Help raise funds to pay Hannah & Baby Apple’s vet’s bill

Hi, my name is Mel and I’m fundraising to help a very good friend of mine.

Gemma, owns and runs Stockdale Stables Riding School in Walton, Wakefield, where I have ridden and helped out since being a kid.

On Friday, 25th July, Gemma arrived at the stables early, to prepare for a Stable Management day.

One of the mares Gemma took on from a friend didn’t show her head out of her stable door as she usually does every morning… and on closer inspection, there was a pretty surprising why!

Hannah, the mare, had birthed a foal overnight, only 15 hours after being seen by the vet. She had previously had scans and blood tests to check if she was pregnant and they all came back negative.

Mummy Hannah arrived at Stockdale in need of some serious TLC. She came from a friend of Gemma’s, who acquired her in such a horrific state; a complete walking skeleton! Gemma’s friend has started her journey back to health and Gemma happily took her on after seeing what a beautiful girl she is. It has horrified Gemma how she'd been left to get in this state and she was determined to help her.

It's heartbreaking to see her as a fraction of the horse she should be.

Hannah has a long road to achieve a proper weight and Gemma has known this since day one, as have her vets, but obviously carrying her baby, she's half the horse she should be.

Thankfully, with Gemma, Hannah had been on MAJOR fat camp for the last few months and it’s unlikely the baby would have survived without the extra care, feed and attention she has had. Extra fattening feeds, supplements, oils and unlimited forage have stretched the budget but the horse will always come first. Gemma will always do anything and everything for her horses.

When Gemma found the new baby, which she has named Apple because of an apple shape in the markings on her back, she was extremely weak. Gemma called out the vet who treated both mother and foal. Hannah had become very stressed, but we got through the day with some tubing milk into her tummy, bloods and adrenaline to warm up and boost baby Apple. Hannah has had the full works!

Later in the day, Hannah became extremely distressed and, unfortunately, kept standing on her baby, so Gemma stayed in her car at the yard overnight and allowed baby Apple to nap in the car boot, between hourly feeds, keeping them both safe and getting all the antibodies into Apple possible.

Hannah and Baby Apple are both improving now, but there’s a long road ahead and many more vet call outs facing the pair. This, of course, comes at huge expense.

Gemma has never taken donations or run a GoFundMe, but this has absolutely bankrupted Gemma’s business, following costly other treatments and emergency call outs in the last few weeks for her other riding ponies.

All those vet bills have been paid but, again, we have a huge 4 figure vet’s bill for Baby Apple and Hannah, just from the last 2 days!

Any funds raised would be a HUGE help for baby Apple and her mummy, Hannah, who both have complex health journeys and ongoing vet’s bill facing them.

Please donate all you can for Hannah and her new baby foal, Apple