0:00:02 > 0:00:04Hiya, I'm Ferne, and today, I'm in the Vale of Glamorgan in Wales
0:00:04 > 0:00:07to see Chloe and Ella and their beautiful pony,
0:00:07 > 0:00:11who needs to see the vet for a very special reason.
0:00:12 > 0:00:15And I'm Rory, and I'm here at a zoo in Bristol to see how the vets here
0:00:15 > 0:00:18keep an eye on lots of different animals.
0:00:23 > 0:00:25# Ferne and Rory telling you the story
0:00:25 > 0:00:27# Of some poorly pets
0:00:27 > 0:00:30# We will take them, show you how to make them
0:00:30 > 0:00:32# Better at the vet's
0:00:32 > 0:00:36# Vet Tales, these are our Vet Tales
0:00:37 > 0:00:39# Vet Tales
0:00:39 > 0:00:42# Ferne and Rory's Vet Tales. #
0:00:45 > 0:00:47Hello, my name's Chloe.
0:00:47 > 0:00:49Hello, my name's Ella.
0:00:49 > 0:00:55We have lots of ponies at Nana's. Look how beautiful they are.
0:00:55 > 0:00:58This is Twiggy. She's ten years old.
0:00:59 > 0:01:02We love feeding her and stroking her.
0:01:04 > 0:01:08We like riding the ponies, too.
0:01:08 > 0:01:10Trotting is my favourite.
0:01:10 > 0:01:12I just love our ponies.
0:01:19 > 0:01:26- Hello.- Hello. This is Twiggy. - Hi, Twiggy. She is beautiful!
0:01:26 > 0:01:29- How are you, Chloe and Ella? - Good.- Good.- Good?
0:01:29 > 0:01:33- Hiya, Nana.- Hello. - What type of pony is Twiggy?
0:01:33 > 0:01:36- She's a Welsh part-bred. - Well, she's fantastic.
0:01:36 > 0:01:39What happened to her eye? She's missing one.
0:01:39 > 0:01:41She lost her eye when she was two.
0:01:41 > 0:01:42But she's OK, isn't she?
0:01:42 > 0:01:46- Yeah.- There's something really special about Twiggy, isn't there?
0:01:46 > 0:01:48She's got a baby in her tummy.
0:01:48 > 0:01:51Does she? Twiggy's pregnant? That is lovely!
0:01:51 > 0:01:55Horses and ponies can be pregnant for about 11 months,
0:01:55 > 0:01:57and that is almost a full year.
0:01:57 > 0:01:59Do you know what a baby horse or pony is called?
0:01:59 > 0:02:01- A foal.- That's right.
0:02:01 > 0:02:05It's amazing that she has a foal growing in there, isn't it?
0:02:05 > 0:02:10- Yeah.- Sometimes we like to feel her baby moving in her tummy.
0:02:10 > 0:02:12How do you do that? Will you come around and show me?
0:02:12 > 0:02:17- Yeah.- Wow. So what do we do? - You put your hands on her tummy.
0:02:18 > 0:02:21And we just try and feel for some movement?
0:02:21 > 0:02:24It's important to get permission before doing this,
0:02:24 > 0:02:26and make sure you feel very gently.
0:02:26 > 0:02:28I can feel it moving!
0:02:28 > 0:02:30This is so special!
0:02:30 > 0:02:31Well done, Twiggy.
0:02:35 > 0:02:39Do you want the foal to be a boy or a girl?
0:02:39 > 0:02:40- A boy.- A girl.
0:02:40 > 0:02:43Oh! Ooh! We'll have to find out, won't we?
0:02:43 > 0:02:46But Twiggy's looking quite big now.
0:02:46 > 0:02:48When's she due to give birth to her foal?
0:02:48 > 0:02:50In one week.
0:02:50 > 0:02:52Wow! Are you excited?
0:02:52 > 0:02:56- Yeah.- Yeah.- The vet needs to check Twiggy before she has her baby.
0:02:56 > 0:02:58And I heard the vet is someone special.
0:02:58 > 0:03:02- Who is it?- She's our mummy. - That's great!
0:03:02 > 0:03:05The girls' mum is going to give Twiggy a check-up in the morning,
0:03:05 > 0:03:08so we'll take her back to her stable to get some rest overnight.
0:03:12 > 0:03:15Last night, when we were sleeping, Twiggy wasn't sleeping,
0:03:15 > 0:03:19because she actually gave birth to her foal!
0:03:19 > 0:03:21How amazing is that? It's come early!
0:03:21 > 0:03:23That is so exciting.
0:03:23 > 0:03:26- It is!- I can't wait to see it.
0:03:26 > 0:03:30We're going to join your mum while she gives the new foal a check over.
0:03:30 > 0:03:31Come on!
0:03:38 > 0:03:41Sara has been a vet for 13 years.
0:03:41 > 0:03:45She once had to remove a T-shirt from inside a dog's tummy.
0:03:46 > 0:03:49And she also helped a springer spaniel
0:03:49 > 0:03:52who got a tin of tuna stuck to its tongue.
0:03:54 > 0:03:56Here we are!
0:03:56 > 0:03:58Are you ready?
0:04:02 > 0:04:04Look at that.
0:04:04 > 0:04:06- Isn't it lovely?- Yeah.
0:04:06 > 0:04:08She's so little, and she's got long legs.
0:04:08 > 0:04:12- The foal has a snip on its nose. - Is that the little white bit?
0:04:12 > 0:04:15- Yeah.- It is? It's adorable!
0:04:15 > 0:04:18Girls, would you like to come and stroke the foal?
0:04:18 > 0:04:20Yeah.
0:04:20 > 0:04:22Be nice and slow and gentle.
0:04:23 > 0:04:25This is magical.
0:04:25 > 0:04:28The foal is a lot taller than I thought it would be.
0:04:28 > 0:04:31This is really special, that we get to do this.
0:04:31 > 0:04:33It's really beautiful.
0:04:33 > 0:04:35And it was a real surprise, wasn't it?
0:04:35 > 0:04:38Cos we weren't expecting this foal for another week.
0:04:40 > 0:04:43Mummy needs to give the foal a check over.
0:04:43 > 0:04:46Do you guys want to go and stand by the door and watch Mummy do it?
0:04:46 > 0:04:48- Yeah.- Yeah.- She's fluffy.
0:04:48 > 0:04:50Sara is going to do a vet check
0:04:50 > 0:04:53on the foal to make sure that everything is OK.
0:04:53 > 0:04:55So what do you need to check first, Sara?
0:04:55 > 0:04:56So we always check the eyes,
0:04:56 > 0:04:59to make sure they haven't got too much bruising on them
0:04:59 > 0:05:00from where they were born.
0:05:00 > 0:05:03There's a little bit of redness on that eye,
0:05:03 > 0:05:05but that's absolutely fine.
0:05:05 > 0:05:08So we'll open the mouth now and have a look inside.
0:05:08 > 0:05:11The gums are really nice and pink, which is really good.
0:05:11 > 0:05:13If you look really closely,
0:05:13 > 0:05:17you can see the first teeth coming through the gums there -
0:05:17 > 0:05:19those tiny white dots.
0:05:19 > 0:05:22Wow! How long will it take before the teeth come through?
0:05:22 > 0:05:23Only about three days.
0:05:23 > 0:05:27- Wow!- So, next, we'll have a listen to the chest.
0:05:27 > 0:05:29- Is this for their heart? - This is for the heart.
0:05:29 > 0:05:33That's nice and steady. Nice and strong.
0:05:33 > 0:05:35Now we'll have a look at the tummy button.
0:05:35 > 0:05:37- The tummy button?- The tummy button.
0:05:37 > 0:05:42So this is where the foal was attached to the inside of Twiggy.
0:05:42 > 0:05:46And if you look really closely, you can see that stump there.
0:05:46 > 0:05:47Oh, wow! OK.
0:05:47 > 0:05:49So that's quite dry already.
0:05:49 > 0:05:52Sometimes, you can put some iodine on there
0:05:52 > 0:05:54to help dry that up a bit quicker.
0:05:54 > 0:05:58It prevents any bacteria going in and causing an infection.
0:05:58 > 0:06:02Great. Bacteria are nasty bugs that can sometimes make you a bit ill,
0:06:02 > 0:06:06so it's better to stop them from getting into the tummy button.
0:06:06 > 0:06:09And all that we've got left to do now is see if it's a boy or a girl.
0:06:09 > 0:06:11- Fantastic!- We'll lift the tail...
0:06:14 > 0:06:18- ..and it's a boy! - Hey!- It's a boy!
0:06:18 > 0:06:20- It's a boy!- Oh...
0:06:20 > 0:06:23A little boy. You've got a strong boy, Twiggy.
0:06:28 > 0:06:33The foal starts as a tiny egg inside the mare, which is the female pony.
0:06:34 > 0:06:38The egg will grow and grow, and start to become a little foal,
0:06:38 > 0:06:41getting bigger and bigger until it's born.
0:06:42 > 0:06:46Foals can walk within a few hours after they are born.
0:06:46 > 0:06:48Isn't that amazing?
0:06:51 > 0:06:53The foal is doing really well,
0:06:53 > 0:06:55but now vet Sara wants to check on Twiggy,
0:06:55 > 0:06:57just to make sure that she's doing OK.
0:06:57 > 0:06:58Sara, what's first?
0:06:58 > 0:07:02- We'll start with her mouth, as well. - Great. So, what are you looking for?
0:07:02 > 0:07:05So, checking that her gums are nice and pink, as well.
0:07:05 > 0:07:09And that indicates that she hasn't had any bleeding into her tummy
0:07:09 > 0:07:12- after she's had the foal. - They look great, don't they?
0:07:12 > 0:07:14- They look fab.- Well done! - Good girl.
0:07:14 > 0:07:18Next, we'll have a look and see if she's got plenty of milk.
0:07:18 > 0:07:22- OK.- So we need to check her udder, make sure it's nice and full,
0:07:22 > 0:07:24which it is, and the teats are nice and wet,
0:07:24 > 0:07:26which shows that the foal's been sucking plenty.
0:07:26 > 0:07:29- Great, so she's got plenty of milk for the foal?- Plenty of milk there.
0:07:29 > 0:07:32The udder is where the foal will get its milk from,
0:07:32 > 0:07:34and this is all it will eat for a while.
0:07:34 > 0:07:37It's good that he's drinking loads of milk, isn't it, girls?
0:07:37 > 0:07:40- Yeah.- Yeah.- So what next for Twiggy and the foal?
0:07:40 > 0:07:43We need to leave Twiggy and her foal together in the stable
0:07:43 > 0:07:46for the next 24 hours, just so they can spend precious time together,
0:07:46 > 0:07:48- and get to know one another.- Lovely.
0:07:48 > 0:07:52Well, girls, I have a really important question to ask.
0:07:52 > 0:07:54What are you going to name this little boy?
0:07:54 > 0:07:56- Tom.- That is a great name!
0:07:56 > 0:07:59- He looks like a Tom, doesn't he, Sara?- He does.
0:07:59 > 0:08:03While we leave Twiggy and Tom in peace to get to know each other,
0:08:03 > 0:08:06let's see who else vet Sara saw on the farm today.
0:08:12 > 0:08:17There were lots of other ponies for vet Sara to look at at the stables.
0:08:19 > 0:08:21Twiggy wasn't the only pregnant pony.
0:08:21 > 0:08:25Jitters had a check-up to make sure the foal growing inside her
0:08:25 > 0:08:27was doing OK.
0:08:27 > 0:08:30Topsy got some eye drops for an infection
0:08:30 > 0:08:32after being bitten by a horsefly.
0:08:34 > 0:08:37A couple more days, and she'll be right as rain.
0:08:37 > 0:08:38And Sara checked on Pip,
0:08:38 > 0:08:42who had a sore part of her hoof removed a few days ago.
0:08:50 > 0:08:53Girls, I've had such a wonderful time meeting you,
0:08:53 > 0:08:55beautiful Twiggy, and brand-new Tom.
0:08:55 > 0:08:57He was such a surprise, wasn't he?
0:08:57 > 0:09:00- Yeah.- I would love to come back soon and see how they're getting on.
0:09:00 > 0:09:04- Would that be OK?- Yes.- Yes, please, Ferne.- Thank you very much.
0:09:04 > 0:09:07I wonder what Rory's been up to today.
0:09:16 > 0:09:19This zoo in Bristol has lots of different animals,
0:09:19 > 0:09:21and they all receive care and attention
0:09:21 > 0:09:23from a team of resident vets.
0:09:23 > 0:09:26And I'm going to meet one of them now.
0:09:26 > 0:09:28- Hi, Charlotte. Hi, Kelly. - Hi, Rory.- Hi, Rory.
0:09:28 > 0:09:31I hear we're going to give a check-up to a little reptile today.
0:09:31 > 0:09:34Yes, that's right. So today, we're going to be checking Carrick,
0:09:34 > 0:09:36who's a chuckwalla,
0:09:36 > 0:09:39and that's a type of a lizard that's related to iguanas.
0:09:39 > 0:09:41Oh, awesome!
0:09:41 > 0:09:45Oh, hello! What a beautiful creature.
0:09:46 > 0:09:48Carrick is a western chuckwalla,
0:09:48 > 0:09:51and they're normally found in western America and northern Mexico,
0:09:51 > 0:09:53so they like warmer places.
0:09:53 > 0:09:56And you can see he's got a darker body, and quite a light tail,
0:09:56 > 0:09:58and that's to blend in with the rocky areas
0:09:58 > 0:10:00where they normally live.
0:10:00 > 0:10:02So what are you going to check first, Charlotte?
0:10:02 > 0:10:06So, first of all, we're going to have a look at his skin,
0:10:06 > 0:10:08make sure it's in good condition.
0:10:08 > 0:10:09Reptiles shed their skin,
0:10:09 > 0:10:13so we've got pieces of the skin you can see still attached to his tail.
0:10:13 > 0:10:15- OK.- And that's quite normal in lizards.
0:10:15 > 0:10:19They do shed in small pieces rather than in one piece like a snake.
0:10:19 > 0:10:21You can see some of the little bits of skin just here
0:10:21 > 0:10:23that have come off, and the new skin underneath.
0:10:23 > 0:10:26The next thing that's important to look at is his body condition.
0:10:26 > 0:10:29So we want to make sure he's not too fat or too thin.
0:10:29 > 0:10:32And they do have quite a flat body, so this shape is normal.
0:10:32 > 0:10:36He's not too fat. And you might notice that he's only got one eye.
0:10:36 > 0:10:38Oh, yes, this eye's missing.
0:10:38 > 0:10:41So we were worried about this other eye a few years ago,
0:10:41 > 0:10:42because it was quite bulgy,
0:10:42 > 0:10:45and we were worried it might have a disease.
0:10:45 > 0:10:47It was causing him some discomfort, so we took it out,
0:10:47 > 0:10:49and he's been OK since.
0:10:49 > 0:10:52- OK, he's been quite happy?- Yes, yeah. He's quite happy with one eye.
0:10:52 > 0:10:54I'll just turn him over for a moment
0:10:54 > 0:10:56- so you can see these little white dots on his legs.- Yeah.
0:10:56 > 0:10:58Those are called femoral pores.
0:10:58 > 0:11:00Sometimes, the white bit can get overgrown,
0:11:00 > 0:11:03- and they can get a bit of an infection.- OK.
0:11:03 > 0:11:05And is that how you tell if they're male or female?
0:11:05 > 0:11:06Yeah, so in lots of lizards,
0:11:06 > 0:11:09these femoral pores are much bigger in the males.
0:11:09 > 0:11:12- Yeah.- So now, if he'll let us, we'll have a look in his mouth.
0:11:12 > 0:11:15- OK.- So you can just see it's all nice and pink in there.
0:11:15 > 0:11:18- Yeah.- And there's no white spots or any other signs
0:11:18 > 0:11:21- that there might be an infection in there or anything like that.- OK.
0:11:21 > 0:11:22So that all looks nice and healthy.
0:11:22 > 0:11:26- We'll have a listen to his heart, using this ultrasound probe.- Wow!
0:11:29 > 0:11:31Wow! HEART BEATS
0:11:31 > 0:11:34It's actually not very fast, and that's quite normal for a reptile,
0:11:34 > 0:11:36right, to have a slower heart rate than a mammal?
0:11:36 > 0:11:38- Yes.- A slower pace of life.
0:11:38 > 0:11:40We're going to try and get a blood sample from his tail.
0:11:40 > 0:11:42OK, you're just cleaning it off first?
0:11:42 > 0:11:46Yeah, I'm just wiping his tail with a little bit of disinfectant there.
0:11:48 > 0:11:52Well done. There we go. It's not too sore for him, is it?
0:11:52 > 0:11:55- No, it's just a small needle we're using.- OK.
0:11:55 > 0:11:57So what are you going to look for in the blood, Charlotte?
0:11:57 > 0:11:59We'll run some blood tests on him,
0:11:59 > 0:12:02just to check that his internal organs are working properly,
0:12:02 > 0:12:03so things like his liver and kidneys.
0:12:03 > 0:12:06- OK, he's done.- Well done!
0:12:06 > 0:12:08You have been an excellent patient, Carrick.
0:12:08 > 0:12:10And thank you very much, Charlotte and Kelly,
0:12:10 > 0:12:13- for showing us your vet checks today.- No worries.
0:12:20 > 0:12:23Recently, I met Chloe and Ella, and their pony, Twiggy,
0:12:23 > 0:12:26who gave birth to a beautiful foal called Tom.
0:12:26 > 0:12:29And now I'm back to see how they're all doing,
0:12:29 > 0:12:31and I can't wait to see how Tom's getting on.
0:12:31 > 0:12:32I bet he's grown!
0:12:40 > 0:12:43- Hiya, Chloe. Hi, Ella. - Hiya, Ferne.- Hi, Ferne.
0:12:43 > 0:12:45Tom has grown, hasn't he?
0:12:45 > 0:12:49- He's growing big and strong. - He is, isn't he?
0:12:49 > 0:12:52- Yeah.- And he's a lot less wobbly on his legs than last time.
0:12:52 > 0:12:55He's got teeth coming through.
0:12:55 > 0:12:57- Really?- He does.
0:12:57 > 0:12:59His first teeth have actually come through.
0:12:59 > 0:13:01Oh, wow!
0:13:01 > 0:13:04Look at those! He's got four whole teeth!
0:13:04 > 0:13:07That's wonderful. So has he been eating some grass?
0:13:07 > 0:13:11Yeah. He pinches food from Twiggy's manger when we feed her.
0:13:11 > 0:13:13- Does he?- Yeah.
0:13:13 > 0:13:15No wonder he's growing so big and strong!
0:13:15 > 0:13:18So is it just the two of them in this field?
0:13:18 > 0:13:22It's a bonding field, so other ponies don't bother them.
0:13:22 > 0:13:24So they can spend time getting to know each other
0:13:24 > 0:13:27without the other ponies disturbing them. That's great.
0:13:27 > 0:13:30It's been really nice being back and seeing you again.
0:13:30 > 0:13:32- Thank you!- You're welcome, Ferne.
0:13:32 > 0:13:33Thank you, Ferne.
0:13:33 > 0:13:35Thank you for joining us
0:13:35 > 0:13:38and finding out all about these lovely ponies, Twiggy and Tom.
0:13:38 > 0:13:41See you next time for more Ferne and Rory's Vet Tales.
0:13:41 > 0:13:43ALL: Bye!
0:13:49 > 0:13:52# Ferne and Rory telling you the story
0:13:52 > 0:13:54# Of some poorly pets
0:13:54 > 0:13:57# We will take them, show you how to make them
0:13:57 > 0:13:59# Better at the vet's
0:13:59 > 0:14:03# Vet Tales, these are our Vet Tales
0:14:04 > 0:14:06# Vet Tales
0:14:06 > 0:14:08# Ferne and Rory's Vet Tales. #