The Tale of Oliver Twist

I have to tell you....

I had a little apprehension yesterday when I dedicated a blog post to Moonbeam.

You see, whenever one of the equines get just a little more attention that the others,

they all get their panties in a knot.

Then the whining and the complaining begin...

"Whaaaaa, whaaaaaa, whaaaaa..."

And then I don't get a moment's peace until I promise all that they will receive equal press.

And so today I must tell you Ollie's tale.

(You've heard that the squeaky wheel gets the grease, haven't you?  

Well, Ollie is the original squeaky wheel!)

This summer it will be 6 years since this tiniest member of our equine herd

came to live on the farm.

Rejected by his momma, who had to be "put down" when Ollie was just three weeks old,

this little orphan boy came by his name honestly.

Oliver Twist.

We picked little Ollie up and brought him home in a dog crate on the back seat of the truck.

(that's how tiny he was!)

Now, if you have read the Dickens Classic, then you know that Oliver fell into a life of crime...

which is surely what would have happened to our little Ollie if he had not come to the farm to live.

Without a momma to teach him manners or morals, Ollie grew the way of most mini orphans...

into a bit of a juvenile delinquent.

It was his adorable looks that saved him...because his disposition was sometimes less than sunny.

Luckily, because of his size, he is quite easy to deal with...

and in fact is quite comical in his ill-mannerdness.

When he first arrived at the farm, Ollie was just three weeks old and quite tiny.

Unwilling to take milk replacements of any kinds, we worried for the first days that he might not make it.

We should have know soon after that, being a fighter, he would eventually be a strong willed

little man.

He grew slowly, and after about a week we no longer worried.

Ollie and I have an understanding.

For me he is well behaved and keeps his little temper in check.

For others... not so much.... and especially men.

He pins his ears back, then...

takes any opportunity to try to nip or kick any poor, unsuspecting fellow

who happens to wander into the dry lot... just because.

I think it's his way of proving a point...establishing dominance...in a Napoleonic sort of way.

Months after Ollie arrived, we decided to adopt his half brother, Red,

so that Ollie would have another "little" to play with.

They quickly became friends....

and over the years, inseparable.

Red and Ollie are polar opposites in disposition.

So many times I have wished that Red was full-sized.

As a big horse, he would be a dream.... a beautiful dream.

Ollie, on the other hand?...

Well, I am thankful almost on a daily basis that he is the tiny fellow that he is!

Adorably cute....

and a boy that only a Momma could love!