[Appendixqhluvr]

Hey everyone. I was wondering about breeding and about foals in general. I have a lot of questions. I have never been into breeding at all and haven't been around foals a lot. I decided this would be a good place to learn some stuff as I'm planning on having a mare bred next spring.

1.What age is too young and what age is too old (for a mare to be bred)?

2.What is palping?

3.How do you know when the mare is in a real heat?

4.How many times to you need to breed her to be sure she is in fact bred?

5.What age should you wean a foal?

6.What vaccinations should the mare have and how often?

7.When do you vaccinate a foal and for what?

8.When is a good time to imprint a foal (EX: an hour old, 4 hours old)?

I'm sure I'll think of some more, but for now I'm done.

[Sandra-A1]

Most if not all of your questions can be answered if you simply take a bit of time to do a SEARCH of this Breeding forum. I can remember several of your question topics being discussed.
Using this forums search feature is not hard at all to do.
Also a Google Search will also provide you with the information your seeking as well.

Breeding is something that does take a LOT of planning as well as education.
You need to first ask yourself several questions:

Why am I breeding my mare?
What do I expect to get/produce when it comes to the foal and when it matures?
Is the mare really of good enough quality and bloodlines?
What are her faults? Are they genetic?
Do I have adequate funds & facilities for a mare and foal?
Do I have enough experience when it comes to handling and training the foal?
Am I able to make a LIFE TIME commitment to care for any foal I bring into this world?
Would it just be a better idea if I just went ahead and purchased what I want?

[Circle C]

Breeding is something that does take a LOT of planning as well as education.
You need to first ask yourself several questions:

Why am I breeding my mare?
What do I expect to get/produce when it comes to the foal and when it matures?
Is the mare really of good enough quality and bloodlines?
What are her faults? Are they genetic?
Do I have adequate funds & facilities for a mare and foal?
Do I have enough experience when it comes to handling and training the foal?
Am I able to make a LIFE TIME commitment to care for any foal I bring into this world?
Would it just be a better idea if I just went ahead and purchased what I want?

None of the questions were answered. This is what I don't like about these forums. People reply, but the reply doesn't answer any of the questions.

That wasn't really called for, even though it wasn't a mean natured comment.

1.What age is too young and what age is too old (for a mare to be bred)?

Here, maiden mares are bred around age 4-5 depending on the horse. After they are bred once and we are satisfied w/ the get, they are bred up untill around age 15-17.

2.What is palping?

Palpating is done to determin the exact date you should breed the mare.

3.How do you know when the mare is in a real heat?

By palpating her. We also use a teaser stallion.

4.How many times to you need to breed her to be sure she is in fact bred?

Anywhere from 1-5 times.

5.What age should you wean a foal?

We wean at 4-5 months old, depending on the babys growth and development.

6.What vaccinations should the mare have and how often?

Rhino for sure. Talk to your vet about the others. It depends on the area you live in. We do coggins, rabies, 6-ways (eastern, western, venezuelen encephelitis, tetanus, influenza, rhino).

7.When do you vaccinate a foal and for what?

Same as above. Talk to your vet.

8.When is a good time to imprint a foal (EX: an hour old, 4 hours old)?

When they are able to stand comfortably

[Sandra-A1]

Originally Posted by Circle C

None of the questions were answered. This is what I don't like about these forums. People reply, but the reply doesn't answer any of the questions.

That wasn't really called for, even though it wasn't a mean natured comment.

The questions might not have been directly answered but I DID tell the poster where and how to find the information they were seeking:

Most if not all of your questions can be answered if you simply take a bit of time to do a SEARCH of this Breeding forum. I can remember several of your question topics being discussed.
Using this forums search feature is not hard at all to do.
Also a Google Search will also provide you with the information your seeking as well.

Also my additional comments were not intended to be mean spirited in anyway. There is no harm in asking someone to reevaluate their reasons for considering breeding their mare. Some people who have posted on this forum have changed their minds about breeding their mares...some have not.

I am sincerely sorry if you disagee with my post on this particular topic or I have offended you in any way....but that is a part of forums.

[Blistering Winds]

1.What age is too young and what age is too old (for a mare to be bred)?

Too young is breeding anything lower than 3 yrs of age in my opinion. I prefer mares who are 4+ after they have at least been broke to ride.

2.What is palping?

Palpating? Where the vet sticks their arm up the butt (laymen term) and feel for follicle, baby, etc through the lining of the intestine down.

3.How do you know when the mare is in a real heat?

You can test by teaser stallion if she ACCEPTS the stallion. Follicle feel via Palpation

4.How many times to you need to breed her to be sure she is in fact bred?

once really. Once is all it takes if you catch it just right. But every other day until she is no longer receptive as a safety.

5.What age should you wean a foal?

Big controversy. Some wean as early as 4 months of age, others wait till 6 months of age. Anything after 4 months is "acceptable" as the foal isnt' depending on momma as much for nutrients anymore. But you'll find good reasons to continue a few more months.

6.What vaccinations should the mare have and how often?

Get you a Mare and Foal Book, honestly! I have Storey's guide on my website at www.blisteringwinds.com

7.When do you vaccinate a foal and for what?

Same as Question 6

8.When is a good time to imprint a foal (EX: an hour old, 4 hours old)?

I wait to imprint until the foal has stood and eaten. Maiden mares can reject foals messed with too early. You can inhibit the bonding of momma and foal if you jump right in too early. That is what I have seen over the years and heard. So I wait till after the foal has stood and eaten before beginning. Research that I have read has shown it doesn't affect them any different if you imprint immediately vs hours later vs years later when they come up off the range.



I highly recommend you get some foaling books. They will answer your questions and more in a more in-depth way, plus you will have them on hand for reference!

[harli36]

I myself have replied to many threads with similar questions as those posted here. Often times the questions are repeated several times, so yes they are here on this forum.

1.What age is too young and what age is too old (for a mare to be bred)?
This question often depends on personal opinion. To me a mare should only be bred once she is full grown. ie: at least 5 years old. If a mare has consistently had foals throughout her life then you may be able to breed into her 20's, I personally see that as excessive, but to each his own. Now a maiden mare is a different story, she may usually only safely carry a foal for the first time no later then 15.

2.What is palping?
I believe you are talking about palpating. This is when a vet/doctor touches the trouble area to try and feel what is wrong with that area. In reguards to horse breeding, it is when the vet insertes his hand through the mares rectum and feels for the foal, this is to either determine pregnancy and/or how far along the fetus is.

3.How do you know when the mare is in a real heat?
"in heat" means that the mare is ready to become pregnant. So this last for about a week and is when she is just about to ovulate, ovulates, and just after ovulation when she can still get pregnant. This is also the time when the mare is receptive to a stallion. She will often become moody, wink-which means she will squirt fluid/pee out of her vagina in a winking motion, she may also stand differently, act differently. It is all different for different mares, you just have to know your horse. Mare will come into heat every 22-25 days and the best way to determine heat is to ultrasound and look for a follicle on the ovary that is about to ovulate.

4.How many times to you need to breed her to be sure she is in fact bred?
This is totally dependant on the mare, some take on the first breeding, some take more than that. It also depends on how skilled you are at determining when she is going to ovulate, thus when she should be breed.

5.What age should you wean a foal?
THis is a highly debated topic. Personally I like to let the mare and foal wean themselves, you will notice a time when Mom gets sick of baby and baby gets sick of mom, or when Mom can no longer handle feeding a baby. This to me is the least stressfull time to wean. Usually around 8-10 months. Not everyone is willing to have their mare out of commision for that long though, so many people will wean at 6 months, some even at 4 but personally I would NEVER condone the practice of weaning at 4 months unless there was a medical problem going on.

6.What vaccinations should the mare have and how often?
This question and the next can be answered by simply talking to your vet and /or looking it up online, I don't have the time to right now,(saying this not in a mean way I just really don't have the time sorry)
7.When do you vaccinate a foal and for what?

8.When is a good time to imprint a foal (EX: an hour old, 4 hours old)?
Dr. Miller(the man who created the technique) gives some mixed views on this, so you will really have to read some of his publications.

[Sandra-A1]

#2. What is palpating?

Is where the Vet examines a mare reproductive organs by inserting his gloved hand and arm into the mare's rectum....

A simple, quick search using Google turned up the following information:

The simplest way to find out whether a mare has a viable follicle, and therefore ova, is by means of a rectal palpation. This will establish that the mare, if bred at the right moment, has the potential to conceive. Unfortunately, palpation is a candidate for neglect on "shoestring budget breeding", even though the cost of 2 or 3 palpations and a uterine swab doesn't come anywhere near the cost of keeping a non-pregnant broodmare for a year!

It must be remembered that palpation, by itself, is not 100 percent accurate. A mare may have a "mid cycle" follicle present and yet not be ready to breed or ovulate. Indeed, such a follicle may regress and all but disappear before the mare comes into standing heat.

Note: A problem with a single palpation, is that unless one is "following a follicle", there is the possibility of an error being made, and what is believed to be a follicle upon palpation, subsequently proves to be a Corpus Luteum (C.L.), or vice-versa. This situation can be overcome, by means of a progesterone assay of the mare's blood sample. If progesterone is present, it indicates that there is a functional C.L., and is therefore most probably in the diestrous portion of her estrous cycle. This is especially important if a luteinizing hormone is to be used, such as Prostaglandin.

[SeaSide81]

I have a question to ask related to the ones above.

How old is too old to breed a mare (naturally, not by AI or embryo transfer) for the first time?

Not 100% sure, but I have heard that horses and most other animals are a lot like people. They can breed when older but it is a lot harder on them and harder for the mare to conceive, sort of like a 40+ woman trying to have a baby. It is very possible, but not as easy as when a woman is 20-30. Now this might be completely wrong . If so, please let me know!

[Blistering Winds]

You are right SeaSide. The older the uterus, without use, the less viable it is to sustain a pregnancy.

[SeaSide81]

Ok, so how old is too old for a maiden mare? I would think that 10 or 12 would be a bit old for the first time, though that is not really terribly old for a horse.

I have also heard that you can breed a mare as young as 2 or 3, but that 4 or 5 is much better as the mare is more physically mature. What about 6 or 7 though?