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It seems like only yesterday that our friend and equine vet Misty said in passing that we should get a mule foal and her mare, Cricket, had thrown a lovely john mule just a year prior. She graciously offered to breed her mare to the same Jack, Oklahoma Howdy, and allow us to foal the baby at our place so we could wean and raise it here. So the first week of April Cricket headed over to Oklahoma Howdy’s house and on April 15 and 17th the breedings took place. We got a message from Misty a little over a month later (May 10th)that Cricket was confirmed pregnant on ultrasound, and her expected due date was March 24th. So we had 10 long months of waiting ahead of us, little did we know that the winter prior to the foaling was the hardest we have had since moving to Idaho and the hardest winter seen here in a very long time. We had planned to have Cricket foal in our lower pasture but it still had 2 feet of snow on the ground at the beginning of March. We asked a neighbor and friend to come over in his cat and plow an area for Cricket. On February 29th we had quite a day. Ryan and I had planned everything out so that we could go together to pick up Cricket and bring her home to foal. However, in typical Bloodhound style, the dogs found a way to spoil all of our plans! Cosby had emergency surgery that day, which meant I stayed by his side and Ryan was on his own picking up Cricket. Cricket did well on the pick up and arrival at the Nunya farm. She was a bit anxious, but settled in very quickly. The following weekend Ryan worked on getting a stall built for Cricket and our pending foal. Megan had already decided to name the foal Charlie after the dog in the movie "All Dogs Go To Heaven." With time the name grew to Charlie The Dog, and there was no question in Megan’s mind that it was the "baby Jo-Jo’s" name. I began getting very excited and anxious for our foal’s arrival, though Cricket never looked "really" pregnant. I started reading and grasping at any sign that Cricket was close to foaling. I am used to dogs, 63 days, done. Period. This whole 340 days plus or minus 2 weeks is ridiculous! We were expecting Cricket to foal about 2 weeks early, consistent with her first two foals, but that date (March 10th) came and went. Signs that she was getting closer kept coming, but it wasn’t enough for me, so I kept looking, trying and grasping at straws. Finally on March 22nd I felt like we were getting somewhere. Signs were becoming more and more evident, her udder was extremely enlarged, she definitely had milk and was acting agitated. Then on March 24th I was certain we were going to have a baby in less than 24 hours, as certain as anyone can be with a pregnant mare. On March 24th at 10PM I checked on Cricket before going to bed. She was showing some signs of progression, but I left her alone. I was desperate for her to have the baby on the 24th for SO MANY reasons. I set my alarm for 1:30AM so I could check on her again. When I went outside I couldn’t find her. I looked in the stall, looked around the pasture and started to panic. I ran down the hill, and as soon as I stepped off the driveway I saw her silhouette and the silhouette of her little baby following her! I was SO excited, I RAN inside (a lot of running at 1:30AM) and got Ryan. "Ryan, our baby is here!" He hopped out of bed and we headed down to the pasture together. It was very dark and we don’t have light down in the pasture, so we were very careful to not upset Cricket. She allowed both of us to greet our new baby. We had no idea the gender or color, we just knew that he was up, walking around, nursing and practically dry. We tried to towel him off a bit, but Cricket would not allow any of that. So we stepped away, walked around the pasture to find the placenta, confirmed it’s completeness and then said goodnight to our new addition. The following morning we had the joy of introducing Megan to "Charlie The Dog". What an experience. I do not know if she or her parents were more excited. Cricket allowed Megan to say hello to our new baby. We were able to confirm his gender, a little john mule, and enjoy his gorgeous chestnut color. Cricket became more uneasy the more frequent our visits became, so we backed off a bit and by dinner time she allowed me to handle Charlie extensively while she ate her grain. I had my hands all over this little foal. I put them in his ears, down his back, under his tail, inside his legs, and so on. He enjoyed the pets, played with my coat, and was naturally curious about the entire experience. On day number two, I prepared myself to spend time with Charlie while Cricket ate her breakfast. Knowing my time was limited to the time it took for Cricket to eat her grain I jumped right into it. Charlie came right up to me and I gave him all kinds of scratches in the places he liked and a few in places he didn’t. He especially loves those long ears scratched and his belly, and I have gone inside his legs and even picked up each back leg without any trouble. When Cricket finished eating her grain she moved on to her hay, telling me she was getting more and more comfortable with me handling her baby. Then that evening, she didn’t even hesitate to let me greet Charlie and spend time with him. I extended our time together to include haltering and he took to it incredibly well. I started with holding the halter near him, he could care less. I placed it on his back, and still no effect. I then put it on him, he wasn’t excited about it, but it didn’t upset him. I took it off a few minutes later and continued to give him his "scratches." I picked up each leg (front and rear) and spent considerable time with him. I was shocked and excited when he followed me away from his mother, so far that she stopped eating to round him back up again. The bonding and imprinting have begun! I continue to work with Charlie at least twice a day. We have become very close already and he allows me to hold him rather tightly without any fight. I can pick up each of his four feet without trouble and take his halter on and off. As he has become more confident in the halter, I have allowed him to wear it for longer (supervised) periods of time. He does not seem at all bothered by the jingle of the halter. I LOVE that he shakes his head and I can hear his large ears flop from side to side, very similar to a bloodhound’s lips as they shake their heads. We are working on "scary" sounds and placing things on his back. I plan on continuing to add things everyday! Today we may even begin leading and working on pressure and release. Of course, amidst all of the work I give him tons of scratches and love. There was a time when I wasn’t sure that having a foal was the "right" decision for our family, but now I realize that we have never made a better decision. He is very curious, gentle and loves attention. I am SO glad we did this, I already love him to pieces and I can see how wonderful our bond is going to be. Thank you MISTY!!! I cannot imagine having lived my life without this experience. Charlie is a breath of fresh air.