Written by Margret Bender
At Christmas time, we always hear that it is a time for miracles. As we spend our days shopping, and getting ready for Christmas, we rarely have the time to stop and think about the true meaning of Christmas and that it is a time for miracles. Our days were no different.
It was December 23, 1998. I had finally finished my shopping the day before and was now turning my attention to the house. In all the hustle and bustle of trying to get the shopping done, the house hadn't had the cleaning that it needed. My mother was coming to spend Christmas Day with us, and we were expecting company the day after Christmas. I started on the living room first. I was happily cleaning and my husband, Ed, was out moving the wood pile onto the porch for the winter. As I was working near the front door, a movement outside caught my eye. I opened the door to see what was going on, just in time for Ed to come running in. In his arms was a newborn cria. "Who had the baby?!" I exclaimed. "Chilya," came the reply.
"But she's not due until April!" I responded.
"Well it's full term. We've got to thaw it out. I found it frozen to the ground," was his answer. We laid it out on the floor next to the wood stove. I ran and found the hairdryer and grabbed some towels. It only took me a couple of minutes to realize that he was a lot colder than what I had thought. I knew if we didn't get him in the tub and warm him up soon, we were going to lose him. I had Ed go up and start the water running in the tub. I picked up the baby, which was as stiff as a board and just about frozen solid and followed with it. I got him upstairs and put him in the tub. Kneeling next to the tub, I cradled his head in the crook of my arm to keep his nose above water. We kept him in the tub for about 1 1/2 hours, draining and refilling the tub with warm water whenever it cooled off. After about a half hour he started trying to move a little.
We called the vet to see if there was anything else we could do and were told that we were doing all of the right things. They also told us to put our finger in his mouth to check to see how warm he was. The first couple of times I tried to do this, I couldn't get my finger in his mouth because it was frozen shut. By pouring cups of warm water over his mouth (being careful not to get it in his nose) I finally got his mouth thawed out enough to get my finger in. He was so cold. It took quite a while to thaw his jaws enough so he could open his mouth. His ears had been frozen solid.
After the 1 1/2 hours in the tub, he was trying to cush on his own. We took him out and dried him off with the hairdryer. Ed went out and got Chilya and brought her in. We reunited Mom and baby. We blocked off the living room, set up a heating pad covered by a towel in the middle of the room and there Mommy and baby spent the rest of the day and night. The vet came and checked on the baby in the afternoon and was impressed on how well the baby was doing. We gave the new Mom a shot of Oxytocin to let her milk down and by holding the baby up to Mom and by working with the two of them, finally got the baby to nurse.
The baby would nurse every 2 hours and when he was done nursing, we took Chilya out to do her business. During the evening we settled down to watch TV; through the movie, "Not Without My Daughter" and then the program "Touched By An Angel" Chilya watched the TV intently cushed on the floor between two easy chairs.
Christmas Eve night we moved the pair into the kitchen. After a couple of days, we let Chilya back in with the herd where she really wanted to be, as she would stand at the kitchen window and hum intently at her buddies outside. We brought her back in every couple of hours to nurse her baby. When she saw us at the gate she came running to have the lead put on and to be lead to the house to see her baby. ( I wish it was that easy to catch all the llamas!) Some friends also loaned us a mini-horse blanket that fit the baby well enough, so he was able to go out for a little while with his Mom in the afternoons. With the forecast of a severe winter storm, Ed found time to close in the llama shed and installed a heat lamp so they could both go out together. Considering his cold start to life, we were being extra careful about getting him used to being outside and making sure that he was strong enough before we introduced him back into the cold, cruel world.
I am very happy to report that he is doing well. He is now a month old, and is out in the pasture with the rest of the llamas. He loves to run and kick his heels up. Whenever we go out, he comes over to say "Hi," but is adapting to "llama life" very well.
Considering all he has been through, it looks like the only damage that was done by his freezing is to one ear. Even after splinting the ear, it still flops over like a dog's.
When I think of all the miracles that surround this baby's birth, I can't help but be amazed. It was a miracle that he was even found. Ed happened to hurt his finger and was heading up to the house to bandage it when he discovered the baby. Probably if he hadn't hurt the finger, the baby wouldn't have been found in time. The baby was right next to the fence on the far side of the pasture, away from where the llamas usually congregate. The fact that there doesn't seem to be any permanent damage from the cold, and the fact that he even survived being frozen are all miracles. As far as the mother goes, as a first time Mom, she has done so well. She let us milk her (standing perfectly still); she has let us do everything that needed to be done to her baby with no problem and the fact that she has put up with being in a warm house for so long are all miracles.
After discussion with the kids, the name Iceman was decided on for our little "Christmas Miracle". This will definitely be one Christmas that won't soon be forgotten. I also think in the future, we will take a little time out from the hustle and bustle of getting ready for Christmas, to remember that it is a time for miracles.
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