Garden Foal Watch 2003!

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*January*
*Sunday*	*Monday*	*Tuesday*	*Wednesday*	*Thursday*	*Friday*	*Saturday*
			1	2	3 - Day 252	4 - Day 253
5 - Day 254	6 - Day 255	7 - Day 256 Garden is starting to slow down...she's napping more!	8 - Day 257	9 - Day 258	10- Day 259	11- Day 260
12 - Day 261 Garden is very affectionate tonight. She tried to block me from leaving the stall...she didn't think I was done brushing.	13 - Day 262	14 - Day 263	15 - Day 264	16 - Day 265	17 - Day 266 Garden is happy...clearly an experienced brood mare. She enjoys the attention and extra feed!	18 - Day 267
19 - Day 268	20 - Day 269	21 - Day 270	22 Day 271	23 - Day 272	24 - Day 273	25 - Day 274
26 - Day 275	27 - Day 276	28 - Day 277	29 - Day 278	30 - Day 279	31 - Day 280


*February*
*Sunday*	*Monday*	*Tuesday*	*Wednesday*	*Thursday*	*Friday*	*Saturday*
						1 - Day 281
2 - Day 282 Garden, ever the broodmare, is content and appears to be comfortable...despite the growing belly.	3 - Day 283	4 - Day 284	5 - Day 285	6 - Day 286 Garden's belly is starting to change shape...the beginning of the last big growth spurt!	7 - Day 287	8 - Day 288
9 - Day 289	10 - Day 290	11 - Day 291 First real change in Garden's udder today.	12 - Day 292 Garden is a bit irritable this evening...stomping. Foal must be sitting wrong.	13 - Day 293 Garden's mood is back to normal. Happy to eat and be groomed. She sure is growing fast now!	14 - Day 294 Garden is peevish again about grooming. She's carrying a large foal and she's slowing down.	15 - Day 295 Garden had a good day, back to enjoying grooming.
16 - Day 296 Garden is having a very affectionate day...would rather nuzzle than eat her hay!	17 - Day 297 Garden grows every day now. Her appetite is starting to be effected by her large belly.	18 - Day 298	19 - Day 299 Saw Garden's foal roll tonight! Quite the sight given that there isn't much room left for rolling!	20 - Day 300 Garden's shape looks different after the foal changed position. Her mood and appetite are good.	21 - Day 301 Garden is really starting to act like a mare in the last month. She's a lot slower...mellow...	22 - Day 302 Garden is a little irritable this evening. She isn't eating as well now that she's so large.
23 - Day 303 Garden is irritable this evening. Misbehaved coming into the barn tonight, fussing about being groomed. Udder is changing. This is not a happy mare.	24 - Day 304 Garden's mood was more like her usual self. She's still somewhat off her feed (probably due to space).	25 - Day 305	26 - Day 306 Udder development is continuing. She has some swelling behind the teats.	27 - Day 307 Garden is already starting to "butt push" (otherwise known as trying to push over the walls of the barn with her behind)	28 - Day 308


*March*
*Sunday*	*Monday*	*Tuesday*	*Wednesday*	*Thursday*	*Friday*	*Saturday*
						1 - Day 309 Garden's udder is developing a bit more. She's really slowed down now. She's started "butt pushing" walls in her stall..
2 - Day 310 Garden's udder continues to change, although slightly. Her appetite is off...most like due to lack of room.	3 - Day 311 Still not eating full rations, may not regain appetite before foaling. Hindquarters starting to soften.	4 - Day 312 Still not eating full rations, may not regain appetite before foaling. Hindquarters starting to soften.	5 - Day 313 Udder growing a bit every day. Photo shows a bit of the development in front of udder.	6 - Day 314 Udder continues to develop. Foal is sitting very deep. Appetite is off...may stay that way.	7 - Day 315 Garden is in a bad mood this evening. Doesn't want to be groomed.	8 - Day 316 Garden's udder changed quite a bit today. Looks like she's starting to get ready.
9 - Day 318 Garden's udder continues to change daily. She looks like she's getting ready to foal a bit early. We'll see!	10 - Day 319	11 - Day 320	12 - Day 321	13 - Day 322	14 - Day 323 Garden's udder continues to change daily. Her appetite is off...seems to be experiencing space problems!	15 - Day 324 Still off her feed, she's a bit restless tonight because of Cassie in the stall next to her. Garden & Cass get along, though.
16 - Day 325 Checking Garden's udder tonight and she squirted milk! This, coupled with unusual behavior, caused us to calcium test the milk. Milk is thick, sticky, yellow and bland tasting. Calcium is at 50 PPM so Garden is coming down the home stretch!	17 - Day 326 Calcium level is between 50 and 55 PPM. Hindquarters have really dropped off, as the photo shows. She's oddly affectionate . She's not eating much at all, but drinking a great deal of liquid. Milk is very thick, yellow, sticky and bland.	18 - Day 327 Calcium level continues 50 - 55 PPM. Garden's sides appear flatter today...photo shows shape of her belly is different. Milk is very thick, yellow - but turning white, sticky and sweet. The sweetness is a late-pregnancy change.	19 - Day 328 Calcium level between 75-80. She's quite saggy under the tail and her hindquarters have dropped off with hollows next to her tail head. Belly still looks "flatter" today. Milk flows easily, still slightly yellow. Cloudy but not yet white.	20 - Day 329 Garden is waxed, although not a lot. Lots of milk, still yellow. Calcium at about 90 PPM. Garden is very affectionate and follows people around in the stall. She's off her feed. Her behavior is very much that of a mare close to foaling.	21 - Day 330 9 PM Update: Calcium at about 125. Garden is not real interested in food. Milk flows easily, still yellow, very thick, very sticky. Becoming whiter. Photo shows change in belly shape.	22 - Day 331 8:30 PM: Still some wax. No change to Calcium level. Milk is very plentiful, but still yellow, showing more white. It has white particles, which we sometimes see toward the end. Garden rolled quite a bit when turned out. Standing funny, with legs back & apart. Odd mood.
23 - Day 332 9 PM Update: Dripping milk and heavier wax. Calcium at about 175. Restless and roaming in the stall, butt-pushing the walls and generally looking like a mare close. Will monitor through the night due to the milk dripping, even though calcium doesn't indicate she'll foal tonight.	24 - Day 333 9 PM Update: Occasionally dripping milk & wax. Calcium at about 200. She really looks and acts like she's ready to go. Milk isn't completely white, which we usually see before foaling...but that could change quickly. We'll monitor through the night. Eating like crazy!	25 - Day 334 9 PM Update: Squirting milk. Calcium over 300 PPM. Milk is now opaque, creamy-white and very thick. Tastes like milk. Garden has the same "heads up" look that Sophie had the night she foaled. Restless, pacing and oddly affectionate. Good chance Garden will foal tonight.	26 - Day 335 9:30 PM Update: Lots of VERY white & thick milk, squirting on a regular basis. Calcium about 500 PPM. Very restless mare, very affectionate, too. Everything except the most important: "Nose at both ends."	27 - Day 336 3:30AM: Colt! He's very tall, elegant and bay. Mom and baby are both doing GREAT! Visit Glaston's page!	28 - Day 337	29 - Day 338


*Garden's Labor & Birth Sequence*
At 2:30, check the monitor and Garden is restless. By the time we get to the barn and add extra shavings, she's rolling.	Up and down three times...	Water breaks and we have a foot presenting!	Second foot is as it should be...slightly behind the first.
Checking feet and leg position...	Checking for the nose...it's right where it should be!	Two feet...all is textbook!	Clearing the nose. We don't wait to see if it will break, we clear it as soon as we have a nose.
Making sure the nose clears...	Welcome to the world!	Glastonbury tries within minutes of birth to rise. Is successful within the hour.