Lucy's Janet

On Monday afternoon Lucy’s behavior changed. I caught her lying down in the pasture while surrounded by fine grazing on more than one occasion. When I’d approach her, she’d slowly stand to greet me on four hooves. That evening I brought her into the safety of the home pasture—with its smooth grassy floor and dog-patrolled electric fencing. By Tuesday her foal had dropped, causing her to look big in the belly while emphasizing her hip bones and spine. For three nights I kept a close eye on her, padding out every so often and shining a flashlight when the cloud cover made her less visible. A fellow Master Gardner (trainee) predicted that Lucy was waiting for a full moon to deliver stating, “They always wait for a full moon,” sharing the wisdom of her grandmotherly years. The moon waxed to full and despite the numerous times I looked out Lucy managed to wait until her humans were either asleep or off working.

When I went out to begin feeding on Thursday morning, there stood Miss Lissamy Lucy with her brand-new, not-yet-dry little filly: Janet. With a bold red-and-white coat and strongly blue eyes, Lucy’s newborn reminded me of a fiercely patriotic friend from “back home.” Plus the little gal was (is) bright-eyed and spunky, much like her namesake. Born on the numerically auspicious date of 5-7-9 (another date with consecutive odd numbers won’t be realized until 2013, or thereabouts), the foal may also be followed by luck. (Her namesake has “the luck o’ the Irish,” although it’s not always good luck that strikes that Janet’s world. If filly Janet can “inherit” just a smidge of her counterpart’s optimism, all of her luck will prove to be good in some way.) All-in-all, I was quite pleased with “our” new little Janet who was a bright young thing with long, spindly legs and intelligent good looks.

Lucy carefully and continuously shifted her body to place herself between me and her foal, so I made no move to touch the little gal at first. Come my second trip to the pasture, Lucy relented and I got to touch the silky coat when little Janet walked over to investigate me. For the most part Lucy accepts me now, but occasionally places her body as a buffer. Heidi, though, is fiercely protective of our newest arrival—barking at anyone who approaches the fence, coming very close to those “strangers” I bring behind the perimeter fence with me and not backing off until I wave at her. She even barked at me last night when I stood by Lucy in the dark pasture; I guess Heidi was ready to have even me gone from “her” foal’s world.