The Harsh Reality Of Foaling Season... It's Been A Sad Week

Summary

Podcast Summary: "The Harsh Reality Of Foaling Season... It's Been A Sad Week"

Podcast: Katching Up With Katie
Host: Katie Van Slyke
Guests: Lindsay, Elena
Date: March 10, 2026

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Episode Overview

Katie Van Slyke and her co-hosts, Lindsay and Elena, get real about the rollercoaster of foaling season on the farm. From bittersweet animal arrivals and heartbreaks to reflections on animal care, this episode pulls back the curtain on the emotional and practical realities of running a ranch. The trio shares updates on equine births, tough losses, bright new beginnings (including a new puppy!), and the importance of compassion in the face of farm-life challenges.

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Key Discussion Points

1. Barn Updates & The New "Folding Barn"

• [01:13 - 02:50]

  • Katie gives an update on progress: the barn is nearly complete, though behind the original schedule due to weather and unforeseen circumstances.
  • Horses and quarantine mares are making use of new outdoor stalls; the "OG Barn" or "Folding Barn" will mainly be for foaling, while the new barn will become the hub for training horses and yearlings.

  "I should probably call it the folding barn going forward. That's probably what it'll be known as and used for." — Katie [02:08]

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2. Introducing the New Puppy, Frankie

• [03:01 - 08:03]

  • Katie introduces Frankie, her 10-week-old English bulldog, and details how her husband Jonathan surprised her with the puppy for Christmas.
  • She recounts her initial reluctance for adding another dog and clarifies misconceptions about the decision.
  • The group jokes about Jonathan's lack of animal-care instincts, with several light-hearted moments around Frankie's transition into the family.

  "Jonathan bought me this dog for Christmas. I did not ... He bought me this dog." — Katie [04:15]
  "I believe my dogs would've been dead long ago if he was the only one looking after them." — Katie [05:03]

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3. New Mares & Breeding Updates

• [08:24 - 13:36]

  • Katie announces the acquisition of three new mares—New Woman, Big Yellow Machine, Outmaneuvered—and two more off-site Thoroughbreds, Kimberly and Melody, being used for embryo transfer programs.
  • She explains the benefits of double registration for foals (show eligibility in both Paint and Quarter Horse associations) and details selection criteria for new broodmares.
  • The segment is peppered with inside jokes about her self-control (or lack thereof) in turning away prospective horses.

  "She's a 16.2 hand red thoroughbred mare. She's huge." — Katie [10:17]
  "If I register her as a paint broodmare, even though she's a thoroughbred ... her babies can be double registered." — Katie [11:13]

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4. Foaling Season: Challenges, Births, and Losses

Lexi’s Foal & Dummy Foal Experience

• [15:34 - 18:31]

  • The team discusses the nerve-wracking but ultimately successful birth of Lexi’s foal, Benedict, who initially appeared lifeless but revived after being tilted and having fluid drained.
  • Katie describes using the Madigan Squeeze technique to help a “mild dummy foal," highlighting the stress and unpredictability of equine births.

  "We just let it [fluid] trickle out for a bit ... shocked, never seen that much fluid come out of a baby." — Katie [17:15]
  "He was like a mild dummy foal... and so we did the Madigan squeeze ... it all ended up well." — Katie [18:15]

Goat Losses & Emotional Toll

• [18:58 - 22:29]
  • The group recounts the recent loss of goat fetuses by Honey, a first-time mom, and the emotional aftermath.
  • Katie stresses the importance of compassion in ranching:

    "When things stop bothering you is when you shouldn't be farming anymore... it's always about the love of the animals." — Katie [22:24]

Charlotte’s Stillborn Foal

• [23:00 - 30:43]

  • Katie walks through the traumatic experience of Charlotte’s stillbirth, from the solitary, unexpected foaling to unsuccessful revival attempts.
  • She details her emotional breakdown afterward, noting the unique impact of this particular loss.

  "She was just doing it ... like a seasoned broodmare ... but when the foal was born, I was like, hello? Wake up. Started vigorously rubbing it. Nothing’s happening." — Katie [25:48, 26:13]
  "I just lost my ever loving mind... threw up from crying so hard ... because there was nothing else I could do." — Katie [30:18]

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5. Farm Reality: Grief, Tough Calls, and Self-Care

• [30:44 - 31:40]
  • Katie describes needing to take a day off after Charlotte’s loss and reflects on the need for self-care in the face of repeated heartbreaks.
  • She contrasts this to other losses where she managed to “go into robot mode,” emphasizing the emotional toll unique to each situation.

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6. Maggie’s Emergency Colic Surgery

• [31:41 - 36:24]

  • Amidst the heartbreak, Katie updates on Maggie, a pregnant mare who underwent emergency colic surgery due to a displaced colon at over 300 days pregnant.
  • Thankfully, Maggie and her foal survived the surgery, though she faces prolonged stall rest.
  • Katie discusses plans for Maggie post-foaling, including retraining her for a new career.

  "The way that horses are put together is beyond weird..." — Katie [33:07]
  "Her job is to safely carry embryos that are super expensive ... see no reason for her to foal out another baby." — Katie [35:34]

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7. Silver Linings: Training Updates & Team Spirit

• [37:41 - 38:24]

  • The hosts appreciate the joy and professional satisfaction brought by working with trainer Stephanie, who is preparing young horses under saddle.
  • Katie and her team value the balance of tough days with positive moments and camaraderie.

  "It's just a very up and down mix of emotions... sad, but there are so many happy moments within it too." — Katie [38:14]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Loss and Compassion:

  "When things stop bothering you is when you shouldn't be farming anymore... it's always about the love of the animals." — Katie [22:24]

• On Emotional Toll:

  "I just lost my ever loving mind... threw up from crying so hard ... because there was nothing else I could do." — Katie [30:18]

• On Farm Realities:

  "Such is farm life this past couple 10 days or so, it's been like, sad, but there's so many happy moments within it too." — Katie [38:12]

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• 01:13 — Barn progress and “folding barn” rebranding
• 03:01 — Introduction of Frankie, the new puppy
• 08:24 — Arrival of new mares and discussion of breeding program
• 15:34 — Reflections on Lexi’s foal and the challenges of foaling
• 18:58 — Loss of goat triplets and conversation on farm grief
• 23:00 — Account of Charlotte’s stillbirth and emotional fallout
• 31:41 — Maggie’s emergency colic surgery update
• 37:41 — Discussion of team dynamics and training highlights

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Episode Tone & Final Thoughts

The tone moves fluidly from light, self-deprecating humor about barn delays and new pets, to honest, vulnerable discussions on grief and resilience. The episode is marked by authenticity, camaraderie, and the balancing act between heartbreak and hope that is at the heart of farm life.

If you want to grasp the true ups and downs of breeding and caring for animals—or just need reassurance that you’re not alone in facing tough weeks—this episode is essential listening.

"Let us know what you'd like to talk about on the next episode ... and we'll see y'all in the next one. Frankie, wake up for them. Say goodbye, Frankie." — Katie [39:30]

Transcript

[Katie]

Welcome back to catching up with Katie. It's been a couple of weeks since we've all sat down and did, and

[Lindsay]

then it has been a while.

[Katie]

That's a little combination of did and done. I've been combining words lately, honestly, the gorgeous. Like gorgeous. Yeah, gorgeous was the word this morning. Beautiful and gorgeous together. But it's just been a minute since we did a little debrief, talked about what's been happening, and it's been quite crazy. And honestly, this past seven days, past 10 days. Can step on a Lego. I don't really know anything worse to say than that it sucks, but we're just. We're. We're just happy to be alive. We're all safe. And you might notice that there's a new little, new little addition over to my right. So we'll talk about her in a moment. But Ms. Lindsay is going to guide us in the events. Not all of them. There's too many, but in the major events that have happened since our last little, little meeting. So what do we start?

[Elena]

The last thing we kind of touched on was Coco's birth and, like, the icks and DND and whatnot.

[Katie]

Okay.

[Elena]

So since then, we've had. The first thing I have on the list is the barn update.

[Katie]

It's coming along. Yeah. So right now it's obviously done a little bit later than what. What I had initially. Wow. I do think there is someone in this room that had doubts about my. My timeline and

[Lindsay]

big down.

[Katie]

And to be fair, if weather had been perfect every single day, I think it would have been close. But we had lots of stuff happening. So right now there are horses in the barn? Well, kind of. They're, like, in the overhang outside of the barn because we had to move, put up some of the stalls. We'd already planned on doing some outdoor stalls. And so the quarantine mares, which we'll talk about in a second, and then a couple of the younger horses are out in those outdoor stalls just to give a space for all the new folding stalls in the. I honestly, I should probably call it the folding barn going forward. Like, that's probably what it'll be kind of known as and used for the og. Yeah, the OG Barn, the folding barn, the big barn. And then the new barn is basically where, like, the training horses, yearlings, all that good stuff are gonna go. And so it's. It's rocking and rolling. Sweet. Yeah, we need to go look. Yeah, we need to go do a little update on one of the videos, so. But, yeah, that. And then I guess we can. We can go ahead and talk about this little peanut. Oh, so this. Oh, are you stuck? She. I just woke her up. I just woke up a sleeping baby. I'm so sorry.

[Lindsay]

You got a new dog.

[Katie]

Shut up. Shut up. So I do want to get ahead of. Of some things, so I'm gonna put her back over here. She's tired. This is Frankie. She has lots of nicknames, so Franken Beans and Frankenfurter have been the ones that I've been using the most. Frankie, Pinky, Frankincense, Francis, Francis, Francesca, Francine, Frank. I. I call her Frank, Bob, and Frank a lot. So anyway, this is Frankie. Frankie is 10 weeks old, or almost 11 weeks now. My friend Jenna, Seppa, helped me find her and then brought her to me and hung out for the weekend. It was. It was a. A good little weekend. And so I want to get ahead of some things. So on catching up with Katie, since we've begun, I. I believe the early episodes, the topic of a new dog was, no, not getting one, don't want one. I think the next one needs to be Jonathan's dog. Like, that was the consensus. You remember that?

[Lindsay]

I remember that.

[Elena]

I remember that.

[Katie]

This is even earlier. Oh, this is even.

[Elena]

So this conversation was happening.

[Katie]

This is back from, like, back in the Airbnb when we were filming, like, this is, like, long time ago. And I was like, no, no new dogs. And to be fair, that's been like, two years ago. And so since then, I started talking about another, like, getting another dog. And I started talking about, well, I don't think we want to get, like, a hunting dog or a. Whatever dog. And so since then, the rhetoric has been, poor Jonathan. Jonathan didn't get his dog. She's so spoiled and gets whatever she wants and. And runs over him. That's been the consensus. And I just want to point something out. Jonathan bought me this dog for Christmas. I did not.

[Elena]

She didn't even know.

[Katie]

I didn't get this dog. This dog was a surprise. And he knew if I ever got another English bulldog, that I had lots of things on the list for, like, health testing for, you know, yeses and no's about breeders. And then he did the very smart thing and reached out to one of my friends that knows more than he does, and then she helped him. Yeah. So I didn't. He bought me this dog. Okay. Number two, I believe that my dogs would have been dead long ago if he was the only one looking after them. Okay. Love the man to death, but like animals. He, he can build a, he can build a dang fence so fast. He can, he can, he can build so many things. He's so good at so much stuff. He's, you know, he's been actually amazing foaling this year. Like, he's been so, like hands on. No, no, stay up here. But like, it just, his brain doesn't work in animal care. Like, he doesn't think of. I should probably feed the dogs. I should probably check and see if they have water. Yeah, I should. They probably need to go to the vet. Yeah. You know that, that does not go up there. And so I would love to willingly help him have a dog that he has like a companionship with in the future when we have the space. And you're like, you have a farm. We don't live on that farm. And we live on a 55 mile an hour highway. I want to, I want to live somewhere else before we get a, like, like working dog that needs the time and space. And so we had talked about over the past year probably about how Winnie's like four. It'd probably be good to get a puppy before she's like old and crotchety. Yeah. And we decided that we wanted. I wouldn't call bulldogs low maintenance because they're like, well, a well bred one isn't super high maintenance, but they just, you know, you give them some toys, they go outside a little bit, they're pretty chill just to be like hanging out with you, you know, they're not like in need of a lot of exercise. That's past like a normal amount. Like they're not like a really high energy, high needs dog. It's like a, like a border collie or a hunting dog or whatever that needs lots of stimulation.

[Elena]

Winnie will play, but like, she'll get very tired.

[Katie]

I'm gonna go take another lay down. And so we were like, you know what? That kind of fits our needs right now. And then he, and then he surprised me with her for, for Christmas. So, Frankie, I just need y' all to know, like, if he took care of the dogs, I would have no problem with him getting whatever dog he wanted. But he doesn't, he has no hand in keeping them alive.

[Lindsay]

He just doesn't have that in him.

[Katie]

No. Doesn't have it in him. And that's okay.

[Lindsay]

Yeah.

[Katie]

We all have our strengths.

[Lindsay]

Yeah.

[Katie]

So anyway, that was another addition so that she's. I think it's been almost a week. She's been here for six days last Friday. Yeah. So Frankie Frank, the Tank. That's another one. Frank the Tank. Has anyone watched Old School?

[Lindsay]

Oh, yeah, that's a good one.

[Katie]

No one else had seen Old School.

[Lindsay]

I like you at one time.

[Katie]

The Will Ferrell movie.

[Lindsay]

It's a classic. I'm aware of the movie. That's about, as far as, I think the Tank.

[Elena]

Frank the Tank in my life.

[Katie]

Just look up Frank the Tank. That part.

[Elena]

There's a book.

[Katie]

The New Woman Plus. I mean, we have, like, new women.

[Elena]

Yeah, we have three new women.

[Katie]

We have three new women, ladies, the

[Lindsay]

paint mares, horses, whatever.

[Katie]

Lindsay. Like, we have three horses. Okay. And honestly, it's more like five new horses because.

[Elena]

Oh, I forgot about the.

[Katie]

You weren't even there.

[Lindsay]

Yeah, I'm lost.

[Katie]

They're not. They're hopefully not even coming to the farm. I did purchase some new thoroughbred mares. A friend of mine, her dad was sick and. And getting older and kind of selling off his thoroughbred herd. And so I bought a couple of thoroughbreds, and so we're hoping to put embryos in them.

[Elena]

Didn't you also happen to purchase some.

[Katie]

Lindsay, relax. Lindsay, slow down, okay? No one knows about that.

[Elena]

Oh, okay. I didn't know. We hadn't said anything about it yet.

[Katie]

So. Yes. Oops. We'll talk about that later. So the two thoroughbreds, their names are Kimberly and So. Sorry, Kimmy, that was just her name. Kimberly and Melody. And they are hanging out at my friend's house. And then hopefully they'll just get bread and then be sold with the embryos in them. And so you're buying them to sell them, essentially. Okay, so you're. Because there are like. Like the resip farms where you like, rent a resip. It's like 45 to 7, $500.

[Lindsay]

Yeah.

[Katie]

To rent. Wow. For a year. So if you can own some mares and like, you know, it works out better. Usually it's just you don't have the convenience of, like, having a mayor ready whenever you want it. So those two aren't even on the farm. But the ones on the farm. New woman, big yellow machine, and Outmaneuvered are their names.

[Elena]

Outmaneuvered is sick.

[Katie]

Yeah, Outmaneuvered.

[Lindsay]

Cool name.

[Katie]

And so I've shown you all them before. Like their pictures. Yeah, I don't think I've shown the ladies picture, but New Woman is like a 16, 2 hand red thoroughbred mayor. She's huge.

[Lindsay]

Big one.

[Katie]

Yeah, big girl. She's 16. Two, like red, big white stockings, white belly spot. So she can be registered. I'm gonna have to look up the exact rules, because rules change a lot within APhA, which is the American Paint Horse Association. And so I. We're gonna double check. I would have bought her regardless, but I think if I register her as a paint broodmare, even though she's a thoroughbred, it's like you can register the thoroughbreds with AQHA and with APHA as broodmares to have appendix babies. So if I register her through APHA because she has qualifying white markings, I think her babies. Her babies can be double registered. Okay. If I'm. If I breed her to a quarter horse stallion, I think her babies can be double registered. I will double check.

[Elena]

And forgive me for asking, this being double registered, that makes it where they

[Katie]

can show at both paint horse and quarter horse shows. Okay, cool. So they have, like, a double whammy.

[Elena]

Like, you can win many things.

[Katie]

You can win many. Or it. You know, you just can choose. You have, like, the availability to choose. And so she's really cool for that reason. And she's a thoroughbred, and she, like, moves amazingly, so. So she's five. She's never had any babies. Gonna breed her to code red then. Last year, this is why I've shown y' all these. I told again, my friend Jenna, I was like, hey, in no rush, whenever you see something that is, like, a nice mare that's within, like, my recip budget reset, being a surrogate mayor budget, I was like, if you see a nice mare that could put possibly have her own baby and is, like, loudly colored, double registered, let me know. That's a. That's a tall order.

[Elena]

Very.

[Katie]

I'm like, that's a tall order. And she just keep an eye out for that. I had these two horses bought an hour later because she's like, oh, yeah, here's two.

[Elena]

She served it on a platter, and

[Katie]

I was like, dang. Okay. So I bought these mares. They stayed in Colorado until a couple weeks ago. And so we're trying to breed Blondie, big yellow machine. She's a palomino overo. We're trying to breed her to Denver, and then we're trying to utilize Ariel, the red one, as a resip. This year we'll see in the future, but next year, if all goes well, because everyone gets mad at me about having, like, all you have is red babies and bay babies. If next year goes well or, like, this breeding season goes well, we'll possibly have a Sophie baby, a blondie baby, and a buttercup baby. So we'll potentially have either buckskins or palominos. Or, you know, wow, they're all still gonna come out red. Yeah, they're all still gonna come out solid red. Yeah.

[Elena]

Whatever you order, it's gonna be the complete opposite.

[Katie]

But yeah, so. So we have the new mayors, and that all was happening last week. We had a really busy last week. And then I think. I think right now, I don't have any plans of buying anymore. I think we're full.

[Elena]

You never do.

[Katie]

I think we're. I. I need y' all to acknowledge how many I say no to people. Just. People just, like, serve me horses constantly to buy. Like, how I've said no so much.

[Elena]

Dang. Or is there has there been any horses that you're like, I really want it, but I just can't do it?

[Katie]

There's been a couple.

[Elena]

I wish you would tell us, and I can be like, buy it.

[Katie]

No, I've had a couple.

[Lindsay]

She doesn't.

[Katie]

You know, we'll see. But that's the new horses. Sweet. Cool.

[Lindsay]

Oh, and you're. You're forgiven for that question, by the way.

[Katie]

What question?

[Elena]

My. The what does.

[Lindsay]

She said double red. Forgive me for asking this. I just wanted to let her know

[Elena]

that I was forgiven.

[Lindsay]

She is forgiven,

[Katie]

by the way. If it stinks, it's because she did it. She did it.

[Elena]

Right.

[Katie]

Her who? Her toots do be stinking. So bad.

[Lindsay]

Puppy toots.

[Katie]

So bad. I just hold her paw. I do, too, all the time. It's so meaty.

[Elena]

I love when she puts her head in your hand.

[Katie]

Have we have. Could you see her eyebrow? Look at. Oh, yeah, you see her on camera.

[Lindsay]

So cute. Yes.

[Katie]

Look at her eyebrow. I'm sorry, you go back over here. Kimmy. Thank you so much for laying with her. They haven't really, like, loved each other yet, so this is good. This is so every time a horse has been born, which I think the only birth we haven't talked about on here is Lexi. Yeah. And Lexi, its name is Benedict, which is hilarious, because in his birth video, I think I'm like, his name's Tater. And calling him something completely different. His name is Benedict. And so I want to ask. I want to flip the script and ask you. Okay. About, like. Because this is your first bowling season, I want to know your thoughts on. On Lexi's birth.

[Elena]

Okay. So wild process. Obviously, the horse the baby was came out fine, whatever.

[Katie]

And then, which. That was another full alert call of being like. Like, everyone awake.

[Elena]

Where were.

[Katie]

Where. Where was everybody?

[Elena]

I don't even know what time it was.

[Katie]

I don't even remember it was 5:30 in the morning. Oh.

[Elena]

I was tossing and turning in my bed.

[Lindsay]

Yeah, this is the daytime one.

[Katie]

Yeah, this was the morning one.

[Elena]

This was. That was a brutal day. I didn't go to bed till, like.

[Lindsay]

Yeah, y' all look so defeated when I got here.

[Katie]

We all stayed up so late playing Dungeons and Dragons.

[Lindsay]

Yeah. Y' all were so, so dead when I got here. Yeah. I mean, nobody. I didn't think.

[Katie]

Yeah. Because she was also really early. Yeah. So she had him at, like, 322. 323 days. We were watching Charlotte.

[Lindsay]

Yeah.

[Elena]

And then. So I get up, I'm putting on my shoes, whatnot, and we get there, she's starting to have the baby, and everything was. Everything was going great. I wasn't, like, worried or anything about what was happening. But then when the baby actually came out and they were like, he's not really. He's. He's moving, but he's not really, like, picking his head up. He's not being like.

[Katie]

He looked pretty. He looked pretty deceased. Yeah.

[Elena]

And so I was like.

[Katie]

Which, like, I'm laughing now because we actually had. We'll get to that. But, like, don't take my, like, funny demeanor right now as like. It's totally a trauma response. Anyway.

[Lindsay]

Yeah.

[Katie]

You told me that you and Matt had been like, yeah, this one's like, this one's toast. This one's toast.

[Elena]

But once y' all tilted him upside down and he started all those.

[Katie]

I don't know why he had so much fluid, because the bag hadn't broken or anything like that. It's not like he. And so when he came out, like, I heard him try to take some breaths, and it was just like. Like. Like it was so blocked. And so probably within literally a minute of him coming out, Jonathan and Austin, I was like, come over here and, like, support him in this way. And then they tilted him completely upside down. And after the, like. Did you remember the initial, like, rush of fluid out of his body? Yeah. And then after that, it was like a slow trickle. We just let it trickle out for a bit. But, yeah, I was shocked. I've never seen that much fluid come out of a baby, but, yeah, that was crazy. And then once we got the fluid out of him, he did okay, but he was. He was like a mild dummy foal. Yeah. So he was up and pooping and, you know, walking around and curious and definitely trying to eat, but you never noticed him. Like, you notice, but not even latch. Like, he wouldn't turn his suckle like, you'll see a lot of them, like, just suckle the air. And he just really wasn't suckling, kind of wondering. He was just kind of wandering around. And so we did the Madigan squeeze and all that good stuff, so it all ended up well. Yeah, but that. The, like. I feel like we're putting your nervous system through it. Oh, yeah. Yeah.

[Elena]

I. I cried yesterday because of the goats.

[Katie]

You did?

[Elena]

I texted Rachel. I was like, I'm gonna cry right now.

[Katie]

When?

[Elena]

After I left. Oh, I'm okay. She's my favorite.

[Katie]

So I was really sad, and it'll be okay. It's better that it happened when it did. Yeah. Yeah. So, okay. For context. Yeah. That's why this week can go step on a Lego. And it comes in threes, so maybe it's done.

[Elena]

I really hope so.

[Katie]

Maybe it's done. So, like, last night we. And it's always at 4:50 when everyone's trying to leave. It's like when we're leaving to go home is when things happen. So we were pulling in after being, like, at the barn all day, and, you know, we passed by the goats all day, every day. And, like, I. I pretty much take, like, a little, like, quick mental note subconsciously, like, every time we see them. You know, there's not many of them, so you can kind of see all of them at once. And it's generally that they're all together. And I looked out there, and I was like, honey's not out there. And they're like, yeah, she was. And I was like, so, like, literally back. Back. Stopped, backed up, and she wasn't out there. And so we pulled around and we saw her sitting in the front of the kidding castle. That's what we call, like, their little house. And, like, the door was open, and she was just standing in the door. I'm like, that's not. Yeah, that doesn't look good to me. And so. Because generally that means, like, something's wrong if they've gone off by themselves. And so we went in there, and of course, when we went in there, all the goats come rushing in and. And she didn't look sick or, you know, she wasn't acting really weird by any means, but she. We. At first glance, I'm like, you look okay. But then she turned around and she had, like. Like, afterbirth honor.

[Lindsay]

Yeah.

[Katie]

And then we went and did some digging, which I'm very glad you were not in there. Very glad you stayed outside.

[Elena]

What do you mean digging?

[Katie]

Not just, like, digging, just, like, investigating we investigated. Yeah, I'm very glad, I'm very glad you did not go in there because there were three little, little kid fetuses. Um, and fortunately for her wasn't very far along. So it was probably a very easy passing. And so she wasn't due until like the end of May. So we're, you know, two and a half, three. Like she's only like halfway through her pregnancy. And so she had, she had triplets. And so what we did, I called my vet and we got her cleaned up, used some warm water and some soap, got her cleaned up, gave her some antibiotics last night, some antibiotics today. Just because we didn't know like, because goats will eat their afterbirth a lot like most animals will. So, you know, you won't like, that's the big thing. Horses, anything you want them to pass everything if they're birthing or if they're miscarrying, whatever, you just want them to get everything that's supposed to be out, out. And so we did give her oxytocin this morning, made sure that she like expelled everything. We're going to go give her some banamine after this so that she can like kind of calm down and keep, keep an eye on her. But, but yeah, that's just. And from a lot of goat breeders standpoint that I've, you know, talked to or seen comments from, it's. It's a lot more common in like first fresheners than anything. Yeah, I mean it's common kind of anytime, but especially with the first fresheners, which she is so. But that's. Yeah.

[Elena]

I texted Rachel. I was like, I know I don't have any right to be upset, but.

[Katie]

No, you do.

[Elena]

How do you?

[Katie]

Why not? Yeah, why don't you have any right?

[Elena]

Because they're not mine.

[Katie]

Yeah, they are.

[Lindsay]

Yeah, they are, they are.

[Elena]

But not really.

[Lindsay]

But even.

[Katie]

They are even.

[Elena]

I mean, I, I'm around them and whatnot.

[Katie]

But. No, they are.

[Lindsay]

But even if they weren't, even if they weren't yours, it's okay to be sad about sad things.

[Katie]

But like, I mean like, she's technically my puppy, but you're allowed to be sad if something bad happens to her cuz she's your friend.

[Elena]

That's fair.

[Katie]

So they don't have to be under your ownership for them to be your friends. Be sad about when they're hurting. That's just compassion. And when things stop bothering you is when you shouldn't be farming anymore. True. Cuz then you're, you're disconnected. From it. Cuz it's always about the love of the animals. It's always about, you know, doing what's best for them and being stewards of them. And when you get hard to it, which I'm not going to say I'm not hard to it in a bit, like it's different.

[Elena]

You definitely know how to handle it.

[Katie]

I handle it in the situation and then I go like, yeah, break down afterwards. So that kind of like leading into that situation was with Charlotte. So Charlotte had a still birth this week and so like we had, you know, been watching her like of her damn month. We've been watching her for so long and she had been, you know, just kind of holding out and she was at 357 days and she was finally. It was a Sunday evening, I believe. Yeah, I think it was a Sunday evening. I think so. It was such an odd time. It was yeah, 5:30 in the afternoon and. Which makes me think something happened and then she like went into labor quick. That's why I think the baby died right before she fold because that'll usually cause a mare or any mammal to just like go into labor. And I don't believe she would have chosen to go into labor at the end of the day when there's a hustle and bustle in the barn. Like I think if she had been in the correct state of everything, I think it would have been when everything's quiet, you know. But she went into labor at like 5, 5:30. And I was like showing some of my family members my new puppy who like I'd only had for like a day. And I was in my pajamas, like, like literally in my pajamas, like hanging out at the house and the full alert goes off and I'm like, oh my God. And so I've jump and run. Jonathan was out of town. No. Yeah, Jonathan. No. Jonathan was with his mom at the hospital because she'd had a surgery and nobody had gotten here yet because it was so early and, and it was right after everyone in the barn had left. So like I was just by myself. And so on the way over I was calling Stephanie, who's our new trainer. She wouldn't answer. So I sent her a text, called Rebecca and Evan, who are five minutes down the road, said hey, I have no one, please come. And then Jonathan got the follower call. So he watched on the cameras and saw that I walked in by myself and noticed that I was by myself. So he's calling my dad and calling Stephanie and got them to come down and so Then, honestly, Charlotte, like, I think it. It's, like, hard to say that I'm. I'm glad to have seen her in this birthing situation with the outcome that we had, because it was a sad outcome, but, like, take away the sad outcome. She did fantastic. Like, she's the one I've been nervous about. She's been the one that I've been, like, oh, please don't, like, kill your baby. Or, like, you know, which. Who knows? Hormones might have rushed differently had she gotten to see it and lick it and all the things, but she was. Already had the head, neck, front, feet, like, out. Was doing fantastic and. Hi, honey. Hold on. Let me just. And she wasn't, like, frantic or anything. Like, she was just, like, doing it. Like a broodmare. Yeah, she was being, like, a seasoned broodmare.

[Elena]

I wonder if she kind of knew.

[Katie]

I don't know. And that's why I. I'm waiting on test results still. So we sent off the placenta in the foal for. For testing to see kind of like a, you know, postmortem, like a necropsy kind of deal. But when the foal was born, and here's the thing, there's always, like, a moment when you don't see any life when it's coming through the birth canal. It doesn't, like, really wake up until after that, like, chest pressure has been released. And so sometimes they're completely out of the sack and completely whatever, and there's nothing. So I wasn't really worried at that point. And then when it popped fully out, I was like, hello? Yeah, I was like, hello? Wake up. Started vigorously rubbing it. Nothing's happening. My dad hollered at Evan, and they got a bucket of water really quick while I was calling the vet, doused it with a bucket of water, because sometimes, like, that cold water, like, shock them. Like, that's something that. So that's kind of more like an old cowboy technique, but it works. Doused it with a bucket of water. Nothing happened. Still sitting there, rubbing. I got on the phone, Dr. Emily. She's like, do you feel anything? And we felt the faintest of heartbeats. And so we. Or at least what we think. What we think is a faint heartbeat. You know, it's like. I don't know if in that moment it was like, you know, adrenaline and feeling something. Yeah, I don't. Who knows? Honestly? Yeah. But she was like, if there's an inkling of anything, get it here asap. Leave. Leave the mayor. If you can. Leave the mayor. Leave Her. So we threw. My dad's truck, was pulled up, grabbed the baby, got it in the back of the truck with. I was in the back with him because we laid the seats up, or it was already laid up perfectly, actually get in the back of the seat. Stephanie and Rebecca stayed back with Charlotte. And I'm so grateful for them. They made sure she was, like, good. And they said that after we left, she was just, like, eating. Letting them tie her placenta up. Not. Not mad at them or nervous or anything. She was just good. And so I did cpr, like, the whole way there, which is not easy on a foal. Like, that's taking up most of this back seat. And then I'm trying to make sure it's like, neck is elongated so that the air actually, like, comes. Get somewhere and, like, trying to see if it's, like, inflating anything. And. But, like, you know, we got there and obviously we tried when we got there with oxygen and list, you know, all the things. But before we got there, I think midway there, like, I kind of just, like, knew because the meconium, like, expelled from its body, and I was like, that's not right. So that was just, like, freaking sad. Yeah, it just. It was a perfect little bay Philly. Just really freaking sad. But so it's one of those things where, yeah. Calm in the moment, you know, trying to. Trying to just cover everything, cover all the basis. We get to the vet, and I'm just, like, probably seeming cold, honestly, at the vet, because I'm like, well, I don't. This happened. This happened. This could have happened. Like, I'm just kind of racking my brain for answers or whatever. Dr. Christine even come over and, like, hugged me, and I'm just like, you know. Yeah, you know, not like, yeah, no, I. I will always take a hug from Dr. Christine because she's. She's kind of like me. But, you know, it. It. I wasn't in that, like, mode yet. And then all the way home, we were just kind of quiet because my dad. My dad had been the one to drive me there. And my vehicle was at the barn. And I was like, yeah, probably just go drop me off at the barn. I'll go check on everything because I still had to give a couple of horses their meds. One, like, Woody and stuff. And so I. He dropped me off at the barn and I started, like, walking away from the truck, and I was already sobbing like, 10ft away from the truck. And then I hear him stop and I just hear the car Door. And then he comes over and hugs me from behind. And it was just like. And then I just lost my ever loving mind. And, like, threw up from crying so hard. Like, like, just lost it. And. Because there was nothing else I could do at that point. There was no more, like, trying to fix anything. So, like, literally, like, threw up in the driveway. I was crying so hard. And. And that's why I texted y', all being like, hey, because sometimes, honestly, it doesn't affect me that much. And I can go on, and I can, like, work the next day or whatever.

[Lindsay]

Yeah.

[Katie]

But I texted Lindsay and Elena and, you know, I was like, hey, payday off tomorrow. I. I need a break. I can't do tomorrow. And, like, hindsight's 20 20. Worst day to call off.

[Lindsay]

Oh, yeah.

[Katie]

So much stuff. Yeah. Needed to happen that day. I missed so much worst day to call off. But I, like, could. I just. I needed to just sleep. And. Yeah. I. I couldn't just be, like, professional that day. So it. That's probably one of the only times. Because, I mean, like, even when Cool died, like, that morning, I think I interviewed Rachel later that day, and, like, I think I was, like, in robot mode. But, like, I don't know what it was about Charlotte's baby that I was just like, I. I need to not do life for a day. So, yeah, this whole week has freaking sucked. Oh, yeah. And Maggie had colic surgery at 300 days pregnant. Sheesh.

[Lindsay]

How's she doing?

[Katie]

Next on my list. She's doing great, baby. Literally as good as they could be doing. And so it's still hard to navigate because I've never had a mare have colic surgery that late in her pregnancy or. Or whatever. So it's like. It's an abdominal surgery. So, I mean, immediately go. You go to, like, pushing, like, what's that going to look like when she has to push this baby out? And I talked to the surgeon about it because. So what happened was her colon was displaced. Okay. So from the base, horses, I'm not gonna question how they're created. I'm not questioning it. There's probably a plan. I don't know the plan, though. The way that horses are put together is beyond weird. Yeah. And so their colon is just kind of, like, hangy floaty, and it shouldn't be. And you can't tack them down the way that you tack dogs down. Like, dogs colons down because they, like, rip, and they're more fragile, and so they. They are just kind of moving if they're healthy. Even. But it got on the wrong side of her body, and I don't know. This is speculation. It could have been, like, the full getting into position, moving it around. So sorry, there's so much hand movement going on, but the colon ended up getting underneath the foal on the wrong side of her body, and then the foal laying on it caused all the swelling and gas to build up within it.

[Elena]

Oh, my goodness.

[Katie]

So she's just, like, in the worst pain of her life. And they had to go in and surgically move it back to where it was supposed to go. And luckily it was a healthy colon. Still, like, we caught it so quickly that it hadn't, like, died or. Or become, like, where they had to do, like, a resection or anything, because if they had to do any, like, cutting out of it or whatever and sewing it back up, it would have been a very bleak situation. But it was all good. Baby was good. She's like, 304 days today, I think. And so we would love for her to cook it another month at least. If not. If not six weeks, that'd be fine, because that would give her more time to heal. But in the past, she's gone in, like, the three twenties, so that's like three weeks from now. So I did ask them. I was like, can she. Does she need to come back to full, like, at the clinic? Can she have her baby at home? Like, what does this look like? Can she even push? And they were like, honestly, we'll keep an eye on her, but we think she can fold at home. If you feel like she needs to come back, you know, we can do that. But, I mean, I don't think it's in her best interest to go sit in the hospital for six more weeks. I think if she can be at home, it's better for her, especially friends. And. And she can't really go out yet. Like, she has to be on stall rest for another six weeks, I believe, with hand walking. And then after that, it's, like, limited. And then she can go up from there. It's. It's definitely, like, in my opinion, some people have bred their mares after colic surgery. In my opinion, she's a reset mare. Her job is to safely carry embryos that are super expensive. And, you know, that's the business side of it. And then the other side of it is, I see no reason for her to fall out another baby. Like, I just. Yeah, we're not using her genetics. We're not. Like, there's no reason to really risk it in my opinion. And she's a 9 year old sound thoroughbred mare and so I think our plan, I haven't even talked about this I think anywhere else. I think our plan for her is after she falls, after, you know, hopefully everything goes well after she falls. Weans then we're by having Stephanie here at the property, you know, for the next like for, for about 60 to 90 days maybe or however long it takes. Starter under saddle. She's already been a racehorse so she's been broke to a certain extent. So starter under saddle. And we have a really big like hunter community in our middle Tennessee area and they don't have to be like a registered quarter horse or you know, they can just be a horse like they don't have to be registered and I don't have her jockey club papers but I'm sure someone could probably get them. And she's like 15 one hands so I think if we could get her going to then be like a really cute like hunter pony project for somebody, I, I think that would be like her best case scenario. I, she's sound, she's sweet, she's cute, mover. Like I mean I, I, I see no reason for her to sit in a pasture for 20 more years. I think she can go have a job. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So I think we're going to do our best to, to set her up for that. But yeah, I feel like I just talked about a whole lot of sad stuff this entire time.

[Lindsay]

It was a week.

[Katie]

Yeah. Unfortunately that is just how it's been. So the cuteness factor does help. The timing of this potato in my, in the potato that is in my lap right now has been great. It's been a nice little like reprieve from sadness. But yeah, it sucks. We got like four babies left. Four big babies left. Two little babies and then yeah, the goats. It's, it's sad that that happened. And she is, let's see, how old is she? She's like 20 months. And so I might do like a little digging on what breeders think about like age wise for first fresheners because it might be in her best interest if she is going to have babies in her lifetime to go ahead and have some within this year. Yeah. For the fact of her age. So it may be the case where Taz comes and hangs out with Honey and Bella in like April, May.

[Elena]

Yeah.

[Katie]

For like some like a fall. Kidding. Yeah. Just with two of them. I haven't decided on that yet though. We'll see.

[Elena]

That'd be Fun.

[Katie]

So. Yeah. Is that about. I mean, I think that's about it. As far as all the crap that's happened over the last two weeks. Yeah.

[Elena]

Other than, oh, Stephanie is training.

[Katie]

Oh, yeah. If you haven't watched that video putting

[Elena]

saddles on the horses.

[Katie]

What's your. What's what? Have you been enjoying watching that?

[Elena]

So it. I've enjoying watching Stephanie all together. Like, she's. I've never been around a trainer. She just.

[Katie]

Aura farms all day.

[Lindsay]

Truly low key, though.

[Katie]

Like, she just like, is too. Yeah.

[Elena]

And whenever she does that little.

[Katie]

So she holds her whip different and like, does it from the back and I'm like, it's. It's so cool.

[Elena]

It's nice.

[Katie]

It's pretty cool.

[Lindsay]

It's farming. Yeah.

[Katie]

Yeah. And she just doesn't care. And she's like, like, so nonchalant and just like, does her stuff. And like, I love the, like, team of women.

[Elena]

He's a baddie. We have baddies here.

[Katie]

So, yeah, we all have a crush on Stephanie. It's fine.

[Elena]

She's awesome. But seeing them, seeing Daphne Buck was funny. Or crossfire.

[Katie]

We're gonna do some videos for, like their first rides. We haven't really done all their first saddling on YouTube. We did a video about Stephanie if you want to go watch that. And we're gonna try to get her in the hot seat on a Catching with Katie episode to kind of interview and. And find out more about. But. But yeah, I look forward to that. I think it's a it. You know, I think such as farm life this past couple 10 days or so, it's been like, sad, but there's so many happy moments within it too. Like, it's just a very up and down mix of emotions. So, yeah, I think that's everything that's happened over the last couple weeks. We have so much going on right now that I do think the catching with Katie is just kind of filling in as needed. I don't think it's an every week thing until we get back to normal scheduling. So let us know what you'd like to talk about on the next episode. If there's any videos that you want to see and if you haven't checked out the new merch, there's new foals, there's. There's all kinds of new designs. Katie vanslyke.net Go check that out and we'll see y' all in the next one. Frankie, wake up for them. Say goodbye, Frankie.