[katylynn06]

BW. Sorry I wasn't on till I saw your post asking where I live and I thought I should answer. I have and their offices don't open till 9 and I don't feel comfortable getting them out of bed. I'm going down to feed and administer meds. don't know how long I'll be off.

[3WishesDun]

I would keep a close eye on her feet also. She is at risk for lamintis with the foal/placenta still inside her.

I pray you are able to get her to a vet today.

[freedom32]

Terrible turn of events, so sorry. I'm also praying that you are able to get her to a vet, sooner the better. Wish I were close enough to haul you--anyone on the forums able to lend a helping hand????

[Equine Repro]

I think in threads like this, it becomes easy to second guess and "armchair quarterback" what is going on. Without being a active participant, it's easy to speculate and add our own individual opinions on what is going on, what "should" be done and to question the competency of those involved. So, with that said, I'm going to offer a bit of advice and information for those of you with broodmares and impending foalings.

First, Fescue is prevelant throughout the US. It's a hardy, drought resistant grass and consequently, grows just about everywhere! It's pervasive. It's recommended to pull the mare off of any type of fescue at least 30 and preferably 60 to 90 days before foaling. However, realistically precautions are not taken with lots of mares and foalings occur without any complications. The flip side is there are many mares that foal out with no milk and end up with foaling complications due to foals that are unable to break through the placenta due to it being overly thick. With Katy's particular situation, there is no way to know if fescue was indeed the problem inasmuch NO ONE knew when the mare was bred.

When there are questions as to whether or not a mare is pregnant, get a vet out. There are things that "should" be done throughout the pregnancy. Again, granted there are many who do absolutely nothing for their pregnant mares - no rhino vaccinations, etc. While most mares will foal out without any complications and I say this year after year after year after year, it just takes something going wrong once to make taking those precautions worthwhile. If you acquire a pregnant mare later in pregnancy and you have no idea when she was bred, a competent vet can measure the size of the fetuses eye and get an indication as to the gestational age. Obviously, mares can have a normal gestational length of anywhere from 320 to 370 days, so it's just an estimate!

Foals sleep in utero. One of the things we teach is to not to initiate an abortion until you have done several evaluations of up to 15 minutes in length over a 24 hour period. We also STRONGLY recommend that, at the beginning of breeding season, if you are planning on having your mare cultured and a biopsy performed because after breeding her a couple times the previous breeding season she didn't settle, that you have her preg checked first!!! Every year, we hear about breeders who have their vet out to do the pre-breeding culture/cytology/biopsy and without further ado, the vet goes through a closed cervix only to discover, too late, that the mare was indeed pregnant It happens!

Equine reproduction is a specialty. Horses are not like cows and are considerably more fragile. With that said and in defense of vets, few actually specialize in equine reproduction. It's hard work. It's seasonal. It doesn't pay well. It's dangerous. And, the kicker? Horse owners are notorious for being poor payers !!!

If you have a great equine vet, count your blessings, pay your bill and tell them thank you regularly. If you're like many horse owners throughout the country that don't have access to a good equine vet, educate yourself. It may save you some tragic outcomes.

With this particular situation, many have added advice, concerns and have outright caused the poor girl to panic repeatedly. Without being privvy to all that has occurred, it's virtually impossible to know whether or not the mare received appropriate care. I HATE these types of threads because invariably, wer're NOT seeing the whole picture. We have NO idea of just how long the mare has been pregnant - just guesses. We have NO idea of how competent the vets were that examined the mare. Obviously, many of you are thinking, "well if she were "my" mare, I would have...." It's counterproductive and doesn't change the outcome at all. Mares abort regularly. Remember that the live foaling rate of the equine is 65%. 98% of foalings occur without incidence, but there is always that 2% and when things go wrong, they go dramatically wrong.

What this whole scenario has drummed home to me is just how difficult it can be to locate a veterinarian during a crisis, let alone one that is well versed in the particular area you need help. Educate yourself. Ultimately, it can be the difference between knowing when you "do" need assistance and the loss of your horse.

With regards to Katylynn's situation, there have been things that have caused me to raise an eyebrow more than once. But, without being there, all any of can do is speculate! I've suggested that the owner get in touch with a reputable veterinary university for information on how to proceed and hopefully, they will be able to direct her and assist her and her veterinarian in how to proceed. Hopefully, the outcome will be a positive one.

Good luck to all concerned!

Kathy St.Martin
Equine Reproduction Short Courses
Equine Reproduction

[luv2ridesaddleseat]

EXCELLENT post Kathy!

I never realized how lucky I am here in New Hampshire to have TWO Equine Hospitals within 15 minutes of me. I'm another one that has a mare that may have been bred before I bought her July 1st. I had a Vet here the first of the year who palpated and said, "he didn't feel anything", but he then added, unless it's hiding. Well I just assumed she was not pregnant, but she continues to get bigger and I see movment in her flank area. People are telling me, yes she could easily be pregnant, others say, their is no way a Vet would miss a 6 month or more fetus by palpation. I guess as soon as my truck is out of the shop, I will have to bring her to one of the hospitals for an ultrasound. There are so many people out there with so many different beliefs, when you ask, your going to get a mixture of every answer possible.

I hope Katys mare will be ok.

[katylynn06]

I'm trying to locate a trailer and driver to take Katy to West Plains

[Solsalia]

Okay,

do we know of anyone here that has a trailer or knows someone that can help? Let us know what we can do and if you get that trailer we can help you out with funds if need be. I talked to them earlier and depending on what they do this could get spendy.

[Lark]

Katy I am so sorry, been where you are, dogs not horses, lost some, saved some. Here's hoping the dice roll in your favour.

Have you checked with your local auction mart? They frequently know who hauls what where. The folks at a feed store sometimes know too. Phone the local country school and find out where the bus drivers coffee, a lot of bus drivers are farmers, if they can't help they might know someone who can.

[Mare]

Repo, What a great post. We want to help out so bad to save this mare. And oh so true that we need to educate ourselves. You can never quit learning. I hope there is someone in her area that is able to help.

[Arabians4ME]

Kathy,

Very well said. THat's why I tried my best to keep my fingers still through this whole ordeal. Great Post.