being a Mula Exploradora!