The Cria

July 30,2007, the old girl is two weeks over due. I watched the dams belly, and was pleased that the cria still seemed very active. I went to the barn again before leaving for work. I had a talk with Princess and told her to please have that baby today. Now don’t you worry someone will be checking on you on a regular basis.

At 10:00 in the morning I got a phone call at work that we have a cria, but it is just lying there. My heart was in my throat as I rushed home. My husband greeted me with a grim look on his face. It does not look good he said. I entered the barn to find a cold, lifeless, little cria laying in the corner of the stall. I grabbed some towels and blankets and placed the cria on a blanket. Then I went to work warm it up. The cria was taking slow, swallow breaths, and was not moving at all. Once I started warming the cria I quickly discovered it was a little boy!

I was nervous didn’t know what was wrong, or what else I should do. This was our first cria! We had never dealt with a birth on our farm, and did not know how to handle this impending tragedy. My husband called our friend, Chuck Moore, to come over and help. The three of us worked for what seemed like forever to get movement from this little boy; still there was no real movement. He did not even try to lift his head, or to get up. He was just too weak. We continued working with him, and after a few hours he finally started to hold his head up. We were all concerned, as it was now past the critical time for a cria to be nursing. He was still to weak to stand, and we knew there was no way he would be up and nursing soon. At last the veterinarian arrived. He stripped milk from mommy, and I began feeding it to the cria with an eyedropper. Chuck tried to raise him to a cush position, but the cria simply fell over. He did not have enough strength to even hold up his head.

Hours had passed, and it seemed very unlikely that we would be able to save him. I was in tears! This was our first cria, and we had waited with excitement and anticipation for his arrival. Now we were all wondering if little guy could possibly make it. As weak as he was he held on, and seemed to fight to survive. I would pick him up and hold him so he could nurse from mommy. I spent the night in the barn working with him and his mom trying to get him to nurse. At last the sun came up, and I was ecstatic that he had made it through the night! By mid morning he started trying to get up on his own. I helped him up, he stood for a few seconds, but then down he would go.

I ran into the house to get a few more supplies, and when I came back there he was standing! I was amazed. Not only was he standing, but he was outside the barn standing  with his mommy.

Standing there in wonder I watched to see what he would do next. He could only stand for a few minutes, and then he would fall over. He still did not have the strength to hold his head up. He would struggle to his feet, but his head would be hanging down to the ground.

The next day I have to travel out of town. Chuck offered to take the mom and cria to his farm, and provide him with 24/7 care. The cria seemed to be making slight progress. He still had to struggle to stand, and only had the strength to do so for a short time. He still needs help to be able to nurse from his mommy.

August 2, 2007 Chuck contacted us. He was concerned that although the cria was not slipping he was not making any real progress. He suggested that the cria should be taken to Dr. Taylor for an evaluation. We agreed that this was a good move and told Chuck to please do that right away.

Dr. Taylor said that the cria needed to be sent to Ohio State to see the experts. He made all the arrangements, and Chuck drove them to Columbus. Ohio State was waiting for them, and the cria and mom were placed under the care of Dr. Varga.

The little guy was given a transfusion, and placed on IV fluids. He was still bottle feed, and encouraged to nurse from mom with help. Our boy spent eight long days in the intensive care unity where he received the best care possible.

When he was twelve days old I got to bring both mom and her cria home! I cannot express how stressful those days were. I worried, cried and finally rejoiced over our first cria.

Dr. Vaga told me he was nursing from mommy very well, but that I should continue to offer him the bottle through the weekend. At home he was introduced to the rest of the gang. He spent sometime visiting with them, and telling them his long story.

I spent most of the weekend in the barn. Our boy refused to take the bottle, and nursed from his mommy. What a joy it was to see him running, playing, and being independent!

Our first birth was a true learning experience. I will never let a cria struggle for so long again. I now know what to watch for, and where to go with a cria in trouble.

Now, one year later he has grown into a wonderful, big healthy boy. We would like to give our thanks to Chuck and Karen Moore, Dr. Taylor, Dr. Varga, and the entire Ohio State staff that cared for him.