Pregnant Forever!!!

[horse_apples]

I haven't posted on this forum in a looong time! I have owned my Miniature herd for 4 years now and looking back on my old posts.... I think WOW what a newbie I was! I still have A LOT to learn but I've learned so much from daily interaction with my horses and help from fellow experienced horse friends. My life would not be the same without those little hoof prints on it

My mare Baby is 10 years old, a maiden and pregnant. She was exposed to the stud for 1 week "honeymoons" in June, July and August of last summer though she never seemed to show him one bit of interest so I assumed she wasn't bred.

Well.... this February she started to balloon up. It seems like everyday when I go check on her and the others, she is just growing chubbier and chubbier! She was so big by the first of June, I was ready to start my all night watch.

Her attitude has gone from ornery to super lovey dovey and she excludes herself from the rest of the herd unless it's time for feeding/treats.

In the past two weeks, she has gotten what feels like a hard tube of toothpaste on each side of her udder, but only a clear liquid comes out, if anything at all does. Her tail bone is sunken in, her belly seems dropped, her "girl parts" are getting smooshy and loose.... Everyday we visit the barn a dozen times anxiously awaiting a foal but alas....

MY MARE JUST WANTS TO BE PROFESSIONALLY PREGNANT AND NEVER GIVE BIRTH!!!!!!!! URGH!!!!!

just wanted to share my frustration with fellow mini owners. sounds like you have all been there at one time or another waiting the endless wait. I'm attaching a few pics of her I got last week. will try to get some udder shots tonight. her nipples are not pointed towards each other as they started out - now they are straight up and down.

"SHE IS SO FAT I WONDERED IF SHE SWALLOWED ANOTHER HORSE BUT I'M NOT MISSING ANYONE AND NEITHER IS THE NAAAAYYYYBORS" lol



^^^^^^ the above photos are from June 24th 2013



^^^^^^ these are from last week, July 24th 2013




I don't even dare ask "when will she foal" because I know the answer is - she is pulling some pony jedi mind trick on me and dear boyfriend

 

[horse_apples]

I forgot to mention her tail moves freely as of last week (meaning I can move it any which way and her reflexes do not react).

Meanwhile, poor girl going through all this poking and prodding and being chubby and her "baby daddy" is playing romeo to my mother's shetland and haflinger (WAAAAAY too tall for him to breed but heck if he doesn't try!). That little player!! hahahaha

It's so convenient to have two pastures of my own plus my mother's acrossed the road from me for when I have to separate horses or rotate pastures.

 

[Gone_Riding]

Due to her being a maiden, I hate to tell you this, but you are in for a horrible road ahead of waiting... I gave up expecting my maiden to foal and left for the day. (By the way, that's bad. If I hadn't been there, she would have never been able to deliver the foal.) I honestly thought she was going to go another week or two the day she foaled, and that was after over a month of thinking it was going to be that day.

A hoo-ha picture is also in order. I could't count on the inner color of it on my mare. Her hooha would relax and bulge out, but then would go normal the next day. I was at my whits end!

She didn't even have a full udder, but she ended up with plenty of milk just when she needed it. She had started to bag up about 8 wks prior... Her hooha relaxed for the first time a full month prior. It was so frustrating.

She waxed just 3 hrs before she went into labor and it was like a 1" candle before it fell off. In the end it was her pooping 3x in 5 minutes that was her final clue. Nothing else was like it should have been... I would have missed it had I not had her on a baby monitor and heard her pooping so much. I went out there to clean it up. When I went to leave (because everything looked ordinary for her) she came to me. Then she turned around and laid down (She NEVER laid down with me near. If she even saw me, she'd get up). She started pushing right there in front of me. I ended up having to go in after a foot, then help her again to get the head out. It was an amazing experience and so worth it!

I hope it all goes well for you and that you get to see it happen!

 

[MountainWoman]

My mare that foaled in June was pregnant for a year if ultrasound was correct. Every day, I thought it was the day and it never was. But I knew the day she was going to foal. Her udder just totally changed. It's not easy waiting and maidens are unpredictable to say the least. Your mare is beautiful.

 

All looks good, and I'm excited to watch this girl, too!! Lots of pictures please!!! Sounds like she's moving forward very nicely, and it shouldn't be long!! Once they start that udder, figure you're about 4 weeks away to 6 weeks away. But, then of course, we know that these maidens have their own way and time of doing things. So, it's just time to really start watching her. You don't want to miss it -- as maidens usually need a little help, since nothing is stretched out and things can be a little tight!

Very exciting!!

 

[AnnaC]

Hi and welcome to the Nutty Nursery - glad to have you and Baby join us.

She's a pretty girl, but it would help us if you could make your pictures a bit bigger. From what you are saying it does sound as though she could be pretty close to foaling - although as has already been said, maiden mares have a rule book all of their own! LOL!! But if her teats have separated then you might not have long to wait.

I dont know your set up, but have you somewhere safe to house her at nights (safe for a new foal too - no gaps/holes in the walls etc for little heads or legs to get caught in). Baby can of course join her friends during the day, but she should be separated in her own personal space at nights. Also do you have someone who can help you do 'watching' duties so that you can get some rest? From now on she really should be watched 24/7 (yes even during the day!) until she foals as it is so vital to be there when she has her baby -so nows the time to set up camp next to her stall/barn for the nights and arrange for 20 minute checks (at least) during the day because there is just no telling exactly when these girls might decide to foal!

Dont forget to have your vets number ready in your mobile phone, plus a dose of ivermectin wormer to give Baby within the first 12 hours from foaling, and suitable feed stuff that can be made 'mushy' to give her for the first day or two, to get her digestive system working smoothly again after she gives birth.

Cant wait for some new updated pics - and good luck you must be getting pretty excited by now!

 

[targetsmom]

We had a maiden foal this year that almost drove us crazy so I feel your pain. Ours seemed to bag up and stop and I think she was waiting for her friend to foal first. Yes, you should be watching her 24/7 at this point and don't think that checking her every hour or even half hour will do it. They can be very sneaky and we have the dead foals to prove that. This is why cameras and Mare Stare are so popular and how I got to be such good friends with the Aunties on here who watched our cam so I could sleep. And THEN, both or mares foaled during the DAY!!! We took photos of the maiden foaling and have the times to show that from the time the feet first appeared until the foal was out was FOUR MINUTES and she DID need help. She did wax a few hours before she foaled but you can't count on that. She also got restless so she actually gave us more warning than the other mare that foaled midday. Ask the Aunties here - we have had them stand in the corner for nights at a time, then drop and foal with no warning. VERY stressful.... Milk test strips - or even pool strips that test pH or CA - can help you get a better idea when they will foal. Good luck!!

 

[horse_apples]

Here are some pics I took last night. Tried to get a picture of her girly parts inside but she was like "Really girl? It's enough you violate me. You're not putting THAT on the internet". Well of course she didn't say that, but you know that heavy sigh an annoyed mini gives

She has a roomy 12x12 stall she stays in at night and during the day (boyfriend and i work - he leaves at 5am and gets home about 4pm, I leave at 8am and get home at 6pm). My mom owns the farm across the road from me so she does an hourly check during work hours. BF and I take turns doing hourly checks during the night. In the afternoon/evening when we are home we let her out of "Pony Jail" (as we call it) to visit her herd buddies. They have free access to come into the barn and "talk" through the stall walls during the day so she doesnt get lonely. She is very annoyed about being stalled, but hey - I tell her too bad, I wanna keep her and her foal safe! I think she's also annoyed with being so pregnant and wants that foal out as bad as me! (Us ladies who have had children know that feeling)

I think you can click on these pics to bring them up bigger:





Might I mention it is rather difficult to get udder pictures with my cellphone?! LOL

 

[horse_apples]

Also I wanted to mention - I know goats are totally different than horses but it sounds to me as if the foal presents itself out of the birth canal in the same position as a little kid (goat kid!) so I feel a little less stressed knowing that and being able to tell if there is a problem in the foals position. I wouldnt be so stressed if she wasnt a maiden mare.

My oldest mare, Dolly, literally was nibbling at a round bale in the pasture and dropped down and pushed out her last foal in what seemed like 3-4 pushes. It was amazing and I didnt have to help her at all. I had no idea she was bred, I was just doing my morning visit to the herd and then - wham - here comes a baby!! Unfortunately he didnt survive more than a week. The vet said it was a neurological disorder and sometimes mini foals have genetic issues.

I was heart broke and so was Dolly. A little before that I had gone into labor prematurely and lost my daughter - that's another big reason why Dolly is my BFF - we did a lot of healing and bonding together. Oh gosh I wanna cry just thinking about it!! better get back to my turkey sandwich

 

Sorry to read about your personal trauma -- I understand completely, by experience.

She's looking good, but I think you've got some waiting to do. Looks like baby is not yet in position, and she's got some elongating to do yet, so everything is moving along normally. She's a beautiful mare -- love that color and gorgeous tail.

Keep the pictures coming -- it's fun to watch as she prepares!!

 

[horse_apples]

Aw, thanks

I am biased but I think she is sooo pretty. Blue Roans are my favorite coat/color.