2024 Foals Story
Breeding Fells always has its moments!
This year Max had to be reared initially by hand and then by a Foster mare. Photos to follow of each foal and how their first few months went.
May 2024. A busy month!
Joy foals first on 19th May. We call her foal Spirit but in keeping with the letter M for 2024 her registered name will be May Spirit.
Spirit posing at 5 days old
We always aim to put a foal slip on as soon as we can. Here is Spirit with her first time of having a foal slip on her. We will then halter her at least once a week so she is used to us doing up straps around her face.
Hope foals a few days later on 23rd May. We call him Max
Max at 2 days old
Max at 2 wks old
Max is very friendly
Max having a brief gallop when we take him out to give him grass exercise.
Max had an eventful start as Hope did not bag up or produce milk. Max had to be handfed with milk feeds every 2 hrs 24 hrs a day for 16 days until we were fortunate to be lent a Foster mare. Luckily Max is adorable and that partially made up for the total lack of sleep during this time.
After the foster mare arrived Max still had some additional replacement milk until the mare was fully into her own milk. She had sadly lost her new born foal and loved Max from the start.
The Foals first meeting
Although Max's arrival was eventful and he has been very well handled, his delightful personality (and our hard work) has ensured that he is definitely one of the herd and has kept his Richmond Fells traits.
28.9.2024 We move some of the herd to new pasture. Both Max and Spirit are very excited and show off their paces
Lots more photos to add over the next couple of weeks