ECAHS Member News

BIRTH ANNOUNCEMENT FOR TWO HALF-ARABIAN FOALS AT WINDT IM WALD FARM

by Diane Jones

We are pleased to announce the arrival of our last two foals for 2005. Both arrived ten days ahead of schedule and in somewhat unusual circumstances, helping to make this year a bit memorable.

On the morning of August 16, 2005, after having fed all of the horses and paid special attention to the two mares in foal and finding no evidence to convince us that either was about to deliver a foal within the next twenty-four hours, we came back to the house, poured second cups of coffee, and turned on the cameras in the two foaling stalls. At 9:15 AM in front of our very eyes, Supreme Tsamaz's water broke, and she immediately went down on her side in hard labor. Within just a few minutes the birth sack appeared right on camera. We grabbed our towels and got to Tsammie's stall just in time to see the new foal's nose poking out of the sack on the ground. It was 9:30 AM and one of the quickest births we have ever witnessed. This little filly was on her feet in about 15 minutes and at the milk bar in another 25. The actual due date was August 26, and although Tsammie has always delivered early foals, this one came as a surprise package, especially in broad daylight. WIW Royal Tsonata by Royal Pride Rythm is a pretty little chestnut with a full blaze and four socks. We have quickly nicknamed her Tsnottie.

Towards 11:30 PM on Saturday evening, August 20, 2005, we noticed a full moon and wondered aloud if CaLo's Perfection, our Tennessee Walking Horse mare, was about to have her foal as early as Tsammie had delivered hers. Returning from a late supper with family members, we turned on the monitor and watched Perfect Horse look at her stomach, pace restlessly, and then go down, only to get back on all fours a few minutes later. Again we grabbed our towels and a flashlight and drove up to the barn. Perfect was up and down several times, revealing that this birth would be more difficult than was Tsammie's only four days earlier. We were just about ready to give the vet an emergency call when the sack finally landed on the ground and a very dark nose appeared at 11:45. The foal inside was so long-legged that we knew why the birth had been difficult. Just then a power failure that would take two hours to resolve left all of us in the dark with only a tiny flashlight. Tom made his way back to the house in the tractor and somehow managed to uncover the generator in the garage, hoist it into the front-end loader. and bring it to the barn. For the next two hours the generator made it possible for us to help this large coal black colt, 39 inches at the withers, stand and nurse. By 3:30 AM Perfect Horse had still not delivered the placenta so we administered the shot of oxytocin we kept for such emergencies. She managed to deliver it at 9:50 AM, fully 10 hours after delivering WIW Midnight Rythm, the third foal by Royal Pride Rythm for us this season, and five minutes before the special visit of the vet. Seeing the placenta spread intact in front of the barn as he pulled up, the vet smiled at us as if to say, "See, I told you it would be all right." Nevertheless, we still worried about the possibility of founder and treated her for two days with bute.

Fortunately, there were no ill effects. Both foals and dams are doing very well. We, the proud grandparents, are breathing a sigh of relief that these two are the last for 2005. We are grateful for these wonderful new blessings at our farm.