I Need Help with Owning a Pregnant Mare

[RenosGirl]

yes greenhawk is a awesome place to get foal blankets. And since your in the area it would be smart just to go look at prices. I would also get a belly band, they are just nicer. I have also heard people using a old (human) sweater underneath the foal blanket on really cold days.


Oh I am pretty sure you already know this but there is no greenhawk up here so one day after class I think you should wonder over there. You can go onto the site for directions.

[RenosGirl]

I just looked on the site and a dog blanket is 35$ (the most expensive one) and they all go up to double extra large.

and I think the smallest in the normal blankets is a 66

[Pretty Pony]

Originally Posted by horsecrazygal

If you want to actually get to watch her during foaling, I would suggest you get a milk test kit such as:
http://www.foalingwatch.com/ProductD...-1700&CartID=1

By testing the mares milk, you can get an estimate of approx when she will foal. This way you know which night to foal watch during.

I would also suggest you watch this video on foal care:
http://www.thehorse.com/Videos.aspx?tab=webinar

you have to log in to watch it...

I'm excited for you and Lily. I want to breed my retired jumper, but I don't have the funding at this time to plan on another horse. At least not without selling one of the ones I have...

Thanks so much for the info! That will help greatly.

I don't have the funding, as I'm on a college budget, but I'm going to make this work. The rule was no horses until after college was done, but Lily came around and I had the money and the parents actually agreed. So guess what...I went into college being told I had to wait two years for a horse and two years later I will be coming out of college with two!!!

Anyway, I hope you can find the funding one day. Babies are fun!

[RenosGirl]

well maybe ask for one for christmas lol


It might not snow til after christmas if it still stays like this

[Pretty Pony]

Originally Posted by RenosGirl

yes greenhawk is a awesome place to get foal blankets. And since your in the area it would be smart just to go look at prices. I would also get a belly band, they are just nicer. I have also heard people using a old (human) sweater underneath the foal blanket on really cold days.


Oh I am pretty sure you already know this but there is no greenhawk up here so one day after class I think you should wonder over there. You can go onto the site for directions.

Okay, thank you so much for the info! I will definitly make a trip over there!!!

[Pretty Pony]

Okay so for those not following the other thread (can anyone tell me how to link them!?!?)...

LILY IS PREGNANT!!!!!!

And I think I'm going to pass out. lol

She is due April/May, the vets are thinking. So not a winter baby after all. Phew.

Okay, I need to go calm down for a second.

[evelynwolfe]

YAY! So I guess that it looks like it will be the warmblood then? Do we know who daddy is yet based on the date?

[Pretty Pony]

Originally Posted by evelynwolfe

YAY! So I guess that it looks like it will be the warmblood then? Do we know who daddy is yet based on the date?

Yep, I'm gonna have a warmblood baby!

The dad is Jack, a two year old who died just a week and a half ago. And his Mom died right after having him, so he was an orphan. Got his name because he was bottle fed from a Jack Daniels bottle.

Pedigree:
http://www.clrc.ca/Public/index.php?...npage=1&gens=5

If you go to my thread in the health section called Stomach Issues and go to pg. 7, you'll see the little write up of info I did about Jack.

I'm gonna have me a tall warmblood baby at that...not sure how my barely 5'4" body feels about that.

[ThorArb]

Congrats on the new baby!

Dont forget to give Lily her Pneumabort K shots- they are given at 5, 7 and 9 months in foal.

As for the vet's prediction, sometimes they can be really accurate and sometimes way off. Does the April/May due date seem accurate to you with the time(s) she was with the stud? Or do you not know when she might have been exposed?

I dont usually ride my mares in foal at all. Heck Im pregnant now (my first) and I couldnt imagine doing anything similar to work at all. So Im glad that Ive never ridden my girls. But other people do continue to ride even up until the mare has foaled! Personally I think that is a bit much, puts strain on the mare's back and all that far along.

Ive never used milk strips before and have been lucky enough to catch all of my mares foal except for this last one- I had just missed it by minutes. There are several behavioral and physical signs that to me have been just as reliable. Just have to know what to look for and know your mare's attitudes. Ive heard the strips can be pretty accurate when used properly.

Anyways, the most important thing right now is that your mare is getting the proper feed/hay and care.

[Pretty Pony]

Originally Posted by ThorArb

Congrats on the new baby!

Dont forget to give Lily her Pneumabort K shots- they are given at 5, 7 and 9 months in foal.

As for the vet's prediction, sometimes they can be really accurate and sometimes way off. Does the April/May due date seem accurate to you with the time(s) she was with the stud? Or do you not know when she might have been exposed?

I dont usually ride my mares in foal at all. Heck Im pregnant now (my first) and I couldnt imagine doing anything similar to work at all. So Im glad that Ive never ridden my girls. But other people do continue to ride even up until the mare has foaled! Personally I think that is a bit much, puts strain on the mare's back and all that far along.

Ive never used milk strips before and have been lucky enough to catch all of my mares foal except for this last one- I had just missed it by minutes. There are several behavioral and physical signs that to me have been just as reliable. Just have to know what to look for and know your mare's attitudes. Ive heard the strips can be pretty accurate when used properly.

Anyways, the most important thing right now is that your mare is getting the proper feed/hay and care.

Thanks, ThorArb!

Sue, the lady I board with, was the one to call. And after I got over the rush of trying to keep it together so I wasn't crying on the phone (good tears!) right away she launched into the shots and said since she buys a bunch for her mares anyway, she's going to pick some up for Lily. She has a mare that is due just under a month after Lily so Lily and Cleo will be shot buddies and can have theirs done at the same time. The rest of the mares aren't due until June and even then it's spaced out between the start of June and the end.

Do I need to worry about a tetanus shot? Lily was vaccinated and given a shot in June, I think. I have the files written down at home. She would have already been bred at that point, without us knowing. And then, since she had never had tetanus, we gave her another booster shot in July. So do I need to give her one more before baby is due, or will it be okay?

In regards to the vet's prediction, I am trying to think back and it does seem about right to me. I'm remembering things I had forgotten. I brought her home Easter weekend. She was with Penny for a couple weeks since they came from the same home. I finished school the very end of April, came home, and sometime in the next week or two I turned her out with Legacy. I can't remember how many weeks after that, but we had a wicked windstorm and it blew their shelter through the hot wire and into the two year old's pasture, breaking the fence. Lily and Legacy got in with the two years olds. That would be when she was bred. So it was probably around late May/June, I think when she was bred. I'm going to have to go home and start looking at dates. But it makes sense, because Legacy had been a stud until he was 11, and he'll let you know when the mares are in heat, and he was definitly pointing it out when she was with him. And then after she was bred, we put her back in with Penny and we thought she was coming into heat, but they were very mild heats. She was still exhibiting signs and it was the only time she was talking to Uri, Sue's breeding stud. If Legacy had been with her, we would have known she wasn't actually in heat. Huh, I hadn't thought of all this until I started typing.

I was riding Lily until late August. Didn't get to ride her in September before I left for school, and at Thanksgiving it was icey and that's when my suspicions started, so I didn't ride her then. And this past weekend when I was home, I was feeling pretty sure she was. I don't think the saddle will fit her right now, anyway. She's too wide. And there's no way her girth will fit around her stomach. And I am not getting on her bareback. I'm a heavy rider and I wouldn't even ride her bareback this summer. Too hard on her spine. So I guess we didn't get our final ride for the season, but that's quite fine with me. I'm definitly not getting on her again until after baby is born.

So I guess I'll start asking what to look for when it gets closer. I already have a few ideas about that.

ThorArb, thanks again for all your help! I really appreciate you sharing some of your knowledge with me!

[ThorArb]

When she is about a month prior to foaling Id give her another Tetanus booster. Her other vaccinations can be given as normal (mine are done spring/fall).

It isnt at all uncommon for mares in foal to still have "heat cycles". I had a paint mare that was notorious for it. It is not a reliable source as far as telling whether or not your mare was bred. My QH mare at the very beginning of her pregnancy would still show for my stud. She stopped around 5-6 months in foal. But the Paint I had was a huge hussy while in foal.

[Amy]

Just wanted to say congratulations and good luck... I'm glad she's boarding somewhere with an experienced breeder, I know, as a newer horse owner, that I would be much more comfortable having all the help I could get. Your mare is very pretty, good luck on a healthy foal.

[Pretty Pony]

Originally Posted by ThorArb

When she is about a month prior to foaling Id give her another Tetanus booster. Her other vaccinations can be given as normal (mine are done spring/fall).

It isnt at all uncommon for mares in foal to still have "heat cycles". I had a paint mare that was notorious for it. It is not a reliable source as far as telling whether or not your mare was bred. My QH mare at the very beginning of her pregnancy would still show for my stud. She stopped around 5-6 months in foal. But the Paint I had was a huge hussy while in foal.

The end of your paragraph made me laugh so hard! Good to know that they can still be in "heat". Sue's broodmares are pretty much by the textbook, so Lily threw me for a loop.

And thanks for the tetanus help. I wasn't sure if it was safe to give. I will make sure we have another booster for her in time.

[Pretty Pony]

Originally Posted by Amy

Just wanted to say congratulations and good luck... I'm glad she's boarding somewhere with an experienced breeder, I know, as a newer horse owner, that I would be much more comfortable having all the help I could get. Your mare is very pretty, good luck on a healthy foal.

Yeah, I am so grateful to have the help of someone experienced! Thanks for the compliment!