Judy Smith said that the average newborn mini-horse is 21 inches tall and weighs 18 pounds and also said that in more than 20 years of raising miniature horses, she has never seen one so small. The current world record held by Thumbellina, a chestnut mare was born 11 inches tall and 8.5 pounds in 2001 near St. Louis. Now, she stands 17.5 inches tall and weighs 58 pounds.Co-owner Rachel Wagner said that “It’s the miracle in Barnstead.” No signs of dwarfism are seen in Einstein, says another co-owner, he is just a tiny horse: “This little guy is like all horses, he’s almost all leg.” Wagner doesn’t know if the size of the horse is decided by height or weight, and was unsure whether the horse must be measured when fully grown. A family practice physician, Wagner lives with husband Charles Cantrell, a live entertainment producer, in Bellingham, Wash. The couple spends their summers at a house in Gilmanton.
On Smith’s farm, 10 and 15 tiny horses are born each year. Electronic devices are attached to pregnant mares by Smith and her husband Larry and a beeper goes off at their bedside when the horse lays down in anticipation of giving birth. On Friday, at about 3 a.m the beeper went off as Einstein’s mother, said by Smith. Then, she stayed by his side for four hours after his birth to make sure he would be okay.
It is asked by Cantrell that if the horse was for sale, decided immediately to buy it as a gift for his wife. Cantrell’s wife is a family practice physician who owns a number of horses at their Washington home and rides them in equestrian equitation competitions.