Twin Foals

  • Thread starter Thread starter AMH
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Been following your posts on the LN thread and just wanted to wish you, Mum & babies well. Have everything crossed for you, sounds like you are getting good advice from your vet and doing everything that you can. Really, really hope that all goes well for your little family.
 
Just wanted to say fingers crossed for you and lots of good vibes being sent your way.

Your mare looks a real star the way she stood rock still for the foal to drink.
 
I've had my fingers crossed each page I read hoping that there is good news! How lovely that the little one is up and feeding. Very exciting.

Good luck - hope tonight's not too tiring for you xxx
 
Just seen the videos, good luck with them both,

Friends appy mare had twins last year, the bigger one never got up and died at 2 days old, and the other she had PTS at a week old, she did get up and suckled, but she was tiny, but yours are much bigger and healthier looking.. fingers crossed for you all....
 
hi i just wanted to say that i wish you the best of luck with your twin girls. I had a look at the video and they are absolutley gorgeous aand not that i know anything about twin horses, they do look a reasonable size. Best of luck x
 
AMH,

you're doing everything right. You're getting them to feed, VITAL. You're getting them to stand, also VITAL. You've kept them going, and you're making serious progress, by the sound of it. VERY well done!! ;) Left to their own devices one or both would be dead by now.

Your vet sounds spot on, seems to have given you the soundest advice, and would seem to be viewing this as a bit of a project!! One suggestion, if your mare is milking as well as she seems to be, would it be an idea to strip some milk from her, and save it? It's important to maintain the sucking reflex, and if they aren't quite getting enough, by their own efforts, then when they're knackered, you could perhaps, top them up. Just a thought.

You might not think that you're making progress, but I can assure you, that you are! :)

Alec.
 
Well, that's the 9.30 feed done - one sucking well, the other bottle fed in the end to cut down on the whole stress thing, but she has to get up to have it!

Alec, we are keeping what we milk off if there's any left over, but at the moment we're milking it out of the mare and shoving it straight down the foal! She's got so much, plenty for both at the moment, and little and often seems to be the best.

Dinner for now, then maybe a little snooze before 11.30 feeds. Champagne was mentioned, since we've got this far, but we've decided that to make sure we do get up at 11.30, probably best not!!
 
FWIW: Assuming the weaker foal needs plasma, I remember when my first foal required
plasma because the IgG test showed he was lacking antibodies, within an hour of the
treatment he was up, suckling and active. It was as if he'd received a magical potion.
Until that point, he hadn't been able to stand, hence he was unable to suckle (we were
tubing him).
 
rutlandwater said:
FWIW: Assuming the weaker foal needs plasma, I remember when my first foal required
plasma because the IgG test showed he was lacking antibodies, within an hour of the
treatment he was up, suckling and active. It was as if he'd received a magical potion.
Until that point, he hadn't been able to stand, hence he was unable to suckle (we were
tubing him).
Click to expand...

That's really good to know, thank you! Hopefully we get that far - just having a cuppa and more mind-numbing TV before heading to the barn again! It's just a relief to get there and find them still with us.
 
Wishing you all the best of luck! You are getting some sound advice from some on here, many who helped no end with advice when our foal was born 4 weeks early but you also sound to be doing a brilliant job on your own. I am sure you will all be exhausted but in a few weeks you will look back and see how worth it they are. I will look for an update in the morning, every hour you get them through makes them an hour stronger! x
 
Gosh reading this is like a soap!
Good luck, the updates are so interesting!
Must be a stressfull time for you, but fingers crossed you will be out of the woods soon :)
 
Well done, sounds like you are doing a fabulous job - it can't be easy, you must be exhausted. Sending you more vibes and wishing your foalies well!!:) I will be another one looking for more updates!
 
Good luck with your little ones, it sounds like you are getting on well, all I would add is keep an eye on the little ones legs and dont let them do too much as the joints are immature - dont know if its already been said as on foal watch, tired and not read all the way through.

Weve just known a similar situation, where a lady bought a mare not knowingly in foal and went one morning to two live babies, unfortunately the weaker twin although having intensive care got to a fortnight old and her fetlock gave way in front and she had to be sadly PTS just due to the joints being not strong enough, we were all devasted as you can imagine. Yours both look strong and if you keep at them as you are and supplement feeding im sure you will be successful.

Good luck and I will follow your thread and all the good vibes being sent!!!!!!! :)
 
Glad they are doing well! Just to show some twins do survive, I know of a famous ex 4star/Olympic eventer who was one of a twin....he went on to event and his twin became a successful hunter in Ireland! So fingers crossed for you!
 
Well, they both made it through the night and, brilliant news, the little black one, always a bit more with it, can now stand and feed on its own!!! She's just got up while I was dealing with the other one, took me a bit by surprise.

We're waiting for the vet - the weaker one is hanging in there and is in a different position on the floor every time I go to the barn. Am really hoping that some plasma might give her a kick start.

Will update once the vet's been...
 
That's very good news.
Sometimes, once they've got the taste for it when they've been slow, if they think you're not quick enough, they'll almost push you out of the way as if to say FGS, come on, let me in there; it's great to see and it's a real surprise as you've been used to helping them. Hopefully, the stronger one will just get better from now on, I hope the same can be said about the other one but in all honesty, there should have been some natural improvement by now if there is going to be any I would have thought, sorry to sound glum about it, I hope I'm wrong. You're doing a grand job with them, good luck with visit.
 
Been following this post AMH - and have everything crossed for both your foals.

Just picking up on something you said previously - is the weaker foal actually getting enough nutrition??
 
amymay said:
Been following this post AMH - and have everything crossed for both your foals.

Just picking up on something you said previously - is the weaker foal actually getting enough nutrition??
Click to expand...

To be honest, she's taking what she'll take. Whether it's enough or not, I'm not sure, but she's drinking all she wants to. Without tubing we can't do much more. Vet still hasn't arrived, :mad: so once he does we'll have a better idea.
 
Huge good vibes sent from us in Pembrokeshire.

The little one sounds like a fighter, I d be happy to that she drinking up, shows fight, and like you say you don't want to overfeed, I think your nursing sounds A1.

When we had a "flat" foal once we got extra fluids in him via IV, which he responded to, but our trouble then was that he didn't now how to get up, so we had to pop him up every few hours to drink, this went on for three week, mum and i in shifts, till we caught him getting up on his own. Long road but so worth it to see them taking those first steps out on to the green stuff.

Good luck :)
 
No help to give sorry, but sounds as though they are doing well. Can remember a few of my dads from when I was very young and they were all either born dead, or died within a few hours.
My uncle did succesfully have twins once (not personally:-)), the one won races and the other foaled winners.
 
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