[Appylvr]

Sorry it's a bit long...

About a month ago the new lady up the street asked me to come look at her mare. (I had only talked to her a couple of times when I was riding by and she asked about Teak, so of course I gave her the whole speech on how I bred and raised him, etc...)

She was a bit panicked and said her mare had a big bulge on her stomach and she thought it might be pregnant and the baby was sticking out... so I went back to look at her. I told the lady I was no vet, but it looked just like when my mare had edema, explained what it was... and said she looked like she was in the last month of pregnancy.

The mare was thin, but not horribly so (with a big baby belly). I put it too the lady not knowing she was pregnant, so not being fed as much as she needed.

So whenever I've been walking by I've been checking. Tonight I saw a baby tail swishing and told my neighbor (who I was walking with) I see a baby! The horses are pretty far back from the road, so it's hard to see them.

The owner was out front and when she saw us she yelled "We've got a black filly!" She said to come on back and see it... while we were walking back she was saying she was worried the mare might have another foal inside... cause after she expelled the afterbirth she was still laying down and seemed to be having contractions.

The mare foaled at 11am and this was 6:30pm. I observed her and to me she looked relaxed... Wouldn't she have been showing more birthing symptoms by that time?

Well here's the real problem and I've been thinking about this mare ever since I saw her... She is beyond skinny now. I know the babies take the weight off of the mommy, but her hips are sunken in, her tailbone is protruding, you can see every rib on her... it hurt me to look at her.

I tried mentioning beet pulp to get the weight back on, but I don't know if she will listen to me. I was thinking of waiting a week and going back by to see if I could see the baby again and see if the mare is gaining any weight... or should I just call animal control?

[Horsefeathers3]

Does the woman know that nursing mares need more food than usual? I'd just keep an eye on the mare and maybe suggest things to the owner that would help put weight on her. Maybe telling her that the foal will suffer if the mare isn't getting proper nutrition will open her eyes. I'm sorry you're in this situation, I know how hard it is to try and get someone to open their eyes and not be so blind about their horse's care. Goodluck.

[Appylvr]

So it sounds like you're going with my thought on checking in on her in a week?

What could help put that weight back on fast? I noticed she had a bunch of hay in there... looked like 3 way. Mommy was munching on it when she wasn't paying attention to baby.

You think beet pulp and rice bran is a good idea? That's what I used when I first got my horses I didn't know how to feed them and they got a bit thin (nothing compared to this mare). It put the weight right back on.

[Miss Neigh]

i'm sure if you go by to check on how things are going just mention what you feed a mare with foal by side, say that the foal will take a lot out of the mare and she needs an extra something to gain and maintain weight.
as you have previously experienced breeding than she may listen to what you have to say.

[Horsefeathers3]

Yes, I do think checking back on her in a week would be good. But then again, if the mare is REALLY lacking then it could affect the foal and she could go down really quickly. Do you know if the woman is feeding the mare any grain? If not, I'd quickly suggest that she be put on mare and foal feed, it has all the extras that momma and baby will need. I would hate to appear nosey, but for the mare and foal's best interests you might want to ask what she's feeding the mare and ask if she realizes how important nutrition is to both mare and foal right now.

[Appylvr]

You know I think I'll go by tomorrow and say I was checking to see if the mare was ok (since she was worried about a possible twin - although from what I observed I don't think so)

and then I'll mention about the feed. The filly looks fine. My neighbor is just learning about horses, so when we were walking home she was like "Boy even the baby was skinny!" So I had to tell her they're born thin

[kyryah]

That is a tough one. I know that my mare is chubby, lol, but I have heard so many people say that mares are thin right after giving birth. Blaze most certainly was not.




That was five days post pregnancy, lol. She still looked prego!

And at around two weeks.



Please feel free to share my pics if need be.

Kristina

[Horsefeathers3]

Holy ! Kyryah your mare looks like she was cooking another baby!

Foaling can take alot out of a mare, and ribs slightly showing wouldn't be anything to be worried about. But protruding spine and very visable ribs is definately not good for a nursing mare. To be as polite as possible, you could mention mare and foal feed and say that you've heard it works great and helps keep both healthy and at good weights. Since the woman is inexperienced with foaling, she might be appreciative for some extra help.

[kyryah]

Originally Posted by Horsefeathers3

Holy ! Kyryah your mare looks like she was cooking another baby!

LOL, yeah, I know. She is on a "diet," but it is hard to cut her feed, because I don't want to take away from the baby. She gets a total 1.5% of her body weight in feed a day.... 9lbs of hay, and six pounds of Mare and Foal.

Her weight is coming down, but slowly, so that is fine with me, lol!

Kristina

[Appylvr]

I'll definately mention the mare and foal feed... plus I think the beet pulp as well... maybe pellets too...

Thanks kyryah! Blaze is such a lovely girl!!! She looks great. It's hard to tell in the pics, but have you noticed a weight loss in her hips? I thought maybe, but wasn't sure?

My neighbor's mare's belly is hanging down like Blaze's in the first pic you showed... but her hips are WAY thinner. I'll see if I can find a pic comparable online to what she looks like