Twins

[Bondama]

My palomino appendix mare gave birth to twins Wednesday night, fraternal ones, a red dun filly (complete with marked dorsal stripe) and a grullo colt. Yes, grullo! I asked the vet how they could be so different, and he said this mare apparently produces two follicles....not one that might have split. He recommended ultrasounding her should she ever be re-bred, and we will definitely do that. Surprisingly, too, she went 340 days to the day, so they were full term.

The colt was very nearly full size, but the filly is petite. Sadly, in spite of that, the colt developed neurological problems which the vet said is common in twins, and had to be euthanized this morning. He never was able to stand up, and although he nursed vigorously via bottle feeding, he just got worse and worse, and then began to have seizures. The little filly, however, is a miracle. At about 40 lbs., all her vitals are normal, she can stand without assistance, although her feet are still very crooked, but improving. She had to be bottle fed the first night and following day, but has learned to find mama's teat and nurse. She doesn't wobble (windswept I think?).....she's perfect in every way, just small. We are giving her IM antibiotics twice daily, and making sure she nurses each hour, and has "exercise".....standing and walking around as much as she can. The vet was unabashedly stunned at her - he thought the colt would have made it, and she would have been a loss....we are naming her Saving Grace, and are calling her Gracie. Still, in spite of everything positive, she really isn't out of the woods yet.....I suppose anything can happen, but right now we're going hour by hour and everything is as perfect as it can be.

Photos early next week.

B

[geowarrior]

So sorry about your colt, and I will send good thoughts in the direction of your filly. She sounds like a fighter.

[clh]

Sorry about the loss of the colt Hope the filly continues to improve! Thoughts are with you. Losing a little one is never easy. Hope the little gal pulls through though.

C

[tammysinnett]

My thoughts are with you ....and prayers for the filly keep us updated.

[Bondama]

It's Monday morning now and the baby is doing so wonderfully! It is truly a miracle of God how incredibly far she's come so quickly. I have converted my little "back yard" to a walkout....it's really only about 15 x 20 or so, and made my little covered deck into a stall. We moved a water bucket in for Goldie, and she's taken up residence there quite nicely! We only have to walk out the back door and there they both are.

To watch this baby cavorting about on her little crooked legs just fills my heart up to the brim. It isn't bothering HER one bit! She is doing everything a "normal" baby would do, although she herself is far from normal! I think of her as a kind of premie, everything is there, just smaller. Even though she was a full-term foal. Mama's rich milk is helping her to fill out - she's losing that newborn "bony" look and her ribcage is not so pronounced.

I called the vet to request a return call so I can give him an update. I know he's going to want to go by and have a look so he can decide about splints, but I kind of have the feeling he'll want to give her time to strengthen and straighten up on her own. I don't know how long of a process that is, but I do see lots of improvement, more especially in her back feet. Her little gummy hooves are gone and she's got the harder ones now, so that may help too. It may just be a matter of time and exercise. It's certainly been a huge learning experience for us!!


Pics soon!

[clh]

Such wonderful news! I'll still keep her in my thoughts - she's one lucky gal to have you taking such good care of her! Sometimes just giving them a little bit of time will help the legs a bunch!

Bless you!

[tammysinnett]

yes I bet she is like a premie....her legs will straighten out I bet. Such a wonderful week to have a birthday (mine too)for she is a Leo!!! She will end up being a strong baby both mentally and physically when she grows up....love does wonders. Good job getting her this far and keep us posted how she is growing. Pictures soon please

[Jenny]

My friend had twins at her farm, 2 little fillies. One was full size and the other was a peanut like your little girl. The smaller one legs were very weak and crooked. The vet had her splint her legs with cotton batton and cut in half conduit pipes for wiring. She ended up being perfectly normal in the end. Beautiful dark bay filly. She had to be separated from her mother because the other much larger baby was beating her up. So another open broodmare took her in and she was eating from a lambs bottle hung on the wall with formula. It worked great. So hopefully your story ends up as successful as this one. good luck

[madelyn]

Oh twins are something like a curse.. we ALWAYS ultrasound to make sure the mares have not twinned. The real curse is that a mare that has twinned is much more likely to do it again!

[Jenny]

We also ultrasound to make sure. But the times I have heard about it in our area they say that they did and the vet must have missed it! It is a shame because most of the time it does not work out well at all. Especially, it puts your mare at great risk!!

[Bondama]

Here are the photos I promised. This first one is of both twins, and mama. The filly is lower left, the colt is to the right.

[img][img]http://inlinethumb29.webshots.com/5532/2853552320085531741S425x425Q85.jpg[/img][/img]

This is my youngest daughter, Jayne, bottle feeding the filly.

[img][img]http://inlinethumb61.webshots.com/6396/2856400430085531741S425x425Q85.jpg[/img][/img]

This was at 2 days old, when she was finally able to stand unassisted.

[img][img]http://inlinethumb48.webshots.com/8751/2466859150085531741S425x425Q85.jpg[/img][/img]

Just a closeup of her face / blaze. She's a flashy little thing!

[img][img]http://inlinethumb40.webshots.com/5415/2733017610085531741S425x425Q85.jpg[/img][/img]

Here, she's wet from where mama's teats ran on her! I swear, that mare has so much milk!!

[img][img]http://inlinethumb58.webshots.com/5689/2160186590085531741S425x425Q85.jpg[/img][/img]

Day 3, finally able to nurse without help.

[img][img]http://inlinethumb52.webshots.com/9139/2563312860085531741S425x425Q85.jpg[/img][/img]

Tired baby, getting a rest. You can see her dorsal stripe pretty good here.

[img][img]http://inlinethumb26.webshots.com/8985/2828901710085531741S425x425Q85.jpg[/img][/img]

She is a week old today, and we actually have to work to catch her to give her the antibiotic injections! Poor baby hates it, and so do I, but we're doing what we gotta do. The vet says that we can stop on Friday, which will be the 10th day, and he'll feel much more confident about her chances of survival then. He calls me daily to check on her, and is thrilled, as we all are, that she is not just surviving, but thriving, putting on weight, and being a normal baby. Her feet are much better today than they look in these pictures, and he feels like they'll straighten up well on their own without the aid of splints.

[clh]

Lovely fillies - the human and the equine.

I know it is hard on the mare to have twins - we too ultrasound and pinch twins but I also know sometimes they aren't found. My one mare is always so HUGE I always have my vet check and double check up until foaling time to make sure she isn't carrying twins.

Bondama - what a cutie. Hopefully she'll pull through - sorry the other one didn't. But count yourself lucky that you got one live one and the mare survived that ordeal!

Keep us posted.

[Bondama]

Our little survivor is 10 days old today. Am waiting on a call from the vet to confirm that we can give her the last of her antibiotic injections tonight. She's fleshing out nicely, can barely see any ribs now, and she's starting to get a little butt! She's up on her hooves more than flat on her fetlocks, but still has a ways to go. And can she buck!! You can't tell her she's not like the other horses. Gotta love that little fighting spirit.

[ak1]

Glad to hear good news!

[Bondama]

17 days old today, and 10 days with no antibiotics. She's giving all outward indications of being a normal, healthy baby. Feet are slightly less crooked - looks like improvement is imminent. She is very vocal, and has learned to LOVE being scratched. More pics next week!