A mare who sadly lost her foal adopted an orphan colt who lost his mother soon after she gave birth.
The orphan colt and the nursing mare were able to live a happy life after a tragedy because to the kindness of strangers and Washington State University (WSU) veterinarians who played matchmaker, according to the WSU Insider.
According to the WSU Insider, Dr. Lisbeth Matthews, an equine medical and surgical intern, stated that the mare had only been without a foal for a short period of time—about 24 hours. “We walked her past him and entered the Veterinary Teaching Hospital. She responded to his noise by saying, “Oh, there’s my foal,” and then began yelling at him.
A difficult undertaking that frequently fails is pairing an orphan foal with a nursing mare. However, in this instance, everyone was surprised by how quickly and naturally the mare, Shelly, and the foal, Laredo, were connected.
Jenifer Gold, an equine veterinarian, noted that nursing mares typically reject orphan foals while helping to care for Shelly and oversee her introduction to Laredo. According to the WSU Insider, the matching procedure frequently takes days when it doesn’t.
It was incredible, according to Gold, when she entered and began teasing him like it was her own child. “In the 20 years I’ve been doing this, I’ve never seen it happen that way.”
Days after his birth, when he had stomach problems, Laredo’s owner Rachel Williams of Spokane first brought him to the teaching hospital. Roy and Faye Lions, Shelly’s owners, contacted WSU’s equine team shortly after Laredo arrived in Pullman to inquire about any orphan colts in need of a nursing mare.
As there was no chance of bringing our dead foal back, Faye Lions explained, “we were hoping we could help someone else.” “It just so happened that there was a foal there.”
A day later, Laredo and Shelly cross paths.
“It was pretty phenomenal,” Williams said, “for them to be so willing to basically hand over their animal to a complete stranger after experiencing their own tragedy.” “In this situation, I believe that everything was at its worst, but there was a small amount of good news to be found.”
For the time being, Shelly will reside with Laredo’s owners in Spokane until she can go back to her house in Kamiah, Idaho, when he has been weaned.
She has really saved my life, therefore it will be difficult to say goodbye, Williams said. “You just naturally start to bond with animals,” he added. “I’m sure her owners will be glad to see her again, but it will undoubtedly be bittersweet.
