Ganz schön Tricky

Tricky, the little Gotland pony, was feeling so much better by now that he had nothing but mischief on his mind. One morning, Wesley called me.

Wesley: “Hey Gillian! Tricky is gone. The door was open when I got here.”

Shortly after that, I heard the man from the fruit stand.

Man: “Gillian! Tricky is throwing all my apples around!”

Not even ten minutes later, the veterinarian called.

Veterinarian: “Gillian! Tricky stole my bucket of carrots!”

Someone from the horse sales area called next. “Hey Gillian! Tricky is stirring up the horses in the sales stables!” And then the horse stylist, too.

Horse Stylist: “Gillian! Tricky has pooped all over my stand!”

I ran from one place to another, back and forth – no sign of Tricky anywhere. Eventually, I found him out in the pasture with the sheep.

Gillian: “There you are, little one. I’ve been looking for you everywhere. You’ve caused quite a mess. Come on, let’s go home.”

Before taking Tricky back to the stables, I stopped by to see Josh.

Gillian: “I have no idea what to do with him. He keeps escaping and causing trouble. In the end, I always find him with the sheep.”

Josh: “You know, I think he’s bored. He’s fit again and needs a job. The thing with the sheep gives me an idea…”

Josh suggested that Tricky could stay with Andy. Andy had sheep and a large enclosure. We just had to make the idea appealing to him.

Gillian: “… herding horses are becoming really popular, and you could even ride up to visit your grandma during breaks. What do you think?”

Andy: “Well, when I really think about it… that does sound tempting. Just my grandma’s pancakes alone are a strong argument. You know what? I’m in!”

It really was a great idea from Josh. Tricky loved sheep and could spend the whole day with them. He was busy… and Andy? Andy was happy too, because now he could stuff himself with his grandma’s food every day. Luckily, Tricky was already level 7 by then – which meant he knew the commands “Follow” and “Stay” and couldn’t run off so easily anymore.