I have many people ask how my foal is doing following his surprise arrival at the beginning of May and, after a bit of a break in my blog, I thought I'd use my first post to share some pictures and news about the past few months with him and my horse. I've decided to split it over a few posts as it's quite a story!
For those who don't know, I found out at the end of April that my horse, Cinders, was expecting. I am quite new to horse ownership so it all came as a bit of a surprise, but plenty of reading and reassurance had prepared me for what was going to be a turbulent but exciting few months.
The gestation period of a horse is 11-12 months so I was completely unaware when I bought her in September that she was pregnant (or 'in-foal' as it's referred to by those in the equine industry). She had carried a small amount of weight from the day I bought her but I'd always just assumed it was because she needed trained and exercised more. Once she was fit and working regularly it dawned on me that she may be pregnant, which was when the vet was called out and subsequently verified that we did infact have a new arrival on the way. Her udder (which produces milk) then swelled and a week later our little foal was born.
She was fit and healthy (but not looking very pregnant) right up until two days before the birth which was when the photo, below, was taken. Luckily she hasn't been ridden for a little while before, just incase!
I was told by the vet on the 3rd May that I should expect a foal within four weeks and to get everything prepared for the arrival. The vet did mention that horses can sometimes give birth without showing many signs but, based on the fact she was showing no signs of an imminent arrival, he didn't think we'd see anything for at least three weeks. How wrong we were...
I (luckily) spent the 5th May clearing out a double stable and ensuring that everything was in place for the birth of the foal, however she wasn't moved into the new stable that night as it needed to dry.
I was due to attend the opening of the Bobby Robson Tribute Statue at 9am on the 6th May so arrived at the yard at 6am to sort Cinders out. I couldn't believe my eyes when I realised there were two horses in her box! She'd delivered the foal on her own and it (which we now know to be a 'he') was stood beside her. I literally did not know what to do. To top it off, I'd turned up to the yard and forgotten my phone so I had no numbers or way of contacting the vet! I just stood at the door in absolute shock! After a few minutes I finally calmed down and managed to ring my mum who gave me the relevant numbers.
Horses will generally wear a rug during the colder months and she'd had hers on during the night when she'd given birth. Luckily I'd removed the back straps off the legs, just incase, so I subsequently went into the stable and took this off to allow the foal to feed. I had been told that she may be aggressive after the birth but she seemed like she was glad I was there and came over for a cuddle. I definitely needed it! She knew exactly what to do with him and showed him what to do; I stood in amazement. Feeding was the first and most important hurdle so I was extremely happy when he did it.
The pictures below show him at just two hours old.
So much happened in these two hours - the fact he was standing completely amazed me!
There's so much more to share and as mentioned I'm going to run this over a few posts so it doesn't turn into an essay. I hope you've enjoyed reading and I'll add the next part soon! If you have any questions or comments please do leave them below.
