It has been another very few busy months here at the Irish National Stud since my last blog. We are currently just over half way through the breeding season and have 187 foals on the ground. I have completed full circle and worked in every yard of the Irish National Stud which I have loved and learnt so much. We are quickly approaching the second part of the 2022 course in the next coming days. I’m amazed how fast time has gone over the last few months but I’m also happy to say I have made the most of it.
Since my last blog where I wrapped up the week working with the 9 great stallions standing at the Irish National Stud. I then headed to Kildare yard which is filled with all of the foals that arrive from the foaling unit 2 days after birth. I spent 2 weeks here and got a great understanding of the foals. It was strange to lead them round by the headcollar which I had never done before but quickly learnt new tricks and techniques to get the mare and foal moving. In my second week here I was put in charge of making the daily teasing lists for the mares on foal heat or second cycle post foaling. This was very interesting to learn the stud's ways of judging and recording mares teasing patterns and whether they are due for cover or to visit the vet for a scan. This was a fast education and was very satisfying to get the hang of it in the first few days, also to have a responsibility to decide what needs to be done with each mare.
In early March I was fortunate to be on night foaling watch which is something I had never done before. We had a busy 4 nights receiving 3 foals within the first hour and another 8 within the next coming nights. This involves starting at 6pm and keeping an eye on the pregnant mares until 7am. A check is done every 15 minutes and is divided between the 2 students and the night manager. I enjoyed being able to pick out who you think will foal soon as they begin to wax up, run milk, walk around or sweat up. When water is broken we take them into a foaling box to give birth where I further increased my knowledge and practical experience with new born foals and testing colostrum, getting the foal on the suck, their first steps and all the exciting first time achievements for this little thoroughbred.
It was the perfect timing to be on night watch as it was the week of the New Zealand Bloodstock Karaka Yearling Sales. I was able to watch the sale live and talk to the family up there at Karaka whilst on night watch. It was so cool to see the results, especially a colt sold in thirds with my brother and sister to Hong Kong, also the Chandelier colt sold to Annabel Neasham for 1 million. Even though I was sad to miss it, it was so amazing to watch from over here and I was proud of how the Waikato Stud team performed and how much fun they had.
I then worked in the foaling unit, Sun Chariot for a few days, where I spent a fair amount of time with the vet. I thoroughly enjoyed and learnt a lot on checking foals in the hours after birth to make sure they are all healthy and comfortable. This involves checking their eyes, gums, ribs, naval and legs, then on to the mare to make sure she got through the birthing process fine where we check heart rate, gut movements and general well-being for the horse. Another job needing to be done during the day is foal watch of the mares in the paddocks for the day. I was lucky enough to catch a mare foaling in one of the yards then to bring her into a box to foal. If a mare is caught foaling during the day the student is rewarded with 100 euro which I was over the moon about.
This week I am back in Maddenstown for dry mares which will be very busy with teasing, scanning and turning out. Other than the work I have had an awesome month doing plenty of adventuring around the country with a trip to the big smoke of Dublin, getting lost on the city tram. A trip to Navan where I attended my first ever National Hunt meeting. Cheltenham week which gave me a huge look into the National Hunt side of the industry and how loved it is in Ireland. I was also very privileged to spend a day out with bloodstock agent Hubie De Burgh and his right hand man Martin Buick where we visited Irish trainer Fozzy Stack. We watched the horses train on the gallop and heard all reports from riders after. I had a ball that morning as I have little experience with racehorses in training. It was very interesting to hear the reports given by the riders then Fozzy’s thoughts on next steps for the horse. After this we ventured up to Kildangan Godolphin where we received a stallion parade and saw Night of Thunder, Ghaiyyath, Profitable and Space Blues. This was an amazing day out and has been one of the many highlights in the last month.
I have spent the last week completing a very interesting essay on how to attract and retain the younger demographic into the thoroughbred industries jobs and ownership of horses. I absolutely loved this assignment and was very invested in creating new ideas on how to complete this goal in getting the next generation into the game we love and to create a sustainable horse industry for the future. A lot of learning took place during the essay and it’s something I will bring home to New Zealand and encourage others into the industry for a viable future.
Overall the Irish National Stud Course 2022 is going well. I'm very excited for the next three months but hope it goes slower than the first three.
Thank you,
George Chittick.
