When we came out this morning, Sahara had the most wonderful surprise for us!
She had given birth to a beautiful little filly!!!
Expecting in late January and having shown next to no signs of imminent birth, Anette and I were clueless of what was going on in our garden just a few hours before we came out. At first sight, I thought the little one was a stillborn, but then she lifted up her head and showed us that she was only resting… All seemed well!
The flock was happy and all the equines all welcomed the little newcomer, as if she had been around always.
Isolde was so exited over the birth of the little one, and wanted to help Sahara in whatever she was doing!
Although I was expecting Sahara to push away Isolde once her own offspring was born, she had room for both of them, and the newborn already has a tending bigger sister (although not by blood!). If it had been another mare, I would have kept her away from the flock to give her a moment’s piece, but Sahara relaxes the best when she is surrounded by ALL her flock members, and seeing that all was calm and well, we decided to let them be.
Although she came unnoticed, she is already being appreciated by everyone!
Although Sahara did not have much of an udder development, her filly suckled regularly. From the looks of things, there should be enough, at least for her!
Seeing the little one nurse from Sahara, Isolde ran to her own mother, who has lots of milk in production. But look how huge she seems! It is difficult to understand how quickly they grow in just a few months!
Ali was thrilled at the arrival of the little newcomer, and having seen Isolde’s progress, he was not disappointed this time that the foal was not a male.
Dennis Mugu was on his best behaviour, making sure that no intruders came near our concession. A proud an caring uncle, he was!
Sheba however did not really understand what was so special about this four-legged creature. She got a good telling off from the filly’s mother-
…which made her run to her human mother, and together we inspected the filly on a calmer note. Sheba was thrilled that the little one did not mind having her ear washed by a canine!
Sahara will need a good dose of patience with all these little ones running around her, but she has been surprisingly calm and seems content with the situation (although at the time that the picture was taken, she was in pain, delivering the placenta).
Anette was one proud horse breeder!
As for the name, it will be announced later this afternoon.
15 users commented in " A third newborn at Ishtar’s Ark! "
Follow-up comment rss or Leave a TrackbackEsther and Anette…What a beautiful filly. The Ark is full! I love the way you let all the animals bond with each other..to me, it’s a very calming thing to do. Herds are good. Thanks for all the great photos.
A big congrats on the newest in your herd! Not surprising that the other accept her so quickly. Mares and foals make tight attachments and band together for everyone’s safety. I hope your Sheba becomes their protector as well. Happy News — and I look forward to learning her new name. I enjoy following your news. Happy New Year.
Oh Whoopi!Congratulations to the aunts, the big sister, the uncles and cousin Sheba! What a beautiful filly, you both must be so proud. Not to speak of Sahara herself. Oh Isolde is SO cute when she nurses - and yes, she looks HUGE. I cannot wait to hear the name this afternoon. Esther, you have one brilliant blog going here! Hugs and big kisses for the new baby on the block! Jo xxx
Congratulations on your little addition! How sweet and reassuring to see Saraha calm in the face of all that excitement. I’ve heard that mustangs, the feral American horses, are such good animals because, having lived among their own kind, they are better socialized than non-ferals. It looks to me like your little herd will be very well socialized! I love reading your blog.
What a beautiful new filly! How exciting and fun to make all the introductions. It’s just incredible to see how all the animals interact with each other.
Congratulations! That is so exciting…and unexpected! The best surprises always are. I love the last picture of the little one. she has the cutest look on her face! We are all excited here to hear what her name will be! Is Annette doing the honors or is this a joint effort?
Happy Birthday Sahara’s filly!
–Mindy
What fun having so many new little ones at Ishtar’s Ark! Congratulations, Anette and Esther. I await with eager anticipation the name of the new filly! Sahara is amazingly calm.
Oh! Beautiful pictures - incredible story! Congratulations on the newest member of your beautiful herd…
Eeesh! Congratulations!!!
How perfectly dramatic to discover her in such a manner! Your throat must have jumped at the sight. Another example how good things come to those with a good hearts. Yea! And, I love the name too.
Haha, det händer ett och annat där borta i Afrika! Kul att se att allt gick bra. Så söt den är!!
Kram Karin
Esther: How I loved the photos and the interaction of the dog and the Filly.
Hej och grattis - IGEN! Det är inte fritt att jag undrar vad som komma ska härnäst. Kalahari är verkligen gullig! Vilken lycka det måste vara med alla dessa djur men också väldigt mycket arbete för er. Hoppas nu att ni hinner få njuta av alla era fyrbenta vänner. Många kramar Rosie
She is gorgeous Esther…may she have a happy and healthy life! What long legs too!!
@Lori: Yes, the ark is by all means full!!! It helps that they are one herd, and that with the exception of Dennis (and temporarily, Illami the stallion) they are all females.
@Lasell: Thank you! Having only females in the herd has helped enormously…
@Loran: I was amazed too at how patient Sahara was at having Isolde around!
@Jacksonsgrrl: Thank you! We’ve just come over the shock and the delightful surprise! I did not see it coming at least - just 24 hours before, Sahara was out galloping in the bush and Anette had to fight really hard to keep her from going full speed all the time…
@Pat: We could not be more proud of our girls!!
@Farmgirl_dk: Thank you! We are having “Monday babies” as Anette reminds me…
@Fe: Thanks you! It was really a shock to see her lying there, I was certain that it was a stillborn as we weren’t prepared for foaling for another good few weeks! I was SO glad when she picked up her head!
@Karin: Ja, visst är hon söt! Det är lustigt att se hur annorlunda Isolde hon är…
@Fishing guy: Glad you enjoyed it!
@Rosie: Visst händer det grejor! Vi försöker njuta så mycket vi bara kan!!!
@Trina: Thank you!! Yes, she even has longer legs than Isolde, when she was born. It’ll be exiting to see what she grows up to be with good feed!
[...] morning, it was exactly one month since our surprise arrival of Sahara’s first offspring, little [...]
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