Creature Feature: Jolson, The Orphaned Foal

Luna, my Percheron-Lipizzan- cross mare, was due to foal on May 16. It was only May 10 but, since she was showing signs of being early, I was keeping a close watch.

After several peaceful hours observing her in her stall, as she went about her business in her typically stately and dignified manner, I came to the conclusion that nothing would happen that night. Mother's Day was two days away and perhaps Luna, a horse with a great sense of occasion, would observe the day by becoming a mother herself.

Four hours later, I heard Luna whinnying from the barn. Not unusual, she did that every morning when she heard me letting the dogs into the backyard. But this morning something was different in the sound of her voice.

"She's foaled!" I thought as I rushed through the back gate, dogs leaping in my wake.

Desperate Call

She called out again as I ran toward the barn, and the call had a desperate exhausted sound to it. I knew then that something was terribly wrong.

At first glance, the scene that greeted me was a beautiful one - a healthy, sturdy foal nursing from its mother. But Luna was looking everything but healthy and sturdy. She stood shuddering, covered in sweat. When I entered her stall and touched her neck, she was icy to the touch and her normally expressive, friendly eyes were glazed and unseeing.

Suddenly she began to plunge forward. Around the huge foaling stall she reeled. Her legs kept buckling under her, but she fought to stay on her feet.

The foal, following his instinct to remain at her side, stuck to her like a barnacle. At one point her massive hindquarters, swinging violently out of control, slammed into him and threw him hard against the wall.

Rare But Fatal

Shocked into action, I pulled him into my arms and carried my leggy burden into a far corner of the stall. Luna collapsed onto the stall floor. When I returned from placing a rushed and frantic emergency call to my veterinarian, a terrifying sight greeted me. The foal had returned to his mother's side and his spindly legs had become enmeshed with the madly thrashing legs of his mother.

Again, I gathered him into my arms and hoisted him away. Miraculously, he was unhurt. When I turned back to his mother, she lay still. Luna, my beautiful Luna, was gone.

Reinforcements soon arrived in the form of Pam Glennon, my invaluable helper, and Dr. Davis, my veterinarian. Judging from her sudden and total collapse, Dr. Davis surmised that Luna had ruptured an artery when foaling - a rare event and one that always proves fatal despite any attempts at intervention.

Saving The Foal

Kindly but efficiently, he marshaled his teary troops into saving the life that remained. A foal is born with an insufficient immune system. The first milk that it suckles from its mother, known as colostrum, contains the antibodies that it needs to survive. It was essential to get this milk into Luna's baby.

Getting the milk into the foal necessitated getting it out of Luna first, and Dr. Davis took on the sad job of milking her to obtain the precious colostrum. Pam hurriedly prepared a stall for the foal and then rushed off in search of baby bottles while I called local barns in search of equipment and milk supplements.

Due to the kindness of some complete strangers and of close friends, by midafternoon I was in possession of an arsenal of nipples, bottles, and formulas. And the foal was in possession of a name, albeit a possibly politically incorrect one. Due to the white circles around his eyes that give him the appearance of wearing blackface, we named him Jolson.

Equine Sociopaths

A true survivor, Jolson eagerly drained every drop of the colostrum from the bottle. Through the following night I gave him a much appreciated feeding of formula every two hours. Jolson's nutritional needs were now being met, but what of his psychological needs?

Horses are herd animals. They need interaction with their own kind to learn how to function in an appropriate manner.

"Horses that are hand-raised by people are different and not different in a good way," counseled Dr. Browning, Dr. Davis's associate at the South Fork Animal Hospital.

Foster Mother

Other experts concurred. Horses raised by people usually have behavioral problems that render them useless and often downright dangerous. Without experiencing the give and take of horse society, they respect no rules and are, in effect, sociopathic.

Enter Dolly Pouska. Ms. Pouska runs a nurse-mare business in Maryland. She weans the foals early from her broodmares and milks the mares, keeping them lactating and ready to serve in emergencies such as mine.

Barely over 24 hours after his birth, Ms. Pouska's truck and trailer pulled into my driveway and Jolson met Dixie, his new mom. Appropriately enough, it was Mother's Day.

Jolson was immediately enamored of his foster mother. Alas, typically, she was not of the same opinion. Mares know their own foals and Dixie, a very pretty little quarter horse, knew that this gangly, big-eared boy was not hers.

Began To Relent

Ms. Pouska, a kindly woman with a marvelously infectious chortle, instructed us on how to get the mare to accept the foal. Keep them together as close as possible and make sure that the foal nurses frequently. When the mare begins to pick up the scent of her milk on the foal, she'll accept him.

"She'll come round and love and care for him like he's her own," said Ms. Pouska reassuringly.

At the time, it took somewhat of a leap of faith to believe that, given the snapping teeth and stomping feet of Dixie, but I was determined to give Jolson the best start in life. I owed it to Luna.

The ensuing three days and nights were very, very long, and if not for the help of friends, in particular Jennifer McGivern, who took over supervision duties for me so I could snatch some sleep, I would doubtless be communicating this column from the grave. But, wonders of wonders, Dixie began to relent.

Burgeoning Affection

The signs of her burgeoning affection for Jolson were small and subtle at first. She began to look up from her hay to check on his whereabouts. Then signs of protectiveness began to appear. Finally, gloriously, she began actively to seek him out and stand guard over him while he slept.

Dixie loves her gangly, big-eared boy now. She loves him a lot but is also firmly teaching him the etiquette appropriate for young gentleman horses.

And for that I love Dixie, and nothing is too good for her - the best hay, the best feed and, of course, the best carrots.

A Special Horse

I've learned a great deal from this experience. Frightening things as well as practical things. But the most positive thing I've learned is that, though the horse world is competitive and, at times catty, when the chips are down, we all remember why we got into this world in the first place, because we love and cherish these animals.

I am very grateful to all the people, many of them whom I don't know or barely know, who called with advice, support, and offerings of supplies. And extremely grateful to Dr. Davis for his expertise and reassuring calm during the worst of the crisis.

And, most of all, I am grateful to Luna, a truly wonderful, special horse. We all love and miss you very much.