Before she was Foto and Zesty's beloved adoptive daughter, Minolta was a mere orphan mule with a talent for photography. Due to that talent, she was selected by Svengallop to become Foto's disciple as a publicity stunt. While not sold at first on having a foal in the house, Franzie won't say she wasn't impressed with the kid's abilities. Anyway, things eventually got better.

mlp:fim = Hasbro/Faust

If you're curious as to JG Svengallop, he's neither evil nor useless, though he does adore the taste of cold hard cash. He's not above pushing a harebrained scheme or two on Franzie to get his grubby little hooves on his percentage of the gains. Zesty doesn't like him, but why would she?