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Thelwell

Thelwell is a very old Shetland pony and used to be easily confused with his best friend Dante, as they looked so similar. Since Dante is no longer with us, Thelwell has become a bit of a loner but he is a very friendly pony who loves everyone and is regularly groomed by children who sponsor him.

February 08
Thelwell has caused us some worry as he has become very stiff on his legs, so we had the vet check him who has put him on painkillers for arthritis.His breathing has also been bad and the vet diagnosed a dust allergy, so we now feed him a strong herbal breathing supplement and he has lovely deep shavings in his bed instead of straw.This seems to have helped him but we will be keeping a close eye on him in case he gets any worse.
he had a really nice thick rug bought for him by a kind supporter, it has a full neck and has helped keep him warm and dry this winter. one day however, he was found in the field with no rug on, it was found on the ground with all the straps still fastened up, we still don't know to this day how he managed to get out of it!
HSe has had the dentist out and recently had his injections, he was well behaved for these as usual.

May 2007
Thelwell is doing good but has begun to show his age a little as he has become a bit slower, and spends more time stood alone or just with Jasper, as he doesn't feel up to joining in the rough games that Mr .Jingles and Muffin play.
We had quite a scare at the end of May as we found him in the field shelter one morning looking very sorry for himself , and on closer inspection he was trembling and when we walked him out he had an unusual way of walking on his back legs.
Of course we called the vet out right away and put Thelwell in his stable on a good deep bed of straw and put a warm rug on his back to prevent him becoming too chilly.
The vet arrived and found him to have a high heart rate and a very high temperature so he was given a course of antibiotics and painkillers to see if that helped, as she was a little puzzled as to what could be wrong.
Thank goodness the next morning he seemed much brighter and had eaten his feed with his medicine and his hay, and we took his temperature and found it to be back to normal.
We are all very relieved as Thelwell is such a sweet and loving little little guy and the sanctuary would never be the same without him.
We are monitoring his health closely and taking his temperature regularly so that hopefully he will not become ill again for a long time.
He is a real treasure and he still loves letting the children groom him and lead him quietly around which has been a good help on the pony days which we have held recently .

July 06
Thelwell is doing very well considering his loss of his best friend of over 25 years, Dante, who was put to sleep recently.We were all really concerned for poor Thelwell, as we feared he might become too depressed and lose weight. He was a little sad for a while but with some help from Jasper, Beauty and Muffin he has perked up and is eating well and seems quite happy.
Mr .Pickwick was very badly behaved toward Thelwell when he first re-joined the herd and bullied him so badly that some of the staff had to physically tear him away from poor Thelwell. We were very disappointed with Pickwick as he and Thelwell were very good friends for many years. Obviously we have now separated Pickwick from the others now and he and Jasmine share a different paddock.
Thelwell also had some major dentist work done on his teeth around the time we lost Dante, having a couple of teeth removed which were causing him pain. So he has really gone through the mill but has come out the other side, for which we are really happy & proud of him.
He was used alongside Jasper as a model for a group of Brownies to practice
grooming on. He also behaved perfectly and seemed to enjoy all the attention and
the feel of little hands stroking his face.


March 2006
Thelwell is his usual sweet cuddly self and everyone who meets him falls for him as he is such a character. We were advised by the vet some time ago to start tying back the forelocks (fringes) of Dante and Thelwell to prevent eye infections because they both have very long hair which can hang in their eyes. They both look very different with their faces showing and also look very surprised at all the things they can now see clearly, it's lovely to see their old gray faces which have been hidden under their manes for so many years.

November 05
Thelwell has just had a visit from the vet for his annual check up and dentist treatment. The vet checked his heart and his breathing which we are all pleased to
hear is fine. Then the vet had a look at his teeth, which were wearing unevenly and
needed leveling off and some sharp edges taking off too.
He shows his age well through his teeth, as they are very small and stumpy and yellow. He will had regular dentistry treatments from now on every 6 months, and we are very pleased with his good behavior.

October 05
Thelwell is doing very well and has been keeping his best friend Dante company in some paddocks near the stable yard. He doesn't seem to mind this as they are among the first ponies that visitors see and so get treats first!
He behaved very well for the farrier and has enjoyed being groomed a lot by young volunteers this summer. His coat is beginning to grow back after he was clipped earlier in the hot weather, so hopefully he will be his usual woolly self by winter time.
Along with the other horses and ponies, he has been really enjoying the
gifts from visitors on our open day, including his favorite, Cabbage! also
plenty of apples, carrots, turnips and cauliflower.
 

August 05
Thelwell, along with Dante had his annual haircut as the weather became hot and the two old men had trouble shedding their winter coats, making them a little uncomfortable.
Thelwell had all his body clipped, and his legs and head left furry (he would not look like Thelwell anymore if we clipped  everything!)
He also really enjoyed the visit from Braithwaite's Special school from Keighley, he has never had so many fans fussing him all at once or had his photo taken so many times.
We received some lovely  drawings from the children after their visit and Thelwell was a favorite, so we have put his drawing up on the notice board for all to see.
 

April 05
Thelwell has been his usual cheerful self and is a pleasure to look after as he is always so happy to be around people.
Every morning he greets us with a lovely little whinnying sound and jogs along next to us as we take him to his paddock.
He is molting a lot so people who know Thelwell and how woolly he is will realize what a big job we have on every spring, keeping him groomed and getting the old hair off.  The crows, rooks and jays who live at the sanctuary seem to benefit from this though, as they can be seen first thing every morning sitting on Thelwell and Dante's backs plucking old hair out to place in their nests. Thelwell doesn't seem to mind this as its a two way thing, he gets a groom and the birds get some free nesting material!