Happy Birthday......Babies........Surprise and Trouble

Today is May 8 and I can't let that go by without acknowledging the importance of that day here on this Arabian horse breeding farm. It was 4 years ago today that we were blessed with the twins. That's right. Trouble and Surprise are now 4 year olds, if you can believe that.

I'm currently managing a morgan horse show in Monroe and the Evergreen State Fairgrounds so the odds are that Trouble and Surprise are not going to get their usual birthday cake. Dave and Lindsay aren't tuned in to such things as horse birthdays.....but oh lordy ya don't wanna miss one of theirs. However, I'm pretty sure they won't care as long as I make it up to them when I return.

I know it's been a long time since I did an update on the twins so I probably should tell you a little about each. First off, both have grown into beautiful horses. Trouble's face looks just like his mother and Surprise's face is much like her mom's. From their I'd say conformationally Trouble has a neck like his dad's while Surprise's is set on like her grandpa Legs including his beautiful fine throatlatch. Through the body they are both much like the Legs' babies.

The twins are little but not THAT little at just about 14 hands. Considering these lines are known to still grow as late as eight years old, they may not be done with their growing yet.

Trouble and Surprise still live right next to each other but they are no longer turned out together. Trouble used to harass Surprise thinking he might get to breed her even though he's now a gelding. He may have outgrown this behavior but I haven't tested that yet........but I might some day since he's lately been taught some manners by his new older turnout partner.

Trouble was being turned out with Suede, a now four year old stallion but Trouble was kicking the crap out of Suede. For Suede's protection, we had to put a stop to that but I still wanted Trouble to go out with someone so I tried putting him with Doc.

Those of you who've been reading my blog know that Doc is the half Arabian colt born here last year. http://risingrainbow.blogspot.com/2009/04/foaling-and-showing-rolled-into-one_27.html He's not been gelded yet......but his time is coming soon. Doc's turnout companion has been good ole Dandy who really resents the job of baby sitter but doesn't do anything harmful to the naughty youngsters he gets stuck with. So far Doc, Dandy and Trouble are all doing just fine and Trouble is finally learning he must listen to another horse. Dandy's 16 h frame is a bit intimidating to Trouble, TG!

Surprise on the other hand has mellowed with age. She is no longer able to push her way around the pasture with her older aunts or even the ones born the same year as her. She was the one needing to be protected so I removed her from the field of older horses and paired her up with Scarlet who is only two.

Scarlet and Surprise are getting along famously. They've buddied up well enough in fact that I can put the two of them in with a pair of the other Legs' daughters and they get along just find. Having a good buddy has been just what Surprise needed and Scarlet's big attitude seemed to gell perfectly with Surprise's idea of a friend.

I'm hoping sometime after my round pen dries out to begin some groundwork with both Trouble and Surprise. While I'm too big to be starting either of them, I can sure get them going in the long lines. I've also found someone small enough to actually get them started. I'm thinking Trouble might make a great jumping pony while the focus for Surprise will be light trail riding.

This pic is of the twins' first birthday. Sorry nothing more current on the two in party hats but will work at finding some more recent pics of them individually.

More Flooding Repairs and Their Effects on Trouble

We began the final stages of barn clean-up today. The last stalls that needed to be tended to were those of My Arabian horse twins, Trouble and Surprise. Their stalls had the worst issues after the waters receded.

Several years back I purchased eight hours of bulldozer work and eight hours of back hoe work from a silent auction for the Daffodil Arabian Horse Association. It was my plan to use that work to fix my problems with water during heavy rains. I wanted french drains in front of my barn as well as a drain from the pond directly to the creek.

However, the man in charge of the work was convinced that I didn't need French drains. Instead he would use his laser equipment to determine where to place a drain that he then channeled into the pond. Dave was convinced that this guy knew what he was talking about and the job was done their way and not mine.

At the first heavy rain it was clear this drain was useless. If it has siphoned any water off, we've never seen evidence of it from the outlet into the pond. Well, that is until this current episode. For the first time ever we saw water flooded around that drain and flowing as fast as the pipe would allow into the pond. It definitely saved us from heavier flooding this time around.

Because it didn't work in lesser circumstances, Dave had to put in the French drains that I'd wanted in the first place. Again he didn't do it totally my way using smaller pipe than I thought necessary. Now, it's clear that the larger pipe is necessary as well, so Dave will be re-doing yet another job. But it was a good thing we had both drains for this bad storm. With Dave's use of the smaller pipe, even with the now functioning second drain, we had very soggy stalls. Just moving around them, the water would ooze up over the mats although there was not measurable standing water.

I wonder if the reason the twins' stalls were worse than the others is because they are past the location of that original drain. The ground slops off down a bit on the twins' side of that drain. I think it may have cause the water that was too much for the French drain to handle to go into their stalls. The result was not only that their stalls got much wetter but their mats also shifted. I think from some floating at the height of the water.

While releveling the ground, relaying the mats and drying things out is a pain and time consuming, it doesn't bother me nearly as much as the trauma to the horses. Surprise seemed to not be too flustered once the standing water departed. But poor Trouble is a wreck!

When I tried to remove Trouble from his stall today so we could do this work, the poor gelding refused. He was too frightened to take even one step out the door. His eyes darted about as he tried to avoid my direction. The horse clearly thought the ground was going to swallow him up. He wouldn't cross the threshold with any part of him.

At first I went back to the basics I'd used in teaching him how to lead. I just asked for one step at a time and rewarded any forward movement, even a thought. That did not work this time. Trouble knew the drill but was just too scared to make any forward movement.

I could move him from side to side and even turn him around but no form of trickery to get just that one step worked. I even brought Surprise in and out several times to show him that there was nothing to fear but Trouble would not budge. The fear just stayed there in his eyes.

I eventually had to up the stakes and use the whip. I hate to do that but at the same time I don't think it's safe to leave the horse in a stall with mats all weird and sticking up and the whole thing a soggy mess for one more night. The last thing I want is a sick horse so I resorted to the whip with Trouble..

I learned from the start with the twins that they could not be persuaded by kindness and a soothing voice when they have made up their mind. The only thing that works with either of them is being able to be a bigger bully. It seems to be a trait of twins that are born equal size. It accounts for them trying to be dominant and Surprise getting the crap kicked out of her because she wouldn't give in to the bigger horses. It is a difficult trait to deal with, that's for sure.

I hate it.....and I have hated it from the very beginning. But thankfully, they are very smart. Once they know you WILL be a bully if you have to, they will USUALLY quit fighting.

That's not what Trouble did today. He didn't care that I had the whip at all. He didn't even care when I tapped him with it. His continued resistance only told me how truly scared he was. It was clear I was going to have to take drastic action.

I created a frenzy behind him with the whip, slapping the mats feverishly. Trouble decided that commotion behind him was scarier than the fear in front of him and leapt out of the stall over the walkway onto the french drain and into the field.

We tried to take him back onto that walkway but he again refused. This time just showing the horse the whip was enough for him to move although he didn't get comfortable with the walkway, he did behave so Dave took him between the barns and out to the field.

He had to lead him down that aisle way a few times too. The horse was just plain scared of the area around the barn. Once he was really listening, they were able to continue their journey to the field.

We really should have taken the time to put him in and out of that stall until he got past his fear. Since the daylight hours were fast leaving, we opted to deal with that tomorrow and get the stalls fixed today. I imagine I'll have a difficult time getting him into his stall tonight. Poor Trouble...............

This video is Trouble at the open house.



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More on Trouble & Surprise - My Arabian Twin Horses

In case there are those of you who don't know, I had twin Arabian foals born in May of 2006. It was a very difficult birth and the mare and twins are lucky to be alive. Their complete story starts here. Reflections on Foaling Season 2006 - The Twins

Well, it's been a while since I have posted anything about my twin Arabian horses, Scandalous Trouble and Scandalous Surprise. Wiola of Freelance Instructor 's Diary asked about them recently and I promised a post was in the offing.

The problem is that something is always in the offing in my brain. It's getting them down on paper that can be difficult and I have this aversion to taking pictures of my horses in the winter months. They are so shaggy and unlike themselves. What has this to do with the twins you say? Well, I know I need current pictures but how can I take pictures when their hair is longer than their cute little faces. Well! that's how it seems to me.

But, fortunately, we had visitors here recently. The twins, of course, were the hit of the farm tour and I could not resist taking pictures of the little varmints doing what they do best. That is entertaining all who worship at their feet.

That's right! Worship seems to be the word that fits. The only person I've found to not become totally enthralled by the little monsters is my soon to be sister-in-law who just so happens to be absolutely terrified of horses......ALL horses. It doesn't matter about size or shape, if it's an equine she is petrified.

She giggled at the twins at our annual open house when they ripped around the paddock showing off. But then she was at least fifty feet away from them with a fence and crowd of people in between. She'd have been much happier had they been on the television instead of in her physical presence in anyway. But I digress.........back to the twins.

So we had these visitors, they came to visit as part of the AHA Discovery Farm program. I had no clue if they even knew that I had twins on my place at all, unlike most of the visitors here. We went through all the barns (yes ALL, I have all these little barns with horses stuffed everywhere!) looking at all the horses. The twins were the last place we stopped.

As I walked into the twins' area, I asked if they knew that I had twin horses. The heads nodded and smiles spread across their faces. They most certainly were aware and like the rest of our visitors, they were captivated by the very thought of twin horses.

Sometimes I wonder if the twins' personalities are the result of all that early handling that happened because of their medical situation or if the steady stream of laughing giggling visitors that have followed since their birth. I doubt that I'll ever have the answer but it's clear from their behavior that both Trouble and Surprise expect to be the center of attention.

When they lived in the same stall together, it was easy to show them off at the same time. Each would fight for position at the doorway wanting to be more important than the other one. Now, with them in separate stalls it's not so easy to accommodate their need to be in the spotlight at the same time. And heaven forbid that one of them get more attention than the other. The barn might fall should that ever happen!




Fortunately for us, on this day each visitor had her favorite. Surprise, the black filly, was the apple of the eye of the "black" breeder and the non-Arabian person couldn't help but be captivated by Trouble.

Surprise thoroughly enjoyed the hugs and kisses, although she did keep one eye on the door looking for a chance to escape. For some reason the filly's evil intent just seemed to add to her charm for the visitor. Surprise made sure that she was indeed the woman's favorite by cuddling up to here even as she sidled her way towards the door.

Trouble has his own kind of charm. He's got that male inquisitive thing going on where he must play or be played with at each and every moment. If he's not looking to see what he can grab of one's clothing, he's looking for ways to draw you into his play. Don't ask me how it got started but the next thing I knew the colt was sticking out his tongue for his visitor to scratch. She was giggling and accommodating at the same time. Enraptured with delight at the thought of the slimy little game. How could I NOT break out the camera?

The visitors did trade places at one point. After all, no one can come and NOT visit BOTH twins. But each left with their favorite and Trouble and Surprise are still convinced that they are the best!

Arabian Breeder's Annual Open House Is Finally Over!! Part 6

Part 1

So who was going to follow the show Legs had put on for the crowd? Normally, the exuberant Arabian stallion would be a hard act to follow. In years past I have made him the last horse of the day. But life hasn't been normal on my Arabian breeding farm for a while now and finding the right act to follow Legs, well that was easy!



It was the twins, Scandalous Trouble and Scandalous Surprise. Since I still wasn't doing any forms of forced exercise with Surprise, I figured the best way to show her was with her mischievous brother.I would just throw the two of them into the presentation ring together. People still think of them as a pair and pretty much expect to see them together.

The two Arabian horses hadn't been turned out together since their birthday party. That episode hadn't lasted long because Trouble, well, Trouble got into trouble. Would it be the same today? Probably, but not before the two pint sized Arabian horses put on a show.

The twin Arabian horses pretty much take after their grandsire. They've been into exciting the crowd from the day they were born. Today would be no different. Given the opportunity to show off for the crowd, the twins would not let me down.

As usual, the show began long before they got to the ring. Surprise and Trouble could feel the excitement in the air. They pranced their way up from the barns to the ring with their tails rolled over their backs and trying their best to drag their handlers on just a little bit faster. They didn't want to miss anything because they were slow to arrive!

Whenever the two young horses are turned out together, they need to be released in unison. If one is free before the other, you can bet that the opportunity to pounce on the other won't be missed. On a count of three the excited twin horses were released into the ring and the race was on.

They were diving after each other oblivious to the humans in the ring. Poor Jean expected them to act like "normal" horses and made a couple of attempts to move them around the pen. But I called her off and we all headed for the gate.



Jean wasn't prepared to be tag teamed by the frolicking pair as she tried to get out the gate. It may have been a while since the two marauders had been out together but they hadn't lost their touch. They swooped in on Jean and in one fell swoop turned her around just as she made it to the gate.

The twins didn't miss a beat. They raced on past the gate putting on the brakes in the form of tandem sliding stops at the corner and rolled back around to race off again. It looked like a choreographed piece as the two Arabian horses worked the ring weaving in and out of each other, and sometimes slamming into each other only to bounce off to frolic some more.

By now the food was ready and we were trying to get people over to begin dishing up but the twin Arabian horses had captivated their audience. Not a soul broke lose and head over to the barbecue. Trouble and Surprise continued on in their playing far longer than any of the other horses who had been out earlier in the day. They, too like Legs, know they are the stars.



But eventually, hormones got the better of Trouble and instead of just playing with his sister, the young gelding began terrorizing his sister. Once that occurred it was time to save Surprise from Trouble. Before we could get in to catch him, Trouble had mounted his sister in the corner. Of course, the crowd all thought that he was just too cute but poor Surprise had had enough. As I went through the gate, she came running to me to be rescued from the little varmint.

Once Trouble knew he didn't have Surprise to harass anymore he, too, came right up to be caught. He excited the ring with his tail rolled over his back strutting like a million bucks. And, of course, Surprise not to be out done by her brother followed suit. There couldn't have been a better ending to the show.

When the twins were taken off to their stalls, people headed towards the food and the picnic began. We had the grill cooking Johnsonville brauts. With them we served potato salad, a garden salad, a special recipe of baked beans (that are absolutely scrumptious), a veggie tray and a fruit tray and then ice cold drinks. We had enough food to feed a small army, I swear.

As usual, there were people who had questions about horses and I tried to answer them and deal with the vet who had finally arrived to stitch up Suede. (It turned out he stapled him with 8 staples)

I got a quick chance to check in on Reflection who looked like he was doing ok. I would just keep an eye on him for any changes in behavior. It seemed like hours before I got done with the questions and anywhere near the food. Many of the people were still there sitting around visiting and talking horses. That is always a good sign. The open house was officially over but the party was on.

A Twins Update

The High Cost of Saving Twin Arabian Foals Part 2

The beginning of the twins saga begins hereReflections on Foaling Season 2006

Yes, my twins survived but not without heartbreak. I've been telling a couple of my friends for a while now that I really needed to do a post about the price I've paid for saving the Arabian twin foals, Scandalous Trouble and Scandalous Surprise. To me that price is as big a part of the story as the details about the twins and the myriad of things I did to care for them.

I don't want it to seem like I would do anything different, because I wouldn't. To my way of thinking giving it everything I had to save these two foals was the only way to go. But that decision came at a great price, both emotionally and
financially and I am still paying that price.

The emotional drain caused by each crisis took its toll. Sometimes the crises with the twins were daily, even hourly. By the time the twins were out of the woods and out of confinement, I was deeply depressed.

I've battled depression over my lifetime but have not seen any form of it since I began with horses. I've known how to deal with the "normal" causes of my depression but this time was different. It had a totally different cause. I was so spent, I hadn't a clue how to replenish. I was exhausted both physically and emotionally and there was nowhere to turn for help. The twins still needed ongoing care and I had the rest of my heard to deal with. I had to force myself each day to get out of bed and face the tasks ahead of me. I went to the doctor. Nothing helped. It was a long, wet, black winter .

All the time I was dealing with the depression I was also fighting with what little energy I had trying to keep my dream alive. It had never occurred to me how caring for the twins would affect that dream.

Those of you that follow this blog know that it's always been my dream to breed Arabian horses. And not just any Arabian horses, I wanted them to be the very best!. That's been a pretty big challenge for a couple of blue collar workers from a small town in Graham.. Top quality horses are like anything else top quality, hard to come by and expensive.

But I haven't let that stop me, I've chased my dream with a vengeance. I knew going into it that it would take time. Horses have to grow up and be trained and shown to be able to get them sold. All of those take time and with life's little bumps here and there the time can stretch out longer than expected. They also take money or energy. I knew from the beginning to make this successful I would have to do most of the work myself. I couldn't afford trainers and show fees both, so I was going to have to do my own training to get my horses into the ring.

The birth of the twins took all of my time, my energy and my money. I also borrowed money so I was now in the hole. Time I couldn't borrow. Everything else stood still. My other four foals from last year didn't get their halter, leading, clipping and bathing lessons. My five year old gelding that was ready to show Western Pleasure Junior Horse didn't get ridden, let alone shown. The horses behind him that were finally mature enough to be started didn't get started. I didn't get my herd sire in the ring, yet another year. The list goes on. The effect of not getting those things done was I didn't get horses sold.

Starting out as a new breeder there are no shortcuts to success. You have to do it by the book. Breed them. Raise them. Train them, Show them. Then you get to sell them. Doesn't matter how great the horses are, no one sees them because they don't come out to the your farm if you haven't proven yourself already. The horses have to get in the ring and when they get there, they have to be doing their job and they have to win. Once the first foal crops have done that, things get easier but that first push can make or break you.

So the time, energy and money the twins took, all was taken away from my dream. This is the first year since I started breeding horses that I do not have a foal crop coming next year. I missed my target getting a horse in the ring. The plan was to get him to Nationals as a junior horse. Now he is six and must go into the full bridle. That means another year before Nationals is even a possibility. I have two more coming up behind him that didn't make the ring as junior horses this year. Now they will need to be in the bridle before they can show.

Fortunately, I have sold a horse but half of what he's worth. That money won't pay my expenses for this operation for six months. If I don't figure out how to get more horses sold, my dream may be coming to an end. The weight of all of this has, of course, added to the depression.

I realize that the twins by themselves aren't responsible for the collapse of my business. It was built on a shoe string. The problem with that is the bumps in the road can kill you. And this one maybe has. I knew going into it I was taking a big risk.

While I love the twins as much if not more than I love any of my horses, they are the straw that may have broken the camel's back on this dream of mine. With all of the things over the years I thought could interfere with my dream, I can tell you having Arabian twin foals was never one of them. The fact that they have had a devastating impact on my life doesn't mean I would change one thing but I just think people should know. Twins may be joyous and wonderful and fun but they can be heart breaking too. It's important, I think, to know that.


A Twins Story

The High Cost of Saving Twin Arabian Foals

The beginning of the twins saga begins hereReflections on Foaling Season 2006

It's ironic that I have been writing this week about my twin Arabian horses that were born in 2006 and there was a set of twin colts born in Holland last evening. While the mare was on a live Mare Stare web cam, I was oblivious to the mare foaling.

The way I found out was through an e-mail from a Mare Starer who felt I should be part of the event. I really appreciated her consideration because, like everyone else, I do find myself drawn to stories about twins. However, I'm pretty sure my reaction is not like everyone else's. While I want to know and help out if I'm needed, I'm consumed with a heavy feeling of dread. I would imagine that's because I know first hand how bad it can be.

So last night after I got the email, I went looking for the thread and the webcam for these miracle twins. On the thread I found there had been problems with the foaling and the cam had been shut down for a while. When it came back online, the world was presented with twin bay colts.

There were few details about the birth or the condition of the twins. The webcam took a special user name and password to access so I set about trying to get someone to PM me that information so I could see for myself. As it turned out the owner had bandwidth issues and even with the password I was unable to access the cam last night. I did get to see some pictures of the new foals that were posted on the thread.

I went to bed pretty upset. When my head hit the pillow I burst into tears (I might add here, I'm not normally a crier!) and a flood of emotions overtook me. I laid there for a long time contemplating the source of my agitation.

This morning I was able to get the cam up and take a look at the new foals. They appeared to be large and in pretty good shape. It was obvious to me from the shape of their heads that they are not totally mature foals but from what I could see their legs looked pretty good and they seemed none the worse for wear from their birth. A thorough check by the vet confirmed they are healthy foals. I am happy for them and their owner.

Most people hear twin horses and they think it's cool. There is some kind of romantic notion about what it must be like to raise twins. Granted the twin foals that usually survive are ok at birth. Once you get past the usual post foaling tasks of nursing, pooping, peeing and taking care of the umbilicus, they can be just like raising a singleton.

It is the twins that have a difficult birth or that are born with the issues of premature foals that usually do not make it. Those are the heart breakers. Those are what my foals were.

To be continued...........

High Cost Part 2

What Does the Future Hold for the Arabian Twin Foals, Trouble and Surprise

The beginning of the twins saga begins hereReflections on Foaling Season 2006

Someone asked me in the comments to post about my future plans for these two unusual horses. Frankly, I've spent so much time just trying to get them to the place where they are like other horses, I haven't really thought much about their future.

As a breeder I don't really think about the future of any of my foals. I take care of them and wait for them to grow up. Then I assess them and try to figure out what they want to do and then I try to make that happen. I am guilty of not assessing the fillies quite as readily as I do the colts. I have visions of getting to breed them someday and if I don't get them broke, I don't have to worry too much about them selling.

With the twins it's the focus has always been just trying to get them to normal. While they are healthy now and their leg issues are nearly fixed, there is still the issue of their growth. Unfortunately, I don't have any control over that, all the care in the world isn't going to make them grow to full size. That will be totally up to Mother Nature.

As I have said in the past, I don't expect that the filly, Surprise, will grow to her genetic potential. Crushing Syndrome seems to be the reason that twin horses do not grow to their full size. It is Mother Nature's way of protecting them from the ravages of arthritis that goes hand in hand with Crushing Syndrome. The smaller the animal (weight) on a compromised limb, the less impact the arthritis will have on that limb.

However, the reason I wonder about Surprise at all, is because the experts said she would never be sound. Not only is she sound but she doesn't do things to protect that hock at all. She is a master at sliding stops and rollbacks, not to mention the rearing she does from time to time. All are things you would expect a horse with an injury like Surprise's to never do!

After she engages in such activities, her limbs don't swell and she doesn't show any signs of lameness. The aggressive play doesn't seem to phase her at all. It seems to me if that is possible, it is equally possible she might grown to her full size. But until I know that for sure, I will not put her into any exercises program that calls for forced exercise. And even if she does grow to full size, I don't think I would ever ask her to be a show horse without doing some x-rays and such to establish the exact condition of that hock.

Now with the colt, I think we have a better chance of him growing to normal size. I have been free lunging him with the other yearling and it doesn't seem to cause him any problems. But at any time during this year if it looks to me that he has stopped growing, I will stop that form of exercises because that will mean he has Crushing Syndrome as well.

So I guess what this boils down to for me, is their future depends on their size. If both turn out to be little horses, they'll probably spend their lives here with me. Although I have had inquiries about both of them and will probably continue to do so. I would sell them to the right homes but don't think I would even consider that until the question about their size is answered.

If Surprise does stay with me, I will breed her. There is no reason to believe that she will be anything but an awesome producing broodmare and an excellent mother. True black mares as correct and pretty as Surprise are hard to come by. Not to mention she has an impeccable pedigree. So it would not break my heart to end up with her as part of my broodmare band.

And if it turns out Trouble stays here as well, that will be ok too. They certainly have been an attention getter here and what breeder can't do with a little of that. He is a sweet horse and fun to have around.

There may be lots of questions as to what will happen to these two remarkable young horses but one thing is for sure. They will always have a place in our hearts and we'll be doing whatever is best for them throughout their lives.

The High Cost of Saving Twins

An Update on the Arabian Twin Foals - Trouble and Surprise Current Status

The beginning of the twins saga begins hereReflections on Foaling Season 2006

These twin Arabians had a number of health issues when they were born. Most of them are a thing of the past. There are a couple of things we're still working on and then there' the question of their growth.

Due to their angular limb deformities both Trouble and Surprise are still being trimmed about every three weeks to straighten out their legs. I'm happy to report that both twins are finally straight when we are done with the trim. It may still be a while before we can cease making the corrections but it's finally looking like they will both be straight legged in the not to distant future. I really wish I had taken close up pictures of their legs at birth, so people could see how dramatically they were affected.

One of the issues complicating the corrective shoeing was the fact that both Trouble and Surprise were really out of whack from a chiropractic point of view. While we knew they were very crooked from being so compressed inside their mom, we didn't dare do anything to remedy the situation until we were sure their bones were totally hardened. We just had to wait until they were finally old enough that it was safe to have the chiropractor work on them.

That day finally came right after their first birthday. Both twins were reluctant at first but it didn't take them long to figure out that the adjust while uncomfortable made them feel better.Surprise was much worse off than Trouble in the "crooked" department. According to the chiropractor Trouble was deviated enough to make a horse crippled for life so you can imagine what poor Surprise was like.

It turned out that poor Trouble had a throbbing headache. The colt really didn't want his pole or between his ears touched at all. It took quite a bit of coaxing to get him to co-operate with the adjustment. Once it was over he shook his head for what seemed like the longest time. After that he just turned himself over to the chiro trusting he was going to feel better.

Surprise started off just putting her head right into his hands. While some adjustments were difficult and her body resisted, mentally she was with him the whole way. She too shook her head after he adjusted her pole and her jaw as well. A few times the filly stomped her feet shaking the tingles away. She was definitely a grateful patient.

Both twins had ever single vertebrae out of place. From their heads to the tails, the bones went everywhere but straight. Even the joints in their legs, hips and shoulders weren't aligned properly. Surprise was bent in a C shape and Trouble had the S thing going. The chiropractor likened it to a horse that has been in a devastating care accident. The good news was that all things crooked were made straight!

The relief for the twins seemed to be instantaneous. Their movement has improved incredibly. Each finally has the freedom in their shoulders you would expect from their conformation and the length of stride is finally what it should be.

To date they have each had a couple of appointments with the chiropractor. Both twins responded to the treatment and held their adjustments really well considering how bad they were out of alignment. Trouble only needed one follow-up and is now on an as needed basis. (As you might guess, Trouble's legs are much closer to being straight as well) Surprise needs regular follow-ups for a while. She was so twisted in her pelvis, it is still influencing her leg position but we are most pleased with her progress. It may take a while and some growth for her muscles to accommodate the new skeletal position.

Somewhere here about a month or so ago, Trouble woke up. I don't know how else to describe it other than he just plain woke up. From the day of his birth I was always worried about him, he was just too quiet and submissive for one of my colts. He began showing the first signs of normalcy at about 8 months when he finally began antagonizing his sister. Even that was subdued compared to what a normal colt here might do.

The strange thing about it is, he really does act like he just woke up. Things he used to do so well, he now acts like he's doing or seeing for the very first time. It's almost like he's come out of a coma and doesn't remember anything that happened during that time.

Anyway, to sum this up, he woke up with such a vengeance he is now a gelding! While as a midget stud muffin he was absolutely darling! I got really tired of him standing on his hind legs and shaking his head at me. Stomping the ground like he was digging to China because he wasn't getting his way was another cute trick. And oh yes, let's not forget about the biting. The colt turned into a darn land shark. I could have spent time on extensive training session but for me, there just was no reason to be putting up with that behavior and the odds are he will grow better as a gelding.

Today, he is an absolutely gorgeous black bay gelding who hopefully will mature to full size. I just really don't need anymore testosterone around here and believe it or not, Trouble has still not lost his edge. He may not give me, Lindsay or Dave a hard time anymore but he's still got what it takes. Even at that he whoops the snot out of the older bigger yearling colt!

For those who don't know much about twins, this is the year we should find out how they will mature as adults. I'm told that usually twins that stay small stop growing in their yearling year.

I expect that Surprise will not mature to her genetic size due to the crushing of that hock. However, she is a sound as a dollar (the dollar is sound now, isn't it?) but the affected hock is larger than the other. Only time will tell.

As for Trouble, I have no idea what to expect about his growth. We didn't do the additional x-rays on him because of the added expense. He was going to be confined in the stall with his sister anyway so doing the x-rays was more for the vets than me. Even with them we wouldn't be anymore sure than we are with Surprise about his growth. For me there didn't seem to really be much point. Only time will tell for him also. But looking at him yesterday racing around the round pen with Suede, I'm thinking he's going to be one pretty fancy country horse.

That would bring us up to date with the status on these two horses. The twins will again be featured at our annual open house and would love to see any and all visitors. I'm pretty sure that Surprise can tolerate her brother long enough to do a little expo.They are still the biggest hams I know when it comes to people!

We're having our annual open house earlier this year due to Daffodil having a fund raising ride for St Jude's Children's Hospital on my normal weekend. I figured since I've been bugging them to do a fund raiser for years, I better show up to help. The date for our open house is July 15 from 1-4.

More on the Twins

An Update on the Arabian Twin Foals - Trouble and Surprise Weaned From Each Other

The beginning of the twins saga begins hereReflections on Foaling Season 2006


Yesterday's post was about the twins birthday party but I figured I also needed to do an update on their overall condition. They got such a rocky start in life and no one really expected them to survive but me that it's nice to see that things are finally becoming normal for them.

It's been an eventful spring here as you've been able to tell by my post here. The great thing about that is most of the chaos had nothing to do with the twins. It's a relief to finally be out of the woods with the little monsters. They took up so much of my life there for a while if refreshing to be dealing with issues with other horses. I know that might seem like a strange statement because no one wants issues with any horse but after their extended problems it's nice to see them because I want to and not because I am worried about them.

Many of you don't know that Trouble and Surprise have been separated from each other. I know there are those that had this romantic notion that they would always be together side by side happily ever after. But I can assure you that Surprise did NOT have the same view of life as that rosy picture. When Trouble finally started feeling better he began to terrorize his sister. The colt jumped on her, bit her on the hocks and whithers and pretty much chased her all hours of the day and night.

Being a colt, Trouble had no clue that Surprise's reaction to his aggression was no just the filly wanting to play. He thought she was just playing with him. It didn't matter how hard she kicked or bit or even struck him, the colt thought the game was on. Because they lived in that huge stall together, there was no way for her to get a break from him. Before one of the got really hurt, I split them up.
Poor Trouble cried and cried until he was hoarse (no pun intended). Surprise didn't make a peep! Trouble I put right next to another yearling colt so they could get acquainted. Poor Trouble didn't think that colt was any replacement for his sweet Surprise.

For Surprise we started with a partial wall back up dividing the big stall the twins had lived in. I put another yearling filly (Gypcy) on the other side of the wall so the two fillies could get acquainted. Once they looked like they were getting along (which only took overnight) I put Gypcy in with Surprise due to a housing crunch at Rising Rainbow Arabians. The two fillies share their food including their grain and there is never a squabble. (the picture above is Surprise and Gypcy)

Once that was accomplished, I put the other yearling fillies on the other side of that half wall to meet Surprise as well. I wanted all four yearling fillies to know each other before I turned Surprise out with them in the field.

Once the weather let up, I turned Trouble out into a small paddock with Suede and the fight was on. It wasn't a bad fight. It was the typical play that colts do. Trouble had always tried to get Surprise to participate like a colt put Surprise fought like a girl. Suede played just has fierce as Trouble and both colts loved it. The colts reared, bit, chased each other into exhaustion and then collapsed on the ground side by side.

Trouble decided hanging out with the boys wasn't too bad after all. While he did call out for his sister occasionally now, it was more to say "Hey, Sis! How's it going?" than the plaintive cry he started out with.


The same day Surprise went out with the other three yearling fillies. I really didn't know what to expect. She and Trouble are still smaller than the other yearlings (though not by too much) and there are a couple of really bossy fillies in the group. But I never should have doubted Surprise. It took about 2 minutes and she was running the show. She is definitely the boss mare in that herd! She teamed up with her roomy, the biggest, oldest filly of the bunch. The other fillies tried to move in on Gypcy but Surprise was having none of it. They are great buds! Gypcy may be the lowest in the pecking order in that herd but she is under the protection of Surprise and those other fillies better not mess with her!

Another Update

An Update on the Arabian Twin Foals Happy Birthday Trouble and Surprise

The beginning of the twins saga begins hereReflections on Foaling Season 2006

There has been so much going on, every time I think I'm going to get a chance to write an update on the progress of the twins Arabian foals something else happens. But I think it's been bumped about as many times as it can be because I'm beginning to get both emails requests and now requests through the comments on my blog.

Normally I try and send an email once a month with the status and progress of the twins but even that has fallen behind with life's little lessons along the way taking priority. Hopefully tonight I will get both of these updates taken care of and get out of my current dog house.

The big news is the Arabian twins are now officially one year old. They had their birthday last month and yes, they did have a party. The weather and life's usual bumps interfered with the party being on their actual birthday but like all kids they didn't really care as long as there was a party!

Some of you will remember at Christmas the folks on the twins' email list got to see the little monsters in their Santa hats. Both of them did really well with the hats and put up no complaints about wearing them. Trouble did try to eat his but he certainly wasn't afraid of it. Must have been the fake red and white fur that they liked. Who knows! But the twins were great about those hats.

So imagine my chagrin when they didn't greet the birthday party hats with the same degree of enthusiasm. Actually, enthusiasm was the farthest thing from either of their minds. Both Trouble and Surprise thought Mom had really lost it. Bolting was the first line of defense against the gaily colored party hats. When that didn't work, striking and kicking were the order of the day. For those who haven't guessed, Trouble is the striker and Surprise is the kicker.

Rachel and I both laughed so hard we almost cried as we went through the desensitization process it took to even get close to the two horses with their hats. We did finally manage to get the hats on their heads taking pictures of them wearing the darn things but they refused to tolerate them for the video. (OK so the twins are right, Mom has lost it!) But to my dismay the camera man, Dave, didn't take a single picture of the antics as we tried to put the hats on in the first place. I was very disappointed because I'm pretty sure that's where the best shots were.

So we got a couple of shots of both Trouble and Surprise wearing the hats I had so carefully shopped for. It's not easy, you now to find party hats big enough for horses, even little horses. I'm not sure the length of time they tolerated them was worth the effort I put into finding them. You will have to be the judge of that.

Once we had the party hats on, we tried to give them their birthday cake. Yes, Mom did this part right, they had a cake.
We let them smell it and then put it on the ground for them to eat. We turned the two horses lose so they could enjoy their cake.

After a couple of bites Trouble decided it was more fun to jump on Surprise than to eat the cake. Besides he knew chasing her around the paddock she couldn't eat the cake either so it would be there waiting when the colt's sport was done.

Surprise was not happy about her brother's interest in jumping on her and biting her withers. The filly headed straight for behind me and while I have gained a few pounds this winter I'm not big enough to hide that filly. So when that didn't work, she was headed for the gate. The filly kicked the colt a number of times but Trouble, like most boys thought that meant Surprise wanted to play. He just didn't get the picture that his sister was not interested in rough and tumble boy play.

Surprise tried to undo the latch on the gate and almost got it accomplished before her brother came charging at her and took a flying leap landing on her pushing the filly past the gate. There wasn't much we could do but catch them both up before someone got hurt.

As we took them back over to their cake, it was obvious Surprise was most happy to have her dimwit brother under control. The poor filly gave off a deep sigh and rubbed a thank you with her face against my hand.

Trouble had worked up quite an appetite and was now ready for that cake, although he preferred to be hand feed than to have it sitting on the ground.

I have portions of this ordeal on video and had hoped to get it uploaded to U-tube but am having problems with my computer and my skills. So for now there video is still on my camera. Will post a link when we get the upload worked out.

And just for the record, Happy First Birthday Trouble and Surprise! Special raspberries to all those who said you'd never make it. You not only made it but you did it with style!




The recipe for the cake was compliments of Our First Horse The cake consisted of 2 cups of crimped oats, 4 shredded carrots and 1/4 cup of molasses. The mixture was but into a cake pan for form and them turned out onto a plate and refrigerated until firm. Before it was served, apple wheels were added as garnish.

Update

More Reflections on Twin Arabian Foals

The beginning of the twins story starts here


As the Arabian twin foals (horses) stall rest went on, the mare (horse) had the staples removed from her nose. Vee (the Arabian horse) wasn't happy about having her nose fussed with again but after all the staples were out, the horse spent a lot of time wrinkling up her nose like she was testing to see it still worked the same way or maybe appreciating that it was now more flexible. The horse was pretty comedic for almost an hour. Wish I had taken pictures.

Life with the twins (Arabian horses) settled into a quieter routine once the mare's treatments were finished. I still monitored them daily for temperature, weight and their behavior watching for any signs of problems.

Both twins (Arabian horses) came down with a fungus infection. It spread rapidly to the horses' faces and behind their ears. From there it passed to the mare. None of the Arabian horses liked the treatments much and we tried everything trying to get a handle on the outbreak. I don't know how many things we actually tried before we finally got it under control. In the meantime, I started them on herbs to help boost their immune systems since it was obvious that the twin horses were still in a highly susceptible stage.

The mare seemed to be doing fine. I had been able to get her weight up to normal in about a month after the birth of the twins (Arabian horses). The horse was getting a 16% mare and foal feed twice a day with lots of stabilized rice bran and hay in front of her all of the time. She was pretty much an eating machine. To keep up her milk production to feed two foals, the mare ate around the clock. The only time the horse wasn't eating was when she was sleeping.

Her fluid intake was monitored as well to be sure she was drinking enough water to produce the required amount of milk. At the first signs of growth spurts in the twins (Arabian horses) I would up the mare's salt intake so she would increase her fluid intake to accommodate the twins increased needs.

Everything was going along pretty well until one late night check. I found the mare with too much food in front of her. It was obvious the mare was not eating. I checked for gut sounds and found none in 2 of the 4 quadrants. I can remember my mind racing to what might be next. Sometimes it just seemed like the twins (Arabian horses) were jinxed.

I called the vet, it was just before midnight. I told him the mare was colicing. I remember his response, "What mare?"
I told him, "The twins mom!"
His response, "Oh my God, I'll be right there."

I think he set a record in getting to my house. I knew he was thinking the same things I was. With all these horses had gone through, we couldn't lose them now. Anything jeopardizing the mare was a definite threat to the health and welfare of these miracle foals.

Jack checked over the mare while I tried to keep the twins (Arabian horses) out of his way. Dave was working nights and Lindsay was gone so there wasn't anyone else around to help. Trying to tube the mare while keeping the twins out of the way was going to be a trip.

I tried to tell Jack that he wasn't going to be able to keep a straight face while he treated the mare. I think he thought I was off my rocker. But as he was trying to put the tube down the mare's nose, Trouble was trying to pull it back out and Surprise was playing with the pump in the bucket of water and oil. I had been delegated to holding the mare still so he could get the tube in properly.

The vet finally did manage to get the tube in the right place despite the assistance of the twins and he began to pump the water and oil into the mare. The twins (Arabian horses) took advantage of the vet being busy to harass him all the more. Trouble pulled his shirttails out and licked him on his back, while Surprise untied his shoes and tried to force herself between his legs, scratching her fungus on the inside seams of his jeans. That was just the beginning. The twins (Arabian horses) raced around the back end of the mare ducking underneath her belly and nearly knocked her down. The twosome (Arabian horses) kicked at Jack, they kicked at mom and they kicked at me while continuing to weave in and out amongst us at the fastest pace possible doing roll backs and stealing pieces of equipment. Jack definitely found out what I'd meant by not being able to keep a straight face working in the twins (Arabian horses) stall. Somehow we managed to get the mare treated for her colic.

An Update

More Reflections on Twins - Arabian Horses

The beginning of the twins story starts here

While we awaited the biopsy results on the growth we'd removed from the Arabian mare's (horse) nose, the horse was getting antibiotics and having her wound flushed twice a day. The Arabian mare had taken the twins (horses) in stride and all of the care and visitors that had gone along with it. But the mare (horse) was not taking kindly to having her nose messed with anymore. It was obviously very sore and the horse didn't want it touched. Flushing the wound was a tricky operation complicated by the presence of the twins (horses).

It wasn't just about not running over the two small Arabian horses, it was about keeping them out of our hair. Trying to do anything in that stall that didn't involve the twins (Arabian horses) meant you were fair game for their antics. Just because the mare (Arabian horse) was bouncing around the stall trying to avoid treatment wasn't enough to deter the twins (Arabian horses). The two small foals (horses) were bored being cooped up and anything at all that looked like it could be entertaining was top priority on their list.

Normally, I can do almost anything with any of my Arabian horses without a halter. I groom, pick feet, worm and even do some treatments without any restraint. But in this circumstance I needed a halter and help. There was no way the Arabian mare (horse) was going to stand still for getting her wound flushed.That meant two people to do the treatment and two people for the twins (Arabian horses) to pick on.

Untying shoes has always been one of their favorite tricks but they also enjoy biting on clothes, removing things from pockets, pulling hair, sticking their head between your legs or under you arms (the what's ya doing ploy). If you happen to be closer to the ground, sucking on ears is a real delightful treat for the little monsters (Arabian horses). There's nothing they like better than playing with their human friends, whether the friends are in the mood or not. And one thing about the twins (Arabian horses) they are smart, smart, smart. Defensive maneuvers against them are fruitless. Didn't take them long to learn how to tag team to keep things interesting.

You might think that you could avoid two little horses trying to be annoying and just get the task at hand done. But it was definitely one of those situations you had to see to believe. It probably resembled a three ring circus as we tried to keep the mare still enough to flush the wound while the twins attacked us. And attack us they did. Their first plan was to separate us from our target. Trouble pushed between Dave and the mare while Surprise wormed her way in between me and the mare, leaning against me trying to push me over. Trouble kicked his mom to get her to back up and Dave started laughing, so things went downhill from there. The twins (Arabian horses) have learned that they are cute and laughter eggs them on. What should have taken a couple of minutes ended up taking ten and I was a sweaty mess. Wrestling with the twins (Arabian horses) and Vee (Arabian mare) trying to get her wound flushed while Dave spent most of his time howling in the corner.

It was a long five days treating that wound. Each time I came into the stall, the twins (Arabian horses) had a new plan. They would look at what I was carrying and know the drill. The game was on. I gave up on getting any help from Dave. I got farther by putting the mare up against the wall with her butt in the corner than I had with him holding her. I learned to empty my pockets before coming into the stall, wear footwear without laces and keep all zippers zipped up out of the twins (Arabian horses) reach. The fewer clothes I had on the better because sweating was a given (don't most people sweat when they wrestle?) and the twins really liked playing with my clothes. The more I was wearing, the more the twins (Arabian horses) had to entertain themselves. Anything with buttons could end up button less and the list goes on.

Somehow I did get antibiotics down the mare and keep the wound flushed and medicated as well. The results of the biopsy came back and the growth was non cancerous. When the drain was finally removed from the wound, Vee (horse) must have felt better because the mare soon quit being so sensitive about her nose. But I think the twins (Arabian horses) were probably disappointed, their twice a day play sessions had come to an end.

To be continued..... here


Arabian horse Arabian horses horses horse twin foals twin horses

More Reflections on Twin Arabian Foals Part 4

The beginning of the twins story starts here

All of these dramatic things that had happened to these Arabian horses and they were barely a month old. The mare and her foals have only been out of the stall to go to the hospital or vet clinic except for three brief times outside in the field, Now the Arabian horses are on stall rest for an unspecified amount of time until their bones hardened properly.

In the meantime the Arabian horses needed to be monitored the twin foals for any changes and the Arabian mare for condition. Providing nourishment for two foals (horses) was taking it toll on the horse. The mare was an eating machine with hay in front of her 24-7, large amounts of pelleted feed and free choice stababilized rice bran and gallons and gallons of water.

About two weeks into this extended period of stall rest, I discovered that the tumor on the mare's face had returned. Within just a few days it tripled in size and soon was even much larger than the original tumor that had been removed. It was encroaching on her nostril inside and out. The rapid growth of the tumor was alarming. The tumor needed to be removed ASAP.

The first tumor had been removed there in the stall but it was obvious that more surrounding tissue needed to be removed this time. That meant the three Arabian horses needed to be transported to the clinic for the more extensive surgery.

This time, the twin Arabian horses were prepared for the steep hill and laid down immediately so we didn't have to worry about excessive pressure put onto the horses' weakened joints. That was a relief and one less thing to worry about.

Once inside the clinic, the mare was again put into the palpation chute. The twin horses were allowed to roam the clinic while the mare was prepared for surgery. The vet and his assistant worked on the mare while Colleen and I tried to keep the twins out of trouble. The vet and his assistant had the easier task!

The twin horses were crawling underneath their mother in the palpation chute, opening drawers, untying shoelaces, pulling on clothes, stealing equipment. You name it, they were getting into it. By now the horses had learned how to tag team their caregivers to get away with their stunts. No matter how hard we would try at least one of them was always getting into something. You would think that two adults could handle two little foals like that but they easily handled us. The only time we got a break was when the horses decided they needed a break and would go over to nurse. Poor Vee is out on her lips having surgery on her nose and the twins were crawling underneath her getting a snack. It should have been a Kodak moment but the camera was at home.

This time Dr Gillette removed two different types of tissue from the growth site. Both were sent off to be biopsied. A drain was inserted in the wound and the mare's site closed up. The surgery had taken about 1 1/2 hours and the twin Arabian horses had not managed to destroy the clinic. For which, I was grateful.....exhausted but grateful. I think Dr Gillette actually got a kick out of watching the two little monsters terrorize his clinic. The camera came out and pictures were taken as we waited for the older Arabian horse to wake up from her surgery.

When the horse was awake enough to walk, we moved all three horses out into a paddock so the mare could recover fully before the horse trailer ride home. After that it would be more waiting time......waiting for biopsy results and waiting for the twin horses' bones to harden. Waiting to see what life still had in store for one tired horse woman and her three very special Arabian horses.

More Reflections on Twins

More Reflections on Twin Arabian Foals Part 3

The beginning of the twins story starts here

It's really been hard from me to get back into re-writing this part of the Arabian twins foals saga that I lost yesterday. As a horse woman, sitting at this darn computer writing isn't what I really want to be doing with my day in the first place. I want to be go on a horse ride or do something hands on with my Arabian horses. However, the weather here sucks right now and I'm on foal watch with Krugorrs Heiress (click "next" to the right and you'll see her with her first Arabian foal, Scandalous Love, the mother of the twins). Sooooo...........I guess that means I'm stuck writing about the twins.

I am still playing around with my keyword stuff trying to increase my stats so bare with me and the repeated words and words in parenthesis. I'm trying to find a happy medium that doesn't drive you and me crazy but still keeps the search engines happy.

At the end of the last segment all three Arabian horses were on stall rest awaiting the outcome of the x-rays. We had made the decision to go against Pilchuck Hospitals' recommendations to restart the filly on antibiotics until we had ruled out injury as a possible cause for the lameness. In the meantime, the filly was being closely monitored for any changes in behavior just in case septicemia was the culprit behind the lameness and swelling in the Arabian horse's hock. We didn't want to loose this horse because we made a mistake.

The Arabian colt was also being monitored because the horse was still not exhibiting "normal" behavior for a foal of his age. While the Arabian horse was eating and sleeping fine and his body functions seemed to be working fine, the horse still exhibited lingering symptoms of dummy foal syndrome.

Because the bones of newborn horses are not fully hardened, they do not look the same on x-rays as hardened bones of mature horses, making the x-rays more difficult to read for the average veterinarian. Many vets can go their entire practice and never see x-rays of neonates (newborn foals). So the Arabian horse's x-rays were sent off to a specialist in equine neonatal radiology to be read. As you can guess, there are not many experts in this field, so we had to wait.....and wait..........and wait some more.

Finally Dr Gillette got a call from the expert about the x-rays of Scandalous Surprise (Arabian horse). The diagnosis expressed by the radiologist was not good. While I did take expensive notes, they wouldn't do much but confuse you like they confused me. So in layman's terns, the Arabian horse had crushing syndrome affecting a number of the bones in the right hock and the left hock as well.. The prognosis was not good. In the radiologist opinion the young filly should be euthanized. Dr Gillette requested the x-rays be sent on to Pilchuck Hospital for a second opinion.

At this point the good news, there was a physical reason for the young Arabian horse's lameness. The horse didn't need antibiotics, the septicemia had not returned. The bad news, this was yet another complication of the horse being born a twin. The other twin could also be afflicted. Without a complete battery of x-rays of both horses, we wouldn't know the full extent of the damage. I spent several heart wrenching days trying to figure out what my choices for these small Arabian horses were while we waited for Pilchuck's opinion.

It was another three days before we had any information from Pilchuck Hospital. Dr Bolton and Dr Fehr had both looked over the x-rays of the horse. As usual when dealing with different vets, they did not agree with the radiologist. They all agreed that the young Arabian horse was experiencing crushing syndrome . They didn't agree on the extent or location of the damage, methodology for treatment and long term prognosis.

I talked to all of the veterinarians involved with the Arabian horse and her x-rays. To be perfectly honest, it made my head swim. It still makes my head swim today. In very basic terms, Surprise's right hind hock was crushed. It sound absolutely horrible but when it was broken down into parts, it didn't sound so bad to me.

The hock on a horse is made up of many bones. (if you looked at the x-rays on the neonatal site I included above, you can see how many.) The radiologist believed that several of the bones in the Arabian horse's hock were compromised. The Pilchuck vets believed only one bone in one hock (the right) was crushed.

Dr Fehr explained the crushing of the horse's hock to me like this. Take a soft bar of soap and put it between your thumb and forefinger and squeeze. The surfaces of the soap succumb to the pressure resulting in a bunch of little tiny cracks or fissures. The soap will change shape from the assault.

Mechanically, all those bones in the horse's hock fit together like puzzle pieces allowing the hock to function. In the case of this young Arabian horse, one of the puzzle pieces no longer fits because it's shape has been altered. The pieces no longer move in unison. Pain is caused by the other bones rubbing up against the piece that no longer fits. Eventually this rubbing will cause arthritis. The extent of the arthritis will be dependent upon the amount of use, body weight being carried, etc. Long term effects would be to expect the horse would not live it's normal life span.

Also, Mother Nature has a way of compensating for injuries like this in foals. Normally, a foal that has experienced crushing syndrome like this will not mature to normal size. That is one of the reasons that many times surviving twins to not grow to meet their full genetic coding.

The x-rays showed that the injury had calcification. That meant is had been some time since it had happened. It also showed it was a weight bearing injury. It probably happened at or soon after birth when the horse first put weight on her limbs.
The x-rays also showed that the bones of this horse were still not hardened properly. That meant that the horse was still at risk of further injury. It also meant that the other twin's bones were probably not hardened properly either. The colt,too, was at risk of injury. There was no way to know how long it was going to take for the horses' bones to harden fully. In the meantime, the horses were on indefinite stall rest.

As far as a prognosis for these Arabian horses, that was yet to be determined. If we could keep the horses quiet on stall rest and avoid anymore damage to their joints, and if we could correct the angular limb deformities which were intensifying the possibility of injury to the soft bones, The horses could possiblly grow into normal horses. However, the vets believed the filly would never be a riding horse. She would most certainly always be lame and probably be a dwarf. If we couldn't prevent any further injury, it was anybody's guess. The young horses who fought this hard to live could end of candidates for euthanization.

As a horse woman this has been one of the most challenging events of my career. It has taken my heart and tied it up into knots and then beat it with a hammer. Each time I thought we had overcome all of the obstacles a new one presented itself. Looking into the sweet faces of these two foals and watching their "maiden mare" mother take their antics in stride always seemed to give the extra oomph I needed to keep on trying. There was no way I could look at these young Arabian horses and euthanized them.

To be continued........
Part 4

Scandalous Trouble and Scandalous Surprise are ten months old today.

And as a final note, I finally devoted a blog to Tommy Garland on the one day not one search engine request came through on my blog for Tommy Garland. Wouldn't you know that's how it would work.

Arabian horse Arabian horses horses horse twin foals twin horses

More Reflections on Twin Arabian Foals Part 2

The beginning of the twins story starts here

We left off with the twin Arabian filly, Scandalous Surprise, showing signs of soreness in her right hock. Other than the lameness, the horse looked like she was feeling fine. The twin Arabain colt, Scandalous Trouble, was eating and drinking fine but still seemed to be "too quiet" for a healthy foal. The veterinarian and I had decided not to take the advice of Pilchuck Hospital and re-start a course of antibiotics in the filly. Instead we planned on waiting for conclusive proof that the treatment was necessary. Even though delaying the antibiotics would put the horse at grave risk if we were wrong.

The other possible explanation in the young horse's hock soreness was an injury. It could be a "normal" injury but more likely it was an injury caused because of abnormal ossification of the bones. In layperson terms that means the bones might not be hardened properly. This is one of the usual symptoms of dysmaturity in twin horse foals. While this diagnosis wasn't favorable for these susceptible young horses, it was not as life threatening as the return of the septicemia. The only way to tell for sure was X-rays. If the x-rays ruled out injury, then we were back faced with the possibility the septicemia had returned.

We needed to get x-rays done on the horse asap. With Dr Gillette's new digital x-rays machine we could get more definitive pictures. The machine also had the capability of sending them by email so we could speed up the diagnosis. The only problem was Jack didn't have the hardware he needed to take picture in the field yet. So to use this machine, we had to take the three Arabian horses down to the vet's clinic for x-rays.

Moving the three Arabian horses has been a challenge. Our last trip the mare got stressed and her milk production backed off. Keeping the two foals out from underneath the big horse's legs was a task by itself. There was no way to safely transport the horses without a person riding in the back with the Arabian mare and her twin foals. My daughter, Lindsay, has balance problems, so she wasn't a good candidate to manage the trip. That meant I needed to wait for help to arrive. In the meantime, the vet and his assistant went off to the clinic to get the machine set up.

As it turned out my older daughter, Colleen, was off work for the day. She was able to help transport the horses (Arabian twin foals and their mother ). The vet's clinic is fairly close to my farm but is down a steep, windy hill. We needed to keep the twin horses as quiet as possible on this trip. If the problem with the twin filly was from soft bones, any excess or uneven pressure could cause more damage. The odds were if the filly had immature bones, so did the colt. Both horses were at risk for more damage to their joints if the horses were stumbling around in the horse trailer. Colleen had her hands full.

By the time the horse trailer pulled into the clinic, they were all set up and ready for us. The vet assistant, Colleen and I each grabbed a horse and headed inside. The mare was a saint. Even though she's never been to the clinic before, the horse walked right in giving Colleen no problems. The Arabian twin foals were not so willing. Not that they were afraid, mind you, the horses just wanted to play. Normally, a frolicking foal isn't a problem. But when faced with the possibility that the horses' bones are not hardened properly, it becomes a scary proposition. Fortunately, the twin horses were still small enough to be carried so that's how the sqwiggly foals got inside the clinic.

It was pretty clear that this was going to be an adventure. Dr Gillette put the mare (horse) in the palpation chute. He figured the twin foals could be turned loose in the clinic. I just laughed at his foolishness. Having lived with these characters (horses) for almost a month now, I knew how much trouble the horses could be. While the vet and his assistant did the final preparations, the twin Arabian horses bucked and kicked and romped their way around his clinic. The poor mare in the palpation chute was nickering to the horses but they didn't care. Colleen and I couldn't help but laugh as we tried to catch the little varmits (horses). "Slip, Sliding Away" comes to mind when I think of the horses' adventure in the clinic that day and the picture of us trying to catch them..

Finally, we caught the Arabian filly to begin her x-rays. It took four people to do the s-rays, one to work the machine, one to maneuver the horse and the other two to control the little monster (horse). Surprise (young horse) was not pleased with being confined. The twin Arabian foal wanted loose and used every trick in her little horse book trying to free herself. To say we needed to do multiple X-rays to even get a clear one would be a gross understatement. The other twin horse saw this situation as Surprise (the other horse) getting all of the attention. So while we wrestled with the filly, the colt was pulling on our clothes, biting at the wires on the machine and just plain reeking general mayhem. I, for one, was a sweaty mess by the time we got the first x-rays of the horse's legs done. I don't think the other faired much better.

While we waited for the vet to check the filly's x-rays, we let the horses loose in the clinic again. Surprise (twin filly) took her bruised horse ego over to her mother (horse) in the palpation chute to nurse reaching underneath the bars. Trouble (twin colt) was right behind her. The older horse (mare) stood in the chute shaking her head up and down. I'm pretty sure the horse must have been saying, "Come on you guys! Give me a break!"

Once the security nursing was over, the Arabian twin foals (horses) were back to "slip sliding away" around the clinic. It was obvious that while the filly had soreness in that right hock, the young horse had no intention of letting it slow her down. The colt was up for anything the filly was. Both horses strutted around that clinic like they owned the place.

Unfortunately, many of the x-rays were not clear because the horse had done so much wiggling. We had to do another round. Tthis time the horse was given a mild sedative, just enough to slow her down. We still needed the horse to stand on the leg. This time things were better but it was still a zoo. The small filly shook her head and stomped her front feet in protest while her brother (the other twin horse) pulled instruments out of the vet's pockets, kicked me for not paying attention to him, and head butted Colleen. You get the picture.

This batch of x-rays turned out better despite the filly's best efforts to sabotage them. So it was time to send them off to the experts and wait. In the meantime, the twin Arabian horses would need to be continually monitored for changes in behavior, just in case septicemia was the cause of our current problems. More stall rest for the three horses was also the order of the day. We loaded our charges back into the horse trailer and headed home.

The trip in the horse trailer was more difficult for the horses. This was the uphill pull on the steep, windy hill. Both of the yound horses had problems standing up and added pressure was put on their hind lims. Something we were trying to avoid with soft bones being a threat. Downshipting in the middle of the hill sent the horses and Colleen staggering. Thankfully, no one was hurt and we were soon home.

The twin Arabian horses were compelled to do a little acting out on the way back to the barn. Neither horse was happy about being dumped on their little hoorse ears in the horse trailer. So the horses had to puy on a display of bucking, kicking, striking and rearing to be sure we understood the extent of their displeasure. Both horses put on the brakes at the door to their stall. Neither one wanted to go back inside. I think if either horse had an idea of how long they (the horses) would be stuck in that stall, we'd still be out there trying to put them in.

To be continued....
Part Three

Thanks for all of the comments. I appreciate your input. If my rankings are falling and I have no comments, I don't have any idea what to do to work on the rankings. With input I can tell what posts interest you and I can tell what I need to write about. I can pretty much write about anything having to do with Arabian horses and be happy. So as it goes now, I'll keep on writing both the series about the Arabian twins and also how I got started in the horse industry with Scandalous. Along the way I'll throw in a few of my opinions and other horse experiences and you guys will let me know if you like or don't like what I'm writing about. Thanks to everyone for your support and a special thank you to those of you that have emailed my blog off for your friends to read. Hopefully someday, the story of Scandalous Trouble and Scandalous Surprise will be published.


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More Reflections on Horses - Twin Arabian Foals

To begin at Part 1 of this Series

To this point, the rare Arabian twin foals have made it through some tough times. With even greater odds stacked against the twin horses because of a difficult and protracted birthing process, septicemia in the filly, and a suspicious tumor in their mother, It is a miracle these Arabian twin foals have made it to four weeks old. But they have and things are beginning to look hopeful for the horses.

The filly has made it through her round of medidcation and the infection has not come back. The colt is improving every day, although he still is too quiet for an Arabian foal. All three Arabian horses (the mare and both foals) have finally got to go outside for the first time. That seemed to be an uneventful session and I'm beginning to think that life is going to now be normal. Thank God!

That peace didn't last for long. The next day as I turned the three horses (the mare and both twin foals) out again, someone noticed that the filly, Scandalous Surprise, was favoring one leg, her right hind. Checking the horse closely, I found heat in her hock. My heart dropped. Heat and joint swelling are symptoms of joint ill. It time for another frantic call the vet. Even though in my heart, I didn't think this filly was relapsing, I was not willing to gamble with her life.

Jack Gillette would be there as soon as he could. In the meantime I returned the three horses (the mare and twin foals) to their stall. I stood outside the stall studying the filly closely. While the tiny twin horse was lame, the filly just didn't look sick to me. The last time her behavior had changed. All that outward spunk and Arabian horse attitude had gotten pretty quiet. This time it was all right there busting out at her little seams. This Arabian twin foal was feeling good despite her sore hock.

By the time the veterinarian arrived, I was concerned. I didn't want to put this vulnerable Arabian twin foal back on antibiotics if she didn't really need them. But I didn't want to loose her because I was wrong either. Trusting your gut can be a really scary thing sometimes. This was about as scary as it gets for me, this life of this horse was in the balance.

Jack felt the same way about the horse's condition, I did. Putting the Arabian twin foal back onto antibiotics meant putting a cathater back into her vein. Each time that is done, it causes scaring to the horse's vein making it more difficult for the next time. As small as the vein in this tiny Arabian twin foal was, we didn't want to be causing scarring that could lock us out from that avenue of treatment later. One more thing to complicate the decision about treatment for this very vulnerable twin horse.

So Dr Gillette called Pilchuck Hospital for input. Dr Fehr recommended we start the Arabian twin foal on antibiotics and do a full panel of x-rays. If the x-rays showed any reason for the lameness we could take the twin horse off of the antibiotics. Dr. Ferr was convinced that the septecemia had flared up but she couldn't see the condition the filly was in.

Standing there watching that filly, neither of us was convinced that the Arabian twin foal was sick. The goofy filly was bucking and kicking in the stall, pissed off that the three horses play session had been cut short. Even with her now swelling hock, the horse just didn't look sick.

Relying on how the Arabian twin foal had behaved before with her illness, we decided to risk going against Pilchuck Hospital's recommended treatment for the filly. Not something either of us was doing lightly, we knew if we were wrong the precious Arabian twin foal (who had by now stolen our hearts) could pay with her life. But the nagging doubt that she might pay anyway if we treated the horse for something she didn't have weighed just as heavy. We would do the x-rays asap. Expedite them to an equine neo-natal expert and pray while we waited hoping that we had made the right decision for the Arabian twin foal.

To be continued....

Next chapter in the Arabian Twins Foals saga


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