# New to This and Foaling Soon



## Holly Chisholm (Apr 17, 2020)

Good morning!

My husband and I adopted a mini horse who had been on her way to becoming zoo food. The rescue told us that she was pregnant, and that when she arrived at the rescue, she was skin and bones. She is not so thin anymore, but her skin is thick. The vet said that was because she had not been fed well in her past. He also said to call when she goes into labor (expecting problems?).

Anyways, she is bagging up. I have the test strips and baby cam on order, and I just hope they get here in time. We are nervous wrecks! I have read all the scary stuff that can happen.

I just found this forum last night, and it has already been so helpful!!!! Here's Sally.

Holly


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## Maryann at MiniV (Apr 17, 2020)

Oh my....yep is round! Have you been able to get any liquid from teat(s)? If you can, put a little between you thumb and index finger and test how sticky it is. If it feels IMMEDIATELY like honey, she is very close. Bless you for rescuing her!!!


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## Holly Chisholm (Apr 17, 2020)

Maryann at MiniV said:


> Oh my....yep is round! Have you been able to get any liquid from teat(s)? If you can, put a little between you thumb and index finger and test how sticky it is. If it feels IMMEDIATELY like honey, she is very close. Bless you for rescuing her!!!



Thank you so much for your reply! No, we haven't been able to get any milk out, but dang, she is bagging up fast!


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## Pitter Patter (Apr 17, 2020)

She is gorgeous!!


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## Holly Chisholm (Apr 17, 2020)

Pitter Patter said:


> She is gorgeous!!



That is sweet of you to say. We think she is kind of rough looking  We chose her for her sweet personality for our little backyard petting zoo.


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## Taz (Apr 17, 2020)

Good for you and thank you for rescuing her!! She's a little rough looking but absolutely wonderful . 
Just a thought... if her coat stays patchy or you notice her being really itchy you might want to ask your vet about lice. It's not as bad as it sounds and easy to get rid of.


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## Holly Chisholm (Apr 17, 2020)

Taz said:


> Good for you and thank you for rescuing her!! She's a little rough looking but absolutely wonderful .
> Just a thought... if her coat stays patchy or you notice her being really itchy you might want to ask your vet about lice. It's not as bad as it sounds and easy to get rid of.



Thank you! We did have the vet look at her. He said that her skin looks thick from poor nutrition. That make me concerned for the foal, although it's usually the mom, not the baby, who suffers the brunt of malnutrition. If all that fluff doesn't shed out, we will clip her when it gets warmer. 

When I tried to check her bag just now, I got a little buck. She seems cranky. She has also been backing up to the gate and scratching her back end. Both of those behaviors are new. I don't have my baby monitor yet, and I'm afraid of her foaling when we're asleep.

I have read a lot of scary stories about minis having issues when foaling. Someone please tell me that there usually aren't any problems.


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## Taz (Apr 17, 2020)

I've only done this once before but after weeks of watching and worrying my little girl had her foal so fast and easy I watched it before I could get out of the house. This one has had more than 10 foals(All before me, I don't think I will ever do this as a planned baby) the last 4 without anyone even on the property and she's never needed any help. It doesn't stop me from freaking out but it helps.

If you have a cell phone you can use on her halter and either wifi or data in your barn there's an app you can get that lets you use it as a foaling alarm. It's called foal app(foalapp.com). It works by sounding an alarm on your phone if she's on her side for an amount of time that you can set it to. Have a look, I used it last time and it worked. It will wake you up for false alarms but might help you relax some until your camera gets there. I use them together, works great but I'm still up watching the camera.


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## Taz (Apr 18, 2020)

Forgot to add, you don't have to wait and get their pouch. I used a ziplock bag duct taped onto her halter, worked great.


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## Holly Chisholm (Apr 18, 2020)

Taz said:


> Forgot to add, you don't have to wait and get their pouch. I used a ziplock bag duct taped onto her halter, worked great.



Thank you so much for your advice. I looked into it, but I don't have a spare cell phone.


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## Maryann at MiniV (Apr 18, 2020)

Give her scritches on her belly every day and slowly work your way down to her bag to get her used you in that area.


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## Pitter Patter (Apr 18, 2020)

Holly Chisholm said:


> That is sweet of you to say. We think she is kind of rough looking  We chose her for her sweet personality for our little backyard petting zoo.


Mine look a little rough at the moment too. Your girl has the sweetest face and kind eye--that's what makes her beautiful!


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