Susan--A horse story for you

18 years ago

Here's one for starters. This year we had a foal born with an extra hoof! It was this little floppy appendage connected to his left front ankle. It looked like a claw from a distance, but if you really examined it closely, it was a little leg, with a hoof on the end (that was kind of pointy, which made it look like a claw). As you can imagine, it really freaked out the nightwatchman, who helped him be born. He went to grab the front legs and apply traction to help the mare push, and here's a little finger wagging at him! The vet said he sees one of two a year (out of like 5,000 foals that may come to the clinic every year). We had to do a surgery on him to get his legs to grow straighter, so we were going to just cut off the "fifth wheel" while he was under anesthesia (this is a simple surgery that we do at the farm). When we were shaving the site, we noticed that he also had extra leg bones above his ankle. We took an x-ray, and sure enough, he had a perfectly formed tiny leg bone growing along side his regular bone. The claw was maybe as big around as a fat magic marker, and the extra leg bones attached above the ankle were about pencil sized. He ended up having to go to the hospital to get it all removed--and you can never tell that he ever had it now.

Aside from being teased by his peers out in the field (we called him "Five Finger Freddy"), he had some other hardships in his life. The night he was born, his mother showed signs of colic (which is not uncommon after foaling). She was an aged mare, so we were pretty concerned that she might be hemmoraging, but her color was normal and she seemed to respond to pain reliever/tranquilzer, and we gave her some herbal pills that act as a coagulant, and she seemed fine after that. However, the next day she went into a severe colic, so we took her to the clinic. It ends up that her intestines had become twisted around, and a section of them had become necrotic. She spent 5 days in the clinic and they had to put her down. So poor 5 Finger Freddy was an orphan. We brought him home and rented a nursemare, who was a giant draft cross, but very gentle with him. However, she would bully the other mares around, and never let poor Freddy eat any grain from her feed tub. We weaned him last month, and he was the only baby who didn't cry for his mother--he was happy to finally get some sweet feed!

To make matters worse, his father, our stud Glitterman, got retired this year. When we started the breeding season, we couldn't find any live sperm from his samples under the microscope. We had some specialists come out, and they concurred that his fish ain't swimmin' anymore. So 5 Finger Freddy is a true legacy. I doubt they will sell him.

I wanted to keep his extra toe and make a necklace out of it, but the vet clinic wouldn't give it to us. :(

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (9)

SilverVista
18 years ago
Amazing! So will Freddy be used as a stud, or will he just get a free ride for being who he is? Is that kind of anomaly considered a fluke, or is there a genetic connection? Will Freddy ever run professionally?

Why do they paint the fences black?

You live in a facinating world! :)

Susan
broodyjen
Original Author
18 years ago
If "Freddy" proves himself as a racehorse, he may be used as a stud. In general, only horses that were great runners get to stand at stud in KY, although there are exceptions, such as some horses that have great pedigrees but maybe got injured in training or something. Really, the fillies are lucky because they stand a much better chance at being used for breeding purposes than the boys do.

The vet didn't seem to think that it was a genetic thing--more of a mutation. I guess if Freddy gets to be a dad we'll see if he passes that on to his kids. Barring any unforseeable accidents or injuries, he will start training in the fall of his yearling year (which will be fall 2006), and start racing in 2007. Most of them start racing as 2 year olds, although if they are not doing well in training some owners will turn them out a little longer and wait until they're 3. He is not officially named yet, so I guess I'll keep you posted when they get his papers done and then you can follow his career. On a related note, the organization that oversees the Thoroughbred registry in USA is the Jockey Club. To name a t-bred, we have to submit 3 choices of names to the JC. They then reply to us whether any of those names are acceptable. They have certain rules, such as no profainity, no famous or notorious people (withough their written permission), no company trademarks or copyrighted material. There's also a limit of 18 characters (letters & spaces), so a lot of times you'll see several words run together, such as "Factofthematteris" or "Justoneofthegirls". For the list of rules, click the link below. Another interesting fact is that offspring by the same sire are not considered "brothers and sisters." If I say I have a full sister to Smarty Jones, for example, that means that my horse has the same mother and father as Smarty. If I have a half-sister to Smarty, then my horse has the same mother, but different father. But if I have a horse by the same sire as Smarty, well, then I just have a horse by Elusive Quality (Smarty's dad).

As for why they paint the fences black: the paint lasts longer. They mix it with creosote, and it gives a stain to the wood so that even when the paint peels off, it still looks black (or gray at least). The creosote helps protect the wood, and supposedly the horses won't eat the paint off the boards as bad. So, black paint is cheaper in the long run.

Here is a link that might be useful: Jockey Club Naming Rules
Related Discussions
Sad Story--Has this happened to you?
Q
Comments (29)
Basically, Winter was Winter. We loved her as she was--quite seemingly dumb. This dumbness lead to many funny things, and a couple of dangerous ones. She was well--but different--the whole time we had her. Each hen has her own personality, and Winter was crabby toward the other hens. We don't cull because someone doesn't play well. Her body was very healthy the whole time we had her--up until the end. Because of the danger the "dumbness" got her into, we always expected her to be the next to go. She never was. We got most of our chickens as other people's cast-offs: old. Our flock is mostly 5-6 year olds. They were going to be food, but we took them and are allowing them to enjoy the rest of their existence. Winter was a little "stiff" in the mornings as old folks often are. I believe she was older than the other chickens, but she was not given to me directly by the people who had her. I have an Amish pen-pal, and wrote quite a lot about Winter in my letters questioning if it was age. My friend said it sounded most like she was quite old. I also checked with other chicken people, and researched in many books about her stiff gait in the morning. I figured it was stiffness because she wasn't like that all day--she had to warm up some. Our farmer neighbor thought she may be visually impaired because she had difficulty finding her way in at night. We had a couple of hens that liked to stay out late. Winter was the only one who had difficulty with orientation after dusk. She was well for 2 years. The last week and a half, there was a "change in status". She seemed tired. I watched her for a few of days like that, and she didn't deteriorate as such. One morning, another chicken went after her at the food trough, and she didn't look good to me that morning. I brought her inside, and started nursing her. She had 9-lives, so I figured I should feed her and try to bring her around. She rallied after a couple of days: standing up, eating, and pooping just right. She filled her crop up and everything. Great! I assumed she was on the mend, and we beat it. After a couple/few days of improvement, she took a turn, and I gave her a day to see if she would rally again. After a day like that (twirling, and responding to outside stimuli as if she were falling), I knew she was done. The farmer was unavailable that day, and took care of it the next. Time line: 2 years good. Some time as a stiff ol' girl that went away as the day passed, and a week and a half in "hospital" in my home. I am sorry I was unclear when I first posted, but I was so depressed my writing was confusing--I'll admit that. Having had 2 head injuries in my family, she seemed like something was wrong in the hind brain. I know that cannot be fixed, so we let her live her life as long as she got herself up, and ate, we didn't mind helping an ol' girl down out of her box each morning. She enjoyed being held and her time inside where it was warm. She never laid many eggs, and this summer it was only a couple--I think she was maybe 8 years old or something. I can say with confidence that it wasn't an organism. Nobody else has it, and it did not track as an invading organism. Also, had I continued to feed her--even in her dizzy state, I believe her body would have gone on, and on. She was physically sound. Her brain was out of order. Looking back, her stiffness may have been the beginnings of brain deterioration. Had a vet told me her brain was going months earlier, and said that she was otherwise sound, I still would have let her live as long as she was her crabby & dumb self. That was her "status". We use the dumb as a term of endearment believe it or not--that is why we can say it was amusing. I still would have let her live until such a time that the twirling came a long and her mind seemed completely gone. My time line may be of a day in either direction, but there was no cruelty or neglect. Our chickens are spoiled. Their house rarely even has an odor. Some of them step out of the flock and come to us when we call them by name. I do appreciate the input here that attempts to help find answers. I was wondering if this is something that occurs in chickens, or was specific to Winter either through stroke, injury, or old age. It would be nice if "exotic pets" covered chickens. It seems more to mean "tropical pets" rather than pets other than cats & dogs, and maybe the occasional bunny. As birds go, chickens are hardy, and you can work with them TO A POINT. Birds have a far more delicate constitution than dogs or cats, and (hyperbole here) if you look at them cross-eyed they can drop dead. If there were vets who would investigate chickens as pets, I believe the books on chickens would be much better. I hope everyone has a Happy New Year, and had a great Christmas. Robin
...See More
A funny horse story
Q
Comments (8)
It didn't make me smile...it made me mad. Not at you...God, bless you for caring, but I would not rest five minutes until I had the Humane Society, Animal Control or anyone I could get over there to confiscate those animals. I wouldn't give a flying you know what, if they got mad at me or not. Mad...that would be fine. Who would want to associate with such scum bags, anyway. I live in the country, and I have animals, and I also work very closely with the humane society, because I rehab wildlife, and it is one of my biggest pet peeves...oh, but worse than a peeve, really....the idiots who move to the country and think a couple of acres of land is enough land to have multiple horses and all kinds of livestock. They end up standing in mud, chewing on trees and fence posts. The same fools will have a dog tied on a chain in a muddy yard. Even if you have plenty of land, there is so much involved in caring for livestock...besides feeding, which is especially expensive in the winter...but they also need regular worming and other care. I could say, "Well, be a good neighbor and gently teach them how to take care of animals" but, believe me...they are too stupid to learn, or they would have done it already. Sorry to vent...not at you...but this touched a nerve.
...See More
Parti/story....how do you figure this out?
Q
Comments (48)
I would add to Sophie's comment that a Parti is the initial attempt to organize a building to meet certain goals and it will inevitably evolve as the design process proceeds. But it is important to hold on to it as it changes because it is easy to become lost without a guide as you begin to consider the many elements of style. A "Cape Cod" house is a great example of the relationship of spacial organization, practicality, climate and decorative style. The original idea was to enclose space efficiently with little concern for decorative style. It placed the entrance, stairway and chimney in the center of a story and a half frame with a steep roof without dormers. There were variations in width (half, three quarters & full capes that involved different numbers of double-hung front windows) . They had no porches, porticos, or roof overhangs. This kind of house was so common in colonial times that it is now considered an architectural house style of the American Colonial period. It is a good example of how practical spacial organization and features and the absence of stylistic decoration can define a style. For me, after creating a working spacial organization or parti, the challenge is to carry the design forward as far as possible while looking for stylistic opportunities. Architects have their favorite stylistic ideas but from working with many clients they become fairly agile in identifying various opportunities. Anyway the idea is to avoid commitment to specific styles until you have had a chance to explore what ideas are well suited to your parti. Frankly, the only thing I will not consider is any massing that requires the use of long span roof trusses. I believe they lead designers into architectural traps often resulting in dwellings that look like the first phase of a condominium complex or shopping center.
...See More
Can you please give me some feedback on this story? : )
Q
Comments (11)
Hi Lavender, I love your characters and the promise of this story. You've got a nice start with writing it. If you were writing in my category (young adult) you'd have a REALLY good start. Every genre has its own set of expectations. When writing for teens and young adults you'll almost always find short, snappy sentences. You'll also find a lot of new sentences that start with transition words like so, and , or but. That's what you've done at the beginning of your story. However, this isn't a novel for teens; it's a Victorian romance. Romance readers, and (I think) historical romance readers in particular, seem to like a more formal, wordier style. The words you choose and the way you structure your sentences can help establish tone and set the the story in the proper era. I played around with the first few paragraphs to give you an idea of what I'm talking about, but I'm no victorian romance writer so -- if I were you, I'd consider researching a few popular novels in the genre to get a better idea of what readers might expect: She would be coming to his classroom that afternoon. Henry Lastname set to putting things right, shelving a book here, straightening a pile of papers there as he tried to think about something, anything else. His opportunity to teach had come at the grace of a wealthy neighbor. Despite being born deaf, she’d thought him a bright child and had paid for his education. The chance to find books, to learn to communicate with others like himself, to establish a career as a teacher, it was all more than his family could have dreamed for him from their small tenant farm. Henry inspected his classroom with pride. He’d done well for himself, had gained the respect of the headmaster and the entire community. He knew he should be satisfied, but memories of the farm often crept in as he graded papers and settled petty disputes between the students in his charge. The lovely way the sun rose over the hills in the morning, the brilliant colors as it sank in the evening, and his horses -- how he longed to have his own horse again. Some days it was all he could think of … when he wasn’t thinking about the girl. The way she braided her lovely blonde hair around that pretty head of hers seemed to fill his own skull with all manner of indelicate thoughts. The yearning to run his fingers through those braids was chief among them. He reminded himself, yet again, how inappropriate this would be. Not only was Clara Lastname a student, she was also the daughter of an influential mayor of a nearby city. He was so involved in pushing away his thoughts that he jumped when he felt a soft touch on his shoulder. I hope you can get the idea from my pretty pitiful effort, lol. I don't read a lot of this genre, but I do read a lot of aspiring writers' works. You have a big head start on a lot of them. You have a nice way with dialogue and, even in this first chapter, you've already established the most important thing in romance writing -- chemistry. These two are full of it! Figuring out the voice of your story is all that's holding you back. I hope you'll accept my advice in the spirit it was intended. If I didn't think you had the ability to take this story to another level I wouldn't have bothered chiming in. Lavender Lass, you've got a good story to tell and the talent to tell it. P.S. A word about marketing if you don't mind. Just like there are genre expectations in the writing of the book, readers have expectations about the way a Victorian romance novel should look. Pretty women in beautiful dresses (and a bare chested man if you can find one) seem to be the norm. You might want to take a look at canva.com In just a few minutes I was able to put together this: To Share A Dream With You
...See More
ccox
18 years ago
Jen, you're gonna be fun to have around.;)
Is it possible your Freddy was carrying around part of a twin? Sometimes the egg splits, but not all the way---just a very small part of it forms.
Thanks for the story.
Carla
broodyjen
Original Author
18 years ago
Carla,
It was almost definitely not a twin, because we play God a little and do our best to prevent twins from occuring. 14 days after the mares ovulate, we can check them with the ultrasound machine (rectally) to see if they are pregnant. If the vet sees twins (or triplets, occasionally), he will manually pinch them so that only one embryo remains. This is because in T-breds, the survival rate of twins is very low. I've seen maybe 8-9 sets of twins, and in only one case, they both survived. Usually either they miscarry around 7-9 months, or one lives and is small (80-90lb) and one dies and is VERY small (50-60 lb). Normal for a t-bred foal is about 110 lb.

But I guess it's possible. I wasn't working there when that mare was bred the year before, so I don't know, maybe they pinched a twin and part of it remained? Hmmmm, maybe I will check the breeding records tomorrow....
Siamese
18 years ago
I used to have a link posted on my webpage to a KY's horse farm webpage about their(?) foal that had an extra hoof growing out of his leg. They said it was caused by environmental contamination. They don't have that story up on their page anymore, but I have a pic of the foal's leg on my page (link below).

Here is a link that might be useful: pic of a foal w/extra hoof (scroll down)
giventake
18 years ago
Broodyjen The life of TB's are facinating, from live breeding, to there wakeing up in NYC and raceing in MIami the next day. it's a never ending story...the owners the trainers, jockeys that ride and the people that bet on them.
the farms in Ocala Fl used alot of 'white fences" was that just for show? you could ride for miles and see the 'white fences" theirs a dark side to TB horse's i never could appricaite, but life goes on........anyways welcome to farm life lots of nice folks here....
broodyjen
Original Author
18 years ago
I have never been to Ocala, but maybe the fences are for show, or maybe their environment is different and white paint isn't so bad for them. There are some farms around here that have started using vinyl fencing, which is pretty great, but EXPENSIVE. But the horses just bounce off when they run into it. Maybe the white fences in Ocala are vinyl--it's hard to tell the difference unless you're right up close to them.

You're right, there is a "dark side" to the TB industry that used to be mostly ignored until the last few years. There are several organizations around here that "recycle" OTTB's (off track Thoroughbreds, or retired racehorses), and sell them for a small fee to be people's riding horses or pasture ornaments. In the small town where I live, there is a "retirement home" for champions. I will post the link. There's also a prison farm in Lexington, where a lot of OTTB's are sent and the prisoners take care of them (and the horses take care of the prisoners, too). The men learn job skills, responsibility, and compassion, and the horses get a second career--they put them up for adoption if possible.

It makes me sad to think that someday, one of my babies could end up at a slaughterhouse or in an abusive situation somewhere. But, like children, I bring them up the best I can, and teach them what I can to be good-mannered, responsible, level-headed individuals so that hopefully they can excel at their careers and have a bright future. I cannot ensure that all of them will "make it" but at least I know that I did my best to help them. And luckily, my employer is the kind-hearted type that keeps up with his horses after they're sold, and has been known to "bail them out" if they are in a bad situation.

Here is a link that might be useful: Old Friends
nickeys
18 years ago
Hi Jen. You're so right about the dark side of racing. I married into a horse racing family and it was quite a bit different than any horse experience I had ever had before. We had one filly that came from the Keeneland sales that we raised on our farm until she could go to KY to the trainer. I got too attached to her. She ended up running pretty well, nothing exceptional but she did win two races. Then she got claimed in a claiming race. I often wonder what happened to her. Glad to see you post here. We used to have a lot of horse postings but not much lately. I'd love to hear more about your day to day operations.
lazy_gardens
18 years ago
The "extra digit" is a common defect - think of extra-toed cats. In humans it is usually corrected before the baby leaves the hospital

Anne Bolyn had one, on one hand.

Susan--A horse story for you

Comments (9)

SilverVista

broodyjen
Original Author

Related Discussions

ccox

broodyjen
Original Author

Siamese

giventake

broodyjen
Original Author

nickeys

lazy_gardens

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

Susan--A horse story for you

Comments (9)

SilverVista

broodyjenOriginal Author

Related Discussions

ccox

broodyjenOriginal Author

Siamese

giventake

broodyjenOriginal Author

nickeys

lazy_gardens

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

broodyjen
Original Author

broodyjen
Original Author

broodyjen
Original Author