Heat and Sparks a Good Mix Maybe So

Another great day with Filly learning how to play. It appears that she's finally ready to play like a normal foal. She was running & bucking with Grey Girl in the late afternoon, not seeming to care that it was 100+ degrees. Her legs are working & she's going to use them. Long after GG stopped running, Filly kept running & doing body twists. She was having so much fun & it's so wonderful to watch her. She's also deciding it's time to venture out away from Mama. She's always been independent in that she never fretted, whinnied or ran to keep up with Mama. But she also never wandered off on her own. She always just slowly plodded along behind her mother. Now she's wandering from one end of the pasture to the other, not minding that Mama is far away. Now that Filly's legs are healing she's finding not only her confidence, but that life can be fun & exciting. She's able to play & have fun. She no longer has to be careful & place every step precisely. It's great to watch her explore, run, buck & play. At 2 1/2 months old, Filly is finally a happy foal & there's a new spark in her eye.

Runnin' and Playin' Around 7/27

What a wonderful sight in the early morning cool to see Filly running & playing with Grey Girl. The fillies were running & bucking, fishtailing & rearing, snorting & flagging their tails. The cool of the morning seemed to bring out the playfulness in the otherwise sedate Filly. She was even spied rearing up & across Mama's back. Mama is such a good, tolerant mother & she never even twitched an ear when her exuberant filly jumped on her. The frisky Filly even bucked & kicked at Mama. Grey Girl is as feisty a filly as they come, galloping & leaping through the air, showing Filly how to enjoy life. Mommy Dearest isn't a tolerant mother & GG has learned to not jump on or kick at her mother. This doesn't prevent her from zooming around MD, scattering the hay in defiance. It was so much fun watching the fillies play that CMK was late to work because the fillies were so captivating. From now on CMK has vowed to get up earlier to watch the fillies, not wanting to be late again because it's doubtful the boss will understand the joy of watching foals play.

John Deere Green on a Hot Summer Night 7/26

This weekend was a working weekend at the ranch. We know it's still summer, but there are so many things to do to prepare for the winter rains. Grandpa came with his tractor to clean the mare's & filly's pasture. Grey Girl wanted nothing to do with the green monster that was making all the dust. She & Mommy Dearest fled to the bottom of the pasture & watched wide-eyed from a distance. Filly on the other hoof was quite fascinated & kept trying to get close to check the tractor out. When the bucket or scraper moved, Filly would dash off with her tail in the air. She even kicked up her heels at it a few times. It was so cute to watch. Her curiosity was getting the best of her & she seemed to be making a game out of running away. It's so good to see her have a little spunk because she's a rather sedate, old soul filly.

CMK planted a big garden this year, complete with carrots. There was also corn but it was planted too close to the pasture fence & Mommy Dearest ate most of it before CMK put up higher fencing. While Grandpa was running the tractor, CMK noticed there were cucumbers growing through the fence into the pasture. The shock was that the cucumbers all had the ends, those sticking through the fence, bitten off. It looked like foal size teeth had been nibbling on them. What those fillies won't eat! Or better said is, what Filly won't eat. She loves carrots, apples, watermelon, & has even eaten a peach. One day she even ate zucchini squash! What a silly filly!

The forecast for the next week is heat, heat, & more heat. So far Mama is holding up. We'll sure be glad when summer is over so the worry about Mama over heating can end. With the garden on the fence line, at least there's a sprinkler spraying a mist & cooling things down a little. The sprinkler has also made a little green patch that the mares & fillies love. Sometimes the fillies can be seen laying in the green, nibbling as they nap. What a great life these fillies lead. Eat, sleep & be merry.

Hot Hot Hot..... And Only Gettin' Hotter

Another scorching day & horses are miserable in the heat. Mama is doing as well as can be expected with her health issues. She sweats in odd patterns & those areas lose hair, looking like a horse suffering rain rot. She has salt deposits across her body, indicating she's losing electrolytes. She gets 4oz of white salt twice daily to replenish these losses, as well as a salt block available at all times. She has hay in front of her 24/7 & she's holding her weight steady at 834 on the tape. Of course this is still over 100lbs underweight, but unbelievably better than the 585lbs she was a few short months ago.

Filly is so sad & depressed without her friend. She's forlorn & continues to whinny pitifully in search of Grey Girl, who never bothers to whinny back. We've noticed that Filly lays down a lot more now than she ever has. Sometimes she lays eating hay & other times she just lays & scratches her legs. Bet she's glad she can scratch them after all these weeks of being wrapped. It seems the heat & loss of her friend has sapped her energy. Her eye has totally cleared up & her legs look fantastic.

Grey Girl's eye is doing better. It's not weeping & it's not squinting. The blue, damaged area is smaller in size & less intense in color. She'll continue to get ointment in it for a few more days. It's still dilated so she isn't yet able to go back on pasture. When an eye is dilated it can be irreversibly damaged by the sun. No chances are being taken so Mommy Dearest & GG remain stallbound. They don't seem to mind as long as they have feed around the clock. Horses sure can eat a lot. And boy can they poop. So glad I'm not the one cleaning the stall.

Sunday morning was a mixed bag of good & bad. It was awesome to see Filly's legs doing so fantastic after her first 48 hours unwrapped. It looks like all the hard work & dedication has paid off. Even Filly's knees are looking better with the sponge like lumps & bumps dissolving. Her eye has also cleared up. While we'll never know what caused her eye to become so goopy, it appears being out of the night paddock has fixed the problem.

We wish we could say the same for poor Grey Girl's eye. Her left eye was 3/4 closed & weeping copiously when CMK fed breakfast. It looked like not only was something in the eye, but there was a definite blue area in the corner. Thankfully it's not in the field of vision. One person alone couldn't hold GG AND treat the eye so a call was made & DW came to the rescue once again. Grey Girl is an extremely strong filly, quite possibly in the ranks of a WWF wrestler foal style. CMK had to pin her into a corner, lean on her, & put a semi-choke hold on her so that DW could check out the eye. With tiny forceps a foxtail was removed. Once again CMK is relegated to twice daily stall cleanings. The knight in shining armor, DW, is once again scheduled to come help with the little spitfire nightly until the eye heals. Hopefully no one will ask "what's next"?

When Filly first realized her little friend was not coming back out to play she got mad, running, bucking, calling & even kicking at Mama. Oh what a little brat! Finally she lay down to take a nap. When she woke, she continued searching for Grey Girl but the anger was gone. Filly was moping & walking across the pasture in Eeyore fashion, crying the most pitiful little whinnies. Her sorrowful whinnies were enough to break anyone's heart. Who says horses don't have feelings? Anyone who thinks horses don't have feelings and emotions should come meet Filly. She's such an emotional & expressive filly with tons of personality, loving with all her heart. Hopefully Grey Girl will soon return to pasture so Filly will perk up. It's so sad seeing her depressed. Grey Girl on the other hand could care less, never answering Filly's pitiful whinnies. GG is happy to be with Mommy Dearest, munching on hay & napping in shavings. While CMK & DW don't agree with her, GG thinks she's quite the lucky filly.

Born to Be WILD

Last night Filly not only didn't get her wraps back on, she spent the night on pasture instead of in the night paddock. This morning not only did her legs look good, her eye was NOT goopy. She did so well through her first 24 hours of freedom. CMK kept a close watch on her throughout the day in case her legs tired or weakened & she needed to be brought in for her wraps. Nope, didn't happen. She spent all day on pasture. A sprinkler was on & she even stood close enough to get misted. Filly sure knows how to stay cool in this 100* plus heat.

MJ visited today & was over heard telling Filly that she could come live with MJ. Those are pretty darned near to being fighting words! Filly isn't going anywhere! MJ also admired Grey Girl, who is just the prettiest filly with a lot of elegance & refinement. She has such big, bright eyes & cute ears. GG really is hard to resist. Another friend stopped by to visit. Jim has been keeping an eye on the mares & fillies since they arrived at CMK's. He's always amazed that there's so much improvement in Mama & Filly every time he sees them. He thinks Filly is just fantastic & he loves her size & substance. Like most other visitors he's fallen under the spell of Grey Girl's very typey head. He thinks GG could have a future in the show ring, & he should know since he used to show "big time". ES also came to visit. We think he'd steal Filly if he thought he'd get away with it. She really is an impressive filly with her wonderful size & plenty of bone. She's a big filly & it's sometimes hard to remember she's only 2 months old. And of course her loving, pocket pony disposition is appreciated by all. Maybe CMK should put a lock on the pasture gate so the fillies don't disappear.

Wrap Free

Filly's wraps came off this morning for what's hoped to be the last time. Everyone please keep your hooves crossed she's ready to be splint/cast & wrap free. Her poor eye was so goopy that it was almost stuck shut. She was so good while her face was washed & all the goop cleaned away. CMK is convinced there's something in the night paddock that Filly is allergic to. It seems her eye is always bad in the morning & better in the evening after the day on pasture. When evening came & it was time for the mares & fillies to come in for their buckets of beet pulp, oats & supplements, CMK almost put the wraps on because of the fear that Filly's legs might not be ready for total freedom. Her legs looked really good so the wraps stayed packed away in the feed room. It will be long night waiting to see how Filly's legs do overnight.

To Live Dangerously or Not to Live at All

Happy one month birthday Grey Girl. This little girl is such a character. She's bright, alert & feisty. She's as pretty as she can be with bright eyes & the cutest, tippy ears. Every morning she attempts to chew on CMK's shirt & hair while Filly is getting her wraps off. If that doesn't get enough attention GG will resort to pawing on CMK. What a little spitfire!

Filly has been such a hard luck filly, but still she chooses to live dangerously. She has been caught actually nursing on Mommy Dearest. WHAT is she thinking? Silly filly is going to get clobbered if she's not careful. When her wraps went on tonight it was with the thought that it would be her last wrapping. Tomorrow morning they'll come off & hopefully no longer be needed. The weekend is the perfect time to do this because CMK will be home to monitor Filly's progress very closely. If it looks like she needs the support, she can come in & be immediately rewrapped. Filly's hind leg is no longer gimpy & the swelling is almost gone. She's much perkier now that her leg doesn't hurt. Her poor eye is still battling the goops. In the morning it's very messy but by evening it's better. Ointment was again put in it & hopefully it'll be better soon. Poor Filly. If it's not one thing wrong, it's another. It just isn't fair.

Bring On The Rain

Filly did great for her first full day without splints or 1/2 casts. She still gets wraps on at night, but that will also soon cease if she continues to do well. Her hind leg is better, less swelling & not so sore. Too bad she can't just tell us what she got caught on so we could make sure it doesn't happen again. Her eye was very goopy in the morning but by evening it was looking really good. More ointment was put in it & hopefully that takes care of the problem. Since the eye is goopy in the mornings, CMK is wondering if Filly is allergic to the rye hay she insists on using as a bed. She's on pasture during the day with no access to rye hay & her eye is always better at the end of the day. Something to consider if the eye doesn't clear up.

With more than a week of over 100* in the forecast, worry over Mama has been foremost on everyones minds. Additional salt has been added to her twice daily beet pulp & oat mashes. So far she's holding her own. While some of her odd sweating patterns have returned, she isn't sweating excessively or foamy. She also doesn't appear to be having a hard time dealing with the heat. There is plenty of shade on the pasture, including a small green section that has a sprinkler running 4 hours every evening. This gives the mommies & fillies a cool spot under the eucalyptus tree.

Good Night Sleep Tight

Filly is having a tough time lately. Not only does she need daily rewrapping & splinting on her front legs, she has a sore hind leg & now she has a goopy eye. Poor little girl. Her short life has sure had some rough patches. Medication was put in her eye & hopefully that will resolve the problem. She was such a good filly for her eye ointment. Her hind leg is still sore & she limps a little, but the swelling is much better. A few scratches were noticed on the upper front of her cannon bone so maybe she got her leg caught on something. There are no holes in the non-climb so it wasn't in the fence. It could have been on a berry bush or maybe a low tree branch. CMK will be working in the pasture with pruners to make sure there's nothing to catch little legs. A wait & see approach is being taken since the leg is a little better. It was finally time to wean Filly's left leg from the 1/2 cast. She was wrapped with extra support around the pastern, but no cast. Her pastern is still a little loose so some support is needed. She will be watched very closely to make sure her leg doesn't tire or weaken. Hopefully she is ready to live without casts or splints. She sure seemed happy to have more freedom of movement when she trotted out of the barn & into her night-night paddock.

Wraps and Wraps and it's not even Christmas

Poor Filly just can't catch a break. Her left hind leg is sore & swollen. It was first noticed after she was trimmed on Sun & she was sore when she walked off. The swelling is high, just below the hock, encompassing both the front & back of the leg. It appears to be tendon/tendon sheath in nature. It's not known what happened. She could have been stepped on, maybe she & Grey Girl were playing & she got kicked, or maybe she tweaked it during her trim. Poor Filly was feeling really sorry for herself, acting depressed & hanging all over CMK for sympathy. Her eyes are so expressive & you could see the dejected look in them. Looks like she'll now have 4 legs wrapped.

Filly's front legs are doing fabulous. Her left leg has now gone to an elbow support brace with the 1/2 cast. Slowly the bulky wraps & splints have come off. In the next few days the 1/2 cast will be removed. The only area of her leg that needs support is her pastern & that can be achieved through wrapping alone. The 12 hours on/12 hours off schedule has worked perfectly. Her legs have strengthened without tiring. She no longer wears any cuff & her feet are looking good. Filly has come a long way & appears to be on the short road now. What a wonderful filly.

Grey Girl is doing good. Her diarrhea is gone & she appears to be none the worse. Her personality is coming out & she's cute, cute, cute. She has the brightest eyes & is curious about everything. When CMK takes Filly's wraps off in the morning, GG is standing behind them, chewing on hair & shirt. She loves to be scratched & is becoming quite the little Miss Personable. It's so much fun to watch Filly & GG become friends. Two fillies are definitely better than one.

CHEEEEEEEESSSSSSEEEE

Mama & Filly are both improving. Some of the progress has been very slow & hard to see, but even the teeniest progress has been cause for celebration. Sometimes CMK gets discouraged at the lack of progress Mama has made. Then someone comes to visits & comments on how good Mama is looking. Visitors can see the changes that can't be seen by eyes that watch daily. Mama's contours are softening & she has some flesh on her tail head finally. While her ribs still show, they are much softer. Her eyes are bright, her coat shiny, & there are times when she just takes off running across the pasture. It's wonderful to see her improving & enjoying life. It's been a long, expensive, time consuming road, but it's been worth every tiny step.

Need a Helping Hoof?

Filly has now had 2 trims at a one week interval. These are before & after pictures. It's quite noticeable in the before picture that her heel is very under-run & the hoof angle is too low & sloping. While it's better than when she was walking on her heel bulbs, the before picture really shows how bad her hoof was deforming from her leg problems. The bars of her hoof were folding over & her frogs were smashing over as well. The outside bar was actually folded over & touching the hoof wall on the underside. It's too bad we didn't get pictures of the bottom of her hoof pre & post trimming. In the after picture it's obvious that the heel is coming back under the hoof, giving Filly a much better base of support. Her hoof angle is also much improved. She is now using her hoof correctly by landing heel first & not rocking back, which lifts the toe off the ground. Her next trimming appointment is in 1 1/2 weeks. Thanks so much Trimmer for helping get Filly better & for fitting her special schedule into your busy schedule. We can't tell you how much you're appreciated.

Sugar & Vinegar an Interesting Mix

Filly is just so amazing. She's the sweetest filly with such a wonderful disposition & cute personality. She just wants to be with people, to be touching them & having them touch her. After all she's been through it's amazing that she likes people. The daily wrapping & splinting, the dosings with probiotics & Bio-Sponge, all have been met with little to no resistance. Filly just takes everything in stride & has been so easy to handle. She's truly a joy.

Filly's legs are doing fabulous. Her right leg appears to be completely normal & her left is mechanically normal, only needing more strength. By the end of the day her left leg was tired & it was visibly weaker than in the morning. A bit more padding was added to the back of the pastern to offer more support for the 12 hours splinted. Filly just stands nicely through the entire process, sometimes wiggling her lips on DW's head. Filly can now trot like a normal horse, although she's a bit clumsy in her learning period.

Grey Girl is a tiny cutie, full of spunk & sassiness. It's amazing how strong she is because, at less than a month old) she's harder to hold than Filly has ever thought of being. GG needed another dose of Bio-Sponge & it was all CMK could do to hold her while DW dosed with the oral syringe. By the time GG was dosed, CMK & DW were also covered in Bio-Sponge. When all is done, she gives CMK & DW the evil eye. Boy what a little spitfire!

Back Scratch Please

What a great way to begin a new week. Happy Two Month B-Day Filly! She's doing so well now that her feet have been trimmed. She's off her heel & her toe is now on the ground, providing a good support base. She's no longer wearing a cuff with extensions. Her fetlock is holding stable, as is her pastern. Her pasterns have come up & are strengthening. She is beginning to run & play without fear of stumbling. Tonight the decision was made to wrap & splint with only the 1/2 cast on her left leg, not the wrap around pvc splint she's been in for almost 2 months.. It will be a big step in the right direction if her leg is truly ready for less support. Because her right leg is being wrapped in the Ace brace & a second wasn't purchased because this wonderful turn around wasn't expected yet, Filly's left leg was wrapped in a shipping boot with the 1/2 cast placed on the outside & then wrapped with vetwrap. It's probably better that a shipping boot was used because it does give more support than the Ace brace. A couple hours later Filly was still doing great in the 1/2 cast/shipping boot wrap. This is a very positive step towards a normal life for Filly. The true test though will be the removal in the morning to see if it was too little support too soon. Keep hooves crossed all that Filly continues to improve.

Filly has such a fun personality & can be such a character. She loves having the outside AND the inside of her ears brushed with her mane & tail hairbrush. She's so silly & gets the silliest looks on her face when an itchy spot is found. Right now her entire body is starting to shed the baby coat so she's itchy all over. She'll rub against you like a cat to get you scratching her. She was a naughty filly when she tried to paw CMK though. While her behavior is cute & endearing now, it won't be so cute when she's a full grown horse. Soon it'll be time for her to learn she's a horse & not a person. But until then, it's so much fun to play with her. There's plenty of time for her to be a horse. For now she's a wonderful foal who has endured so much that she's rewarded by being allowed to express herself freely.

Grey Girl is such a little cutie. She's very petite & princess like. She's still battling some diarrhea so gets swabbed in Desitin daily. She's also getting Bio-Sponge, which is helping. She's a really good girl for her Desitin but oh does she hate the Bio-Sponge. She's strong for such a little thing & does a good job of struggling against the dosing syringe. Good thing she's little. She's learning that being scratched is good so is easy to catch. She's also in the curious stage so has to check out the person that Filly is hanging around. For the first time tonight she didn't want to follow Mommy Dearest in for feeding. Boy did that upset MD, who ran back out of the stall frantically looking for her naughty filly. It was really too funny to watch GG tormenting her mother. Fillies sure can be naughty.

Mama is holding her own & we're glad the weather has cooled. She's 834lbs on the weight tape. She's lost a little in the over 100* heat & has rebounded as well as can be expected. It sure does take a lot to maintain her though. She gets 8lbs beet pulp, 8lbs oats & free choice hay daily. She also gets all the special supplements recommended by Dr Kellon. Twice a day she gets 1/2 cup flax seed, probiotics, digestive enzymes, RationPlus, 4 tablespoons salt, 6 oz aloe vera juice, & another supplement to help with her pancreatitis & malabsorption. It's paying off though because she is looking better with her protruding bones getting softer & softer. As Filly grows it's going to be a struggle to keep Mama maintained because a growing foal takes a lot out of a mare. Hopefully Mama will remain stable until Filly is weaned. For now we're just happy that she's improved to where she is because her prognosis was not good. She's a nice mare & has deserved this chance at life.

Happy Fourth and More....

The 4th of July & Independence Day brought some freedom for Filly. About 1/2 an hour after she'd been re-splinted that evening, she was limping on her good leg & waving it in the air. She was very uncomfortable & didn't want to weight her leg. CMK removed the splint (which is a half cast molded to fit Filly's leg) & reset it. Still Filly wasn't happy. After 3 tries to get the splint comfortable CMK gave up & just wrapped the leg with quilts & the brace. Filly was much happier. She had decided it was time to be free of the 1/2 cast on her good leg. Of course that leg will continue to be wrapped for support until the left leg is also free from wearing wraps & splints.

On Sunday Trimmer was out & Filly got her first official trim. Oh what a difference it made. Filly now has a better base of support & she's weighting her hoof much more correct. It will take quite a few trims over the next few weeks to get her hooves normal, but every little improvement is met with smiles. She was so good for her trimmer, behaving better than most grown horses. She even had a little halter on for only the 2nd time. What a wonderful filly to work with. When her trimming was done she was turned back out on pasture. It was fun watching her take little steps as she discovered her new leg & hoof. She now moves mechanically correct & there has been no popping of the fetlock for 3 days. She's a very careful & thoughtful filly, having learned that if she isn't careful she'll stumble & fall. After she had practiced & gotten used to slowly walking correctly, she added a few trot steps with a shake of her head. Until now she has done very little trotting because she's been unable to use both front legs for support. She'd been cantering a little, always with her left leg dangling or barely touching the ground. You could tell she was enjoying her new found freedom of motion because she was even cantering on BOTH leads. What a joy it is to watch Filly as she approaches a normal foal's life. She's such an amazing survivor.

K & J came by to see the fillies. Filly loved the added attention. Grey Girl is still shy & Mommy Dearest got very nervous having strangers looking at her filly. Poor little GG was confused & spooked because she didn't know why her mother suddenly spun in circles, bumping into her & calling frantically. Fortunately she no longer acts that way with CMK & DW. K volunteered to help with the daily splinting. She was nervous because she's been having back problems, but Filly was such a good little girl & never even made K move a muscle. Filly truly is a once in a lifetime filly, amazingly good no matter who handles her or what has to be done. Everyone should be so lucky to have a foal like Filly.

A Cuff For You!

What a great day Fri turned out to be. First thing in the morning the wraps & splints came off filly's legs. Her very first step with her left/bad leg was almost normal with NO popping. It was a sight to behold. She took 1/2 doz steps before her fetlock popped. Throughout the day she continued to do well with a lot of her steps having no popping. Maybe, just maybe, there will be a happy ending to this odyssey. When the mares & fillies came for the night, CMK thought Filly's left hoof looked different. The toe didn't look long & wasn't turning up. Filly was standing on her hoof normally. She wasn't rocking back on the heel. What a welcome sight. CMK & DW were both smiling. While this normal stance didn't last long, it was long enough to know that Filly is getting better. As DW said, Filly's learning how to use her leg, and/or how NOT to use her leg incorrectly. Finally it appears the long days of splinting are paying off.

CMK walked the one acre pasture in the heat, searching for the lost cuff. Grandpa had made a new one, but it really would be nice to find the lost one. Having a spare would be very good. Finally, the lost cuff was found. Back to Grandpa it went to have the old glue sanded off. The toe extension was completely removed. Filly no longer needs the toe extension. She's improving one filly step at a time.

Grey Girl once again had to be given Bio-Sponge for diarrhea. Just when it was thought she was over it, it's back. This heat isn't helping. At least she's her perky, ear pinning little self. Her hinny was coated in a lavender baby cream (store was out of Desitin). Boy did she smell good.

Mama is holding her own, even in the heat. She does sweat excessively but she's not losing any more weight. The salt added to her feed twice a day is working. She will even run with the fillies every now & then so we know she's feeling better.

Happy 4th of July everyone. Stay safe & cool.

Head Shoulder Knees and What?

Filly is such an AWESOME little girl. There was no one to help with the evening splinting so CMK had to manage alone. How was it going to be possible for CMK to lay Filly down & then get both legs wrapped & splinted? It seemed an impossible task considering the patient is a 2 month old foal. Foals are not the easiest to work on, always lively & evasive, struggling to get away from anything unpleasant. Knowing there was no way to lay Filly down, CMK could only hope to get some sort of wrap on the left leg, the leg with the problems. Armed with the bag of wraps, tape, ointment, scissors, fake vetwrap & splints, CMK entered the stall ready for battle. Filly stood with wide eyes, wondering why there was only one person coming for her. Did she know she had the total advantage? CMK went down on bended knees beside Filly & rubbed up & down the itchy little legs. Oh did Filly like that. Next a quilt went around the left leg. More rubbing & Filly never moved a muscle. The polo wrap went on & secured the quilt. It was quite amazing that Filly stood perfectly still, just rubbing her lips in CMK's hair. Then it was time for the hard part. How to get the pvc splint on & vetwrapped? Wonder of wonders, Filly continued to stand & scratch CMK's head & back. Occasionally Filly received scratching back to keep her happy. The right leg was actually the harder leg to splint & wrap, although it's the good leg. There are 4 pieces to the wrap, plus the vetwrap. It took some masterful hand coordination (well maybe that's an exaggeration) but at last both legs were wrapped for the night. Filly is truly an AWESOME foal. How many other 2 month old foals would have stood while both legs were wrapped & splint? I'd be willing to bet not many.

Clickity Clack and Yackity Yack!

The last day of June already & finally the heat has lessened. The delta breeze sure helped Mama have a much better day.

Filly's legs are growing. The casting material of her 1/2 splint for the right leg was getting too snug. Water had to be heated in the microwave to soak the cast so it would soften. Once it was soft, it was once again form fitted to Filly's leg. This made Filly much happier as she really is a very picky little girl about how her splints & wraps fit. It's wonderful to see some circumference of bone finally begin to grow. Even the left leg has gotten a little bigger, although not nearly as much as the right. Hopefully as the left continues to strengthen, it will catch up in density. Filly's new heel extensioned cuff will be ready for sizing tomorrow. Maybe this next weekend her other cuff will be found. It can't be lost forever, can it?

CMK got a surprise last night while filling water troughs. Filly kept inching closer & closer to Mommy Dearest. What was she up to? Slowly she inched her way next to MD & then she stretched her neck out, positioning her head in MD's flake. Was she really going to try to nurse on MD? Was she crazy?! Yes! She even managed to get her lips on MD's udder before MD moved. What a turn around for Mommy Dearest. She even allowed Filly to eat out of the feeder with her & Grey Girl. Now that's a switch! Of course she kept laying her ears back to tell Filly to go away, but Filly paid no attention. Seems she's even managed to wiggle her way into the heart of Mommy Dearest.

Grey Girl is the boss of the babies. She & Filly will stay close together & follow one mare or the other. The fillies will even sniff noses & stand together. But if Filly gets closer than GG thinks she should, oh does GG's little ears pin flat & she gets the nastiest look on her face. Poor Filly clacks in baby talk, lowers her head & dejectedly walks off. What a bossy brat GG is!