I can't believe it's already nearly the end of October. This year seems to have flown by and winter is just around the corner. The lovely sunshine we had over the summer has spoiled me and I'm finding switching to the winter routine, the mud, the rain and the lack of daylight difficult. Wolfie already resembles a hairy mammoth with a thick winter coat. I normally clip him in October however I've held off this year. He had some horrible skin thing over winter last year and we never got to the bottom of the cause of it. I don't want to clip him and expose his skin to anything as he does have very sensitive skin and has had clipper rash before. He's feeling well in himself although he is driving me insane with the electric fencing. I spend vast amounts of time checking the electric fencing to make sure it's up correctly and electrified. Wolfie has taught himself to dismantle it. He systematically pulls poles out using his teeth, he then picks the top of one pole up and walks backwards pulling the fence until more poles come out of the ground and the tape slackens and eventually comes loose from the poles. And then he walks over it and goes on his merry way into a part of the field he shouldn't be in. I couldn't understand how he was managing to get through, several people told me they had seen him picking the poles up, but I laughed out loud and guffawed. Thinking he's smart, but not smart enough to know how to take down fencing. I still wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it for myself on Saturday. When electric fencing works, it's fine, but when it doesn't, it can be incredibly dangerous. I don't want him in the wrong part of the field, if he takes the fence down the ponies can get out (although so far they seem to have stayed on the right side of the obliterated fence even though they could have easily stepped over it) and I'm terrified they get caught up in the tape. There's a mare fenced off across the main fence line from him. She's being kept in a small dry area at the moment as she has an abscess. Apparently Wolfie has been leaning over and pulling the poles to her fence out enabling her to get out. I don't know what to do. I've got all 3 batteries on the part of the fence where he seems to prefer to take down. It won't be long though before he realises that the rest of the fence doesn't have a strong current going through it though. I was going to get some anti cribbing stuff and try and paint the tops of the poles with it. Maybe a horrible taste might put him off. I've never used anything like that before and the rain might just wash it off. I'd love any suggestions from anyone. Horses eh,. Sometimes I think I'd be better off with a goldfish.