# Mare Gestations 2016



## Maple Hollow Farm (Mar 15, 2016)

I am wondering if anyone is finding that mares are going longer than normal this year. I have seen a few posted on other sites at really late gestations and then my own mares seem to be bagging slower than normal for them. I was just wondering if this seems to be a trend for this year! I am getting impatient for foals LOL! 

Feel free to just post the gestations your mares go through the foaling season too so we can kind of see an average. Thanks


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## chandab (Mar 15, 2016)

Mine aren't due for at least another 6 weeks at the earliest. My earliest 300 day point is April 19, and so far, the earliest any of mine have gone has been 307 days. It's too cold here most springs to try for earlier than mid-April, and I also try to plan the foals to come after we are done calving, so I can really stretch out the blurry eyes and foggy brain from "mare-stare".


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## Maple Hollow Farm (Mar 15, 2016)

LOL well you guys arent helping much ....I wanted to hear "no all mine are going early"  Mine are just driving me crazy and I am dying to see their babies but none are even acting remotely ready!


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## Magic Marker Minis (Mar 15, 2016)

Here I'll try to help you. My mare, Feather, is at 309 days and half way bagged up. She went to 355 days last year. I don't think she will last that long. Other mare is going to be 300 days next Thurs and she foaled at 328 last year. She went from no bag to delivery in 22 days. She is starting to bag a little and her tailhead is raised. Hope that helps.


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## Maple Hollow Farm (Mar 16, 2016)

O yes that is good news  My mares are currently at 314, 313, 311, 302, and so on LOL! But only a couple are just starting to bag. Based on previous gestations with same crosses on a couple I had predicted foal dates of as early as 3/29 but not thinking they will make that unless they really get more serious quickly.


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## Ryan Johnson (Mar 16, 2016)

Yes when will the camera be going on? Ryan needs something to watch whilst he is at work lol


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## Rocklone Miniature Horses (Mar 16, 2016)

I duno about foaling, but my mare is usually in full swing with seasons! Shes not bothering this year. I want to get her checked over at vet, so need her to season! lol


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## Ryan Johnson (Mar 16, 2016)

Out of my two mares, 1 is extremely obvious , the other whilst still coming into season is so hard to tell. I had the vet give her a PG shot last year as I thought she wasnt coming into season at all. After the shot , she came into season within 5 days .


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## Rocklone Miniature Horses (Mar 16, 2016)

Mines hard to tell if no stallion is around. When there is one, shes incredibly easy haha. I can usually tell by her behavior if shes thinking about it though. She gets really standoffish and less easy to catch. She ran off yesterday but stopped then had a snuggle so shes not quite there.


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## Maple Hollow Farm (Mar 17, 2016)

Ryan Johnson said:


> Yes when will the camera be going on? Ryan needs something to watch whilst he is at work lol





Castle Rock Miniatures said:


> Well, you know how quickly some of these "good 'ole broodmares" can change -- especially those with experience! LOL
> 
> Keep us posted. When will you be putting them up on cam?





Ryan Johnson said:


> Yes when will the camera be going on? Ryan needs something to watch whilst he is at work lol



Hehehehe



Dont worry it will be soon, Diamond is FINALLY starting to get her more normally 'thinking about getting closer' udder so at least one is finally starting to look on time for a change! I will def. have the cam up by the end of the month. Now if only the other mares would follow suit! I check them multiple times a day as I know how fast the little stinkers can change!


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## chandab (Mar 17, 2016)

Melinda, what kind of feed program do you have your broodmares on? Just good hay/pasture? Or more in depth?


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## Maple Hollow Farm (Mar 17, 2016)

chandab said:


> Melinda, what kind of feed program do you have your broodmares on? Just good hay/pasture? Or more in depth?


They are on free choice grass hay and a good quality mineral block (not one of those cheap mostly salt or molasses ones) and a salt block. I dont grain until after foaling as they would be quite literally obese and also the fighting is not fun. I do grain my harder keeper mares seperately along with my jr horses with progressive nutrition proadvantage grass formula and oats.


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## chandab (Mar 17, 2016)

Maple Hollow Farm said:


> They are on free choice grass hay and a good quality mineral block (not one of those cheap mostly salt or molasses ones) and a salt block. I dont grain until after foaling as they would be quite literally obese and also the fighting is not fun. I do grain my harder keeper mares seperately along with my jr horses with progressive nutrition proadvantage grass formula and oats.


Thank you. I fed PN grass formula til it priced right out of my budget and became harder to find locally. Not giving mine quite a ration balancer, but a lower volume pellet that seems to be working for them.


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## Maple Hollow Farm (Mar 17, 2016)

chandab said:


> Thank you. I fed PN grass formula til it priced right out of my budget and became harder to find locally. Not giving mine quite a ration balancer, but a lower volume pellet that seems to be working for them.


Yes it is pricey per bag but since it takes such a small amount of it for their body weight it is still one of the most affordable for the number of horses I am feeding. I actually went through the work of figuring price of what I feed for different feeds and it was still within reason or cheaper than a lot of the others we have available locally.


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## chandab (Mar 17, 2016)

I know it costs me a little bit more to feed what I'm feeding now, but I buy it from the CoOp, so get a dividend check now and then (sometimes yearly, sometimes every other year); this year's check paid for a month of bagged feed.


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## bunni1900 (Apr 19, 2016)

Maple Hollow Farm said:


> I am wondering if anyone is finding that mares are going longer than normal this year. I have seen a few posted on other sites at really late gestations and then my own mares seem to be bagging slower than normal for them. I was just wondering if this seems to be a trend for this year! I am getting impatient for foals LOL!
> 
> Feel free to just post the gestations your mares go through the foaling season too so we can kind of see an average. Thanks





Maple Hollow Farm said:


> I am wondering if anyone is finding that mares are going longer than normal this year. I have seen a few posted on other sites at really late gestations and then my own mares seem to be bagging slower than normal for them. I was just wondering if this seems to be a trend for this year! I am getting impatient for foals LOL!
> 
> Feel free to just post the gestations your mares go through the foaling season too so we can kind of see an average. Thanks


My mares are now ALL over due. The mares that are typically fast to fill a bag are inching along and it is driving me NUTS! But I am glad to know I am not alone and that this seems to be that type of year


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## bunni1900 (Apr 19, 2016)

These are my girls on 4/17/16. I'm dying to see these foals!


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## Magic Marker Minis (Apr 19, 2016)

The top pinto and the two bottom ones look like they are v'd, but it could just be the way they are clipped.


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## bunni1900 (Apr 19, 2016)

Magic Marker Minis said:


> The top pinto and the two bottom ones look like they are v'd, but it could just be the way they are clipped.


They are WAY "V'd". The dun mare (Shirley on bottom left) is usually on time or within a couple days. She is now 9 days over, HUGE bag, loose tail, grouchy as all get out and testing 6.8pH. But has been like that for a WEEK!


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## Magic Marker Minis (Apr 19, 2016)

Doesn't that drive you nuts. We are waiting on our last mare. Her first baby was 354 days. Last year, she went from no bag to delivery in 22 days. Unfortunately, the baby didn't survive. This year she started bagging up at 290, and we are still waiting at 325 days. She has all the signs, except baby is still sitting sideways.


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## bunni1900 (Apr 19, 2016)

It does! Shirley has had 6 foals (this is her 7th) and all were very typical. Now she is throwing the book out the window. The white mare, Carmel who was due yesterday has a very large bag, puffy vulva, mucus/bloody discharge, no foal movement, off her feed, major attitude changes, tested 6.4pH yesterday. But her bag just doesn't seem ready. Then my Shetland mare, Angie is now over 2 weeks past her due date and is JUST STARTING a bag. This is her second foal and she was a rescue so I have no history other than she did have a bag when she foaled.


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## Ryan Johnson (Apr 19, 2016)

Best wishes for safe foalings Bunni1900






maybe they will surprise you and decide they all want to come into this world on the same night/day


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## bunni1900 (Apr 19, 2016)

In all honesty, I would LOVE that! My poor girls are miserable!


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## Maple Hollow Farm (Apr 20, 2016)

I threatened mine with the plunger LOL!!! Then had 4 in 5 days  

So far mine have gone 324, 332, 330, 340, 328, 329 days but I have one at 339 days today that is only just starting to bag so she is going for a long one again, went 349 with her first foal for me but 328 last year with same cross UGH lol!


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