As Hockey continues to grow, albeit slowly due to her condition, she is getting heavier and harder to carry long distances. However this means more wheelbarrow rides to the forest, which Hockey loves. After she is placed gently on her back in the wheelbarrow, she will shuffle around to face forward so that she can see all of the action on her ride to the forest. As she travels along the trails she will reach out and take bites of the grass shoots and young leaves that brush up against the wheelbarrow. When she has a mouthful she shuffles on her back and sits happily chewing whilst enjoying the ride.

In the forest Hockey uses her main functioning sense, taste, to explore her environment, constantly licking trees, and eating leaves and mouthfuls of mud and dirt. These forest sessions give her a chance to get much needed exercise and also explore new foods and tastes. Hockey does get tired if she spends too long in the forest and this tiredness can result in more frequent seizures. Therefore her forest time is carefully managed by the caregivers.

Recently new enrichment items were installed in her specially designed enclosure, which was donated by OFI Australia, and Hockey has responded very well to these items, using them to pull herself up with her good arm, tasting them and knocking them to make sounds. Activities like these made available in her enclosure means she can choose her time to play, and are a great way to keep Hockey’s mind and body active. With time, she will develop more body strength which, when carefully managed and monitored, will result in more forest time for Hockey in the future.