Beret

Calving season May 2021 was my first month being a reindeer herder.

Later that year at Christmas time, I wanted to adopt a reindeer for my nephew Daley and for my niece Joelle in the Netherlands, but who to choose from all those hundred and fifty nice reindeer in the Cairngorms?

Mum Brie was my calving bet that year and she gave birth to a female calf, who we called Beret. Beret was a lovely light-colored reindeer calf, very sweet. As Joelle likes brie (as in the cheese) I thought it would be nice to adopt Brie’s daughter Beret for Joelle, both having a French name as well. Last week was all about Cowboy, my chosen reindeer for my nephew Daley; see that blog by clicking here.

The chosen reindeer! Beret on the left and Cowboy on the right.

Beret spent a lot of time roaming freely on the Cairngorm mountains. She likes to stay around her family, often grazing close to her mum Brie and her younger sisters Sorbet (born 2022) and Danube (born unexpectedly in 2023 on the free range).

The times she was in our hill enclosure, Beret wasn’t quite sure how to behave as a reindeer. Last year she was jumping on top of people to ask for handfeed!

She ran with one of our bulls in Autumn breeding season 2023 and in May (after a winter of free ranging, enjoying her freedom and eating lots of lichen) she gave birth for the first time! She had a big dark colored beautiful female calf and she also got a new baby sister in May this year. All have been out free ranging on the mountains again for the summer months and in September they came back to the hill enclosure so we could halter train the calves.

This Autumn 2024 Beret is behaving a bit more like an adult meeting visitors from our Hill Trips, she is a mum now after all. Her calf and little sister both look great.

Here’s some lovely photos of Beret growing up:

Brie and her calf Beret out free ranging in the hills – July 2021.
Beret back in the hill enclosure – August 2021. What a cutie!
Beret now growing in her lovely winter coat – September 2021.
Beret with her thick winter coat – December 2021.
Beret having a rest, most likely after eating lots of food – February 2022.
Beret after recently casting an antler – April 2022.
Beret beginning to grow her new set of antlers – May 2022.
Beret moulting her old winter coat but still looking very cute – June 2022.
Beret – January 2023 enjoying the snow!
Beret beginning to grow a new set of antlers – April 2023.
Beret looking very smart in her summer coat – August 2023.
A recent picture of Beret from last month in the middle of stripping her velvet – September 2024.
Beret’s lovely calf! She’s done such a good job especially as first time mum.
This is Beret and her wee sister. Beret’s mum Brie had another calf this year adding to the family! Beret and the new addition have lovely matching white noses.
Granny Brie with her new calf.

Hopefully, when Daley and Joelle are a bit older, they will be able to come up and meet Cowboy and Beret in Scotland.

What a gorgeous nose!!

Lisette

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