— Twins beat odds until one had fence mishap —

(OSOYOOS TIMES — August 1, 2007) —

By Maureen ParriottrnOsoyoos Times

In April of last year, one of the rarest events in the animal world occurred here in Osoyoos. Twin foals were born to a thoroughbred mare owned by local resident Gail Hochsteiner.
Horses are designed to have only one foal at a time, so producing twins is practically a one-in-a million occurrence. Hochsteiner had no inkling that a second youngster was in the offing, since a routine ultrasound hadn't even hinted at its presence. Only when the mare, 15-year-old 'Roadside Promise', decided to lie down again after delivering a beautiful little girl, did Hochsteiner realize there was more going on than had met her eye.
Mum gave another big push, and out popped baby number two. Hochsteiner, who has raised race horses for years, was stunned, but reacted quickly to tear open the birth sac to allow him to breathe. As often happens in these rare multiple births, the second foal was smaller than the first. But unlike most, he was healthy and energetic. Sadly, one horse twin is almost always too weak to survive, and often both twins perish.
Not these babies. No complications whatsoever. They grew strong and shiny on 'Road's' abundant milk and romped and napped and romped some more and teased their mother just as they were supposed to do. Hochsteiner named the sweet-natured filly 'Promise Me Once' and her rollicking brother 'Promise Me Twice'. They were little miracles to everyone who saw them.
'Once' and 'Twice' thrived in the summer sunshine and grew fuzzy as autumn turned into winter. Approaching their first birthday (thoroughbreds always have an official birthday of January 1), they began to look like elegant grown-up thoroughbreds as their bodies began catching up with their lanky legs.
And then one morning last December tragedy struck.
Hochsteiner arrived at the barn complex to find 'Once' in an odd position. She was wedged into a corner of a fence. As Hochsteiner approached, she could see that 'Once's' head had gone between the bars and in another once-in-a-million happenstance, she had broken her neck. The type of aluminum tube fencing Hochsteiner uses for pens is extremely safe, since there is almost no way a horse can become trapped in it. But 'Once' had “ perhaps while playing with her brother and another filly, perhaps by slipping and losing her footing.
It was a totally freak accident, Hochsteiner says, grief still narrowing her eyes. As a veteran horsewoman, she knows that horses are notoriously prone to unexpected disasters, but the irony of having a healthy twin survive infancy only to lose her life through misadventure makes her shake her head in disbelief.
So now there is only 'Twice'. Now nicknamed 'Shorty' because he is still the smallest in the herd, he makes up for his size by being the most rambunctious, almost as if he has a double dose of personality.
Although handled from birth, he makes it a point to tease Hochsteiner when she tries to halter him, and she has now broken her lifelong rule against feeding horse treats to reward good behaviour. Consequently, curious and bright 'Shorty' bounces up merrily whenever she waves a bucket in his general direction and is well on his way to becoming a happy-go-lucky mooch. Whether his future will one day include hearing cheers in his ears as he crosses a finish line remains to be seen.