The New Foal
Suddenly hearing a familiar noise from the gray mare brought my mind back to the present. Seeing the big bay colt, still wobbly, trying to get his balance, as Mom, now back up on her feet, squealed as she encouraged the baby to nurse. Her afterbirth had just cleared. I gathered it up and set it aside. You could see her sides were busily contracting.
That didn’t bother her. She was nuzzling the baby, nickering softly, pushing her newborn toward the leaky teats that were pouring milk from
underneath her with the precious colostrum awaiting consumption by this newborn. Patiently, she guided the little colt to start nursing. Missing the mark, sliding under Mom, she winced and squealed as the baby went bouncing off the wall.
Gathering himself back up he persistently searched, as he suckled, for that elusive faucet. His little muzzle brushed the swollen teats and milk shot out, covering his little face. He must have thought it tasted pretty good because his tongue suckled more, finding that little teat, latching onto it, getting a big shot of colostrum.
Satisfied, the bay colt crashed back down onto the soft straw and drifted off to sleep. While he was sleeping, I was able to paint the umbilical cord
with iodine to protect him against infection and gave him an enema to encourage his first bowel movement. He barely even moved. The dream of getting a foal from this beautiful mare was finally fulfilled. I was so proud. All involved had worked for so long. But here he was, surpassing all our expectations.
Double checking all the necessary precautions for the newborn and the mare, I decided it was okay for me to go to bed,
leaving them alone to get acquainted.
Before going to sleep, my mind drifted back in 20+ years ago to when Mom and I were preparing to leave for the Grange Hall in Alfalfa.
