Horse Breeding Season

It's breeding season! Most of the foals are on the ground and it is time to breed the mares for next year. I usually breed my mares around 30 days after they foal. I like to give them a little time to recover, but I don't want next year's foals coming too late. If everything goes well and the mare gets pregnant on the first breeding we will have a foal around the same time next year. I actually have three of Patrick's offspring that were born on April 27.

This year I have one mare that didn't take the first time and so it was July 4 when we bred her successfully last year so she is having a June foal. That is a little late, so I will have to breed her back on her foal heat (around 5-7 days after she delivers) to get her back on schedule. I don't like doing this, but she is a healthy broodmare that has easy pregnancies and deliveries. She is 15, so she is not too old. If she has any difficulties with this delivery, I can always wait, but May is the month I like to have the foals coming. The snow has usually melted by then and the daytime temps are mild.

I purchased a breeding phantom this year so that I can collect Patrick at the farm and breed my mares here and won't have to ship them to the vet clinic. On one hand it is nice not to have to do all that trailering back and forth, especially the mares with foals at their sides. On the other hand, there is a lot of scheduling and planning for collecting the stallion. Which mare can be used for teasing? How many mares will we be able to breed with one collection? How are we going to work around his show schedule? Will the collecting effect his performance? Will the outside breeders give me enough notice to plan the collection? In the past I used mainly frozen semen that was collected over a three week period during the winter when there were no shows. There is still some of that left if we are in a pinch, but not enough for all the mares. This fall after all the shows I will have him collected again for the frozen, but we will continue to do the fresh cooled also as many breeders do not have ready access to a vet clinic that can do breeding with frozen semen.

One of my mares, Porsche, that is an offspring of Patrick's, will be bred for the first time this year. She will be bred with frozen semen at the vet clinic from Festrausch, a stallion at Hilltop Farm in Maryland. It will be exciting to see what one of Patrick's mares produces and maybe get a foal that won't be grey. She, of course, is grey, but as her dam is chestnut, I know that if she passes that gene to the foal we will not get a grey. Don't get me wrong, I love my grey horses, but a horse of another color would be nice!

We are breeding a total of 10 mares so far this year, so we will be very busy for the next few weeks, then it will hopefully be quiet for the next 11 months - at least with the mares.

Training Horses Using a Spring Garden

Every other Saturday we set up a jumping chute that our jumper trainer from Russia calls a "spring garden" (I think that is what he is saying), all the horses that are in training get to "play" in it instead of their regular work. They seem to have fun and it is a break for the ones that are under saddle - even the dressage horses like to kick up their heals. The heights are set for their abilities and the distances are set for their strides and also to teach them things like finding the right distance to take the jump, adjusting their stride for the distance, and gathering their haunches for more power.

Today I videoed several of the horses and decided to share them on this blog. The three-year olds jump lower even if they are capable of higher - their bones are still growing!

Here is Porsche, our 3 year old mare - she always comes to me to save her.

Pulsar, my daughter's, three year old gelding is always very pleased with himself.

Melissa is quite pleased with him also and is anxious to start jumping him under saddle. He looks like he is balanced enough to start doing a little very soon.

Polaris, our four year old gelding, has more experience. He went to a few shows last year and

was successful in the Level 1 and Level 2 jumper classes.

Patrick, the sire of all three of the above horses, was working on two things in the Spring Garden - more height:

and more span:

I think it is important to use a variety of different training methods with horses so that they don't get bored with the same old routine day after day. Free jumping can be fun for those that like to jump. You might be surprised to find that your dressage or non-jumping horse gets a kick out of going over fences without a rider on his back!

Feeding Young Horses

Now that spring is here we have started bathing the young horses and broodmares that were allowed to grow their winter coats. Warmblooods frequently grow very heavy coats and it can take some time for them the shed out, in the meantime as the temps rise they are sweaty and matted. Bathing them really helps to shed the hair and they really appreciated the cool water. But every spring I am frequently surprised by one or two of the yearlings who are suddenly quite ribby under all that hair.

We really walk a fine line with these young warmbloods. They grow fast and they usually don't require the amount of grain that is recommended on the bags - in fact, they usually only need about 1/4 or less. A fat young warmblood is asking for growth problems, their legs and joints cannot handle the weight, so we try to keep them slim without making them skinny. My vet and I were recently talking about this problem and he was telling me that if they don't get the recommended abount of grain that it is very important to supplement them with at least a calcium and phosphorus supplement to ensure that their bones grow correctly. Many European breeders think that we give our horses too much food and that is why we have more joint problems with our young horses, but they raise their horses like livestock and the weaker or less athletic ones are sold off for food. They only keep the ones who grew up correctly with no help. We don't choose this option, so we must try to make each one the best that they can be. It is hard to ensure that the hay and grass nutrients will be consistent from one month to the next, so supplements and carefull grain selection are important.

We use a popular brand of grain that has a special formula for broodmares and young horses and add supplements because there is no way we could feed our babies the recommended amounts and not have fat, unhealthy horses. We have to monitor it closely as growth spurts can cause a healthy looking foal to suddenly look ribby, so we up the grain and/or hay, a few months later they may start to look a little chubby, so we cut it back. Usually by the time they are three or four years old we have a pretty good idea of whether they are a hard or easy keeper.

Spring is usually the time for growth spurts, so it is really not surprising to find some of the yearlings looking a little thin - it is just a surprise when a thick haircoat sheds out a plump looking weanling into a ribby yearling!

LWF Sport Horses - New Farm

We decided it was time to grow. Actually we have been growing and are busting at the seams. Some of my horses have been boarded with trainers while others were at my home farm in Highland, Michigan. I have owned it for 10 years and we have made lots of improvements on the house and built the barn, arena, and put up all the fencing. It is only 10 acres with probably only 1/2 of that for the horses. My husband and I have no desire to move from here, and I thought it would be nice not to have to deal with the day to day care of the horses 24/7. My daughter was anxious to take over.

So, after almost 2 years of looking we found a 54 acre farm with 29 stalls about 35 minutes from here that had almost everything we wanted and it wasn't 30 years old! We moved all the horses (12) in at the end of February along with Melissa and her son, Chaise. Yesterday her friend arrived to help and live there with them. We decided to take some boarders that were hunter, jumper, or dressage riders, as well as broodmares, weanlings and young horses. We will offer foal and young horse training and foaling services, things that are not offered at very many boarding facilities around here. as well as the typical hunter/jumper and dressage training. The farm is set up perfectly for this with several small private paddocks and several large pastures, all with automatic waterers and run-ins. It also has two indoor arenas and two outdoor arenas and a trail around the entire farm. We already have a few boarders and are planning an open house in June. Everyone who has been to the new farm is impressed. I feel a little overwhelmed, but optimistic that this will be a success.

I go to the farm 4-5 days a week to ride and do whatever else I can fit in. So far, I am working more than I was when I had horses here. A lot of it however is paperwork. Contracts, insurance, show entries, ads, etc. I am setting up another office out there so that I have information on the horses at both farms. There is still a lot to do to get everything up an running the way I want, but at least everything is all in one place.

I might want to move some mares back here in the future, especially if we get a lot of boarders, but now this barn is empty. On one hand it is nice not to have to get up early every morning to feed and turn-out and do barn chores, and then be here in the afternoon to bring them in and feed. It's like when your kids grow up a move away - freedom! But sometimes looking out at my empty paddocks and barn I feel very sad. I know I still have my horses, but they are no longer here. Some of them will probably have to move back - but probably not in the winter!

New Foals

It has been a while since I have had time to write anything on my blog. As you know from my post "On Foal Alert" we have been expecting some new foals. Two of them were born a couple of weeks ago. They were bred by two women who were new to the breeding experience and out of two maiden mares. They really had a lot of beginners luck - I guess that is what you would call it, but I don't remember being so fortunate with my first foal.

The first one, a filly, was born around 1:40 in the afternoon. The mare suddenly laid down in the field and proceeded to deliver her foal while everyone watched in amazement! They were able to get mom and baby into their hastily prepared stall soon after the filly was on her feet. It took some time to convince the new mom to stand still so the foal could nurse, but once she understood what the baby was doing nuzzling at her hind quarters she accepted the intrusion.

The next foal to arrive, a colt, was startling to everyone as soon as his head was out. He has big white rings around his eyes - a sure sign that he will be grey soon! His dam also did us all the favor of delivering him before bedtime. He was born soon after the mare started dripping milk, and it was a good thing that she didn't wait for us all to leave as she had a lot of trouble getting the little guy out. Once she delivered the head and feet she was so exhausted she could hardly push, we had to help him the rest of the way out and then cover the sweaty, shivering, and slightly in shock mare with a blanket until her heart rate and breathing returned to normal. Once she was on her feet she was fine and was soon busy licking him and encouraging him to nurse.

In June we are expecting a third foal and hopefully some German Shepherd puppies. In the meantime you can see more pictures of the new foals on the "Offspring" page of my website, http://www.lostworldfarm.com/.

Guide Horse

A Friend sent this to me. I don't know where it came from, so I don't know who to give credit to, but I hope they don't mind if I share it. It does not have anything to do with breeding horses, but it says so much about the nature of horses that I had to pass it on. Hope you enjoy it.

Two Horses

There is a field, with two horses in it.

From a distance, each horse looks like any other horse. But if you stop your car, or are walking by, you will notice something quite amazing. Looking into the eyes of one horse will disclose that he is blind. His owner has chosen not to have him put down, but has made a good home for him.

This alone is amazing.If you stand nearby and listen, you will hear the sound of a bell. Looking around for the source of the sound, you will see that it comes from the smaller horse in the field. Attached to the horse's halter is a small bell. It lets the blind friend know where the other horse is, so he can follow.As you stand and watch these two horses, you'll see that the horse with the bell is always checking on the blind horse, and that the blind horse will listen for the bell and the n slowly walk to where the other horse is, trusting that he will not be led astray. When the horse with the bell returns to the shelter of the barn each evening, it stops occasionally and looks back, making sure that the blind friend isn't too far behind to hear the bell.

Like the owners of these two horses, God does not throw us away just because we are not perfect or because we have problems or challenges.He watches over us and even brings others into our lives to help us when we are in need. Sometimes we are the blind horse being guided by the little ringing bell of those who God places in our lives.Other times we are the guide horse, helping others to find their way....Good friends are like that... you may not always see them, but you know they are always there. Please listen for my bell and I'll listen for yours. And remember...be kinder than necessary- everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle.

On Foal Alert

It is getting close to time go on "Foal Alert". Most warmblood breeders in this part of the country are expecting their foals in April, May, and June. We don't want foals on the ground until the snow is gone and the temperatures are staying above freezing. We also don't want to be out in the barn in the wee hours of the morning freezing our buns off! Some breeds must have their foals early in the year because of the traditional way of marking the age of horses on January 1. A 2 year old that is really only 18 months will be at a big disadvantage at the race track. But with warmblood sport horses the competition rarely starts before age 4 except for breed shows which are usually local and all the young horses are only a few months apart.

So the mares are getting their last rhino immunization and spring shots, and if it is warm enough I like to give them a bath and get all the winter dirt off and help get rid of all the hair they have been shedding. They usually really enjoy the bath and appreciate getting the crud cleaned from their udder. This bath makes it a lot easier to keep them clean from now until the foal comes. If they are within 10 -14 days of their due date and/or are showing signs of foaling soon I also scrub down their stall and change the shavings to straw. Now we are ready to watch and wait.

I have cameras in my foaling stall and I have a foal alert system that attaches to the mare's halter and sends me a page if she lays down flat like they do when they foal. Some mares really don't like being watched and I have found that I do not get so worn out if I use the cameras along with the foal alert. One of my mares lays down flat and sleeps every night, so once I have decided to attach it to her halter I get a lot of false alarms, but she has always started dripping milk the day before she foals so I don't have to deal with it much.

Some people ask why it is so important that I be there when the mare foals, after all in nature they seem to handle it on their own. But the fact is that in nature the mortality rate for foals is high - almost 50%. Yes, they can handle it on their own as long as everything goes like it's supposed to, but for horses minor problems can become big ones really quick. If the mare isn't able to get the foal out within 30 minutes after the water breaks you could lose the foal and the mare. It is frequently something that can be easily handled by a vet or someone experienced with foaling. If the foal is born and is weak or unable to stand within a couple of hours it is very important that it gets some help. If not the newborn foal will go downhill really fast. Even though they are quite strong and can run within a few hours when healthy, a weakened foal is very fragile and requires prompt attention. A retained placenta can be a very serious problem with the mare and requires the vet's attention quickly to avoid infection and possible loss of the mare and it is not an uncommon occurrence, in fact, some mares seem to have this problem frequently.

I don't mind losing a few hours sleep (OK sometimes for days and days) to ensure that I am there to attend the mare if necessary. Besides, I never cease to be amazed at the birth of each new foal and I don't want to miss a single one!