Little Miss... expecting?

[Dragonfly Stables]

Hi all, I just wanted to start a thread here to get opinions and to have a record of pics/information on my mare Little Miss (Missy). She is a 6 year old I just recently purchased from a friend of mine. She is not registered. She was pastured with my friend's colt since last June. Colt it coming 2, so we aren't sure if he's bred her or not. He was pastured with 3 mares (including Miss), and I have one of the other mares here as well though she doesn't belong to me. I figure if she's bred we're looking at a baby towards the end of the summer at the earliest, and likely into the winter next year (ugh). Colt has been seen breeding the remaining mare (who we are guessing is already bred by her reaction to him and she is visibly looking bred).

Anyways, this is Little Miss!

And this is a sideshot of her which is about a week old... I know it's not the best quality, it's very hard to get a good shot inside my barn... will try for clearer shots tomorrow.

Nail test say's Missy is having a filly, and with Elle(other mare) I'm not sure what it means if the nail just spins.... but that's what it did. Let me know what you all think!

 

Welcome! She's a pretty girl! When you take your next pictures, please take a picture of her as a full side shot, but right down at her level -- so we are looking straight at her, rather than "down" at her sides. Also, a picture of her standing at the back and looking straight down her sides -- again down at her level. That will help us "see" more about her.

Again, welcome, and we look forward to seeing more of this pretty girl!

~~Diane

 

[Dragonfly Stables]

Ok, I will get some today! Thank you!

 

[Dragonfly Stables]

Ok so I tried to get the photo's the way you described, and these are the best ones I could get... I hope they're good enough... she likes to paw when she's tied so it's hard to get one of her standing properly.

And one of her pretty face just for fun!

 

[MountainWoman]

I can't tell but just wanted to say she's a cutie!

 

[eagles ring farm]

welcome...

pretty little mare

I'm no help either takes me awile to get convinced about my own girls

but these ladies are the best, lets hear their opinions

 

[Dragonfly Stables]

Well I'm about 90 percent sure she IS bred... I've been watching/feeling for movement using a cold hand on her belly while she's eating and last night I DEFINITELY felt something move, and so did Miss.. she pinned her ears and threatened to bite me (which she's never done) right after a VERY solid kick. So I'm going to guess and say she is bred... I've been told you can get something called a WeeFoal test, so I am looking into ordering one just to give me a clear idea.

 

Mary at "On Target" knows all about the wee-foal test. I know there is more than one, but I also remember that one is more accurate than the other. So hopefully, Mary will be reading an let us know.

 

[JAX]

If I am remembering correctly the one that is for later in pregnancy is the one that has the most accurate results reported.

 

[Dragonfly Stables]

Thank you for the info guys, if you don't mind I do have a few more questions relating to her care...

Before I brought the mares home, they were getting hay only. The boarded mare (buckskin) was underweight, and Missy is believed to be pregnant so I started them on oats. I later switched them to an equine ration (Atlantic Horse Pellets). My question is... how much should they be eating? At this time, neither is in any work, there's just too much snow and it has been pretty cold here. As of right now I have them on 1 cup pellets and 1 cup oats twice daily, plus they get a flake between them at least 3 times a day (they aren't really hay eaters for some reason.. they pick at it and eat what they want and then bed in the rest). The buckskin has picked up weight on this diet, and so has Missy, they look healthy to my eye, but I want to make sure they're not being over or under fed.

Also, where we believe Missy is bred, should she NOT be giving leadline rides? Or going in harness? She hasn't been hooked to anything as of yet, I started her ground driving when I first bought her and she is SO smart, it doesn't stress her and I'm assuming that some exercise is GOOD for her (as it is for a human who is pregnant) so long as she's not being over exerted or stressed? My son is only 16 months and about 25 lbs so it's not much weight on her back when he goes for "rides" which are literally about 5-10 mins in a small circle with one of us leading her and one of us holding the baby on her... they both seem to enjoy this, so I'm hoping she's ok to keep doing it for a little while.

 

[AnnaC]

You are correct in that gentle exercise is good for pregnant ladies and as your cute Missy is not likely to be foaling until later in the summer, you should be fine. The thng to remember is that many mares dont appreciate having a girth done up round their tummies, so could you do away with the saddle and just let your little boy ride bareback - also takes away the extra weight of the saddle. Not too sure how you would be able to continue the driving eduation without using a pad and girth, but maybe you can think of something else? Where pregnant mares have a large (several acres) space to roam around in, I do suggest leaving them be for their pregnancy, but where space (and therefore exercise) is limited, then other ways of keeping them exercised and interested are great.

By the way it is the WeeFoal 120 that is the more accurate one, but it has to be used further along in the pregnancy, so for now you may just have to wait and see! I think what you are feeding for now is ok, plenty of time to change things as they get closer to foaling, but I would check your hay and make sure is is soft and leafy - minis dont digest 'hard' or stalky hay very well, and unless you have plenty of grass available they will need their hay to keep their dgestive systems rolling along safely.

 

[Dragonfly Stables]

Here are some updated photos from today after her grooming session!

 

[JAX]

Cute!!

 

[AnnaC]

She's such a pretty little girl - keep those pictures coming!

 

Pictures are great! And it looks like someone loves her especially! How cute!

She's a pretty girl, and I look forward to following her, too!

 

[paintponylvr]

What a beautiful little girl! I love those silver ponies and yours looks to be a silver bay with pinto markings... AND very much loved by your family. YAY!

I usually do quite a bit of work with our mares when they are in foal. We've personally had the least problems foaling out mares that stayed in consistent but light work. Sometimes that meant with a saddle (from mini to full sized horse), sometimes it meant bareback as the mare was too irritated by the girth/girthing process (2 pony sized horse breed mares, Sioux below & an Arab & 1 shetland), sometimes on the lounge line (all of our mares - limited or no cantering) and lead line (shetlands/minis) & sometimes in harness if their sides weren't too wide to fit in the shafts (shetlands/minis). You really need to base it on your individual mare's condition and her personality/mood. I HAVE also started mares in harness and under saddle while they were in foal - but they weren't maiden mares, pregnancies weren't believed to be problematic and I had enough experience to keep them from getting too stressed. ALL delivered healthy foals while being in great shape themselves and went on to be great working ponies (several of them also being hauled to shows with foals at side).

Stuffy led by an acquaintances' mom w/ his niece riding. I took the picture. It's 30 January 2011. The pic with the filly is 28 Feb 2011.

AND understand - I had my own first daughter while active duty Army - and did more than 10 miles (in running shoes, walking no equipment) while in labor the day before she was born (3 1/2 weeks early - thank the heavens above, LOL). I honestly believe that my condition helped ME during my first childbirth. I WAS NOT in the same shape for either the 2nd or the 3rd and had problems with both!

Edited to add - I'm a firm believer in exercise/conditioning during pregnancy - both animal and human,

!!

 

[MountainWoman]

What a cutie!

 

[Dragonfly Stables]

Thank you for all the great replies and information! I feel she is ok to keep working within reason at least until she is uncomfortable (and large). I will keep a really close eye on her and make sure she doesn't get stressed, but she seems to have a really good work ethic and enjoys giving kiddie rides, so there's no reason she can't just yet!

I'll keep posting updates on her as she progresses and hopefully we will know for sure soon whether or not she is actually bred... here's hoping! I'm getting excited about the idea of having another little foal running around.

As for the feeding, when should I begin to up her feed? Currently she is on 1 cup Horse ration, 1 cup oats and I feed AM and PM. She is at a good weight as far as I can tell, but when should her rations be increased?

THanks!

 

Continuing with her normal exercise routine should be just fine for her. You just want to be sure she doesn't stress and is comfortable -- well as comfortable as a pregnant mare can be! LOL But, I think exercise is also important to keeping these mommas in shape. Even a good healthy walk will keep her in good shape, remember, birthing is a strenuous job, so the better shape they are in, they better they will quickly recover from their hard work!

As to increasing her ration, I always figure that they should begin getting a full ration of mare/foal feed in the last trimester of their pregnancy. So, as long as she's "feeling" good to your hand -- make sure in her fluffy coat you actually 'feel' her to be sure she's not thinning out under the fluff -- then you should be fine until you get a bit closer to her due date.

Such a pretty girl!

 

[Dragonfly Stables]

Hello all,

After a long break from the boards, I am back with a long overdue update on Little Miss. As it turns out, she was NOT bred last year, and much to my dismay did not give me any babies to love on. However, she did accomplish much in the last year, being broke to cart and now a much loved and trusted driving partner! She has excelled in just about everything I have ever thrown her way, and I am still just totally in love with this little spitfire. My now 2 year old son is now riding independently for the most part (though I still make have a lead line clipped just in case as both he and Missy tend to like to go a little faster than Mama is currently comfortable with!), and he just adores her in every way. We have since added another mini, a little weanling colt we've called Remington. He is a beautiful little black fellow with a great attitude, whom I hope grows to become a lovely driving horse as well.

Now, I am back here to update on Missy because last summer, I did have her bred to a lovely little stud here locally by the name of WindSwepts IMA Hot Rod Silverado. He is a 2012 model, just gorgeous and so this year will be his first foal crop. Little Miss was bred back in late June, and so we are hoping desperately for a 2015 baby! I will post some pics here of the stud, and then of Little Miss over the last few months. She is now about 5 months along if my math is correct, and though I haven't done much in the way of testing/handling in search of a foal, I'm holding my breath that there is something great growing in there. She has not come back into heat, even when the weanling colt came home, and so I'm hoping that is a good sign. Anyways, here are some pics!

The Stud:

WindSwepts IMA Hot Rod Silverado Add to Post

And Little Miss:

Aug. 2014 Add to Post

Sept. 4th 2014Add to Post

Sept. 29th 2014Add to PostAdd to PostAdd to Post

October 6th 2014Add to Post

This is what I have for now... there will be updates as she grows, and please pray for me that she took this time! Thank you in advance for any advice or comments you may have.