A tiny thoroughbred racehorse foal who was left an orphan when his mother died just weeks after he was born has found a new carer - a giant Clydesdale horse.

The foal, owned by St Johnstone FC chairman Geoff Brown, looked to have a bleak future ahead of him when his first foster mum rejected him.

But Sammy - named by Mr Brown's granddaughter after Saints player Collin Samuel - is now thriving after the comparatively giant Rose took him under her wing.

The bonding process was given a helping hand with the use of some menthol vapour rub. It was smeared on Rose's nose and Sammy's back to mask his scent and convince Rose she was nursing her own foal. And it seems to be a match made in heaven - with Rose taking Sammy straight to her heart after losing three of her own foals shortly after birth.

Heritage

Now Sammy is growing quickly at Mr Brown's stud farm near Perth - and looks set to fulfil his potential on the racecourse.

He has a strong racing heritage - his grandmother, Dalkey Sound, was Mr Brown's most successful racehorse, winning 13 National Hunt races, and Sammy's survival means her bloodline will live on.

Mr Brown told STV News: "It was a bit of a disaster when Sammy's mother died.  He was three weeks old and we got a phone call saying the mare was unwell. I set off from Glasgow to come through and the vet called to say they had to put her down.

"That left us a real dilemma with no mother - and no milk.  We managed to get a Welsh horse up by midnight and she let him suckle in while she was blindfolded.

"But when the blindfold came off she wouldn't let him hear her.

"Fortunately we managed to get this Clydesdale in.  I had never heard of using the Vicks vapour rub - but I'm pleased to say it has worked out extremely well.

"Your talking about something as small as a thoroughbred foal and something as big as a Clydesdale horse - they are at totally other ends of the spectrum.

"Rose had three foals and none of them survived for various reasons, so this is her first taste of motherhood.

"So far, three weeks in, she's making a very good job of it - it's great to see."