To tell April's story, we must first introduce you to her mom, Maple. Maple was rescued from a kill pen in Tennessee in October 2022. She is a belgian/halflinger cross believed to be about 12 years old. As if being in a kill pen wasn't bad enough, her previous colt was removed from her in the weeks before we were able to save her. With one eye that would need removal and another that was blind, she was in rough shape upon her arrival at the rescue. We were informed that she was bred, hoping against all odds that wasn't the case. In November, Maple's blood was pulled to perform a pregnancy test and her bad eye was removed - providing her with immediate relief and leaving her completely blind. A few weeks later the first of her sutures were removed and she was healing beautifully.
On November 30th we received the results from her pregnancy test - she was in fact pregnant. While this wasn't the news we were hoping for, we were ready to do everything to insure she would have the healthiest baby. We were given an estimated arrival of Spring 2023 for the foal. On December 1st, the rest of Maple's stitches were removed and her wound had healed perfectly! Fast forward a few months to March 2023 and we were waiting anxiously for the baby's arrival.
Finally, at 4:30 in the afternoon on April 10th, Maple went into labor. We were thrilled to see that Maple had given birth to a beautiful, healthy girl. Mama and baby were doing amazing and we couldn't be happier to welcome April to the farm. She's a big girl and we believe her sire may have been a belgian draft horse. This sweet girl was well worth the wait. She is growing every day and developing quite the personality. She's curious and loves to investigate her surroundings. Maple is doing such an amazing job as a mom despite being completely blind. Maple and April are both doing great and are being given plenty of time to bond. We are excited to watch this sweet baby grow.