Horse Breeding

The udder could be hard due to mastitis or due to uterine infection in association with pregnancy...however, if these and other reproductive issues have been eliminated as the problem then the mare could be successfully in foal.

The vet may not be able to determine the stage of pregnancy through palpation or ultrasound because the foal is below the pelvic brim...although the enlarged

udder indicates that she is farther along in pregnancy and the foal should be

palpatable.

If the mare's udder is enlarged, the next question is whether the "milk" color has changed from a clear gold color to white, which is generally a good indicator that she is close to foaling. Also, the muscles will relax over the top of her tail and over the back. The mare's tail will feel weak.

There is obviously some guesswork involved on the part of the vet once it is determined that the mare is healthy and in foal any guess at foaling date is just that...a guess...

Good question. While 370 days is well within an acceptable range, there are multiple issues to consider when determining whether to worry or not.

1) Is/are the actual breeding date(s) known? Realize that the mare could ovulate 2-3 days after she was last bred. If pasture bred she may have cycled back in without being observed and the gestational age of the foal could be 20 or more days different than the breeder realizes.

2) The mare could be carrying twins. Because twins get only half of the nutrition normally given to a single foal maturation is slower. Most breeders will insure that

twin pregnancies are eliminated early in the breeding process (at 14-16 days post ovulation) because successful foaling of two live twins is actually quite rare and because the possible complications (abortion, dystocia, etc.) result in both economic and emotional loss due to veterinary costs or death/injury of/to the mare or foal(s).

Generally, mares that produce twins (succesfully or not) are also more likely to lose the subsequent breeding season.

3) If the mare is older her foal may require additional time to mature because of wear and tear on the uterus.

4) Breeding dates were inaccurately recorded or mixed up with another mare.

5) If the mare was poorly nourished or ill at some point during the pregnancy foaling

can be delayed.

These are the most likely causes of prolonged gestation that are not, in and of themselves, a cause for worry.

Other possible causes that are more concerning.

1) Fescue toxicosis

2) Exposure to spoiled/moldy corn based products. This results in a prolonged gestational period and large, limp (dysmature) foals.

3) Wry foal, body pregnancy, hydroallantois (often these foals are premature but not always).

4) Other (rarer yet) issues. (That's helpful isn't it?)

Finally, since the question about whether or not to worry (you are already worried, right?) is being asked, the mare owner needs think about their level of experience and determine if the best course of action is to get an opinion on the status of the mare and her foal from a veterinarian or more experienced horseperson. There is a lot of time, energy and emotion already expended while waiting for this mare to foal

a little money spent now to be reassured (or forewarned) is probably well worth it.

As long as both foals are born in a normal presentation they foal one after another in

pretty short order. Twins are usually substantially smaller than a single foal.

If either or both foals are incorrectly positioned (dystocia/malpresentation) birth can be very problematic.

In general, one foal is either mummified and relatively small, newly dead or, if alive, dysmature (full term but has the characteristics of a premature foal). This occurs because placentation for one foal is usually much smaller and the foal is starved

of nutrients compared to the other foal. Both foals are at risk of any of a number of

problems due to nutritional issues.

The probability of a mare successfully producing two living twins is quite low (around 3%) and the chances of both surviving is even lower.

Certain breeds of horses, some draft breeds and Standardbreds seem to be better able to carry twins to term.

Certain breeds and older mares are more likely to double ovulate.

Since most mares abort twins before either is viable, the current school of thought is that it is better to insure that the mare is not carrying twins by completing an ultrasound with reduction (crushing) of the smaller twin in the first 15-17 days of pregnancy.

The 'natural horse' would be most similarly represented by the Przewalski's Horse, a small stocky tan-colored wild horse that lives in Mongolia. All modern horse breeds demonstrate selective breeding for different traits, from draft horses to running horses to small ponies.

Yes, since certain characteristics are desired it would make sense to breed horses that have those characteristics together to increase the chances that the foal would also have them. In addition, knowing bloodlines can help to eliminate or avoid certain genetic problems. In QH's for instance there are several genetic issues and we know the horses in which they first occured as a mutation of normal genes. If we see those horses in the bloodlines then we know to test for those mutations and if they are there we can then make a decision on how best to proceed if we want to breed....obviously breeding to another with the same issue would not be a good idea so knowing the bloodlines can avoid problems with or even deaths of foals

Both

The same time as horses 11 and 1/2 months.

Gracie 1502 got this one right. Gestation for horses is aprxt. 11 months.

Her hips widen, her stomach gets larger.

Like in full-size horses, miniatures' teats are mostly retracted when not pregnant.

There are three do-it-yourself pregnancy tests. Two use blood you obtain by making a tiny nick on the lip with an enclosed lancet. The other requires you to get a non sterile small urine sample. One of the blood tests can be found by searching for "pregamare (bloodtest)". Another, search for "weefoal (urine test)". The blood test is only valid up to about 150 days into the pregnancy. The urine test is valid after 150 days (some say as early as 80 days) and will show if the foal is aborted or dies en utero.

If at all possible get an ultrasound a few days after the breeding or suspected breeding to eliminate the possibility of twins. Call your vet to get the optimum time for the ultrasound. Twins not only rarely survive but giving birth to twins is very dangerous for the mare. The general practice is to pinch off one of the twins a short time after conception to save the second twin and the mare. Call an experienced equine reproduction and embryo transfer facility to check on the possibility of doing an embryo transfer on the second twin if you wish.

If you have been instructed as to how to safely palpate a mare, tether the horse, in stocks or firmly against a gate in such a way that it cannot move or kick behind it (better yet use a crush) and put on one of the long latex gloves. Put your hand gently inside the horse's rectum just past the elbow. You should be able to feel the foal if the mare is pregnant, but it takes practice - you have to know what you're looking for. Doing rectal exams also grosses a lot of people out.

Pregnancy tests detect the presence of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), a protein that is secreted by the placenta, or newly forming child. These tests can only truly be determined about 6 days after conception.

It depends on the pregnancy test really, the newer ones can tell you that you're pregnate i think a week before you missed period, but if you've already missed your period any test should be able to tell you.

That would be the cream gene. The cream gene dilutes darker colors to lighter colors, I.E. Chestnut= palomino. To get a palomino the horse must receive one copy of the gene. To further change the palomino back into a Cremello, the horse needs two copies of the cream gene. (Double dilute.)

No, they work if you are ten or more days pregnant

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uT-i4wrm9Ec/SBiNOC1mVVI/AAAAAAAABnI/ubxfnLx9wwk/s400/olddunhorse.jpg

Andalusians considered to be pure spanish Pura Raza Espanola.

The general rule of thumb is that you breed a mare within 2 hands of her height which would be a stallion between 8 and 14 hands...that being said, the mare can

be bred to a much larger stallion as the foal size will be limited by the mare but, of course the results may be less predictable.

Of course the intended purpose of the foal will determine the stallion choice and the breeder needs to be realistic about their expectations. The production of horses that fall outside of the "pony" size range and are under 16 hands may have limited value in today's market where most people are fixated on height.

No, the only one that will be 'contaminated' is the foal.

Yes. Though no viable sperm can be produced, the stallion or colt or even "stud gelding" will still act like a stud around the mares.

It is simply managing when you breed animals to produce offspring at certain times and what two animals breed together.

Not generally, their water breaks and then the foal's feet and then nose are the first things that appear. As the foal is expelled there is actually very little blood and often this is from the mare tearing slightly as a larger foal is born.

If the placenta separates early, creating a "red bag" foaling situation, there is often a velvety red "bubble" of placental tissue that shows first. This may indicate that the

foal is in danger of oxygen deprivation and is a definite cause for concern.

Breeding stallions can live as long as any other horse...

Horses were domesticated long before the concept of genetic engineering was even selective breeding.

A horse used for producing foals. Whether it is the mare used for breeding, often called a broodmare, or a breeding stallion, often called a stud, they can both go under the "breeding horse" title.

Only if she's been nursed by another foal who's been stealing milk from her. Otherwise, no, the mare should start the drying-up process after her foal is weaned or after she has weaned her foal by herself.