EMMA Massingle, of Bradworthy, has made Mole Valley Farmers its first Christmas video, ‘Anyone for turkey?’

Emma, who always has a quirky take on life, has produced a short film which shows one of her Shetland ponies, ‘Ernie’, tending the eggs in the incubator, befriending the turkey chicks, sleeping with them in the stable and taking them to the fields to graze, as they grow day-by-day.

However, there’s trouble ahead when Ernie notices the farmer, measuring the fast maturing turkeys and counting down the days to December 25. Seeing the writing on the wall, Ernie takes drastic steps, calls a meeting with his turkey pals and shares his plans for a military style operation to keep them safe by hiding them strategically, up trees, in log baskets and even in Emma’s sitting room.

However, as this is Christmas, viewers will no doubt be delighted to know that all ends happily, as in the final frame they see the farmer hunkering down in the comfort of the front room to watch the New Year’s fireworks, while having a cuddle with the turkeys who are perched on the back of the sofa.

When asked where she gets her inspiration for her short films from, Emma said: “We have quite a menagerie here at home now, with horses, ponies, Mr Luigi the Kuni Kuni pig, cats, dogs, donkeys and now the Mole Valley Farmers turkeys! Often it’s watching what they are doing or the way they are interacting that gets me thinking. As a horse lover who lives in the country and after working with Mole Valley Farmers for three years, I usually seem to know what will work well for its customers.”

She said although they only released ‘Anyone for turkey?’ recently, it is already going viral.

She added: “The advert has been a massive challenge, as it sees the turkeys go from being eggs in an incubator to full grown adult birds. I started it four months ago — it’s really funny to see Ernie with them, as they have this sort of funny brotherhood thing going on. He tells them off if they peck him but then they are often together when they are out and about. I have really enjoyed training the turkeys, which was quite easy as they are very sociable. They follow me around and make the most awesome noise when the phone rings!”

Julie Edwards, head of communications for Mole Valley Farmers commissioned the film. Julie said: “Emma, one of Mole Valley Farmers’ three sponsored riders, is a regular contributor to the company’s social media page and has created adverts for us which have appeared on Horse&Country TV and Sky. She is a great asset and allows us to share our brand far and wide.

“As an animal behaviourist, Emma’s talents mean that whatever the company requests, however outlandish, she is able to get her animal pals to do it! She also brings us a stream of creative ideas, which fit so well with the Mole brands. For Christmas 2019, we are delighted to have this, our first Christmas advert — John Lewis, eat your heart out!”