A Prince Here, a Prince There...

When Ben first came here, he never slept in the barn.  The others all do and I could see that Ben thought they were crazy for it.  He would sleep just outside the barn on the hard packed gravel, on the snow, the mud....he was not fussy.  He was a big, tough, man and only wimps slept in barns.

Then, in January, he got sick with the latest tick borne plague and he spent a lot of time lying down and even spent some time lying in the barn.

A couple of months after that, I was putting fresh bedding down and, like most equines, he decided it looked like it would be fun to roll in.  Down he went and he did an excellent job of spreading the bedding around.  Finally, he was lying still and I could just about see the little thought bubble form over his head,

"Ohhhh, so THIS is what bedding is for."

Much to Emma and Ramsey's dismay, he has taken to sleeping in the middle of the barn where the bedding is deepest.  No more snow or gravel for Mr. Benjamin, no sireee.  He has seen the light and decided that he too would like to be a Prince.  Big, tough, men get the best spot in the barn and soft, cozy beds aren't just for little brown donkeys anymore.

One can kind of understand why Ramsey thinks of Ben as an interloper.  Monarchs have never been known for sharing.