Mystery Solved

At some point this summer, I noticed that one of my mare's tails had been chewed.  About half of it was missing, chewed neatly across at approximately the base of the tail bone.  The rest was normal, but looking pathetically thin and ratty, with so much of the rest of it missing.

I was surprised, because I thought I had sold my occasional tail chewer, Stormkite, the gelding.

I braided the ratty tail, to discourage the chewer.  

DeCato's tail, after a two month's of regrowth

But then I noticed ANOTHER of my mare's tails was chewed.   And then I noticed that ANOTHER of my mare's tails was chewed.  

For those of you doing the math, all three of my mares' tails were chewed.  

"What in the name of Jedidiah is going on around here?" I said to myself, question marks popping out my head.  "I go from having no tail chewers to having at least TWO tail chewers?"

I had to have at least two, because a mare really can't chew her own tail, at least not as perfectly as these tails were chewed.  They were so perfect it almost looked like scissors had been used...or perfect little grazing teeth.

Hmm....

Hint, hint.

I washed Hudson's tail yesterday, and so I left it out of its braid to dry.  This morning, she was sulking in the paddock because I hadn't let her out to graze, and she knew if I DID let her out, I would put that nasty grazing muzzle on her.  I was looking at her tail from afar, still despairing how chopped it looks, when I noticed a certain somebody loitering near it.

WEBBLY, you little stinker!

The RAM has been chewing ALL of my mares' tails with his perfect little grazing teeth.  That son-of-a-sea-cook is always hanging around them. 

I quickly braided Hudson's tail again and gave Webbly a tongue lashing that lit up the hills.  

The sheep will soon be separated from the horses, in their own, sheep-proof pasture.  

I have heard people ask if it's OK to house sheep and horses, and now I can answer definitely, the answer is NO.  Do not do this, not because the sheep will get hurt, which they don't, at my farm anyway,  but because the little stinkers are tail-destroying machines.

 

The offender, zeroing in on his next target.