Minion's First Day

On July 16th, 2010, I got a call on my way home from work from my friend Krystal - " he's here!" Wha...?? I thought. My mare, Jasmine, surprised me by somehow getting herself pregnant (with help from my stallion Cal) and I had recently had the vet out to confirm this, and guess at a due date. he was a few days early, according to the best guess, but that's no big deal. I was really surprised when I got home a few minutes later and saw him - he was TINY! He had no hair - just a little colored fuzz, and was very odd looking. We tried to help him nurse, but he was too short - couldn't reach! Krystal thoughtfully left her own baby's bottle with me (thank you Konnor!) and I milked Jasmine and tried to feed Minion (as he was now named) . He got about a 1/2 cup, and then drank about another 1/4 cup in the next hour. He seemed to be getting weaker, but still quite active. I had an emergency call in to the vet, mostly because my mare seemed to be very uncomfortable. After both their exams, it was decided that Jasmine just probably needed a little bute, and observation, and Minion just needed a little time - and lots of observation. I stayed up till 3 am (he was born at 7 pm) and then finally made a call to my friend Sharon - to see if she could drive to the emergency hospital while I held him. After a groggy couple of minutes, Sharon agreed to take us, and so off we went. Minion was, by that time, getting very weak, as he still couldn't nurse and it was getting increasingly difficult for him to try to suck on the bottle. During the 15 minute drive to Pilchuck Veterinary Clinic, 11 pound Minion laid limply in my arms. In fact, we thought he was gone when we got there. But, no - amazing trooper that he is, he still had some spunk. The medical team immediately went to work, checking his vitals, and getting blood, and sewing in a stomach tub through his tiny nostril. They xrayed him to make sure there wasn't something major wrong, and then made a little bed for him in the bottom of a dog crate with a heater, blankets, and a special horse blanket just for him. His blood work came back normal, and he perked up a little after getting some plasma and also nutrition via the stomach tube. He still had strange "jerking" motions, and a weak suckle reflex, but incredibly he was still alive after all that. His main problem was his temperature - about 94 degrees! Normal for a horse is about 99-100. After about 3 1/2 hours, Sharon and I left to go try to milk his mom and get more colostrum.