Gracie's Mini Mommas' To Be Page- All done foaling! Five Healthy Foals!!

[eagles ring farm]

Congratulations on a beautiful filly. I love the picture of Gracie with her.

1 more looks to be arriving soon . Healthy foaling !!!

 

[Sandy B]

I've home-schooled, so you just need to make it all a written "report" or "project" -- properly written and documented with pictures. You could even make it an "advertising" project -- and she can do the research on making portfolios, "flyers" etc. It's amazing what you can turn into something "educational" !!

Fantastic idea!! It can be grammar and science all in one report. Thank you for the suggestion!!!

 

[Sandy B]

So Margarita has already dropped in PH to 6.8 tonight. She is dropping pretty quick in two days from a 8.0. Her udder is as big if not bigger than what Fancy's and Angel's were when they foaled. I went ahead and put the halter alarm on her to be safe. When I turn her out during the day she stays real close to the mom and babies pasture. She wants a baby so bad. As requested, here is a side picture and a rear picture.



And I could not help myself tonight and snap a couple pictures with my cell phone of Gracie with her two boys. These two are so friendly and you can see the huge size difference between Superman and Rocky. Superman sure keeps Rocky in his place though.

 

[chandab]

And I could not help myself tonight and snap a couple pictures with my cell phone of Gracie with her two boys. These two are so friendly and you can see the huge size difference between Superman and Rocky. Superman sure keeps Rocky in his place though.

View attachment 8772 View attachment 8773

Wow, that is a huge size difference, and they are both so cute.

 

[mthowdy]

Wow! Margarita is a looking good. I bet she just wants to catch up- I'm sure it won't be long.

This pictures of Gracie & the boys are adorable! Superman is so much smaller than Rocky, but they both have incredible confirmation (in my honest & newbie opinion)! I love them both- I sure hope Mary has something close to them

 

[Sandy B]

The pictures are just wonderful of Gracie with her two boys!! I have that kind of size differences here quite a few times. A couple of years ago, I had a black pinto and a chestnut colt born within 10 days of each other in Maine (we had to wait until they were born to ship the mares). They are absolutely inseparable "best buds." I tried separating them into 2 different pastures, and Chupa worked his way through the fence in 1 day and was standing next to his buddy the next morning. Today, Chupa, the pinto, is around 32" and Keno MIGHTTTTT be 28 to 28 1/2". But those "little" men can really run the herd -- like those tiny mares that hold their own and run all the taller mares off!! I love their attitudes!

I wouldn't expect Margarita to go much longer!

She is already "flat-sided" and baby is sitting forward of center, so it sures looks like you'll be making another announcement soon!!!!

And no problem on the report. She can work the science aspect and write using the Scientific Method format -- she also has some "great data" since she has all the foal information birth information, and can do some comparisons of the foals as they grow -- taking new measurement and working it into her project. And certainly from the grammar/English part, and the different writing formats, she'll have quite a project accomplished~! Need more ideas? This old girl is full of them! I home-schooled for years, and recently home-schooled a Kindergarten student who has surpassed my expectations and is now (in 4 months) reading and working on a 1st grade level after coming knowing NO letters or numbers). Home schooling is the "bomb!"

Looking forward to your new announcement, and more pictures!!

Yes, we love homeschooling!! It really fits our lifestyle and one of the beauties of it is if we take 3 weeks off, it is ok. LOL! Gracie has been carrying a 4.0 average on a hard homeschool curriculum so I do not worry to much. At least now I have got another homeschool go to person in you Diane

Gracie's boys are so ultra friendly. She loves nothing more than to sit in the grass and let them come to her. We just turned Jasmine and her filly out with the others so she is keeping baby away front he others right now. Angel is our mare that is a challenge to catch and handle for Selena is reading her mom's vibes and stays away. We catch her a couple times a day though and handle her. The picture of your boys is too cute! Rocky is growing like a week and has his milk teeth in, Superman is growing wide with milk and still has no teeth. LOL! We have 4 different sizes, X-small, small, medium and large. LOL!!

 

[Sandy B]

Here are a couple pictures I took of "Princess" on her first turnout.

 

[targetsmom]

Sandy- we have a mare like your Angel - hard to catch, and Toffee is super un-trusting due to past experience. That is Clyde's dam. What I did was touched him whenever I could - in the stall before I let them out each day. By last week he let me scratch his neck, and once he figured out how much he liked it we literally can't keep him away from us!! He is the friendliest of the foals. I predict the same thing will happen with Selena (sorry I think SHE should have been named Princess to match our girl- LOL!).

 

[Sandy B]

Sandy- we have a mare like your Angel - hard to catch, and Toffee is super un-trusting due to past experience. That is Clyde's dam. What I did was touched him whenever I could - in the stall before I let them out each day. By last week he let me scratch his neck, and once he figured out how much he liked it we literally can't keep him away from us!! He is the friendliest of the foals. I predict the same thing will happen with Selena (sorry I think SHE should have been named Princess to match our girl- LOL!).

Yes, we have been handling her and scratching her twice a day. Today she actually fired both barrels at me

when I went to catch her. So when I caught her I laid her down and touched her all over until she quit struggling. Then I rolled her over and did the other side. When she was quiet, I stood her up and touched her all over again and she was much quieter. Then I released her and she just stood there nuzzling my leg. I walked away and she followed me for a bit and then turned and quietly walked back to her mom. Gracie usually catches her a couple times a day and me once a day. Today though Gracie was finishing up her 4-H record book and trying to get some school in and then we had a 4-H meeting tonight. So I was it for today. I know she will be fine with some handling. She was an angel the first few days.

By the way, Gracie is thinking of naming her latest bay pinto filly Princess. LOL!

 

[Sandy B]

Margarita's milk tested at 6.8 again tonight, the same as last night and the first time it has not changed in a couple days. She is looking good in every other way. I have the halter alarm on her to be safe since we have had a couple almost misses with these mini moms. Margarita wants her own baby so bad that I am surprised she is not forcing herself in to labor. She just sits and stares at the moms and foals all day and nickers to them. Her usual best friend, an open mare she is not giving the time of day to. LOL!

 

[Sandy B]

Just a quick update. Margarita is very anxious acting this morning. She was walking circles in her stall but I am not sure if it is because she is missing her buddies again all of a sudden or what. Then I let her out in to her paddock and she went right over and had a good roll. She then walked over and started itching on the pipes. Walk a circle or two and then eat and then go walk some more. She has and can behave this way when separated from her girlfriends, but she has not behaved this way in quite awhile. Her udder size looks good and her hooha is slightly swollen but has a ways to go. We are headed out to ride soon so I will observe her even more then. I do not want to run out of test strips so since she could still go a couple weeks I am being conservative on testing. I will test her tonight again.

 

[mthowdy]

Here's to hoping she foals soon for you! I'm going to say tomorrow night...but I won't be surprised if she goes tonight!

I'm thinking Mary is getting close, but she is probably just trying to fool me again. I wish she was around some mares with foals like Margarita is- I bet that would help speed things up!

 

[cassie]

Princess is so beautiful! I am in love with all your new babies!! you guys have done very very well

I can't wait to see Margaritas baby she looks beautiful and so very very close to foaling

YAY can't wait to read the report and see pics of your newest little baby!

 

[Sandy B]

Thank you Cassie! We are pleased as pie and are hardly getting anything done because all we want to do is sit and watch the babies or love on them. The two boys are ultra friendly and the two fillies are stand-offishish and full of sass. Rocky and Superman are now playing and is it ever a crack up to watch the boys rough house. Superman holds his own and when he is done playing he runs to momma.

Margarita's milk is still testing 6.8. Looks like she is joining Ben's Mary is hanging at that number. Her udder looks real good. Thanks to Ben mentioning that you can cut the Foal Time strips to make them last longer I am sure that I will have plenty to last me through this last mare to foal. I can not believe I did not think of cutting there strips, what a dork I am. LOL!

 

[mthowdy]

Margarita's milk is still testing 6.8. Looks like she is joining Ben's Mary is hanging at that number. Her udder looks real good. Thanks to Ben mentioning that you can cut the Foal Time strips to make them last longer I am sure that I will have plenty to last me through this last mare to foal. I can not believe I did not think of cutting there strips, what a dork I am. LOL!

Well I hope Mary & Margarita don't hold out much longer for both our sakes! I don't think Mary will foal tonight, her udder went down today and it isn't back up since I last checked half hour ago, and her pH was the same then too.

I can't remember who told me to rip them up, but after they did I felt like an idiot haha! I wasted about thirty tests worth by using an entire strip for one test.

Now I'm down to a tiny sliver of a strip so I'm saving it to test her when I think she is really close, which hasn't happened yet. For now the pool strips will work, but I wish I had ordered more foaltime strips!

 

[targetsmom]

Well, I ended up with lots of Foal Time strips left over because I found that just checking for "stickiness" was as good a predictor as anything. Once I found really sticky milk- so sticky my fingers would stick together if I didn't wash the milk right off - the mare foaled within 24 hours. Of course, I was also using an Equipage alarm and Mare Stare and had wonderful watchers to help me out!!!

 

[mthowdy]

Haha, I thought it was you. Yeah, I feel stupid haha. But now I know for next time, if there ever is a next time!

Mary's milk has started to become sticky, but not super sticky yet. I'll keep an eye out for that too

 

[Sandy B]

Well Ben you were not the lone ranger using up the whole test strips because I was too! They are too simple to use.

Speaking of test strips, Margarita tested 6.4 this morning. Her nipples are filling too. Her hooha just does not look ready to me though. We are watching her closely though.

 

[Sandy B]

Margarita is making some quick changes. Gone is the yellow, slimy, sticky stuff & in is creamy white milk. Still testing 6.4 though. Hooha is swelling. No other signs.

 

[mthowdy]

Show us some pictures!!!

I really think she will beat Mary, but I hope I'm wrong! Haha