Foster, the foal that our mare Cookie is fostering, will be 2 months old tomorrow! Cookie is doing a wonderful job mothering/raising him and he is huge now. When he first came to us he could literally walk right under Cookie’s belly. He is about 6 or 7 inches taller now.

Foster is like a clean slate waiting to be written on. He is very curious and has to taste almost anything that is in his environment. His owners come often and Foster has been introduced to many things over the last few weeks — having a halter put on and learning to be led around and walk nicely, having a towel draped and rubbed over him, having his feet picked up and cleaned, being brushed, moving away from pressure, doing a little circling, eating small amounts of grain, grass and hay, etc. He will be here until he is weaned. The timing will be whatever is best for him. IN the meantime we are really enjoying him.

Our two little foster horses, Sugar and Spice, have been with us for one year now and we have made good progress with them, especially with Spice. Today the farrier that trims the horses for Spirit Horse Equine Rescue, Stacy, came out to trim Spice. Spice was a very good girl and let Stacy trim all 4 of her hooves in about 15 minutes! Sugar is still not at the point where we can pick up and clean her hooves and Stacy said they actually look fine right now so no hurry. I don’t want to traumatize her by tranquilizing her and risk ruining the bit of trust she does have in us so we will be patient and keep working with her with the goal of having her trimmed sometime this summer.

Our paint mare, Cookie, was due to foal in late April/early May. We had originally planned the breeding 2 years ago and last year she was bred to a handsome Quarter Horse stallion, Obviously Wincredible. We were so excited when the first and then later a second ultrasound showed she was indeed expecting and thoughts of our pending new arrival are what helped us get through the long winter and Kent’s recovery from his heart attack.

As the first possible due date arrived we started checking on Cookie late at night, in the middle of the night, early in the a.m., had friends stopping by, etc. We could feel and then see the foal moving. He would get hiccoughs which shook Cookie’s whole body and made me laugh. We were so eager to finally meet him. Foal watch continued for two weeks. Early the morning of May 3rd we went down to the barn, opened the door to Cookie’s stall and there he was, a big perfect stud colt, no movement, no breathing, still damp and warm. I tried to get him breathing but no luck. Cookie was nudging him and would even touch him with her foot gently as if to wake him up. We were stunned to say the least. This just wasn’t happening after all our waiting. We called the vet who came out and said the foal may have been in the birth canal too long (because he was so big) and the cord compressed too long depriving him of oxygen. At least Cookie was basically fine except for a few small tears from the delivery. We and Cookie were heartbroken. The vet kindly suggested we move the foal outside where Cookie would be spending the day so she could grieve for him. Cookie would not leave his side and occasionally would nudge him. We were in tears.

I called a couple of people who had been helping us watch over Cookie during the day while we were at work. Shortly after that one of them got a call from a neighbor whose mare was rejecting (and trying to harm) her 4 day old foal. She had to be caught and tied up in order to let him nurse even for a short time but now she wouldn’t let them catch her. That friend suggested they call us. When I got a call asking if we would consider letting our mare foster a rejected foal I was still numb from our loss but how could I say no? So they brought the foal over.

Somehow I managed to think through how to introduce this foal to Cookie so she would accept it. I had my husband and one of the other foal’s owners carry Cookie’s dead foal out the barnyard gate and out of her sight. Once he was out there they rubbed towels on him then rubbed them on the live foal. After that they brought the live foal back through that same gate. I was holding on to Cookie. She must have heard or smelled the foal coming as she picked up her head and started whinnying as they came around the corner. I wish I could know her exact thoughts at the moment. I wonder if she thought they had revived her foal yet I think when she smelled him she knew he wasn’t hers but made the choice to accept him. He was the same color and sex as her deceased foal but even at 4 days of age he was smaller. I held onto her while he tried to nurse. He was a bit afraid of her since his own mom had bit him and picked him up by his back and flung him against a wall but once he tasted her milk he became more confident. I rubbed his back then rubbed his scent on Cookie’s nose. After that as far as she was concerned he was her foal. When she accepted him and let him nurse we all had tears streaming down our faces. This was going to be a healing thing for us and Cookie.

After a few days (and a few suggestions from my Facebook friends) the foal was named “Foster”. He is growing and thriving. His owners come over daily to visit and we are starting to halter him and teach him to lead by walking him behind Cookie. That is a 3 person job right now but getting better! He already has 4 teeth with 3 more (including a molar) coming in so he is already nibbling small amounts of grass, hay and grain.
I still have periods of tears when I spend time with him and Cookie but I am a firm believer that things happen for a reason and have to accept that this was meant to be. I am glad I have a foal to watch grow and to be around even if it is for just a few months. Something good has come out of a very sad event.

If you’ve read some of my other posts about our foster mini/pony mares you know progress with them has been very slow. If you haven’t, briefly they are being fostered by us for Spirit Horse Equine Rescue and we have had them here since May. They were part of a neglect case where over 100 animals (llamas, goats, donkeys, horses, minis) were taken away from a gentleman who couldn’t care for them all. They had not been handled by humans.

The girls watch us interacting with our mini donkeys and horses and I keep hoping they can see that they are not afraid of us and it might rub off on them. It has taken a long time to even be able to touch them and they are finally accepting a little bit of brushing, Spice has had a halter on a couple of times and both will take treats from our hands.

The girls have beautiful coats with long gorgeous tails and manes that were long but due to the burdocks in them they have shortened up. I have so wanted to get a comb/brush on them but have had to be patient. Lately they will wander in and out of the barn while I am in there and I can touch them a bit more. They will even walk into a stall on their own which they were doing today when I got the brilliant idea to try squirting some mane/tail detangler on them as they walked back and forth past me. They did accept that so I tried closing a stall door on Spice (the bolder one) to see what she would do. She did not get upset so I decided to put down some hay for her to eat and see if I could touch and brush her a bit more. Much to my surprise when I started gently pulling burrs out of her mane she tolerated it. After about 30 min. I had her mane totally clear of burdocks and started in on her tail. I really didn’t expect her to tolerate such a long grooming session but she did. I even got the burrs out of her feathering on her fetlocks and got to pick up one of her feet.

So I decided to try one more thing. I got out a halter and rubbed it on her face. Then I put it on her and tied it. I let the lead rope drag and thought that would be all I could accomplish for one session. I opened the stall door with me holding the lead rope. She followed me! I got some apples and put down an apple ahead of her. She would walk to it and take a bite, then I would pick up the apple and move it ahead again. This worked great as that way she was following instead of me pulling on the rope to get her to move. After that I got her to follow me all over the barnyard before I took off the halter. This was a big day for little Spice. Now if I can get a comb/brush on Sugar’s mane and tail that would be great.

The girls are sadly starting to grow their winter coats. They also have managed to get into a few burrs which is problematic when they won’t get you brush them. I worked with Spice today on that and was actually able to brush her face, neck and back with a brush and get a few burrs out of her mane. That is huge considering she’s never felt a brush before. She also let me pick up one foot briefly and I was able to lead her a few steps using the savvy string around her neck.

Sugar comes right up for attention but as soon as you reach for her and hold another object near her she retreats. I just give her a treat and pet her face briefly so at least she allows that bit of human contact. I’ll just keep working with her and hoping that soon we’ll have that breakthrough with her, too.

As promised, I have finally taken a couple of new pictures of Sugar and Spice, our foster mini-horses. They are looking really good, okay slightly fat maybe.
Today Sugar let me touch the side of her neck — a first. Spice let me run over most of her body tonight including touching her hooves.

Two days in a row now I’ve been able to slip a halter on Spice.
I tie it loosely then just let it slip back off. I have not put a rope on the halter yet and I put no pressure on it. I just give her a couple of treats then let it slip off again. I also was able to comb my fingers through her mane yesterday, also a first. Sugar remains very wary although I did touch her face briefly with the halter a couple of times.

A couple of Pat Parelli quotes help me remember that patience is a virtue with these girls and to stick with my slow approach. Pat says “Take the time it takes so it takes less time.” and “prior and proper preparation prevents poor performance particularly if polite and passive persistence is practiced in the proper position.”

Sugar and Spice are progressing well and are looking for the right home(s) that would continue to provide a patient, nurturing atmosphere. In return they have much to offer. I picture them being trained to pull a cart in time. If you are interested in adopting one or both please contact Spirit Horse Equine Rescue. There would be much support available to help you continue working with them.

The mini horse/pony foster girls have been here 2 months now.
Here is a summary of where we are at with them.
To review we are fostering them for Spirit Horse Equine Rescue in WI and when they came to us they were pretty much wild, not used to people, touch, etc. They have slowly come to be more interested not only in us but in other people. When my agility students or neighbor kids are here they now come to the fence to see them and will take treats from them, too. We can touch both of their faces but Sugar is still much more skittish than Spice. With Spice I can now touch her front legs, chest, neck and back, also occasionally I can lightly touch her rear. I wish I could comb out their manes but they aren’t ready for that kind of touching yet, hopefully soon. I can also drape a light weight rope over Spice’s neck and back and scratch her back/rump with a “Carrot Stick”. They whinny or nicker when they see me and they love treats. Their coats are beautiful and shiny, their weight is normal now. I still have not seen Sugar come into heat but hopefully she just doesn’t show it and isn’t pregnant. Spice is a bit more obvious when she is in heat as she teases my gelding, Nick.

Because they weren’t used to pasture I have had to ease them into being out on grass starting with just an hour at a time but now they can be out all day as the pasture is not as rich as 2 months ago. They are able to be out with my mini donkeys or with my two horses. They especially enjoy their time with my horses as they all run and play on and off all day. They are beautiful when they run, Spice especially is well built and is a beautiful mover when she gets going.
I could picture them being trained to pull a cart or small wagon but they still need to find the right home.

It’s rainy and ugly outside today (and horribly cold for July, only 59 degrees!) but on a nicer day I will take new photos and post them.

I haven’t written about the mini foster horses in almost 2 weeks because progress is slow and I don’t want to bore everyone. In the last few days things have moved along a bit though.

The girls are spending much more time on grass now, their winter coats are finally all gone and their coats are pretty shiny and healthy looking. I still can’t brush them so their manes are pretty scruffy but hopefully in the next month I’ll be able to try, at least with Spice, the bolder one.

It has helped to take the advice about working with them “outside their bubble”. I have been hanging the carrot stick over the fence, flicking the rope around from the other side of the fence, letting the rope touch them briefly and finally (only with Spice) rubbing back, neck, rump with the carrot stick so they know it won’t hurt them. I think Spice is starting to think that feels really good as she is starting to stand still for the scratch with the stick. I can also drape the string that is on the carrot stick (Savvy String) around her neck, over her back and touch her legs with it. Sugar still is very wary of the stick and string although I’ve been able to get it a bit closer to her lately and she has sniffed it. Being able to rub her with the stick has been a huge breakthough. I hope Sugar will accept some rubs with the stick soon.

Tonight I made some great progress. I had the girls loose in our outdoor arena to graze. I went in the arena and start lightly flicking the carrot stick and string around as I walked then stopped and waited for the girls to come over to me. They both did and got treats for coming to me. Then I started walking around the outdoor flicking the stick rhythmically in front of me. They both followed me all over and when I ran, Spice trotted behind me and when I stopped she usually stopped although once I had to slap the ground with the stick so she didn’t run into me. I played this game for a while with them and occasionally doled out a treat to each one then left the arena without putting pressure on them to do anything.

Later tonight when I went to feed them they both came over the fence and Spice poked her head through at me. I was able to rub her face with my hand for many seconds then worked my hand along her neck and rubbed it for quite a while. When she seemed okay with that I touched/rubbed her chest then touched her upper legs. I was also able to run Sugar’s face for the longest time I’ve ever been able to touch her. This is a big change even in the last week.

Horses see us as predators and they are the prey so it takes a lot of work to earn their trust especially when they haven’t had much human contact. Here is a video showing the friendly game and how it is used to win the trust of and desensitize a horse.

Friendly Game

Eventually I should be able to do more of this with the girls. Of course right now they haven’t even had a halter on yet so everything is done with them loose in a fenced area and usually from more of a distance. I’ll do another update once we have made some more progress.

Cookie has returned from her “tryst” with OhBee. She was ultrasounded this a.m. and is in foal so Ed, OhBee’s owner, was nice enough to trailer her home to us tonight. Nick was so happy to have his friend back and the two of them happily cruised the pasture as soon as we put them together and tonight Nick is looking very zenned out in his stall. We are looking forward to a gorgeous foal next April.