Pregnant Rescue Mare????

[homefree21]

Hello,

Would love an opinion from more experienced mini owners. I have 3 rescue mare minis from a kill shelter. When I rescued them in april 22nd of 2018 they said 2 of them may be pregnant. We have been in the middle of a move since then and have not been able to work much with them as they were out on large pasture at a friends house in the country. Just had them transported here to our new home and am really thinking one of them is pregnant. From what I have been able to calculate with online help is that it is possible that she is. I've uploaded some photos to see if I can get any opinions. The vet has not been able to get close enough to do any testing still. I have her in a paddock now just in case. I would appreciate any opinions or advice. Thank you! The first 2 images are from Sept 2018 the rest are from last week.

 

[Ryan Johnson]

Welcome to the forum.

I would definitely say a big "Yes" , she is very much pregnant.

How close can you get to her ? Can you see if she is developing an udder yet ?

Good luck and ask away any questions you have

 

[homefree21]

Thank you for your reply Ryan, I can only get about 6 feet from her before she starts getting nervous. She has teats with slightly rounded udders, I copied an image of a mare I found on the internet with what looked like how she looks if I were to get a photo which I have not been able to do still. Please don't yell at me for steeling an image of teats I was starting to wonder if she just has a hay belly but the other 2 don't look like this. I have been watching to see if I could see movement but I can't tell if its her or a kick. I noticed today, she is wet it's been raining, she has a delineated line running from the front of her belly side slanting down towards the tail. Not sure if that means anything or if it means she has dropped and foal is in position to deliver. I am a bit worried about the foals immunity as 2 of these minis have not been able to get their immunizations and we don't know the history from the previous owner. Is there anything I should prepare for to help the foal along when she/he is born? (Not her photo, just looks like this

 

[Ryan Johnson]

If she is starting to develop an udder then I would say you are getting close. Some mares will play by the "textbook" others like to play a guessing game. What makes it even harder for you is you dont know her foaling history.

Usually when an udder first develops its usually 6-8 weeks till foaling. When you got her , did you notice if she had a saggy udder and the nipples were pointing down ? If she did, then Id say she has foaled before ( which is good). A mare that has not foaled before , you will notice the nipples are higher and pointing towards each other.

Is she in with other horses or animals ? I would be trying to separate her now if possible ( maybe into a smaller pasture). Regarding her "Dropping" If you stand say 3-4 meters back and look at her , you will see her sides still sticking out, this means the foal is still riding sideways. Once you stand behind her and the sides have disappeared , she has dropped and its time to get serious.

I would let your vet know you have a foal on the way. If you look at the top of this section of the forum, you will notice some threads on foaling kits etc. Do as much reading as you can , especially on red bags.

Good luck and keep us posted

 

[homefree21]

Thanks Ryan,

She is in with the other mare she came with when I rescued them. They are inseparable. Not sure if this is her foal or just were together. They do look simalar though. There is one other mini with them that seems to be the outcast of the three. She is the most people friendly/trusting of the three. I only have one shelter which would make it difficult to seperate them until the weather warms up a bit (may be another week or so).

We have them in a 25 ft rectangular corral with 2x4” panels secured aroud for safety then attached to a three sided 8 ft shelter. This is inside an acre barbed wire pasture. The barbed wire makes me nervous with the minis and especially if a foal comes when I am not right there, hence the corral. If it dries up I may try to seperate them during the day and put them up together at night. Do they have problems foaling with other mares around?

If she has problems delivering will she let us get near to help or is it an unknown.

I have read up on the red bag and totally understand the emergency. Similar to a placenta previa in a woman. Im so praying for a normal safe delivery with this mare! I will be watching closely for that positioning, thank you for that explanation, I had not read that anywhere!

 

[Ryan Johnson]

It really depends on the mare if she will let you get near her when she is in labor. Saying that , a mare will only foal when she feels completely safe.

If you can separate them, Id be doing it at night ( this is when most mares will foal). Its usually a gelding or stallion Id be worried about , but some mares will try and steal another mares foal, so you will need to keep an eye on them. If the other mare is her daughter, then as long as she still isnt feeding from her, all should be ok.

Id be taking a few pics every few days to compare to the last ones, especially the one from standing from behind her. If she lets you, keep trying to sneak a look at her udder. Some days you will notice it looks like its deflated , other days it will look fuller. It will look fuller after she has been laying around or not doing much. Once you notice its full all the time, your getting close.

 

[homefree21]

Just an update. No foal still. So frustrating. I still can only get a couple of fet from her before she bolts. Even in the small 30 ft square coral. Can you recommend any books or videos to help me be able to gain her trust?

 

[homefree21]

These photos are from Wed.

IMG_1267

• homefree21
• Feb 23, 2019

IMG_1268

• homefree21
• Feb 23, 2019

IMG_1270

• homefree21
• Feb 23, 2019

 

[Willow Flats]

Just an update. No foal still. So frustrating. I still can only get a couple of fet from her before she bolts. Even in the small 30 ft square coral. Can you recommend any books or videos to help me be able to gain her trust?

Can you bring a bucket in there to sit on in the corner and do nothing...don't even look at her. She may get curious after a while and approach you. I have had success with this method. May take several times. Bring a book.

 

[homefree21]

Hi Willow,
Thanks for the advice, I have done that in a stadium chair for hours at a time. She won't budge! LOL. Got alot of emails cleared though!

 

[Denisern06]

I would say you still have a little time. Few weeks I would think. Also, I have a mini mare that wouldn't let us touch her. I broke her by small touches to her nose when feeding a treat to more and more touches when eating. Took about 6 months. Now I can brush and touch all over, except her feet, but mainly while she's eating. My other mare is close to delivery - teats stay very full all day no colostrum beading yet and foal still looks sideways. She's flat and hollowed under her tail now so I think we'll be soon.

 

[homefree21]

How exciting!!! Do you happen to have a side view of her? She's a pretty girl!

 

[patrpbfl]

Hi,
Just to add more for FYI, not to scare you, my mini that I've had for 14 years was recently diagnosed with PPID as well as insulin resistance, which all mini's are predisposed to, just as all horses can get as they age. One of the hallmark signs is "hay belly" look, which your second mini has. Your first one definitely does look pregnant, but I would be very careful turning any mini with unknown history onto a pasture that has grass until you have a little more control over them. Grass can trigger laminitis quickly, as quickly as one day, and you don't need any more worries right now than a pregnant mini with an unknown history. If it's at all possible to separate your mares and leave them both in a dry lot like you have them right now, maybe with a common fence line between them, that is by far the best for them for now.

The treats and chair suggestion really works, just be persistent and patient. Food is a great motivator for these guys. Familiarity and trust takes time to build, especially if she was abused or just left to run wild. If you can be in there every day, baby steps and safe treats may just do the job. From what I can see of her feet in the pics, they don't look bad, so do you know how she was caught to be trimmed? Did she have to be herded into a trailer to be moved? She has a halter on, so someone was able to get hands on her, so you should be able to win her over eventually.

Good luck with your new babies!

 

[Willow Flats]

Hi,
In agreement with the posting above. From the date of your original post it seems you haven't had them at your place for very long. Patience is key. You said you were new to minis, but wondering if new to horsemanship in general? Just asking because with training a horse to be caught is the same with all horses, big or small.

 

[Willow Flats]

Keep us posted.

 

[Ryan Johnson]

Its just going to take time & a lot of it. She will eventually come round. I have one that took nearly a year and she is still hesitant at times.

Keep persisting

 

[Denisern06]

Homefree21, thank you! I'm really enjoying my mini's. I also have a mini donkey who's completely spoiled.

 

[Denisern06]

Homefree21, thank you! I'm really enjoying my mini's. I also have a mini donkey who's completely spoiled.

Homefree21, thank you! I'm really enjoying my mini's. I also have a mini donkey who's completely spoiled.

For some reason, my photos won't upload today.

 

[Denisern06]

Homefree21, thank you! I'm really enjoying my mini's. I also have a mini donkey who's completely spoiled.

For some reason, my photos won't upload today.

 

[Denisern06]

I could finally upload. Any new news about your mini that's pregnant??