[Caterina]

I hope Veg, that you and your Uncle will take this situation as a wake up call.
Becuase of a lack of handling and food, the mare and resulting foal are HIGH RISK for illness, injury and death.
Horses are a big responsibility, especially when you take one out of a bad situation.
Does you Uncle understand that his mare is in a bad condition, especially for a mare in foal? Does he understand that she may not survive if she foals? Does he understand he has put this mare in a bad situation? (when he was suppose to be making her life better...)
It can be very hard, for outlookers to read your posts and see your pics and know that all we can do in vent, and offer advice (even if very little gets taken to heart).
*fingers crossed* that you do manage to catch her or herd her into a smaller area, so at least she can be fed and watched.

[Caterina]

Originally Posted by Vengeance

Don't ask me, I don't know. My uncle isn't very horsey at all, he likes to look at them, but not riding and/or playing with them (horses).

(this is directed at him)

Does he make any effort to make sure his horses are in a good health?

[SunBun]

Sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do to catch her....even if that might mean a tranq dart or something. Or 'scaring' her into a smaller space. I wouldn't worry too much at this point about making her shy of being caught, she just NEEDS caught, for her own health. You can work on training and stuff later.

Good luck

[Vengeance]

Why is someone who is 'not horsey' think they have any business rescuing a horse? Is he even willing to do anything about the situation if you can catch her?

I don't know. He wanted to get her out of the place she was at. Yes, if I can catch her, he's willing to do/buy anything in order to get her in shape and looking better/fatter/better health.

Does you Uncle understand that his mare is in a bad condition, especially for a mare in foal?

Yes, he does. That's one of the reasons he wants me to catch her and get her tamed down.

I wouldn't worry too much at this point about making her shy of being caught, she just NEEDS caught, for her own health.

I'm not worried about really scaring her anymore than she already is... she's pastured with a load of cows and has become attached to them. When they even look as though they're thinking about running away from me (us, people in general) she takes off. It's hard to get close to her when the cows pretty much tell her what to do.

I am still trying though. I plan on getting out there tomorrow after school with more feed and all and trying to catch her again.

[Dawn]

Do you have anyone that can rope her? Not something I would normally suggest, but I think it's getting to the point that you need to get her caught and into a small enclosure now.
Now having said that, do you have a place to put her once you get her caught? Catching her and turning her back out in the field isn't going to fix anything at all.

Does he realize the money that is going to be involved getting her nutrition back up safely and vet bills?

I wish I could come out and help you. As someone else said, it's so frustrating to sit here on this end of the computer and basically be helpless except to offer thoughts and advice.

I know you all have several horses, can you herd her into another pen riding them?

Is she getting any feed right now? (Sadly, I think the answer will be no, but you will have more options available to you if she's used to receiving feed daily.)

[Miss Neigh]

find a well known rescue to take her on, they will have facilities suitable for a foal and experience handling nervous horses.

[Mutrok]

Originally Posted by Miss Neigh

find a well known rescue to take her on, they will have facilities suitable for a foal and experience handling nervous horses.

Hate to say it but this is probably the best advice...if you can find a reputable rescue willing to take on this project. Poor thing....hard enough to keep a mare in good health before foaling in weight....she has no chance.

[Emma lvs tilly]

i was just going to say the same as dawn about catching her. we once had to do it with a really nervouse horse we tried all methods to catch. in the end we got on our other horses and started to gallop around the field, eventually she began to follow our those being riden and we finished by cantering into a small paddock and someone closing a gate on her. GOT HER! then we worked on trust building in the small space. i dont think the cows in the field are helping though, cant they be moved somewhere else for now?
you really need to catch her and get her checked by a vet please, rain or shine!
hope shes well, but like whats being said, she needs quality hard feed and a vet. if this is not possible then a rescue centre might be the best for her situation im sorry to say.

[Shuri]

Call a vet. That horse needs some attention from a veterinarian. Ask for a feed through tranquilizer. But you'd have to get her away from the cows to get her to eat it w/o the cows getting it (haze her into a corral?). Or you might ask if they know of someone who has a tranq dart gun. Or enlist the help of several horsemen, someone on horseback might be able to get closer than someone on foot and slip a rope over her head. Then once she's caught, keep her in a small area where she can't get too far. That mare doesn't show much improvement from the first pic to the second honestly. She's still all sunken in along her spine, her neck is thin and she has a lot of hair hiding just how poor she still is.

That halter needs to be replaced with one that fits. She will -have- to be caught. And it looks like she's in a barbed wire fence which is most definitely no place for a newborn foal. She needs care, esp if she's pregnant. Poor thing. She needs worming and food. She still needs weight now, and a nursing foal is going to drag her down very fast in the condition she's in.

It's nice that he wanted to help her, but allowing her to stay like this isn't much better than what he took her from. He's had her since September and hasn't done anything to train her? He needs to do something before she has a baby in her condition, up to and including placing her with a rescue.

[kaitlyndzn]

i must say from the before pictures and after pictures, she looks like a completely different horse!! I would call a vet ASAP about your concerns though and try to find the most safe way of catching her and getting her looked at since she was in such bad health before and now might be pregnant.
For the future i would suggest to ur uncle to stay away from rescuing a horse if he isnt too horse savvy...they need more attention and care than a "normal" horse