December

The shortest days

December sees the final sale of the year of New Forest ponies at Beaulieu Road Pony Sale. Commoners will have been out across the Forest catching the last few mares and foals in preparation for the sale. Many ponies are not caught on the drifts and commoners will go out alone or in small groups to catch individual ponies. It is also the time of the second Verderers’ Welfare Tour of the year, when a range of organisations interested in animal welfare, both statutory agencies and charities, tour the Forest to study the condition of the animals at the crucial time of year.

In some years the acorn crop is heavy and commoners with the right of pannage are given an extension to continue turning their pigs out, this occasionally lasts until New Years Day. Commoners on the Crown lands, with a sow in pig, can also apply for a licence to continue turning her out so long as she returns home each night to sleep.

The winter holly pollarding begins on the open Forest, providing a tasty winter feed for the ponies and deer. When the ponies browse the holly and gorse it is known as ‘fuzzing’. Ponies that eat gorse ‘do’ very well and it gives them a really shiny coat. They nibble to soft new shoots of the prickly plants and some have even developed ‘fuzz whiskers’ a hairy moustache to stop them being scratched. There is less food in the woods and many ponies move on to the heaths and lawns.

Many commoners with cattle let their cows in and out daily during the winter months. Letting them in to eat the hay and silage made during the summer months on the holding. Many commoners’ herds are autumn calving as this enables the commoner to keep a close eye on their cows and assist with calving as well as allowing the bull to run with the herd. Bulls are not allowed out on the Forest. The calves learn from a young age the routine of going in and out each day.

As part of the New Forest TB protection plan all cattle are tested for TB during a short testing window in the winter. Many commoners will be testing for TB in December. This is a two phase test requiring two visits from the vet four days apart. Many commoners also vaccinate at this time against cattle diseases such as BVD and IBR.
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The Boxing Day Point-to-point is the highlight of the commoning year for many commoners. Some commoners begin their point to point career as ten year old children and are still riding in the races in their 6os and even 70s. It is a chance for commoners to demonstrate their horsemanship and knowledge of the Forest, as the winner is not always the fastest but the one who knows the best route to the finish. It is also an incredible showcase of the agility and ability of our home bred New Forest ponies.

Commoners continue to ride and walk out on the Forest regularly to check their animals and report any sick, injured or poor ponies to the Agisters. They will bring home any that need feeding up ahead of the winter, although the New Forest Pony is well adapted to living out all year round, browsing on nutritious gorse and holly now the grass growth has stopped.

December continues to be a high risk time of year for animal accidents and all drivers are encouraged to #add3minutes to all of their New Forest journeys so that everyone gets home safely.