Just devastated another late term abortion

[kaykay]

I havent been posting about it but today we had our 3rd late term abortion. Im just devastated. Tiny, Moonlight bay and Dancer all lost fillies at late gestation. Im just beside myself. Dancer is an experienced mare and she is just beside herself wanting her baby.

The vet thinks its Rhino but everyone I talk to says not to give rhino shots. When this happened the year before last we tested the aborted foals for rhino and the mares and all tested negative.

And I dont understand why the ponies (bailey now at day 333) had no problems?? The vet also doesnt understand this and says normally rhino will wipe out all foals

They were the first 3 fillies by tamale

I just dont even know if I can keep doing this. Im just too heartbroke

If anyone has any other ideas pls tell me. I make sure they ahve the best of care, the best hay etc. So I just dont understand it.

 

[ChrystalPaths]

I'm so very sorry Kay, how devistating.

 

[Gena]

I am sooo very sorry for your losses. I pray you are able to figure out what has caused the abortions, I feel so bad for you, bless your heart (((HUG)))

 

[kareng]

I am so sorry. I hope your mare is doing okay. I'm in the same boat as you without any answers. I also had a mare experience a late term abortion last Tuesday. She wasn't due until May (I hand breed so I know my dates). She had a retained placenta (didn't detach and actually had the uterine horn start to twist and prolapse) that required 3 flushings and 3 days at the vet hospital. Thankfully she didn't spike a fever and no signs of founder. The vet checked the foal and no signs of rhino (causes lesions on the liver) and the eyes were gray so it was dead before being delivered. He did pull blood to check for rhino and lepto. I stopped doing Pneumabort shots several years ago due the risk of abortions from the vaccine. This year I am starting to doubt that decision. A week later one of my other mares (first foal of the year here) foaled a healthy colt so that doesn't make sense when it should have affected all mares if it was in fact rhino. I don't understand and wish I had answers. Should have the results of the bloodwork back next week but still may not have any answers.

Again, I'm very sorry. When something happens like this I really start to doubt my decision to breed but I know I have to take the good with the bad if I am going to breed. Ihope you find some answers. I think I had heard someone talk about Selenium deficieny causing retained placentas and I'm starting to wonder if that could have something to do with my late term abortions.

Take care and I'll be thinking of you.

kareng

 

[kaykay]

thanks so much. dancer is in a little pain and it looks like all the placenta came out but im a bit worried because it was in 2 pieces which i never like. so im keeping a close eye. everytime i go in her stall she thinks im bringing the baby and starts looking for it. She foaled a beautiful filly last year with no problems. we had no late term abortions last year.

I just feel like im in the middle of a nightmare. I dont think kandi kay got bred so that should be the last one with the exception of bailey foaling.

The year before last when it happened I figured it was just an off year and got over it. that was also the year our entire herd had a horrible vaccine reaction so we thought that may have had something to do with it. But to go thru this again is just almost too much.

 

[Minimor]

I'm so sorry for your losses.

Rhino usually doesn't wipe out all of the foals when it strikes. People here that have lost foals in a rhino abortion storm have lost 60-80% of the foals. It could certainly take all the foals, but usually a small percentage are born normal and healthy. I wouldn't think, though, that it would discriminate between Minis and ponies--it should affect all equally. With rhino, some foals will be aborted late term. Others may be born live, but with lesions that have them weak & dying--they cannot be saved.

When testing for rhino after abortions--the mare will test negative, as by the time she aborts she no longer harbors the virus--it is concentrated in the fetus and the placenta. All virus is shed with the placenta, leaving the mare free of rhino. There is no point testing the mares, only the placentas, at least that is what I've always been told.

Vaccinating with pneumabort-K is strictly a matter of choice. Some people swear by it, others insist it causes more abortions than it prevents. The people that say that have most probably never had a rhino abortion storm hit their herd. It's happened to people here, and every last one of them that I've talked to say that once it happened to them once, they always vaccinate their mares since then. They will not risk it happening again. When the horse herd is your sole source of income as it is for some of these people, and that income is suddenly gone because 60-80% of your mares have just aborted, it is a huge loss--financial as well as emotional.

If your aborted foals tested negative last time, it couldn't have been rhino that time. This time it may or may not be--have you tested for it this time? As to other ideas as to what it could be, I'm at a loss for suggestions.

 

[Mona]

:no: Oh Kay, I am SOOOOOOO VERY SORRY for the losses you have suffered this year. (((((HUGS)))))

 

[lvponies]

Oh, Kay!! I am so very sorry!!!

 

[Oreo]

The first time my mare was pregnant I gave her the Rhino shot. Then when she foaled it was a still born. I told the mini breeder we know and he saif that every time he has given it his mares aborted.

 

[Leeana]

Oh my goodness Kay i am soooooo Sorry. I was hoping after Flirts foal things would start going up for you. So so sorry, wish i could say something to make you feel better.

God bless you and Bailey will deffently stay in my prayors!!

 

[kaykay]

minimor when this happened before the vet came within mins of the mare aborting and immediately took a blood sample. He said that because he got the blood so fast (within one hour of foaling) that it would show rhino if it was there. so we sent the blood, the fetus and the placenta in for testing. All were negative. they also tested for lypto.

I asked the vet when tiny aborted if we should bother testing and she said no. After all the money I spent the year before I just went with what she said. The year before we spent quite a bit and didnt get one answer

the first aborted foal had a horribly twisted cord so we thought that was the cause. with the last two i cannot find anything wrong.

thanks for understanding. I just had such high hopes for this year.

 

[LisaB Ozark]

Kay - I am so sorry. My thoughts and prayers are with you.

I know you are suppose to give shots at 5-7-9 months. Is it possible to give just one shot after they have foaled and before breeding back? I have never given the shots.

Can anyone give a little more information.

Thanks, Lisa

 

[Lisa Strass]

Kay, So sorry to hear about your babies. <Hug>

 

[kaykay]

thanks lisa. i did ask the vet after tiny aborted if I could give the remaning mares rhino shots because some were at 7 months and she said no. they have to be 5-7-9 to work.

we had no problems last year so i just dont get it?

if anyone has any ideas pls let me know.

its so confusing because you get so much different information even from vet to vet. Like my vet saying rhino normally affects every pregnant mare in the herd and minmor says it doesnt?

I am so thankful flirt and bailey are okay but its so odd that they werent affected. Just cant figure it out

oh one other thing the vet thought was unusual is normally she says they abort rhino foals within days of each other. We have had one abortion approx every 30 days even mares that were due at the same time.

 

[Marnie]

I'm very sorry for another lose for you. I wish I had some idea but I just don't. Hugs.

 

[Lisa-Ruff N Tuff Minis]

I am so sorry Kay I know how devastating it can be. Sometimes there is no reason other then just bad luck

If you have done necropsy's and they results are no rhino then obviously that si one less thing you can blame. I know it is hard when we don't have any answers :-(

Many large horse farms don't give any vaccines in the 9th month and acutally go with a 2, 4, 6 8 month. The reason to give them so often is the vaccine doesnt last long so I am not sure why if you felt you were looking at Rhino the vet wouldnt want you to go ahead and vaccine now?

 

[miniwhinny]

Oh Kay,

I'm so sorry for your losses :no: I can sadly say that I know your pain over loosing a precious baby but I can't imagine loosing three.

I'm so sorry.

Sending prayers, (((HUGS))) and warm fuzzies.

 

[Filipowicz Farm]

So sorry Kay for your losss.

:no:

 

[OhHorsePee]

So sorry Kay! I was hoping this would be a better year for you. Gosh darn it anyway.

Fran

 

[Joyce]

I'm really sorry to read this Kay and this is an awful loss. Do you have more mares bred? I stopped giving Rhino shots many years ago. I hope your Vet will come up with the reason why. I would assume some testing could be done. In the meantime please accept my sincere condolences and I know how heart breaking this must be for you.

Joyce L