STUD NOTES

THE NIGHT WATCH AND RESPONSIBILITIES

It takes a very particular type of person to do night watch. Please meet Tracie ... our particular type of person and principal night watch. Those of you who have been involved with the farm over the years will recognise Tracie - her other area of expertise is leading yearlings at sales. Tracie is in her tenth year with us now, and no she is doesn't want a gold watch! Instead Tracie spent some of the money purchasing a bull for her small cattle herd, a post hole-digger and a stock crate. Guess what she did in her holidays?

The night watch's responsibilities vary from farm to farm. For most properties the night watch job includes supervising the delivery of the foals. Of course the experience of night watch varies quite a bit between the different farms. Some farms will run multiple night watches, each working individual shifts throughout one evening. Larger farms will probably have a multiple system also with trainee staff keeping an eye on the mares and gaining exposure to foaling, and a more experienced person attending the actual delivery. All farms should have very close (and fast back up) if there is a lone night watch working.

I guess the most important personality traits are to have the ability to work in a lonely job and at night, and to have a tough character. Adverse weather at night and being exposed to some very dramatic emergency procedures and events - along with emotional outcomes (good and bad) will soon sort out who is not cut out for the job and who's not. That said, good night watch will also feel that they have one of the most rewarding jobs and a particular insight to an aspect of the breeding farm that very few ever truly get to understand.

The way we work at Yallambee is we have two night watch staff. Tracie works 9 nights a fortnight, and our second lady, Vikki does the other five nights (Vikki has only just started with us, but she certainly has what it takes). Tracie will call Rick or I when a mare is on the job and one of us will attend the foaling, depending: on who the mare is (if she has a massive gut, Rick gets the elbow ... I tend to get the maiden mares).

Just because Tracie does not do many solo deliveries does not diminish her importance in any way. It comes down to us wanting to have all our bases covered with getting the best possible result, and with Rick's and my experience we still like to do supervise the foaling ourselves.

It is amazing how often Tracie may be keeping a close eye on another mare whilst one is being born, and we are able to maintain our regular checks of the remainder of the mares. The timing of these checks is altered so there are 2 people present at the foaling if required. That way, our back up is standing right beside us at the actual birth. This is fabulous if you suddenly need something.

The three of us, Rick, Tracie & I make a great team - Tracie knows exactly what to do if things are not going according to plan and an extremely capable assistant in these moments. If I have a very big foaling that requires more brawn than I have, then Rick is summoned. Conversely if there is a difficult presentation, quite often my smaller arms allow for diagnosis and re arranging things and Rick will then do the pulling, so we have 3 of us on the job here. For more complex dystocia, Dr Ian Douglas is the usual vet to attend, and again there is a very effective team on the job. Not all overnight problems are just the foaling itself. We can have many post foaling issues, such as internal bleeding of the mare, post foaling colic of the mare, sick or septic foals born, foals born not breathing and the list goes on. My husbandry skills, the facilities and equipment we carry allow us to deal with emergency and other issues immediately whilst we are awaiting veterinary advice or presence. One thing you can be sure of, whilst you are dealing with an emergency, there will be another mare in labour!

Yallambee has an intensive care unit within the foaling stable region. The night watch job here has another very important aspect, and that is to do the overnight monitoring of mares or foals that may have health issues, including keeping an eye on fluid therapy and administration of prescribed drugs.

Once the foal is born, the night watch has the responsibility of:

• Ensuring the foal is nursing correctly (and within defined time frames)
• Wet markings need to be done
• The placenta is collected and examined and
• General observations on the well being of both the mare and foal.
  
  So there is plenty to do!

It must be remembered that the foal about to be born is a very big investment and it's imperative that your mare has every opportunity to present a live healthy foal. Free returns are all well and good, but a year in the breeding program lost is still expensive. A good foaling facility with the right personnel is the best insurance you can buy.

We have two very notable breeders who both have their own farms, but use us to foal down all their mares (36 this year with one of the owners, and 23 with the second owner). We are their insurance policy.

Anyone can supervise a normal foaling by standing by and watching, but picking up on possible issues early, or dealing swiftly with a problem is the real difference.

It is all well and good Rick & I getting out of bed to deliver foals, but we can not do this well if we don't get the call up at the right time. Tracie does not miss mares in labour, and her instinct in recognising a potential problem is outstanding. Tracie has been with us so long she has become very much an integral part of the farm and our family.

When Tracie is on duty, Rick & I sleep with two eyes shut between visits to the foal unit.

The good night watch is a rare breed indeed.