After a long winter, the ground has certainly dried and the spring grass is coming through.
Over the last week, our mares have joined our two yearlings, Regent and Reality in the pasture. Slowly increasing the amount of time spent grazing, they haven’t come up for air!
And then…waking up to this view!
We are delighted to announce our 2018 purebred bay (Ee Aa) buckskin few spot filly Ru has found herself a 5* home here in the UK. After weaning she will head off to Chubarry Appaloosa Stud in Hertfordshire. www.chubarryappaloosas.co.uk.
Here, Ru will undertake her new registered name “Redheart RU Chubarry” under the ownership of Wendy Fitzgerald. Ru will commence her show career and eventually join the broodmares, awaiting the mating season with the resident stallion, Chubarry Charlie.
This breeding will be a superb addition to the Appaloosa world, combining excellent conformation, wonderful natured horses with proven show records and unique bloodline here in the UK.
The icing on the cake for Chubayy Appaloosas, their crossing of a bay (EE AA) non-characteristic (lp/lp) PATN1/PATN1 stallion with a homozygous mare (LP/LP) who carries PATN1 and the cream dilute gene will give the stud a superb opportunity to produce 50% bay or 50% bay buckskin characteristic foals 100% of the time.
We wish Ru, Charlie and Wendy all the very best of luck in their new and exciting venture and if anything should change we will have Ru back in a heartbeat! 
💓
A picture by Sue Feast (one of the Directors of ApHC UK) Wendy and Charlie, winning one of their many Championship.
Friday 13th..
As expected, Redheart Regal’s (Blanc) udder and vulva proved correct in their progress. There is no way these are typical pictures of a mare that is close to foaling never mind 6 hours away! I guess you know your mare and the changes that occur and these developments were huge in comparison to the previous days. Notice that one tiny bead of wax on the right nipple!
Although Blanc didn’t have a “baby belly”, hiding the foal so well the inevitable happened!
At 2.45pm, watching her on the camera, linked to my mobile seeing her looking anxious, walking the box and lying down ‘belly watching’, it was time to get in the car!
From work, I drove home, I really do have the most understanding and supportive employers. Arriving at 3 pm the head and front feet were out and Blanc laid quietly resting, allowing the foal to receive a good blood supply via the umbilical cord, textbook delivery!
From here, I sat quietly, intensively watching as Blanc bonded with her foal, she is a maiden mare and was quite scared/confused by the event, although she did all the right things a mother does, there remained that bit of “not sure”. I read the situation and decided not to interfere until I knew Blanc was content for me to do so! Blanc had cleansed and the placenta was all intact. Within 45 minutes, the foaling had taken place, the mare had cleansed and the foal was up, trying to nurse.
You can view the bonding process and the foal eventually standing here.
It proved a big deal for Blanc to allow her foal to nurse, trying many different avenues myself and a vet failed to get the foal to latch on and not through lack of patience! Ensuring a good start, we collected the colostrum and stomach tubed the foal, the foal knew exactly what to do but Blanc was having none of it. Persevering, During Friday night and all day Saturday, I held Blanc every two hours to allow the foal to nurse and then as my alarm went off Sunday morning at 4 am I saw on the camera Blanc standing allowing the foal to nurse….such a relief, job done!
A stunning homozygous (LP/LP) buckskin FILLY! Redheart Rumours AKA Ru.
Redheart Regal x DFR Patahas Redheart 100% FPD
May 2017 the contractors arrived here at the stud to erect a fence creating two paddocks. Once the fence was up Blu our stallion enjoyed his new paddock parallel with the mare’s field.
Then came that dreaded phone call, “Mum, Blu’s in with the girls”…. My first worry was for the safety of the horses, my daughter Jasmin gave me an exact account of the events she saw which did include Blu jumping on Blanc’s head!!! Despite Evee taking charge and keeping Blu away from all the mares and foals, I guess she didn’t look after Blanc!!!!
I was home within minutes, caught one very sweaty Blu and checked him all over, all OK, returning to the paddock I found no damage to any of the mares or foals, just Evee slightly out of breath and a bit sweaty. Then checking the fence I realised no electric on, for whatever reason? I was very relieved of the situation and never thought about it again.
During the last six months, Blanc has been looking good for the show season ahead.
Then, Saturday 21st March Blanc changed shape, worrying so. Her topline and hindquarters had sunk and her belly enlarged. No temperature, eating, drinking and a stable with plenty of droppings not to bring about a concern for a Vet to visit. I examined her all over and nothing to note, just confusion. A few days later a very slight change in her vulva and a slightly filled udder, surely this could only mean one thing?
I had completely forgotten about Blu jumping into the mare’s field and I’m positive I’ve seen Blanc showing to Blu over the fence? As a process of elimination, I scanned back through the stud info to find the date the contractors came, 18th May 2017. The estimated foaling date should be anything from 14th to the 29th April 2018, this fits with what I’m seeing at the moment. Would be bizarre, very bizarre if we see our 5th foal arrive on the 21st April?
As a maiden, it’s always difficult to witness normal gestation signs especially because Blanc doesn’t have a “baby belly” but all the other signs are 100% convincing. The foaling box is ready, the camera is up and we’re looking forward to meeting the result of this new mating.
So for those who have messaged me “do you have any foals due this year” the answer is now YES!
We are expecting a black or bay, homozygous LP/LP foal with 5 generations of pure Appaloosa bloodline, 100% Foundation Pedigree Designation with 79.78515% foundation lines traced back to the first 8 Stud Books of the Appaloosa Horse Club.
Most definitely a breeding prospect and will be FOR SALE £3,500