Our First Filly Is Here: Welcome, Ronja!

It happened on September 5th: our mare Polly gave birth to her first foal. A small, black filly. We named her Ronja.

That we got to experience this birth exactly the way we hoped – calm, on familiar ground, without stress – is not something to take for granted. That's exactly why our petition to the state parliament mattered so much.

Why relocating pregnant mares can be life-threatening for the foals

What many people don't know: moving pregnant mares shortly before birth isn't just stressful for the animals – it can be life-threatening for the foals.

In the last trimester, a pregnant mare develops antibodies in her colostrum (the first milk) – specifically tailored to the parasites and pathogens found on the exact pasture she's standing on during this time. These antibodies are custom-built for the mother's environment.

If you change pastures during this period, the immune protection in the colostrum is still calibrated to the old pasture – not the new one. The newborn foal drinks colostrum, but has no protection against the bacteria and parasites waiting on the new land. The result can be serious illness – in the worst case, the foal dies.

That's why a forced move of our pregnant mares within a single week was never something we could simply accept. It wasn't about convenience – it was about the lives of the unborn foals.

Ronja is exactly where she belongs

Ronja is our first foal this season – and she got to be born exactly where Polly spent the final months of her pregnancy: on familiar ground, with immune protection matched to her environment.

We're expecting more foals in the coming weeks. We'll keep sharing updates on our mares and the new foals here on the blog and on Instagram.

Thank you to everyone whose support helped make it possible for Ronja to be born here.