LP Painted Ponys - 2015 Foaling

[Ryan Johnson]

Any news on the Mothers to be Paula ?

 

[paintponylvr]

Well, I don't feel that Bell & Bit (the two older, solid silver dapple full sisters) are in foal - for which I'm grateful. Both have been in season - "hard" - this week. If Bell is still in season tomorrow, I will be covering her with Wizard than & will finish out this heat cycle and see what happens. I'm still up in the air about 'Clipse & K-La. Cheri is looking the least like she's pregnant (sorry - haven't done any pics of her yet)... Well here's one from February.

Here she is in October last year - right before we moved to temporary quarters and then to here.

Here is what Cheri looked like 1 week before foaling in 2013 (maiden mare).

and a couple of hours after foaling (sorry for daughter's sleep clothes! I no longer had/have photo shop and boy, do I miss it. I can/would have photo shopped more coverage - most photos I've cut her out of...LOL).

If Cheri is currently pregnant, this will be her 2nd foal. Wizard is her 1/2 brother and it's not a breeding I would have planned. I do plan on breeding Cheri to Echo in 2016 for a 2017 foal and already, I'm very excited about that foal!

Koalah and Tory are carrying on w/ carrying, LOL. They are looking very round since I've increased their feed. Tory is carrying this foal different than I remember her carrying either of the two colts for us (maybe a filly???

). She's had 5 colts in a row. I'd love to have a filly to keep (then I'd need to seriously advertise a couple of our others - can't keep them all!). Currently smaller and less "bulgey" out to the sides and very much hanging down like a small basketball - at least for now...

They got a new type of hay on Friday (round bale - Italian Rye) - and we'll see how they do. Glad I only got 1 bale for the Sr mares pasture - they can't completely gorge while they are chasing each other off the bale,

. Never gotten it before. The hay suppliers in our area that didn't plant anything over or within their coastal won't have hay until July (used to get first cut coastal in April/May). The weather has dropped back into the 40s here at night and only 52* today with loads of rain - Coastal hay has quit growing. GGGRRRR!!!!! Hate it when this happens.

Hope it's not pouring rain all day tomorrow. Have some things to do out in the pastures (not working), breed Bell and groom some others. Plan on taking pics, too. The pics I took on Friday - all jr mares taken w/ my new phone. Also, plan on going to check on Eclipse at Vicki's to see how she is doing. I'm a little surprised she's not unwrapped her little one yet!

 

[paintponylvr]

So I did pics today of Cheri. I might be thinking she will also foal.

Here's her pics - the first two were 1 before grooming & 1 after - rear quarter shots. Also figured out that if the mare turns her head, it can throw off the look of her belly sides, but hmmm... Think so... This mare is taller and longer/leaner than my other mares. She has more room to "hide" a foal - especially if it is small.

So color possibilities - only 1. This will be a bay tobiano foal. Could be either homozygous or heterozygous for both black and bay. Will be homozygous tobiano. Cheri is: EE, Aa, TT. Wizard is: Ee, AA, TT.

Both of these ponies are pretty movers and have GREAT dispositions. I'm hoping for more size - but that remains to be seen. Healthy would be best - the rest is just "icing on the cake"...

Also - can someone else check my count on days? Wizard got out with the mares on July 12, 2014. What day would that put them at today? Is my calculation correct or wrong - I'm counting 289 today?

 

[paintponylvr]

and here is Koalah's pics today -

and Tory's pics:

I will groom them the next time, LOL.

 

[chandab]

This page on LB info pages has a link to a foaling calculator:

http://www.lilbeginnings.com/info/breeding/

And, yes 289. Cheri doesn't look very pregnant to me, but I know they can hide them, especially taller/lankier mares.

 

[lkblazin]

Still quite the array of color. I'm so excited to see what they will produce.

 

[paintponylvr]

So here are some pics at 300 days.

Koalah foaled at 333 days in 2013. She had pretty much the same development of udder at the same stage (took pic @ 303 days in 2013).

Here was her udder in 2013...

 

[paintponylvr]

Here are pics of Tory...

Different angle(s) then from 2013 for about the same time...

Her udder in 2013 - she was difficult to get these shots of. She'd happily kick you in the teeth, still will if you aren't careful. As she got closer to foaling she allowed more handling and didn't mind her udder getting washed that last day right before she foaled. After she foals though - stay away and leave her alone...

 

[lkblazin]

Really cool to see them over time

 

[paintponylvr]

I thought I had many more photos of the girls' leading up to foaling in the past, but I don't. I've already got more this year than in the past!

But it really is cool! I love it when you only have one cover date. Makes it a little easier to calculate "due dates" - or at least something to go off of.

Pics I took of "'Clipse" and "K-la" - I don't think they are pregnant. However, I've not seen either of them come into season this spring yet. Could be age on "K-la", not sure on 'Clipse". Want to breed 'Clipse" to our "AJ" son ("Echo") for a foal in 2017... Would also like to breed "K-la" - but decided against breeding any mares back this year (for now - will see what I decide when "Koalah" & "Tory" foal). I decided against breeding "Bell" last week when she was in heat. Since wasn't sure how many coming this year, decided better to wait.

'Clipse" pics - I will continue to watch her, but just would have expected her to be larger if she was in foal... Couldn't get a rear shot, but got a front one. She was dancing a lot in the wind and changing pressure w/ the tropical storm building (all ponies a bit crazy yesterday & so far today)...

Pics of "K-la" -

Am taking pics of "Cheri" this afternoon, and will post those later... Got lots of pics of the "boys" yesterday after the farrier was out and I turned "Wizard" out w/ them... Will do some later, too.

 

[paintponylvr]

I'm here so here's pics of "Wizzy" enjoying turn out time w/ the boys. After making sure the fence would hold while jr girls teasing him, I left him out for 6 hours w/ the boys - he was VERY HAPPY but came trotting right up to me to be put up (I sooo love that - other ponies just don't do that!) - such a great boy. Hope these two babies have personalities like he does - that would be GREAT!!

Our "Boys Pasture" is the 13.2 hh 1/2 shetland gelding, "Sami"; the 2 shetland geldings full brothers - "Cupid" 2010 & "Rio" 2013; 2010 shetland gelding "Ranger" and 2013 stud colt "Echo". Also, have 2 boarders that are now in a separate pen. Only get turnout when someone here and neither "Sami" or "Wizard" can be out. Eventually, won't work w/ "Echo" out either... Off and on, they have all been housed and turned out together, though "Wizard" doesn't stay out all the time. Eventually, "Echo" will also be separated from the group - hope to be able to leave him out for longer though. "Wizard" and "Echo" are our first stallions to be raised w/ constant turn-out w/ others.

Our previous 2 stallions were turned out all the time with a "herd" - the 1st one with larger Arab/horse mares that he couldn't reach (not for lack of trying when they were in season) and Iggy w/ varying groups based on being bred... It's harder to work it out now - don't want mares bred all the time/every year.

 

[lkblazin]

Lovely boy

 

[paintponylvr]

 

[KLM]

i love WIZARD!!!

Fell free to send him to California if you get bored with him!

 

[Ryan Johnson]

All looking great Paula

 

[paintponylvr]

So, it's been a few more days and Koalah has done a bit more "shopping".

Here she is, just about completely shed out, too...

 

[paintponylvr]

Getting pretty excited, tell the truth!!

************

here's pics of Tory - taken today. She has also been shopping - though not to the same extent as Koalah has...

 

[paintponylvr]

and here are pics of K-La and 'Clipse. I still can't decide if they are pregnant. The pics of the bellies, to me, say "baby"... BUT? Didn't get udder pics of K-La.

 

[paintponylvr]

 

[Ryan Johnson]

Looking good Paula

Koalah is huge