Category: Exmoor Ponies

Exmoor Ponies in the Rain

I will tell you a wonderfull story of our last day in Exmoor National Park.
As I said it was the last day in the first days of September before heading back to Germany…
The weather forecast was really bad. Cloudy and rainy. We decided to go one more time to look at the herd, me and my group of photographers followed the last days. Not for making photos only to say goodbye to them. It didn´t take a long time to find them, because we know were they are yesterday. Because of the bad weather we mentioned that they do not have done so much wandering in the night. So it was. Unfortunately we found them it began to rain. The herd were heading in direction to the coastline and we followed them. Then it begins to be excited… The Ponies went into a forest with a lot of fern and began to eat this. The conditions for making photos are the worst. No light / brightness and rain 🙂. Doesn’t matter we followed them… And then the ponies let us near to them they never did before. Saying to us: Come on human, come with us in the forest there is not so heavy rain. My serial of photos shows some of my favorites photos ever that I have done from the exmoor ponies. Never thought that on this rainy day I would make nearly 1000 photos. Enjoy!
Yours Martin Buschmann
P.S. Next year we will come back. Thank you to the wild animals and the friendly people of Porlock.

It begans to rain
Raining gets more heavy. The herd is gone into the forest.
Protection for the little ones – in the forest
Hey man.. you are also here? Come with us to forest 🙂 No rain there.
heavy conditions for photographing but i love this pic
Hurry up in the forest – heavy rain begins.
I am hungry.. You too man?
Hey I know you from yesterday
so cute
Hey stallion can you help me… the photographer from yesterday is already here..
Hello to stallion
äh who what…???ahh the photographer… don`t worry… this one only wants to play… he is harmless!!!

Wild Herd Whispering: New book out about Exmoor Ponies

The latest book in Dawn Westcott’s series about Exmoor Ponies is now available, just in time for Christmas!

Wild Herd Whispering is about the incredible Exmoor ponies as they reveal their true natures through the world of herd energy and dynamics.

“Starting with the dramatic winter arrival from the moor of a tiny five week old wild-born foal who faces the bleakest future, it is the big herd at Holt Ball Farm that decides how she will survive and thrive. The book follows the adventures of the ponies, revealing characters and behaviours that take you on a heart-rending, thought-provoking and enriching journey of equine enlightenment. This is an opportunity to catch up with adorable orphan Monsieur Chapeau and his friends and majestic stallion Bear, as their lives evolve and entwine with the wild herds of Exmoor. It follows the endearing, exciting and at times perilous experiences of the ponies – including unwelcome night time adventures, the quest to find foals lost in the wilderness and an entire moorland herd in jeopardy. With an expanding herd and challenges to face, author Dawn Westcott looks to the ponies themselves for help and inspiration: they in turn respond in a way that offers magical insights into what is going on in their hearts and minds.
This book is an invaluable reference for people interested in better understanding and winning the trust and friendship of ponies. It also highlights the challenges of safeguarding the endangered Exmoor ponies of Exmoor National Park.”

You can order your copy here: Wild Herd Whispering: How the enigmatic Exmoor ponies reveal what is in their hearts and minds

The first two volumes in the series are: