A Little Golden Nugget

 

A Little Golden Nugget

by Patricia Barlow-Irick on September 14, 2021

Maria and I were anxiously awaiting the birth of Belle Parker’s foal as Belle’s training progressed through the last tasks. It was gardening season and Maria had been away from home for months. Finally, she doubted that the foal would ever come and she set a date to leave. The new hooves hit the ground 11 days after her departure.

He started looking for milk right away

At first, the little Nugget could not figure out how to drink his mother’s milk. Her udders were swollen and rock hard. He was starting to give up trying and the mare was becoming frustrated and angry. I decided an intervention was necessary. Could Belle Parker be milked? It would be a test of Maria’s training. Squirting the milk onto the foal’s nose did the trick.

The next drama in his life came from Aunt Cuddles, who wanted to drive Belle off and keep Nugget for her own.  Nugget was only marginally bonded to his mother and Cuddles was murderous. Veronica compared Cuddles with Darcy Pierce, who famously and most gruesomely stole a baby from a pregnant mother. Cuddles was immediately moved to another pen.

June, July, and August passed in little Nugget’s life without much drama. Now as fall approaches, it appears that he may have a scrotal hernia that needs attention. A new drama in his life begins... training for possible surgery.