Mimi is the luckiest little mule in France – after viewing her fig tree antics, Wanda (who has the gorgeous Knaven) finally succumbed to Mimi’s charms and decided she would adopt her!

We at ERF couldn’t be happier! Mimi is a very special person, and needs someone with a lot of experience who will understand and enjoy her little quirks. Wanda and Vanessa fit the bill perfectly, and we can’t wait to see her progress.

As ever with Mimi, nothing is straightforward, and the loading process was a bit of a nightmare. Here’s the blog extract –

I am writing with a fair amount of sadness to say that Mimi left here earlier today. She has found the most wonderful home with Wanda and Vanessa who also have Knaven, our beautiful black Clydesdale.
It would however be fair to say that the sadness was temporarily alleviated during the loading process. All will become clear ……
So, back to the arrival and the initial encounter. We all went into the barn, and Mimi was quite polite and interested in the two new people, despite us waking her up. She was engrossed by people with dresses on, and though the feet below may be fair game for a bit of teeth closing. When that didn’t work out quite to her satisfaction she wandered off, and I heard the words striking horror into my heart ‘ Is she lame on that hindleg?’
Astounded, I looked at her, and she was displaying mild symptoms of locking patella. I couldn’t believe my eyes, as I’ve NEVER seen her do it, and she is so incredibly sound! Luckily, after moving around a couple of times, it stopped. By this time she was quite grumpy with excess attention, so we went in for lunch. Where I desperately tried to reassure the new people that she had never shown me signs of this before. :-/ Thankfully, they are horse people and understood. On reflection, she had been sleeping when we went in, so it is probably related to the fact that equines lock joints to sleep.
With lunch over, my last dealings with Mimi were about to commence. Out to the field to collect her in her gorgeous new headcollar and rope, feeling a bit emotional.
Mimi was fully aware that something was up, but she didn’t know what. An apple and a swift ‘neck grab with rope’ manoeuvre got a hold of her, but as chance would have it, she was under taon attack, and was bucking and kicking as I was trying to secure the headcollar. All done, she was so good, walking happily up the field and round to the lorry. I thought as I walked in that it seemed very spacious. With a bit of persuasion Mimi came up the ramp and into the box. I walked her into position and turned to wait for Vanessa to shut the gates, when I realised there were no gates. Probably at the same time the identical thought struck Mimi. She barged round like lightning, giving me no chance to get a braking hold of her and off she went. Treading on her new rope, the ungrateful madam!
After several circuits of the yard, she took herself off down the drive, and onto the road. Followed by myself and Vanessa. Then panic struck as she went across the main road. All sorts of scary thoughts of cars travelling at speed and mullering her were flashing through my mind. I went back to get the car to follow her, but as I got to the crossroads she’d changed her mind and was on the way back. She trotted past me, so I turned the car around, and immediately both of them had disappeared. Mimi had elected to jump into the huge hayfield across the road, and was spinning round it showing just how sound she was. Poor Vanessa had to keep sprinting to head her off every circuit that took her back to the main road, with the poppers on the front of her dress pinging open with the speed she was running at!
Eventually she went into the next field, down the chemin to the road, crossed it and then down the chemin running alongside my land, turned into my hayfield, and I managed to catch her at the top of the hill by the gateway.
Phew. Never have I been so relieved to get a grip of an equine.
With Mimi firmly ensconced in a stable I went to sort the partition on the lorry to find it lying on the ground – there’d been a bit of problem moving it, apparently, and it had come unhinged. A bit like me by that point.
Finally we got the partition sorted so it would enclose her as soon as she went in.
This attempt had her sporting a chifney and being bribed with alfalfa to prevent any ideas she may had entertained about being so rude again, and with huge sighs of relief all round we got her loaded.
In the lorry I told her she was going to have lots of fun in her new home, with lovely people and lots of things to do, then gave her a big soppy kiss which she thanked me for by dropping the haynet on my head.
I then waved them off quickly before they could change their minds!
I really will miss her, but this is the best future for her.

All’s well that ends well, and she arrived in her new home safely, even though she was treated like a racehorse and led with two handlers!

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