One of the challenges with any animal is keeping them healthy. Just as with humans, reindeer can be affected by a number of diseases and ailments. Whilst they are tough, hardy creatures, one of the largest threats is diseases spread by ticks. With climate change leading to milder, wetter winters, the ticks are not always knocked back so hard each year, so there is an increase in numbers. We mostly see tick-borne illness affecting our reindeer in the Spring and Autumn, with May/June and September being the worst months.
So how can you tell that a reindeer is under the weather? When our herd are spending time either in the hill enclosure or at our hill farm, our most important tool is food! A happy, content reindeer will be eager for their breakfast, and visitors on the Hill Trips may have seen that we routinely put out a long line of food, big enough for each reindeer to find a pile, and then count the herd (who are now conveniently stood in a line). Of course they don’t reliably stand still… counting accurately definitely takes a bit of practice.
Ben feeding the herd their breakfast
At this point, there is a chance that the numbers don’t add up. You know that there should be 35 reindeer in the herd, but after three counts you’re still counting just 34. The next step is to work out who it is, which is why new herders get it drilled into them to learn the names! Everyone has a slightly different technique here – I walk along the line literally saying each name out loud, “Rubiks, Feta, Scrabble…” then when I get to the end of the line I can look at a list of who should be there and I’ll remember who I didn’t see.
“…Druid… Kiruna…” Nothing wrong with these two!
As a herd animal, most reindeer are rarely off on their own, so to have one reindeer missing can be a sign they are unwell, feeling miserable, and haven’t followed the herd. But depending on the reindeer it can just mean they’re off on a jolly! But either way, if a reindeer is AWOL in the enclosure, we’ll head out and look for them, taking a wee bag of tasty food and a headcollar. At certain times of the year I seem to spend half my time trudging round the enclosure. At 1,200 acres and including a mountain, it keeps us fit and we sometimes can’t manage to find a missing reindeer if they don’t want to be found. Usually though we eventually come across them, and we either pop a headcollar on and lead them back, or if they’re a bit wilder we herd them in.
Retrieving Marple who had a fever, was feeling a bit sorry for herself and hadn’t come in with the herd for breakfast. Her calf had stayed with her. (She was back to full health in a day or two).
Next step is to check their temperature. Whilst they’re distracted with a bag of food, we use a thermometer, inserted… round the back end… to check if it is high or low. The “normal” temperature for a reindeer is 38.9, with a bit of normal variation – some run a bit high or low. But if its above 39.5, they’re running a fever. Most of the time this doesn’t require a vet to visit – we can inject antibiotics ourselves and in most cases this sorts them out in a day or two. We’ll usually keep them split off with a friend in a smaller part of the enclosure until they’re recovered, to keep an eye on them.
When reindeer are busy trying to break into the feed bags you can be fairly sure there’s nothing wrong with them, as demonstrated this spring by Celt and Roman.
Sometimes poorly reindeer have stuck with the herd, but when we pop the feed out, they stand off looking morose, head low, perhaps even lying down – lying down with chin down on the ground is a red flag. This is particularly noticeable with the greedier characters, who suddenly undergo a personality change! On other occasions reindeer are with the herd, eating on the line, but there is just something about them that suggests all is not well. It’s a bit like knowing there is something wrong with your partner or friend, even through they’re going through all of the motions. There’s definitely a bit of experience and intuition involved here – I can’t always put a finger on it but am always quite pleased with myself when I decide to take a temperature on a hunch and am proved correct!
Not dead, not even ill! Kipling had stuffed herself with food and was merely sleeping it off, though we did go and poke her to make sure!
The other thing we keep a close eye on is the colour of pee… (its a delightful job working with animals!). Reindeer can be affected by a tiny parasite called babesia (similar to the parasite that causes malaria), which is again transmitted by ticks. This delightful critter can make reindeer very poorly indeed – one of the main effects is that the red blood cells are broken down, leading to the reindeer literally peeing blood – so looking each time you hear a tinkle is a great way to spot this. The nickname for the illness is “Red Water Fever” – referring to this red urine. Affected reindeer are usually also incredibly miserable and quiet. Again, we can treat this, but if it’s not spotted quickly enough (for example if we can’t find a reindeer, or if they become ill whilst out free-ranging, where we don’t see every reindeer every day) then it is possible for reindeer to die from it.
Anster demonstrating the perfect colour of pee!
As these illnesses are caused by ticks, and the ticks are affected by the weather, we tend to get runs where several reindeer get ill within a few days, and it can feel like everything is against us as we battle to keep the herd healthy. Prevention-wise, we spend a lot of time waging war on ticks – we use a similar product to that used on dogs and cats which we apply between the front legs of the reindeer which helps stop ticks biting. We regularly feel in the hot-spots (around the ears, under the chin, in the armpits) and pick off any ticks that we find. And we use a vaccine to help protect against red water fever, but its not 100% effective.
The best time of the year for reindeer: cold, snowy weather means no ticks and therefore no illness.
We always look forward to the tick-free winter season, where we can breathe a sigh of relief and relax a little. Our reindeer lead happy lives being able to roam free in their natural habitat, and face none of the health issues that can be caused by a poorer diet or not being able to roam, but the pay-off is that there is more risk from ticks. I’m sure there must be a purpose for ticks existing in the ecosystem, but I’m afraid I struggle to see what it could be! Until we somehow manage to exterminate the lot of them, we’ll stay vigilant, and do our best to keep our reindeer healthy.
This year was the very first time I had work during calving season, as until now, calving season had always been exactly the same time as exam season. I can very easily say that calving season this year was the happiest month of my life so far, so it has been very difficult to think of just 5 highlights. But here we go, these are my five favourite memories from calving season this year.
Finding the first calf of the year – Holy Moley
On Saturday the 25th of April, me and Fiona headed off around the enclosure to look for Galilee who was the first reindeer who had headed away from the herd to calve. It was much earlier in the year than the previous year, so I didn’t get my hopes up too much in case she was just ill or being a loner – Galilee can definitely be known to wander from the group. As me and Fi rounded the top of Silver Mount we caught a glimpse of Galilee, licking the ground. Fiona told me that this was a sure sign of her having calved, and as we got closer I could see the tiny calf on the ground. A new-born calf is barely recognisable compared to the calves I had seen previously in the summer and I can honestly say that Galilee’s calf is the most perfect thing I have ever seen. Galilee let us catch the calf and Fi show me how to treat the calf with an insecticide and some antibiotic spray on her navel. Galilee was very good but she clearly want us to leave her to bond with her calf uninterrupted. So we then fed Galilee and left them too it. The weather was even warm enough to cool off (and calm down from the excitement) with a quick dip in our own ‘private’ loch in the reindeer enclosure.
A quick dip in Black Loch!
Watching Brie calving
My second favourite calving memory has got to be watching Brie calve. One morning Brie was missing from the herd, from spying through binoculars we saw her but couldn’t tell if she had calved yet or not so I headed out to go and check. Once I got closer I realised that she had legs actually coming out of her back end – she was midway through calving. I sat down a little way away from her and watched the whole thing through binoculars. I watched the calf take his very first, incredibly wobbly steps and have his first milk.
Cicero’s first time up on his feet!
Finding Gloriana’s calf
Another favourite calving moment for me was finding Gloriana’s calf. Gloriana is an 8-year-old female who had previously never had a calf. I really fell in love with her during the 2015 rut. She was amongst a group of reindeer on Silver Mount however she was a bit of a loner from the group and used to sometimes follow me away from the herd once I had finished feeding them. Having never had a calf, we thought that she was infertile so imagine my delight when she started to develop an udder, the first sure sign that a reindeer is almost ready to calve. On one very wet and rainy day, Gloriana was missing from the herd. Andi and I headed out around the enclosure and found her on Silver Mount with a beautiful big male calf. Gloriana was a wee bit nervous but let us treat the calf with no problems. The next day however when we tried to bring Gloriana and her calf to a closer section of the enclosure, I couldn’t get anywhere near her. I think having a calf for the first time at 8 years old made her a bit of an overbearing mum, so it took us a couple of days to get near her again. She did eventually settle down and both her and her calf became more and more confident during the time they were in the enclosure.
Gloriana’s calf Butter with the white nose, with his cousin, Fly’s calf.
Hanging out with an experienced mum
Okay so this calving favourite is not just one moment. A couple of times during calving I got to go out and find a cow and calf from a very tame and experienced mum. Usually once we find the calf we will catch it and treat it and then leave the cow and calf as soon as possible to make sure that we don’t upset the mum. However, some of the cows have had so many calves and are so used to people that they are perfectly happy to lie down with you and their new-born calf. The new-born calves are incredibly inquisitive and totally unafraid of humans. It is a really wonderful experience just hanging out with the new-born calves and their very relaxed mums.
A wee chin rub for Ryvita’s calf Haricot (not a strangling!!!)Ibex and calf Flax!Kipling and calf Pip with Joe
Sending the calves onto the free-range for the summer.
My final favourite calving memory was letting the calves onto the free-range for the summer. We walked out of the enclosure with some of the cows on halters and the rest following towards the hills. Having spent every day of the last 6 weeks or so with the cows and then the calves, letting them go onto the free-range for the summer where we would likely see them every couple of weeks at the most was both sad and wonderful. Definitely sad to not be seeing them every day but also very wonderful to know that they would spend the next few months of their lives in the very best place for them, the mountains.
Leading the herd out of the enclosureOff they go…Lotti, Joe, Fiona and a socially distanced Andi after a busy morning!
We are now into week 5 of lockdown and life for the reindeer herder who is still working has taken a dramatic change in some ways and yet it all feels completely normal in others. Myself (Fiona), Andi and Lotti are still employed while all the other staff here at the Cairngorm Reindeer Centre are on furlough leave… a term I’m sure everyone is familiar with now. Hen is tending to her ever growing garden, which in this weather is the best place to be; and Dave has got plenty of work on his croft to keep him amused, especially now his sheep are lambing! The other herders have got plenty to keep them busy, though I suspect are missing their ‘reindeer’ time, especially as we go into a crucial time of year… the calving season. Unfortunately they cannot be involved with calving this year but we will be sure to keep them updated with all the new arrivals.
Bringing the cows into the hill enclosure ready for calving
Where the reindeer management has remained the same over the past month (luckily coronavirus doesn’t affect the reindeer themselves), being closed means our work is chopping and changing between a lot of hill time, feeding the herd and a lot of office time. We have had lots of new adoptions come in, as well as donations. Folks who used to adopt reindeer but maybe it has lapsed over the years have renewed as a way of supporting us while we are closed. We are so very grateful to you all so a massive THANK YOU. We will keep our social media well updated so where we can’t have the Centre open and taking all you lovely people on the hill to visit the reindeer, hopefully we can keep you in the loop with the goings on in other ways.
Kipling WILL get to the bag of feed, one way or another!
The past week in particular has been pretty hectic so it was all hands on deck! There was a group of six female reindeer who had decided they wanted to venture away for calving into the depths of the mountains so we headed out to bring them home. With four of them haltered up the other two followed nicely and we brought them back to our mountain enclosure. The next day the rest of the herd were brought in too and Lotti and I did the big split of who is pregnant and who isn’t. The ones pregnant have been kept back to calve in our mountain enclosure and the ones who aren’t will head back onto the free-range. That isn’t the last we will see of them though, as we will hopefully still catch up with them daily. The ‘Christmas reindeer’ (castrate males) and bulls who have spent the winter either here on Cairngorm or on our secondary area of grazing elsewhere are now all back at our hill farm on the Glenlivet Estate. Although we aren’t doing guided public trips onto the hill daily the management of the herd will remain the same so we may well get a few of the male reindeer back over here to Cairngorm once calving is over.
Fetching the remaining group of male reindeer down off the Cairngorm free-range.
One thing we have been publicising a lot is our Wild Farm meat which is our sister company based at our hill farm at Glenlivet with our other animals (NOT reindeer!). Reindeer herder Nicky has been fantastic in drumming up local business from her friends and neighbours, so meat sales have gone through the roof. Got to make the most of what business we can still do. I’m having to get involved with setting up adoption packs again. My role in the company over the past few years means I haven’t been so involved with this, but luckily I haven’t forgotten what to do! When Lotti and Andi need a hand to get a load done I swoop in to help out. As long as they don’t expect me to do this when everything is back to normal (wink wink!).
Such glorious April weather!
All in all we are getting quite used to the not-so-normal life of a reindeer herder and I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t rather enjoying it… Our local area of Glenmore is quiet so we have the surrounding hills and Loch Morlich beach to ourselves. With four of us living here at the Centre – Lotti, Olly, Joe and I along with the two dogs Sookie and Tiree we get out running, swimming, cycling, early mornings to watch wildlife at its best, watching movies and TV dramas and lots of lovely cooking. We have even had a pub crawl. This involved each of us turning our bedrooms into a pub… Maybe that is another blog for another time, watch this space! The one enjoying lockdown the most is my dog Tiree. For those of you who know her she isn’t the most sociable dog to strangers, however if she knows you, she loves you. So when going out on walks and pottering around the house with no strangers coming to visit, she is in her absolute element. She is currently fast asleep below my feet in the office after her 7 mile run with Joe at 6am this morning and the morning feed up the hill with us… It’s a dog’s life for sure!
If all the reindeer were to have a 100m race, who would win?
Fiona = I reckon Shekel would have won because we exercised them at Christmas he was always in the lead. There’s a great photo of him on our playing cards that we sell in the shop where he looks like The Joker with his tongue out and this is due to all the running he used to do which made him thoroughly exhausted.
Hen = Well not Svalbard, he’s too fat to run fast. It’s gotta be a female, they’re far more fit and active than the males. Probably Sika, but only if she was running in the opposite direction to humans.
Svalbard is not built for running.
Andi = I can think of plenty of reindeer who would be contenders for coming last. But for first place I think it would be one of the younger females, as they tend to maintain their fitness, when compared to the over-indulging males who have slightly let it slide. Let’s go for Spy…she has some speed on her when she doesn’t want to be caught.
Manouk = Monopoly because he would have just cheated. He was a cheeky chappy.
Chris = Well it’s likely to be a female because they get more practice at running around, and some of the boys are carrying a bit too much timber. I can’t think of an obvious winner but Chelsea is the only reindeer that I’ve had a proper race with so I’d have to pick her.
Lotti = Ooooo, who’s got long legs? Lace has got long legs hasn’t she? Plus she’s so beautiful. I’d like to think one of the females would be the fastest so that they can break general stereotypes and beat the males.
Ben = Drambuie or Hook. They’d find a way to win. Don’t get me wrong they’d be in last place with 2 metres to go but I’ve tried to herd them into paddocks before and they can move so quickly when they feel like being sneaky. So yeah, make either of those two feel sneaky and they’d be my outside bets for the victory.
Dave = Roman would probably have a pretty good crack. He’s a young and athletic bull.
Bobby = Bond: the fastest, the best muscle fibres in any reindeer EVER.
Nell = Well I’m not sure; I haven’t seen any of them run. It’d be quite interesting to see all the reindeer herders in a 100m race. I reckon Fi would win, or maybe Chris, or maybe you (Ben). Either way the reindeer would beat all of you.
Which reindeer is/was the easiest to bribe/coax with food?
Fiona = Urmmmm probably Crann to be honest, especially in his elder years because if he got his head in to a bucket of lichen then there was no way of getting him out.
Hen = Hmmm…Dixie. Every time you want to catch her you can count on her to fall for the bag of feed trick. So she ends up being the decoy reindeer (the one we lead to get the rest to follow) quite a bit.
Dixie in the bag of food as usual.
Andi = Most of the yearlings can be bribed with mere crumbs. Nancy was pretty awful come to think of it, she was pretty much climbing on me for some food whilst I was out on the free-range.
Manouk = Svalbard!!!
Chris = Oh wow, there’s too many to name really. But I guess I’ll have to go for Kipling again.
A tired Kipling
Lotti = Ahhh, they’re all so greedy! I think I could make either Olympic or Sherlock follow me absolutely anywhere with food. They’re so greedy. They’re always at the front of visits.
Ben = Haha, so many of the boys: Bond, Sherlock, Dr. Seuss, Olympic. Kipling as well could be a contender. I think we’re all grateful for those greedy boys and girls; it makes the actual herding part of the job a lot easier.
Dave = Kara. She’d follow you anywhere man, as long as there was promise of a feed.
Izzy = Svalbard. I remember one time; Svalbard was standing in the middle of the boardwalk, blocking a group of visitors from getting past. He was there for a good few minutes and he just wasn’t budging. Nevertheless, one shake of my food bag and he quickly dashed over to me. He was pretty disappointed when he realised that the hill trip had finished and the food had gone however at least he’d budged.
Bobby = Dr Seuss definitely.
Nell = Ryvita for sure! She walked to the very top of Cairngorm with me and her calf just in case I had food in my bag. This was immediately after she had eaten all of the food in my bag.
Which reindeer has done the funniest thing in your presence?
Fiona = There was a reindeer called Pepsi and we were on a Christmas event when a noise from the visitors startled him, and his response was to jump right up on to the sleigh. Ooo, and, we used to have a hand-reared reindeer called Utsi back in the day. Dad was leading them on two events that day, and the afternoon one was down in Perth. Utsi obviously didn’t know that it was one of those rare days where we had two events in a day because he exited the van in Perth with so much enthusiasm, but when he saw that we weren’t indeed home and we had another event, his response was to just turn around and get back into the van.
Hen = Hornet once used me as a stepping stone after I fell over into the river right in front of him. Luckily he was a calf at the time. Ooooh, actually I’ve got another one for you as well…last year when we were worming the reindeer, Roule made a break for it but managed to do so by going through my legs, which meant that I was being dragged through the shed by a full grown female who possessed an impressive set of antlers. I was essentially riding a reindeer backwards. Chris mentioned that he thought about grabbing Roule to attempt to stop her, but he was concerned it may well have spurred her on. Anyway, the whole experience culminated in me having an impressive set of bruises, some of which I could show my friends, some of which I couldn’t.
Andi = Midway through a trek years ago, on a hot summer’s day, we stopped for a break at Utsi’s hut, as we usually would. Scout then suddenly decided that the coolest place to stand was inside the tiny hut. But in order to do this he had to climb through an absolutely tiny doorway. However the boy managed it, and then subsequently enjoyed his lunch in there.
Manouk = Screel, she full on managed to knock over a guy who was the size of a rugby prop forward. It was pretty unbelievable.
Chris = Kipling AGAIN, sorry. There are lots of others which could be contenders, but she had the most recent incident. Trying to eat a bag of boardwalk staples and inspecting our bag of tools when Izzy and I were doing some repairs recently.
Kipling saw a bag and assumed it was food
Lotti = The first thing I can think of is a funny thing that I’ve done in a reindeer’s presence, I once fell in to a bog and sunk all the way up until the top of my thighs, and then I was really struggling to get out and I just remember Okapi and Ryvita looking at me with their puzzled expressions almost saying “what on earth are you doing?”.
Ben = We had a reindeer called Lego who has sadly passed away but I remember on my first summer here in 2014…Lego was partial to long siestas and Lego was deaf. Whoever was taking the 14:30 hill trip with me had called the herd and was busy leading them towards where they’d have their meal. However, Lego was too busy sleeping. Being at the back, I saw this unfold, so I approached Lego, lay 50cm away from him, and then eventually he woke up….his face when he saw none of his homies around him – just the face of a reindeer herder looking back at him – that was something that still makes me laugh to this day. It all happened over the course of a second but I could see when ‘the penny dropped’ and he realised he was all alone. Boy oh boy, he moved quickly to re-join the herd after that. Didn’t even give me a wave goodbye or nothing.
Dave = The late Fergus! I mean…he tried to head butt me on my first day whilst I was working in the paddocks. He also followed me round the paddocks when I was painting the fences red, resulting in him getting his nose all red and looking like Rudolph. And then he tried to mount me.
Izzy = Chris and I were repairing the boardwalk not long ago when Kipling came over and no joke, she tried to eat the nails. I think it was because these nails were being stored in an old food bag but when we then took the bag away she got in a right mood and started stamping her feet like a right missy. We actually lost a few nails down the slats of the wood as a result of her mardy episode.
Bobby = I’ve seen a bunch of reindeer pee on people which is always kinda funny but I don’t know if you can put that in your blog (yes, we definitely can). Just put Bond again, he tells the best jokes, he’s such a special reindeer.
Nell = I remember hearing about how traumatic castrations were (granted all the boys told me this whilst crossing their legs) however when Atlantic’s time came he just stood there and chewed the cud. He wasn’t bothered in the slightest.
Which reindeer would you most/least like to go on a night out with?
Fiona = Probably Grunter again, for his same social and fun reasons. But Bovril would be my pick for ‘least like to” as he keeps himself to himself and gets all grumpy at Christmas events. I could have said the same about Paintpot to be fair. I feel like my hyper-ness would not be compatible with their grumpiness.
Emily bottle feeding Hippo and Grunter
Hen = I’ll say Puddock because I’m 36 going on 65 and Puddock strikes me as the kind of guy who would just like to stay at home and relax, which is my idea of a great night out! On Friday night we could watch gardener’s world together!! Saying that, I reckon Puddock was wild in his day, so I’d take Puddock in his older age.
Andi = I’d least like to go on a night out with the late Dragonfly because he was so unsociable. In my mind he’d have been the old man lurking in a dark corner, nursing a pint, and answering only in grunts.
Manouk = I’d definitely like to most go out with Ochil because she would keep away any unwanted intruders to my personal space. She has actually been known to kick people in their ‘personal space’. Just ask Bobby…
Chris = Kipling because she’s nice around people and good in big crowds. Unless I wanted to have a fight, then I wouldn’t take Camus with me. He seems to like walking into large crowds then batting people away with his antlers as if they chose to surround him!
Kipling is getting bored of Chris picking her for every other answer
Lotti = I think I’d want to go on a night out with Fly. I think she’d be pretty sassy and have some great dance moves on her. I also think she wouldn’t take any grief from creepy men in clubs.
Ben = Boris would be great, he’d be able to look around corners for any potential hotties/spaces in the bar queue.
Dave = *sniggers to himself*. Well, definitely not Camus, he’d be a total maniac in the pub.
Izzy = One of the boys. However, I don’t reckon I’d be able to keep up with some of the younger boys like Celt, Roman or Dr Seuss. They look like they’d drink a lot. Also, I think they’d probably enjoy their mushrooms a bit too much for me as well. Svalbard strikes me as a classic “pub go-er”. I reckon I’d have a good night in the pub with him.
Bobby = Svalbard, he’d be a good wing man.
Nell = Spike. He’s the reindeer who I’ve seen jump the most. I think it’d be quite fun going on a night out with a springy reindeer because that means more dancing.
Who’s the cheekiest/naughtiest reindeer?
Fiona = Well, there used to be a reindeer called Revel who had a habit of sticking his head under ladies skirts and then lifting them up…the skirts not the ladies.
Hen = Oh Celt!!! Surely everyone said Celt?! Celt hasn’t learnt his manners yet. His mum, Camembert, is very polite so I’m not quite sure what happened there! He’s such a wayward son.
Andi = Pagan is certainly a contender. She’s completely unabashed in coming into your personal space and demanding your full attention whether you’re busy or not.
Manouk = Dr. Seuss as I had to wrestle him in front of a whole hill trip when his hormones were the first to kick in during last year’s rut.
Chris = In my first winter it was definitely Dr. Seuss. But now…Olympic may have taken over, cheeky but not overstepping the mark.
Dr Seuss as a calf. Cheeky boy!
Lotti = Ooooo. Probably Dr. Seuss. He’s not too naughty but he’s definitely cheeky.
Ben = Ah man, there’s some definite contenders from the young boys here. But for pure naughtiness it’s gotta be Bond. He’s got little man syndrome. I’ve seen him kick young children, adults and reindeer herders. What he lacks in size, he makes up for in mischievousness.
Dave = Calves seem to be the cheekiest ay. I’ve seen calves full on try to jump and roll over their mums as if they were doing the long jump.
Izzy = Celt, he kicked my water bottle. I had to get Dave to fix it for me, before that the spout didn’t work and I had to drink out of it at such a weird angle.
Sheena = BOBBY! Oh wait what? We need to choose an actual reindeer and not a reindeer herder?
Bobby = Celt, he has absolutely no boundaries.
Nell = Bond, definitely! He’s having a time out from hill trips in the enclosure because he’s been a bit too naughty…so definitely Bond.
Which reindeer would make the best husband/wife?
Fiona = Right, well, I think if you’re going for looks then the best hubby would have been Fergus. That’s Fergus in his prime, not as a calf! I think the best wife would be Caddis, actually nah, she could be pretty brutal. Hippo was probably the most beautiful. But this all sounds so shallow thus far doesn’t it. Right, for personality and reliability it’d be Topi for hubby and Dixie for wifey. They’re the attributes that really matter! I can’t think of any reindeer that has the full package mind.
Dixie getting special treatment from Fi as usual
Hen = Probably Olympic, he’s just sooooo friendly. I can imagine that he’d definitely do his share of the washing up. The Svalbard’s and Stenoa’s of this world, you know that they’d be the ones who would just sit in front of the T.V. with a beer.
Andi = Olympic…he’s steadfast, loyal and genial. And for an added bonus, his breeding days are far behind him.
Manouk = Ryvita. She’s such a loyal mother so I think she’d be such a loyal wife.
Chris = Definitely not Kota if you were after a monogamous relationship.
Kota, August 2019
Lotti = I think that Cheese would make a good wife. I think she’s got a strong sense of family, which is very important. She’s always seen hanging around with her family so she’s obviously quite loyal. She’s also a bit cheeky and fun which would be good as a life partner.
Ben = Compatible personalities are everything in a relationship, and Lace has such great character. But she’s also so beautiful. I’d like to think that if I was a reindeer and I woke up with Lace next to me every morning I’d be pretty chuffed.
Beautiful dark coloured Lace
Dave = If I was a reindeer I would marry Fly because she’s awesome, she’s a reindeer pioneer, she’s super sexy and she has child-bearing hips.
Izzy = Olympic, he’s just so sweet. He’d give me so much attention that I wouldn’t even care about him eating ALL of the food. Tosca would be my contingency; he’s such a handsome boy.
Bobby = Bond – strong, handsome, financially stable, good moral character. He’d be the best.
Husband material?
Nell = Hamish would make the easiest husband because he’d be so easy to please. Just give him food and he’d be your number one fan. Plus, he’s quite cuddly.
If all the reindeer were to have a 100m race, who would win?
Fiona = I reckon Shekel would have won because we exercised them at Christmas he was always in the lead. There’s a great photo of him on our playing cards that we sell in the shop where he looks like The Joker with his tongue out and this is due to all the running he used to do which made him thoroughly exhausted.
Hen = Well not Svalbard, he’s too fat to run fast. It’s gotta be a female, they’re far more fit and active than the males. Probably Sika, but only if she was running in the opposite direction to humans.
Andi = I can think of plenty of reindeer who would be contenders for coming last. But for first place I think it would be one of the younger females, as they tend to maintain their fitness, when compared to the over-indulging males who have slightly let it slide. Let’s go for Spy…she has some speed on her when she doesn’t want to be caught.
Manouk = Monopoly because he would have just cheated. He was a cheeky chappy.
Chris = Well it’s likely to be a female because they get more practice at running around, and some of the boys are carrying a bit too much timber. I can’t think of an obvious winner but Chelsea is the only reindeer that I’ve had a proper race with so I’d have to pick her. I would like to point out that she had a head start in our race though.
Lotti = Ooooo, who’s got long legs? Lace has got long legs hasn’t she? Plus she’s so beautiful. I’d like to think one of the females would be the fastest so that they can break general stereotypes and beat the males.
Ben = Drambuie or Hook. They’d find a way to win. Don’t get me wrong they’d be in last place with 2 metres to go but I’ve tried to herd them into paddocks before and they can move so quickly when they feel like being sneaky. So yeah, make either of those two feel sneaky and they’d be my outside bets for the victory.
Dave = Roman would probably have a pretty good crack. He’s a young and athletic bull.
Izzy = Dixie’s calf is a little racehorse. His legs are so long that I had to make sure he wasn’t a greyhound. And…because he’s smaller he’d be able to weave in and out of all the big boys.
Bobby = Bond: the fastest, the best muscle fibres in any reindeer EVER.
Nell = Well I’m not sure; I haven’t seen any of them run. It’d be quite interesting to see all the reindeer herders in a 100m race. I reckon Fi would win, or maybe Chris, or maybe you (Ben). Either way the reindeer would beat all of you.
Which reindeer is the easiest to bribe/coax with food?
Fiona = Urmmmm probably Crann to be honest, especially in his elder years because if he got his head in to a bucket of lichen then there was no way of getting him out.
Hen = Hmmm…Dixie. Every time you want to catch her you can count on her to fall for the bag of feed trick. So she ends up being the decoy reindeer quite a bit.
Andi = Most of the yearlings can be bribed with mere crumbs. Nancy was pretty awful come to think of it, she was pretty much climbing on me for some food whilst I was out on the free-range.
Manouk = Svalbard!!!
Chris = Oh wow, there’s too many to name really. But I guess I’ll have to go for my girl Kipling again.
Lotti = Ahhh, they’re all so greedy! I think I could make either Olympic or Sherlock follow me absolutely anywhere with food. They’re so greedy. They’re always at the front of visits.
Ben = Haha, so many of the boys: Bond, Sherlock, Dr. Seuss, Olympic. Kipling as well could be a contender. I think we’re all grateful for those greedy boys and girls; it makes the actual herding part of the job a lot easier.
Dave = Kara. She’d follow you anywhere man, as long as there was promise of a feed.
Izzy = Svalbard. I remember one time; Svalbard was standing in the middle of the boardwalk, blocking a group of visitors from getting past. He was there for a good few minutes and he just wasn’t budging. Nevertheless, one shake of my food bag and he quickly dashed over to me. He was pretty disappointed when he realised that the hill trip had finished and the food had gone however at least he’d budged.
Bobby = Dr Seuss definitely.
Nell = Ryvita for sure! She walked to the very top of Cairngorm with me and her calf just in case I had food in my bag. This was immediately after she had eaten all of the food in my bag.
Which reindeer has done the funniest thing in your presence?
Fiona = There was a reindeer called Pepsi and we were on a Christmas event when a noise from the visitors startled him, and his response was to jump right up on to the sleigh. Ooo, and, we used to have a hand-reared reindeer called Utsi back in the day. Dad was leading them on two events that day, and the afternoon one was down in Perth. Utsi obviously didn’t know that it was one of those rare days where we had two events in a day because he exited the van in Perth with so much enthusiasm, but when he saw that we weren’t indeed home and we had another event, his response was to just turn around and get back into the van.
Hen = Hornet once used me as a stepping stone after I fell over into the river right in front of him. Luckily he was a calf at the time. Ooooh, actually I’ve got another one for you as well…last year when we were worming the reindeer, Roule made a break for it but managed to do so by going through my legs, which meant that I was being dragged through the shed by a full grown female who possessed an impressive set of antlers. I was essentially riding a reindeer backwards. Chris mentioned that he thought about grabbing Roule to attempt to stop her, but he was concerned it may well have spurred her on. Anyway, the whole experience culminated in me having an impressive set of bruises, some of which I could show my friends, some of which I couldn’t.
Andi = Midway through a trek, on a hot summer’s day, we stopped for a break at Utsi’s hut, as we usually would. Scout then suddenly decided that the coolest place to stand was inside the tiny hut. But in order to do this he had to climb through an absolutely tiny doorway. However the boy managed it, and then subsequently enjoyed his lunch in there (Andi has a photo of this).
Manouk = Screel, she full on managed to knock over a guy who was the size of a rugby prop forward. It was pretty unbelievable.
Chris = Kipling AGAIN, sorry. There are lots of others which could be contenders, but she had the most recent incident. Trying to eat a bag of boardwalk staples and inspecting our bag of tools when Izzy and I were doing some repairs recently.
Kipling inspecting our bag of staples
Lotti = The first thing I can think of is a funny thing that I’ve done in a reindeer’s presence, I once fell in to a bog and sunk all the way up until the top of my thighs, and then I was really struggling to get out and I just remember Okapi and Ryvita looking at me with their puzzled expressions almost saying “what on earth are you doing”.
Ben = We had a reindeer called Lego who has sadly passed away but I remember on my first summer here in 2014…Lego was partial to long siestas and Lego was deaf. Whoever was taking the 14:30 hill trip with me had called the herd and was busy leading them towards where they’d have their meal. However, Lego was too busy sleeping. Being at the back, I saw this unfold, so I approached Lego, lay 50cm away from him, and then eventually he woke up….his face when he saw none of his homies around him – just the face of a reindeer herder looking back at him – that was something that still makes me laugh to this day. It all happened over the course of a second but I could see when ‘the penny dropped’ and he realised he was all alone. Boy oh boy, he moved quickly to re-join the herd after that. Didn’t even give me a wave goodbye or nothing
Dave = The late Fergus! I mean…he tried to head butt me on my first day whilst I was working in the paddocks. He also followed me round the paddocks when I was painting the fences red, resulting in him getting his nose all red and looking like Rudolph. And then he tried to mount me.
Izzy = Chris and I were repairing the boardwalk not long ago when Kipling came over and no joke, she tried to eat the nails. I think it was because these nails were being stored in an old food bag but when we then took the bag away she got in a right mood and started stamping her feet like a right missy. We actually lost a few nails down the slats of the wood as a result of her mardy episode.
Bobby = I’ve seen a bunch of reindeer pee on people which is always kinda funny but I don’t know if you can put that in your blog (yes, we definitely can). Just put Bond again, he tells the best jokes, he’s such a special reindeer.
Nell = I remember hearing about how traumatic castrations were (granted all the boys told me this whilst crossing their legs) however when Atlantic’s time came he just stood there and chewed the cud. He wasn’t bothered in the slightest.
At the start of August, Lotti and myself were sent out into the mountains to see if we could find the free-ranging females and their calves. Fiona had spied a big herd from the road and thought it would be a good idea to get them to follow us for as long as possible with a bag of food, in preparation for the rutting season where the females will need to be led back into the enclosure. With our lunches packed and a bag of feed each in our rucksacks, Lottie and myself set off for a day searching for reindeer.
Lotti leading Hopscotch and her daughter Kipling, probably the greediest pair of females ever in the herd! The herd is following behind.
At the Ptarmigan restaurant, at the top of the funicular train line, we were rewarded with the sight of a large group of 20 females and two calves. Three females immediately ran over as soon as they caught sight of us removing a feed bag from Lottie’s rucksack. These turned out to be Hopscotch and her yearling Kipling. Hopscotch’s three-year-old son, Kips, is a regular on the handfeed line on hill trips and it was easy to see where he had inherited his greediness from! The third was a little reindeer called Pagan who proceed to half-heartedly shake her antlers on our legs in an effort to receive some food.
After spending lots of time with the twins, I was surprised to see how big the calves were on the free-range. Look at the size of the antlers on this calf!
With Lotti leading and myself following at the back, we managed keep the females as a group and walking for a good half hour around the plateau. We gave up when the herd started to trot off in all directions and no amount of running behind in zigzags would keep them together. We had just made the decision to put the feed out, when Lotti looked behind and discovered another large group of twentyish females had joined us! After putting a long line of food, we counted 43 reindeer in total.
Morven looking beautiful against an amazing view over the Cairngorms.
Once everyone was fed (including ourselves), the reindeer trotted off as one big herd, moving quickly across the mountain which was amazing to watch. Lottie and myself then headed to the summit of Cairn Gorm and around the Northern Corries in the hope of finding another group. Unfortunately, we spent the rest of the day searching for reindeer to no avail. We did however, have the most amazing day walking around the mountains, in shock the whole way that we were getting paid for this! I often have people telling me on hill trips that I have the best job in the world, and after this day out in the mountains, I would find it hard to disagree with them.
Julia
Three became separated from the herd but after a few minutes of calling them, they ran straight back over, not wanting to miss out on their lunch. There is still a bit of snow left over in the Cairngorms, even after the summer heat-wave, which we can see in the middle of this photo.All of the herd following Lotti and her white feedbag. I was walking behind making sure they kept moving forwards.Hopper has amazing antlers this year!
My first time meeting Fly. Her antlers were incredible with one side towering over the other. Apparently she lost one of her antlers a lot later than the other, causing the mismatching in their size.
Look at the size of Fly’s antlers in comparison to Okapi (who has fairly large antlers for a female)!Kipling running over to see if I have any food!Gloriana hasn’t yet moulted her winter coat on her ears so they are still really fluffy!Running for the feed line.Brie curious about my camera and Cheer behind looking beautiful.Lotti and myself couldn’t believe how cute this calf, Frost, was with his winter coat still on his neck in little clumps.Suspicious SantanaIt’s a tiring life for these two calves…Lunching with the reindeer.Lotti looking down towards Loch Avon from the side of Cairn Gorm.Lotti and the Northern Corries. We didn’t find any reindeer from this point but had the most amazing walk along the ridge of the Corries and back down to the car park.
At the end of March 2018 I again came to be volunteer reindeer herder for a week. This was my 4th time being a volunteer reindeer herder and being with the reindeer, the herders and the dogs means so much to me which I explained in my last blog.
Dave very kindly gave me a lift with his lovely dog Tui on the days he was working like he normally does when I am up working with the reindeer.
This time I was going to experience something very magical which I hadn’t experienced with the reindeer before… SNOW!
On my first day, I got to Reindeer House and Ruth, who used to be a reindeer herder, was also there visiting. I had experienced lots of fun days with Ruth and the reindeer so I was really pleased to see her again and catch up with her news.
A group of 55 reindeer were free ranging on the Cairngorms. On the hill visits, I went to 3 different locations where I hadn’t been before and we set off from the Ciste car park for all of them.
On the first visit, there were still snow on the mountains and people were skiing fast down the main skiing area. We climbed up a very icy hill and visitors were helping each other if they were struggling to climb up. A skier was coming down and politely stopped to let us all past. I later found out that only the advanced skiers could ski on this side of the mountains.
We reached the reindeer and the magnificent views of the mountains surrounding us.
The frozen tarns and puddles looked amazing. I was so excited about being with the reindeer again and I immediately pointed Spy out to a very amazed Hen. It was so lovely seeing all the 2017 calves again, they had all grown so much and were as cute as ever. There were 2 calves which I hadn’t met before as they were free ranging with their mums on Feshie Bridge when I was last up in October. They were Blyton (Parmesan’s calf) and Keats (Wapiti’s calf). They were still extremely shy as they were still getting used to humans.
On the way back down a very icy hill, Hen taught me how to walk down it by digging your heels down into the snow making a hole grip otherwise I might have slid all the way down to the bottom of the hill. Some reindeer herders had done that before. We saw some bottom sliding marks where people had decided to go down the hill on their bottoms. I was amazed to find out that in the main gully of the Cairngorm Mountains there was up to 15m depth of compact snow. Hen told me lots of very interesting facts about snow and snow drifts on the Cairngorm Mountains.
Little did I know that later on in that week that I would experience all the amazing facts which Hen told me about……….
I was very lucky to be part of Olly’s last day being a reindeer herder. It was very sad to say goodbye to Olly but I am very pleased for him as he has got lots of exciting adventures ahead of him.
A Very Special Easter Sunday
Ptarmigan
My Dad is a very keen bird watcher who travels abroad to see birds. My Dad had only seen a Ptarmigan once so he really wanted to see one on this trip up to Scotland. Andi told my Dad where to see one so on Easter Sunday my Dad and my Mum started climbing up the Cairngorm Mountains in search of Ptarmigan. Thanks to Andi, my very excited Dad and Mum found a Ptarmigan pair and my dad was able to get some cracking photos of the Ptarmigan. Another male Ptarmigan arrived and nearly landed on my mum’s head.
The Easter Sunday hill visit was really sunny and all the reindeer were lying down sunbathing when we got to them. The top ski car park was full so they were running shuttle buses from the Ciste car park to the main skiing area and the Ciste car park was filling up. It was a perfect day for skiing so it was very busy on the main skiing area.
Fly the reliable reindeer (recently featured in Tilly’s Blog)
We were also busy and fully booked on the hill trip with 30 cars and 92 people who had a very magical experience with the very relaxed sunbathing reindeer. Kipling really enjoyed a cuddle from a child and Hopscotch (Kipling’s mum) had wandered over to Andi, Mel and myself with some very surprised visitors as Hopscotch came and sat down with them. Cheese and Fly then decided to join us all by hovering nearby. Cheese watched me as I added details to my reindeer herd list to help me learn the names of the reindeer. Also I got brilliant reindeer selfies with Dante and Fly.
Cheese thinking what am I writing about her
One of the visitors got their leg stuck in a bog and couldn’t get it out. Andi was all prepared to take over from the visitor’s friend who was trying to loosen the mud and water from around the leg. Andi advised the visitor to twist her leg and with a big pull from Andi and the visitors friends, the visitor’s leg got free and she was out of the bog!
Say ‘cheese’ Fly
After the hill trip on Easter Sunday, I got to meet Dave’s baby son called Sam and his partner Emma. When I was left in October, Dave and Emma were expecting a baby and I was so over joyed to hear that they had little Sam about a month after I had left. It was so lovely meeting baby Sam and getting to know Emma. I really enjoyed my little cuddle with baby Sam and he was talking to me in his own way.
I was mixing the feeds which make up our reindeer mix such as hay barley, sugar beet, dark grains etc. together. A little robin flew through a hole and was hoping around near me collecting little bits of straw for its nest. I was so amazed how tame this little robin was. I told Dave about him and Dave says he normally comes in and out through the hole collecting things. Dave jokingly told me his name was James (which I believed). I think it is really lovely how Reindeer House have their resident robin who is now nicknamed James the robin.
Weather Suddenly Changed
On Easter Monday, I got to go and find the reindeer with Fiona and Mel and bring them down for their breakfast and for the hill visit. The reindeer were up very high on plantation hill and we could see them from the van. As we walked out it was sunny but then it got dark very suddenly. The reindeer didn’t come when we called them so we climbed a big hill and called them from there. We had to wave a bag around so that the reindeer could see us. A big hail storm came and we couldn’t see them as the visibility was so poor. I was lucky that the hail stones didn’t go in my eyes as I got glasses on but Mel’s and Fiona’s eyes were stinging. I was in my element being in a massive hail storm at a top of a hill calling reindeer who were slowly coming down the mountain, it was the most magical feeling ever. Little did I know that it was going to get even more magical …….
We started to climb down the hill and I hung back to see reindeer slowly appearing over the top of the hill. Sambar was leading the herd.
Sambar leading the herd over the hill
It was so magical when the reindeer followed us and Fiona got some brilliant photos of me leading the reindeer down. I was so excited about seeing them come across a little patch of snow as I hadn’t seen that before and I was more amazed how they leapt and sprang over the stream.
Fiona feeding Cailin and Fonn
We settled the herd where the hill visit will come that day. I was in charge of having the sack for the calves so they could have a little extra feed whilst Mel and Fiona went around the older reindeer to give them some extra feed such as Malawi, Fonn, Cailin and Bangle as they looked a bit thin and needed more food. Fiona managed to tempt Blyton the calf over to feed from the sack so she can get use to humans.
Christie, Dante and JK feeding from the sack of feed
It was so brilliant just chilling with the reindeer and walking through the herd to get to know them and check them over. Reindeer are so calming and it is so lovely that they want to be in your presence. It is such a special connection and is such a magical feeling.
Fiona gave me one of the lovely photos she had taken of me and printed it off and put it in a frame for me as a very special present which I really love. It is so special to me and means a lot to me. I have put it on my bedside cabinet and it is the last thing I see at night reminding me that the reindeer and everyone and dogs will be still there waiting for me till I am next up.
Sookie who is our resident dog at Reindeer house has to wear a bright coloured jacket saying ‘Please do not throw me sticks’ when she goes outside. Sookie suffers from arthritis now as she is getting older. It was the first time I had seen her in her new jacket and apparently she still goes up to people and shows them her begging eyes to throw her sticks and then doesn’t understand why her begging eyes are not working anymore! She does that sulking look at you like she is saying ‘do I need to wear this jacket?’.
On the first hill visit, I saw Dave waving a reindeer away. Her name is Cioch. Cioch I later learnt can be at times very grumpy and can appear friendly to an excited visitor. She loves been handfed and then stays around the visitors.
Hen says 1 herder needs to keep an eye on her at all times as she will lower her head and wave her antlers to an unexpected visitor if they approach her with no food! Cioch also might be pregnant which makes her even more grumpier so we had to keep an eye on her.
I rescued visitors from her twice. One occasion she was standing her ground and waving her antlers to a group of visitors so I encouraged her away with my empty hand feed bag.
The other occasion, Mel was talking about how to hand feed, I turned around to see if everyone was paying attention when I spotted Cioch at the side of the group of people. Some people were paying attention to her and not to Mel and they were trying to encourage her to move forwards thinking she is a lovely friendly reindeer. I was thinking this is not going to end well! I made my way over and just as I predicted Cioch had lowered her head and had started waving her antlers at them when she had realised they had no food for her. I went straight to Cioch waving my arms to scare her way and encouraged the people to listen to Mel. Dave had realised what I had done and praised me by saying I had done that very well!
First signs of reindeer in the snow, hoof prints!
The Magic Of Winter
The following day I woke up to snow on the ground and in the trees. I couldn’t wait to see the reindeer in the snow. Me and Sheena had to clear snow off the paths and steps outside the reindeer centre and in the paddocks with shovels. This was my first time shovelling snow. Being in the snow for me was just as exciting as at home we don’t get much.
We couldn’t poo pick the paddocks like normal as the snow was hiding yesterday’s poo. It had also built up on the upside down food bowls and I had to break the ice on the water troughs so the reindeer can break the water. It was so magical letting the reindeer into the snowy paddocks for their breakfast. It was my first time I had ever seen reindeer hoof prints in the snow and seeing them so at home in the snow.
The hill visit was so amazing seeing the herd in the snow. They looked so relaxed and at ease. The reindeer were all lying down when we arrived. It was so lovely seeing the visitor’s faces seeing the reindeer in the snow and interacting with them. Bumble had found a stream under the snow and was drinking nicely from it. After hand feeding the reindeer, Ochil came straight to the empty rucksack and starting pawing at it to see if there was any more food in it and then looked at me like I was just about to magic more food out of thin air for her to have.
I realised in the snow that the reindeer are more excited to see the food. In the wild they would have to kick the snow out of the way to reach the food underneath. It was so wonderful seeing the reindeer do this natural behaviour pawing at the snow to get to the heather underneath.
I was so excited experiencing seeing the reindeer in the snow.
Sheena said “Who is more excited about the snow?” “The reindeer or the reindeer herder?”
The answer was the reindeer herder!
Where Has All The Snow Gone?
I had a shock when I went into the Paddocks in the afternoon. The snow had all gone. I could not believe how fast it had melted. I thought it would have stayed like it does when we have snow at home. Dave informed me that it melts away quickly up here at the Reindeer Centre because it is wet snow and also it had warmed up a bit throughout the day.
As the snow melted, it had revealed how much the reindeer had pooed yesterday and today. It looked like an explosion of poo with piles dotted over the enclosure.
I was near the end of poo picking the paddocks when a visitor asked me a question about reindeer. I turned my back on my big nearly full up dustpan of reindeer poo thinking it was going to be ok standing there. I was half way through answering the question when I heard a rubbing sound behind me. I turned around to see Viking rubbing his one antler on the tall dustbin handle which would had fallen over with poo rolling down the hill if I hadn’t caught it in time. Cheeky Viking!
Viking and Scrabble eating their tea
A Dog and A Lost Toy Fox
I had a gut feeling that I was supposed to be in the paddocks visiting area that afternoon as something will happen but I didn’t know what.
When I was tiding the paddocks visiting area, I heard a dog barking. To my disbelief, I saw the owner of that bark tied up in the paddocks visiting area. Reindeer think dogs are wolves so they are scared very easily by a dog as they think it is their predator the wolf. Dogs are not allowed in the paddocks visiting area and on the hill visit for that very reason.
Chris had been on the phone to someone that very afternoon explaining that dogs are not allowed.
A little girl ran up to the tied up dog to tell the dog to be quiet and then ran off to her family which were on the other side of the paddocks visiting area. My first thought was to get someone else to deal with it but then I felt it might have been too late by then as the dog was causing a big scene and the reindeer were looking very scared.
So I went over to the family and told them very politely that their dog is scaring the reindeer and that the reindeer thought their dog was a wolf. The lady was apologetic and got someone to take the dog out whilst she told me that they had misread the situation and had thought their dog was allowed into the paddocks visiting area.
I went inside and told the others and they were very impressed I had dealt with the situation and said I did the right thing.
A little later on, I was tiding the kids craft area in the exhibition of the paddocks visiting area and I came across a lost toy fox which a child had obviously left behind. I went round the paddocks visiting area asking families with children if this lost toy fox belonged to them. No one recognised it and I was beginning to wonder if a child was getting upset about losing their toy fox.
I put it in my pocket and finished tiding up the kids craft area. I was just about to make my way to put it in the lost property basket in the shop when a lady suddenly appeared and began looking around the kids craft area like it she was looking for something. It turned out she was looking for the little toy fox and she was so relieved when I took it out of my pocket and gave it to her. She said it had been bought only today and that it had been the 2nd time the child had lost it. I felt very pleased with myself that I had made a difference as I knew what it had felt like to lose a special teddy for a while when I was a child.
Dave had done a really good Easter Egg Hunt around the paddocks visiting area. I had a go and really enjoyed it. The hardest number egg to find was number 2 and we had lots of children coming to ask us where number 2 was. It was on the boat in the exhibition.
There were 6 eggs to find and each egg had a word on the back of it. After finding the 6 eggs, the children would have a sentence in front of them which was ‘Reindeer Roam Regularly Right Round Cairngorm’.
After the children had completed the Easter Egg hunt, they won a chocolate egg which they came back into the shop for. I would be normally restocking the shop in the afternoon when the children came in for their chocolate eggs.
One afternoon, when I was restocking the shop, a family came in and I gave the children their chocolate eggs and Hen had come in to see if I was ok and if they wanted to buy anything. The children normally go on their way again when they had got their chocolate egg.
But what threw me the man who was with the children asked me why had only 1 antler had fallen off Viking. I had answered that confidently loads of times in the paddocks visiting area but this was in the shop in a different place and situation which I hadn’t expected and my mind been on restocking the shop minutes before hand. I had brain freeze and my mind went blank. I started to try to explain the answer and then started getting more and more self conscious.
I looked at Hen who gave me a encouraging look and nod knowing that I could do it. So I carried on explaining and really thought about what I was saying and I did it! I was so pleased with myself that I had got over that hurdle and I felt I had achieved a massive achievement!
A Magical Winter Wonderland
I had never seen so much snow at once in my life. I had woken up to my mum being so excited and telling me to open my curtains, and when I did, I could not believe how much snow was on the ground and it was still snowing heavily.
The snow ploughs had been on the road to clear the snow to make them safe for people. When we got to the Cairngorm Reindeer Centre, we saw the snow ploughs clearing the snow and it was amazing how much snow they left piled up. The snow on the ground was about 3ft and my dad took a photo of me in the snow by the Cairngorm Reindeer Centre Sign! We couldn’t believe how much snow stayed on the fir trees weighing them down!
Me and Chris had to clear snow off the paths and steps outside the reindeer centre which excited Tiree and Sookie thinking we were playing a game with them.
Fiona, Hen,T iree and Sookie then went off to find the reindeer. I was amazed that they didn’t need me to clear the snow off the drive for them as they just drove over it.
Back at home, we have to clear the snow off the drive to get out but I was soon learning that the snow up here is a lot wetter and softer. Chris showed me how to put grit down as I have never done that before.
I then went to clear the snow off the paths in the paddocks. I was so amazed to see how much snow there was on the BBQ hut roof and on the paths in the paddocks which was about 3ft deep! It looked so magical and a like a blanket of snow of the ground which had been untouched!
Unexpected Visitors
About 9:35am, I was shovelling the snow off the paths in the paddock when I heard voices shouting hello. I knew the paddock visitor entrance was still locked as we don’t open till 10 O’clock. To my disbelief I then saw a man with 2 children walking into the paddocks visiting area wanting to know where they needed to queue up for the hill trip which I just confirmed for them.
They had got in through our private front garden where the disabled entrance is. I followed them back through to make sure they got out and to shut our garden gate. In our front garden, the snow was still deep. On their way out the 2 children were picking up massive handfuls of snow.
I piled snow into the reindeer paddock enclosure, on the soil area and on the sides of the paths. The paths began to look clearer and safer for the visitors to use. I was very pleased with myself and felt like I had achieved and had made a difference.
Reindeer In A Magical Winter Wonderland
It was so magical when Mel let the reindeer through for their breakfast just before we opened. I have never seen reindeer glide through this depth of snow before and they looked so at home!
It was so lovely to see the children playing outside the Reindeer Centre in the snow. Children had built snowmen and throwing snowballs at each other. Many of the children were tourists and were just excited as me about the snow!
Scrabble and Viking tussling
The hill trip group was smaller than the last few days. Everyone was very excited to see the reindeer in the snow including me! Most of the reindeer herders like the snow as they like skiing and I really loved it and was in my element. I was experiencing the most snow ever in my life!
I could not believe how deep it was in the mountains and I was actually experiencing what Hen had taught me about the heavy snow and snow drifts on the Cairngorm Mountains!
People had even had sunglasses on and I was learning that sunglasses were not only used for bright sunny days!
Bumble trying to open the rucksack
By the time Chris had finished the talk about the life of the Cairngorm Reindeer herd and where they roam, a group of children had finished building a snowman. They had built it so quickly as the amount of snow there was. Some children were even trying to make and roll big snowballs on our very exciting walk to the reindeer!
Chris guarding the sack of reindeer feed from Dixie and Fonn
The reindeer were not on view as we reached the ridge where we did our hill visit so Mel went and found them and led them up to us. It was so magical to watch Mel walk along the ridge against the white brightness of the snowy mountains and then appear again a few minutes later with the reindeer following her!
I put my hand feed rucksack down and Bumble made a bee line for it and started kicking it to try to open it as she knew the hand feed was in it which made everyone laugh! Chris had to stand on his sack of reindeer feed as Dixie and Fonn were hanging around the sack and he knew they might try to open the sack themselves if he hadn’t stood on it.
Seeing the reindeer in their natural habitat in the snow free ranging was such a magical feeling! I felt so happy and excited! Everywhere you looked was white!
The reindeer really stood out against the white and it made their coats look darker! It was so amazing how bright the snow was! Blondie and Mozzarella the 2 white (leucistic) reindeer looked camouflaged against the snow.
As the reindeer tried to eat the heather, their heads disappeared in a snow hole and there could be up to 2 heads in a snow hole at a time. I found it very cute if it was a mother and calf.
Caddis, Morven, Aral and Brie chilling in the deep snow
There was just a couple left who were really enjoying being with the reindeer and Chris reassured them there is no rush to leave.
It was so magical being with the reindeer in the peace and quiet sharing their very magical winter wonderland with them. They appeared so calm and at home and let you just be around them and just chilled with us! I felt very relaxed and felt like if I was flying! It was the best feeling ever!
Chris took some brilliant photos of the couple surrounded by the reindeer and it was so lovely seeing them experiencing this magical moment too!
Hobnob in her element surrounded by deep snow
Chilling with Ochil and Bumble
On the way back, the weather was closing in and it was turning into a heavy blizzard walking back to the car park. I saw people building a big igloo out of the snow and we had to be careful where we stepped as one false move we could end up waist deep in the snow. Some parts you just don’t know how deep the snow is.
Kipling the calf investigating to see if I had more food for her
My Last Day Sharing The Magical Winter Wonderland With The Reindeer
A selfie with the cheeky Dr Seuss
I got to go and find the reindeer with Fiona and Mel and bring them down for their breakfast and for the hill visit. The reindeer were up on the plantation. It was very different when we last went as the mountains were still covered in very deep snow and the path by the car park was very icy. Mel put some grit on the path to make it safer for the hill visit after we found the reindeer.
Mel also put some grit on the drive just before we had left as Fiona slipped on an icy patch and fell flat on her bum. Thankfully Fiona was ok and I think she was very brave.
As we walked through the snowy mountains, I was trying to spot the reindeer on the very snowy plantation hill. We got to the end of the ridge where the hill visit will be for that day (same place as yesterday). We started to do the special reindeer call and Mel pointed the reindeer out who were coming in a line down the plantation side.
We left the very patient Sookie and Tiree in the stay position
I was also seeing something I hadn’t seen before. I had never seen reindeer walk in a line one behind the other. They do this to save energy. Their back hooves go into the front hoof prints.
Fiona asked me why I had followed her route across the snowy mountain and I said that it was easier and that I would get less tired. Fiona had made me realise that we are like reindeer in the snow too.
It was so magical seeing the reindeer run across the snow like they had springs on their hooves when they got nearer to us. They looked so light and springy like a rabbit running to get to its burrow.
Preferential calf feeding
Fly lead them up to the top of the ridge where we were waiting with the feed sacks. I encouraged the calves to come and feed out of my sack which they happily did.
Bumble was trying it on with me as she was pretending to be a calf and Mel said she will be fine if I moved her away with her 1 antler. I got hold of her antler and moved her way, it was such a strange feeling and Mel said it doesn’t her hurt her. After I let go, Bumble went straight back to the sack of feed again and so I moved her away again. By the 2nd attempt, Bumble had realised I meant business and that the sack of feed was a calves only zone!
2017 Calves
I had got to know the calves over the week and also when I saw them in October. It seemed all the confident calves such as JK, Kipling, Dr Seuss, Burns, Pratchett and Christie had their heads always in the sack of reindeer feed. If any of the less confident calves came along, they would not let them in.
I saw Dante and Austen hanging back. When I saw them in October, they were so shy but since being on Christmas tours they have got more confident. I encouraged them to come closer and made space so they could put their head in the sack and get some reindeer feed.
Austen is such a sweet and gentle little calf. In October I remember trying to herd Austen and her mother Pavlova in to a separate part of the enclosure as we needed to check Austen’s temperature as she was on the skinny side.
In October, I had fallen in love with Bumbles’s calf called Brontie and Mum and Dad were going to adopt her for my birthday but unfortunately in December she died. I was very sad when I found out and I had a very lovely email from Morna explaining why Brontie had died and what had happened to her.
This time whilst I was up, I was getting to know the calves a bit better. I really like Dante and had some brilliant selfies with her. But I knew that she was from a very shy reindeer family and would grow up to be one of the reindeer who will want to hang at the back of the herd and not hand feed.
I already adopt Mo (aged 5) who is such a very special reindeer to me! He starred in the CBeebies programme ‘The Viking Princess’ in December last year, I am so proud of him! He also enjoyed meeting younger children on a visit to a nursery school recently and he was such a good boy standing still for the children.
I also have a soft spot for Austen and had noticed a huge difference in her since October! She was much braver and bolder and was looking much better as when I last saw her in October she looked a bit skinny. I heard that Austen got more confident and cheeky on Christmas tour and went to Cardiff and Cornwall!
Little Austen, my newly adopted reindeer
With lots of thinking over the week about which calf to adopt and with a talk from Andi, I now adopt Austen too which I am so pleased about!
I had also seen Pavlova pregnant with Austen when I was a reindeer herder last April! 16 days after I had left, little Austen was born!
Has Breakfast Finished?
After Mel and Fiona had checked all the reindeer and fed the older girls, I put down the piles of feed for the reindeer’s breakfast and counted them. I hadn’t put the empty sack under my arm properly. I hadn’t realised that if the reindeer could still see the sack or get the scent of food that they will follow you and that what they started to do. So Fiona had to try to lead the away from the car park side and back to the place where we gave them their breakfast which she successfully did and she soon caught us with me and Mel, Sookie and Tiree!
Over the week, I got to know most of the reindeer by name and get to know each reindeer’s personalities. I write lots of details on my reindeer herd list and I take photos which then helps me remember them. I also see the differences and changes of each reindeer since I was last up too.
Lora in April 2017Lora in April 2018
The Biggest Hill Trip
Fiona drove to the top ski car park to see what the skiing conditions were like as she was going skiing later. It was the first time I had seen the top car park with ski activity and with the chair lifts going. I was amazed how busy it looked with lots of skiers.
As we arrived back to the centre, the queue from the shop door was huge and was going across the drive and the queue had to part so we could drive past and park.
This hill visit was the last time I will see the reindeer till next time! On this hill trip we had 29 cars and a mini bus full with Girl Guides. There were so many people. I stood at the top of the icy path which Mel had gritted earlier that morning and helped people up if they were struggling. I then caught up with the front of the line and stood at the bottom of a boggy bit to help people over if they needed it. It was really nice helping people and seeing that they really appreciate it. It was really lovely seeing families do teamwork by helping each other too.
Down in one of the gullies, I saw a man doing cross country skiing with his dog on a lead, I was so amazed as I hadn’t seen that before! That is a brilliant way to walk your dog.
When we got to the top of the ridge, Chris went over to the reindeer to encourage them to come closer. Andi was leading the group over whilst I stayed at the back of the group.
All of a sudden the line stopped moving and then there was a line of cameras and phones clicking away. Chris was leading the reindeer closer us and it looked like the reindeer was on a white snowy carpet and next to me was the line of reindeer paparazzi! I have never seen so many visitors get their cameras and phones out so quickly.
My selfie with Cailin who is aged 15
When we were on the ridge, us herders went down a bit and spread out so the line of visitors on the ridge could see us when we demonstrated things such as how to hand feed. When they do visits to the hill enclosure, they have certain stopping bits for certain parts of the talk, so doing a route which they hadn’t done for ages and thinking where to stop to say which part can be very daunting for them so they tend to share the visits talk between them and double check with each other if they had said everything which is brilliant teamwork.
On this big hill visit, Chris was about to put the food down for the reindeer and was telling the visitors that me, Andi and himself will have a bag of hand feed each. I suddenly realised he hadn’t done how to hand feed the reindeer yet and reminded him.
As the visitors started going away it got quieter. I had so many excited people on this hill trip come over to me and ask me lots of questions and they were so interested about the reindeer. On the hill trips, I found it so lovely how people would come over to me and ask me questions about the reindeer and it was so rewarding sharing my knowledge of the reindeer with them. I felt I had achieved and made a difference in their lives and that I had taught them something which they hadn’t known before. It was such a special and brilliant feeling to have.
Giving Dante some TLC (tender loving care) at breakfast time
When there were only a few people left, the reindeer were moving nearer the Ciste car park side and me and Andi called them but with no response.
I went down the ridge bank and had such a very special time with Cailin, Dixie and Bangle! The sun was shining and we all just sat there chilling together and I had brilliant selfies with them! It was such a very special and magical experience being with them, knowing they were also the oldest girls in the herd which I nicknamed The Golden Oldies. I had an empty feed bag with me and they kept double checking that it was definitely empty and to make sure that it wasn’t magically filling up with reindeer feed for them.
Andi and Chris was climbing down the ridge towards the herd so I knew it was time to go. When I got up, all 3 reindeer followed me all the way to the rest of the herd where Fonn (aged 15) came running towards me to see if I had food for her. I caught that on video too which was very magical and special.
Andi and Chris joined me and I knew that all the visitors had gone. I helped Andi and Chris herd the reindeer away from the Ciste car park side by walking forwards and waving our arms with them knowing this was goodbye for now.
It was so hard to say goodbye to them as they bring a lot out of me and mean so much to me and are such a big part of my life!
Sookie
Fiona had invited me for tea at reindeer house so I stayed on after 5pm. Fiona, Mel and Chris and Tiree went skiing with friends. Mel said that Sookie will love a walk with me.
Me and Sookie had a really lovely walk through the woods to Loch Morlich and went on the lovely beach with the stunning views of the Cairngorms.
Sookie is such a very well behaved dog and obeys lots of commands so she walked off the lead. Sookie kept trying it on with me as every so often she would present me with a stick and then lay down at it starring at it.
Sookie wanted me to throw the stick for her. But she didn’t win as I kept telling her that even without her special jacket on that the rule about no stick throwing is the same.
We really enjoyed exploring the woods and going on the beach together. We spent very special quality time together and we finished our very special walk by having a brilliant selfie together on Loch Morlich beach.
Chilling with Sookie selfie
I had a really lovely and special meal at reindeer house. We had very tasty wild boar from Tilly’s and Alan’s farm which Fiona had slowed cooked throughout the day. It was so nice spending an evening at reindeer house and I really enjoyed it.
It was my first time properly working with Chris whom I had met on my last day being a reindeer herder back in October. He showed me lots of videos and photos of the reindeer on the computer and also showed me how he remembers who is who and showed me photos on his phone.
Chris also showed me that on one of the computers at reindeer house has a photo folder for each reindeer with their photos on which keeps record of how you can identify each reindeer and how they change over the years. It is really interesting learning what each reindeer looks like.
I found it all really interesting and it so lovely to see the reindeer running over snow very fast very excited to see the herders who had their breakfast.
I am now counting down how many sleeps when I am next up with the reindeer, reindeer herders and dogs which is at the end of May seeing the newly born calves, another first experience for me which I am very excited about.
