Help please - with Mother Nature's strips?

[ShaunaL]

I'm glad that Cindy commented on the color matching. After she said she thought your mare should be watched close I went to my hubby's computer to see if the pics looked a different color to me and THEY DO!!! On my computer, the colors don't seem to match very closely, but when I looked on his screen I changed my mind! I DO think she's closer than I said earlier and I would test her at least every 6 hours if she were my horse. But I'm paranoid!!

Good luck Shauna! Here's to a healthy, happy baby!

Parmela I am SO paranoid! Our only 08 foal was stillborn, we had Soldier born premature and then lost, a weanling die of colitis and Jedi all lost in the last year and I am so freaked out that I will miss her foaling and we will lose the baby or even her

I can't take any more losses. I just want a live baby! If she waits to foal for a couple weeks that's fine as long as I'm there

Once Tidbit foals the only mare still to go is an easy-peasy textbook foaler with 100% live foals and tons of pre-foaling signs! Thank goodness!

 

[Becky]

Her milk is now very thick and sticky, different from this morning

Um, I wouldn't take my eyes off a mare with milk like that!

 

[ShaunaL]

Here are tonight's tests and Cindy you were right!

The top square matched closely this time - it was dark red (the 95%) and the green square (85%) was even lighter this time.

I thought it would help me learn to compare if I also tested a mare I was confident was far from foaling so I tested Trouble, due May 5. Trouble's strips are on the right side (testing clearly in the non-foaling range) and Tidbit's strips are on the left.

I also used the pool strips and was thrilled with those results too I think we might be having a baby this week!

Tidbit is on the left and the mare due in May is on the right. Hardness is the top square with Tidbit testing clearly at 1000 and Trouble way down at the low end.

pH is the 4th square down with Tidbit testing light orange - below 6.8 - and Trouble's pink square testing at the high end.

It was very interesting (and pretty convincing!) for me to see the difference between the two mares and I thought others might be interested as well for future reference.

So.. we'll just keep waiting. She's a very mellow, high- tolerance, no-drama mare so I'm not expecting much warning when she foals

 

[StarRidgeAcres]

Shauna,

Thanks so much for posting those comparisons!! This whole thread has been very informative with all the info you and Cindy have provided. Very cool!

And yes, you look to be having a baby very, very soon!

 

[~Lisa~]

Sure looks like there will be an announcement by morning.

 

[ClickMini]

When Flirt's strip looked like that she foaled an hour and a half later. Keep an eye on that girl!

 

[ShaunaL]

No baby yet. Today's strip tests look in the same range as last night's but the green square is definitely lighter green now. Her milk is turning white this morning though!! I don't know if that means a few days or 3 weeks but I'll take it LOL

Hopefully she won't make us wait more than a week or so! I don't have much experience with milk changes or the strips so we are just going to be patient

I'm trying to take lots of pics though on both mares so I have a photo journal to refer to in coming years.

 

[StarRidgeAcres]

Oh my Shauna!!! I've been waiting for an update and thought for sure it would be a baby pic this time. I still say it's very, very soon!!