My Mare Had a Foal This Weekend!

[SkipNewarkDE]

My mare, Miss Jetaway gave birth on Friday, April 15, 2005 at 10:45 a.m. to a beautiful little filly. She is sired by Consul (See him as the featured stallion at Iron Spring Farm. Both baby and mom are doing wonderful.

I was so very fortunate, as I arrived at the farm just as her water broke! By the time I got her in from the field, little hooves were already poking their way out.

I have never seen a horse being born on anything other than television. I can't describe the excitement (and anxiety) I felt as the whole thing happened, but it was such a wonderfulexperience, and I am very fortunate to have been there to see it, and document it. I wanted to share some photos and video with my friends, so you can experience some of the joy that I felt Friday morning.

These wonderful photographs were taken by my friend Jennifer Schelkopf, who is pretty good with a digital camera. She also shot quite a bit of the video, so I am very grateful to her for her help.

The photo album can be viewed at:
Jet's Filly Photographs

In order to view the video, which is very high quality and streamed over the internet, you need to have a high-speed connection of some sort. The video is over 100 MBytes, so a modem isn't going to cut it. You also need the QuickTime plug-in. If you find, when you visit the page that the movie does not play and shows a missing plug-in, simply downloadand install the free plug-in and player from Download Quicktime . Most machines have this plug-in installed these days.

To see the movie, go to:
Jet's Filly Movie

(For the weak of stomach, this is graphic! Lots of placenta, and stuff dripping, and a foal in there, so be warned!)

Check back at my website periodically over the next few weeks, I will be putting up photos and videos every few days to show her progress!
Skip's Website

[LynneSin]

1. What a pretty little horsey....

...of course once he's been cleaned up of all that muck all over him. I like the white Stripe that goes down the entire front of his face!

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

2. Awwww...Momma looks so proud!

And what a cute baby! Congrats

[Blue Diadem]

3. Awwwwwwwww what a sweetie,

Congratulations! :hi:

[CottonBear]

4. She's a beauty! Does she have a name yet?

Consul is so magnificient. I always drool over the pictures in Iron Spring's advertisements. What breed will you register her as?

I remember, like it was yesterday, the night that my precious Cotton filly was born. It is truly a miracle that all those legs are folded up inside momma and then unfold on the outside!

How was she when you treated her umbilical cord stump and put on her halter?

You must be so proud! Congratulations! :)

[Kali]

5. pardon me

and congratulations on your new filly, but is it common to put a halter on a newborn before even standing? I realize folks were present but with such a young one doesn't that present a danger?

I have been around horses all my life but not around horse people, so forgive my unasked for "advicde" (our mares pretty much foal out on the range and are pasture bred as well, but I am about to embark on a new adventure in the "real" world of horse breeding - I am keeping a Thouroughbred mare for a friend and she is to be bred soon at the horse farm of our local University so any advice for what I call the "unnatural" procedures would be gladly accepted!)

[SkipNewarkDE]

6. Halter and standing

That's a very good question, actually!

We do imprinting on our babies, and one of the things we do right away is get a halter on them, even before they are standing. We just make sure there are no loops or loose ends to get snagged on, and the stalls are cleared of anything to get caught on.

If you wait until they are standing, you tend to get a "fight" which can be rather traumatic. Instinctively they don't want you pulling around their face. When they are on the ground it is easier to deal with as they get oriented.

I also take that down time to run my hands over every inch of the foal's body to get her acquainted with human touch... play with and tickle her ears, open her little mouth, mess with her feet, run a brush on her.

[Kali]

7. sure - I've heard of this

just didn't realize halters were already being put on - I see your mare is haltered as well - do you leave that on? I was taught very firmly at a young age not to do this - guess it was imprinted on me eh?

I have two horses that managed more by coinciidence than intention, to get handled early and they certainly are more people oriented, though I am not sure that is entirely a good thing - they would follow you in the house if you let them - much more like dogs than the rest of the horse herd!

But there was never any fight to halter - I usually put one on and leave a lead attached for a few hours every day (oh I do do it!) after steping on that a few times they sure learn to give their head and in no time they are broke to lead or stay tied all on their own, no fighting involved.

[SkipNewarkDE]

15. Horsepeople are funny

You know it is so funny because horse people all have THEIR way of doing things, and everyone else's way is the WRONG way, hahahaha. I used to have two trainers, and they were constantly at each other's throats... it caused me a lot of anxiety, so i canned one of them just to have some peace.

But as many people that will tell you to leave halters on, will tell you to take 'em off. For our horses, they keep halters on outside, primarily because the farm is right next to a busy country road. We take them off in the stall. In the picture of Jet having the baby, we left her halter on, but only because we had to guide her around to position her in the stall for birthing. We were very careful to make sure that nothing could get caught on her or the filly's halter.

[SkipNewarkDE]

27. I've heard of that...

The lead thing. That mare certainly could benefit from that. She is a typical thoroughbred... She has a phobia of being snagged from below, ie. if she steps on a lead line, or if it is tied to a fence, you are asking for trouble. She went apeshit one time when she was tied to a fence, and did this to me, disassembling the fence in the process. It took a while to get her over that; I am assuming something similar traumatized her during her racing career.

[Kali]

28. heh, had a spoiled paint barrel horse

when I was young that would not stand tied to ANYTHING - he rarely ran off but would absolutely tear up halters, bridles, fences, (oops once a gas meter at a friend's house - I swear I was only gone a second) My dad built a hitching post for him. First he tore up a bridle then a nylon halter. So we put a chain around his neck and he broke the cross post off the upright, then pulled the upright out of the ground - finally gave up the experiment when he even pulled 300 lbs of concrete out of the ground. He would never try to jump out of a pen or even play with a gate latch - but tie him and just wait he would be loose in 15 minutes. The crazy thing is he NEVER hurt himself. Although I have a few scars from him.

Oh he was a lot of fun.

Well, good luck with your new one and I will be having fun with the process myself soon. (big change for me from letting nature take its course to all these vet visits and mare boarding etc etc - and the money! Jeez!)

[GCP]

8. I'm watching the video right now

At the bottom it mentions Baby's first enema. Is that SOP, and why is it done?

[SkipNewarkDE]

9. Thick tar-like substance

There is a sort of pre-fecal matter that builds up during gestation which must be expelled for normal digestive tract working to proceed, beleive it is called merconium (think I blew the spelling). The enemas are to help clear it.

[GCP]

10. But in nature wouldn't the meconium just be evacuated after the baby's

first feeding?
That's what happens with human babies.
(I know nothing of horses, I'm not criticizing)

[CottonBear]

12. It's a standard procedure.

Better safe than sorry.

They don't all need it but it isn't harmful. You use a very mild children's enema.

[SkipNewarkDE]

13. We basically look to see if baby is having "issues"

If the baby is straining and straining is when we usually resort to it. She had a normal BM shortly after being born, but about two hours later, she was straining, having problems passing, so we "helped it along a bit."


Ewwww.

[Cannikin]

11. Too cute for words.

[miss_kitty]

14. sweet

i spent the foaling season on a friend's ranch during high school. Appaloosas.
My dad was born on a huge ranch and had a Buckskin when he was 6 or 7, and when we were living next to a family with a horse, he wasn't really bothered with us catching Pancho and riding bareback all over the orchard and field. I was 4. I have not ridden in years.

Was she born with the headgear on, or were you just quick in getting it on her? :P

[Tom Kitten]

16. beautiful!

you must be so happy!

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

17. kick

[SkipNewarkDE]

18. Speaking of kicks...

She knew how to do that the first day out.

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

22. Actually when I saw your head so close to the mother's feet while she

was birthing, I was wondering if you were in the line of fire..the slide show is delightful

[SkipNewarkDE]

23. That was the vet...

Fortunately that was the vet that was back there during the really strenuous parts.

Jet isn't much of a kicker... she's more of the striker/biter type, and she has to be really really pissed off for that. She's mellowed quite a bit since I have had her, but she has done some damage to me when I first got her. Off the track thoroughbred mares can be royal bitches.

[SkipNewarkDE]

25. Oh wait, I saw the photo to which you referred

I was actually a few feet below her, the angle is just funny. She would have had to do some pretty good gymnastics to reach me, and lets just say she was too tired to make an effort!

[Arugula Latte]

19. What a little beauty.

I love the blaze on her face.

Congratulations!

[Arugula Latte]

20. What breed are Mom, Dad and filly?

Consul is a dressage horse -- will you be training the baby for dressage, too?

[SkipNewarkDE]

24. Mom is thoroughbred, Consul is a Dutch Warmblood

... and does Dressage. Consul has sired some awesome jumpers, including Judgement, who can be seen on the Iron Spring Farm website, and who competes all over the place, too.

The filly will be registered in the auxiliary registry book, as a warmblood.


This little filly has Consul's head, some nice front legs, and the pooper of a jumper. Fingers are crossed, we'll know in a couple of years.

[ScreamingMeemie]

21. Such a good mama! Great pictures of a beautiful baby!

Thanks for sharing them. :hi:

[katinmn]

26. That's so cool that you have pictures.

Love the way the baby stands up right away!