AT RISK .... Maureen Clifford © The #ScribblyBarkPoet
They named her
Highland Nellie - for the place that she was bred
and she worked
hard for the crofters carrying from hills the red
deer upon her
sturdy back - her pace measured and slow.
She knew the
highland trails so well where no vehicles go.
They are at
risk these sturdy beasts and now considered rare,
a deer stalking
pony by name, a crofter’s pony there
up in the
Scottish Highlands where for days cold winds do blow,
and winter sees
the heathered hills covered in drifts of snow.
The deer need
to be managed as most wild stock must be.
To stop them
overgrazing, to protect ecology
and with no
natural predator to keep their numbers down.
the job falls
on the ghillies to bring them back to town.
The carcass is
not wasted - venison sells for a fee
and is carried home
strapped on the back of the crofter’s pony
who negotiates
uneven trails down hillsides steep and bare,
a physically
demanding job that they manage with flair.
They're perfect
for the job at hand and valued for their strength,
those red deer
can weigh 20 stone and managing their length
along with
antlers sharp and wide strapped to a ponies back
shows these
small ones are workhorses, no ladies riding hack.
And yet their
whiskered muzzles are as soft as driven snow,
and they bond well
with their ghillies and will follow where they go.
They're not
fazed by the smell of blood, stand steady to be loaded,
and being
steadfast mates and true they've no need to be goaded.
It's sad to
know that they are categorized as 'at risk' -
a rare breed
now surviving in a job that's far from brisk.
In years to
come alas they may just simply disappear
as other
species 'cross the world have, and it's crystal clear.
That if we want
our wild horses worldwide to survive,
we have to put
our hands up now - go into overdrive
and let our governments
all know that 'yes - we want them there'
they are part
of our Heritage, the worlds for all to share.
5/12/21
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