A slow morning and a busy afternoon

4/27/08

When I woke up this morn I didn’t feel all that well. The alarm kept going off but I didn’t get up. At some point it gave up trying. It seems the Sisters cold had finally reached me after its roundabout journey from Deborah to David. So I slept. To be honest it felt great to. Deborah and Willa came by my trailer with some water at round 11:30 and a short time later I got up and dress and moved to the house.  Game of cards was being played and a list of things to do was on the table. I asked if we were still on foal watch and learned that we were still waiting for both Stella and Misty to have their foals. S everyone finished up their game of cards and headed for work I headed to the kitchen and then the phone to call my sweetheart. Rain and I were just settling into the rhythm of good conversation when Lisa came into the house panting. I asked if anything was wrong and she replied in quick gasps “Stella…is foaling…” That was all I needed to hear I quickly explained to Rain and said good-bye garbed my shoes and ran for the round pin. When I arrived Stella was lying on her side and a newborn filly was sit next to her. The birth had been hard on Stella and she had needed help at the end. Not a moment later Lisa arrived with the much-needed supplies of olive oil, a clean glass and a syringe. David gently milks the Stella’s utter saving the precious drop of colostrums in the glass jar before handing the jar to Lisa who fills and hands he syringe back to David. David carefully feeds this first precious meal to the new filly. Soon Stella is back on her hoofs and bounding with her newborn. We all watch the as the new filly makes her first attempts and are all amazed at her hungry when she latches onto her moms utter. With the excitement behind us we all settle into doing some work. Not 30 or 45 minutes later we (apprentices) hear Deborah’s call for help in the dry pin.  We come running to discover that Misty too now has foal and that her newborn colt is on the other side of the electric fence that Deborah has hastily knocked down. Working together Willa and I help the colt to his feet and walk him to his mom and lead them both out of the dry pin and into a near by covered stall. There we introduce mother and foal to a host of knickers and whines from both. Willa and I still supporting the colt at this point guide the young one to mothers backside where he can access her utter. He had a hard time of it at first and what a jump that Misty gave when he finally hatched on but he soon had the right idea. As we finished out the day there was a sort of happy high that filled us all. The new colt is named Nick, and the new filly April. They are both healthy, active, and smart and enjoy their new found life.