Hello All! We have a small family farm, "Desert Wind Pintos". Over the years, I've gotten a lot of questions about how to choose a horse, what to look for in mini horses for show, breeding, driving and pet therapy. I've also had questions on goat milk; how to make goat butter, how to store it, etc. I know I would have liked a "go-to" place, to get answers and ideas on doing things more efficiently and better when we began, so I thought I'd share some of our farm life here. I'll do weekly updates.....look for them on Saturdays please!
A little information about our farm. We currently raise Pinto Saddlebred Horses and Pinto Miniature Horses. Our farm website is located at
www.desertwindpintos.com We have our own registered Lamancha milk goat, 4 Americauna (Easter Egger) laying hens and we hope to add in a breeding program for registered Gloucestershire Old Spot (rare breed) pigs later this year. We raise our own freezer beef and pork, as well as can and freeze vegetables and fruit for our family.
Since spring is on the way here in South Carolina, I thought an appropriate topic to begin with would be looking for signs of foaling on your mares. We have 1 miniature mare and 2 saddlebred mares due to foal this year. Two in March and one in April. We've been raising horses for over 30 years, so we've done this once or twice.
It's so incredibly important to know the exact days of breeding, so you can more closely calculate the foaling time. While it's true that horses "in the wild" do just fine most of the time on their own, our domestic horses (especially the miniatures) need some extra help at times, making it very important to keep a close eye on the mares and try to be present to help during foaling if need be.
If a mare has had a foal before, try to find out the exact breeding dates and the foaling dates. Then you can count and see how long she was pregnant. Mares will usually follow a routine, or close to it. The "normal" gestation time for a full sized mare is about 340 days, with 320 - 370 being considered within normal times as well. Miniature mares will usually go slightly shorter on their gestation times. Their average gestation time seems to be about 320 days, with as early as 300 days being within limits for a normal foal. One of our saddlebred mares, Suzie, has had gestations ranging from 349 to 357 days. So while we take a look at her daily beginning about a month out from her due date, we don't get too excited about our checks until we are approaching day 349. We know chances are VERY good, that we won't have any action before then!
Here's a link to an easy to use breeding calculator.
www.marestare.com/foalingchart.php
Some of the signs of a mare nearing foaling are subtle,
some are more obvious. During the last few months of her pregnancy, her abdomen will grow
increasingly larger. At about one week prior to the birthing, the
belly may appear to shrink as the foal begins to move into the birth canal.
Relaxation of the entire posterior
reproductive tract (located under her tail) begins to occur about 6 weeks prior to foaling and continues
up to the last moments. By checking the mare daily, you’ll actually begin to notice a hollowing and relaxing of the muscles on either side
of the tail head. If you gently poke this area with your fingertip, it will almost shake like jello. This "jello" state occurs about 3 to 10 days before foaling.
As the mare’s time approaches the
vulva will slacken, becoming wider, looser and longer than normal. Sometimes a mare will tighten this area when you lift her tail to look. Just talk to her soothingly and gently hold her tail up, so you can see. Be patient and don't rush. They will usually relax again in a minute or two and you can get a better idea of what's really going on back there. You may even try just standing next to her hindquarters and waiting for a glance when she swishes her tail. This loosening
will become much more noticeable within 24 to 48 hours of the blessed event. The vulva will usually get swollen and puffy looking at this point too. Shortly before foaling, the cervix will also relax and a small
discharge of lubricating secretions may be noticed. Don't worry if you don't see this. The mare's stools may become very loose as well a day or two before foaling. They may resemble cow pies. This is also due to the relaxation of the muscles in her rear areas.
One of the more obvious signs seen is the milk sack forming. The udder will began to change from the small, deflated sack to a tight, full bag. Normally the onset of this filling begins between the
fourth and sixth week of the countdown to foaling. This is often seen earlier in maiden
mares than the seasoned broodmare. Stabled mares may also seem to "bag up" earlier than pastured mares, due to inactivity. It's normal for the udder to swell
up at night, but shrink during the day while turned out. When the udder remains
tight after a day of free exercise, the wait typically won’t be too much
longer.
As pressure builds within the udder, the teats will
enlarge and fill out, about four to six days before the foal arrives.
In some mares, the pressure of the filled udder may become so intense that you will see large tracks along the underside of the mare's belly. These are called "milk veins". Soon the dry plugs in the ends of the teats will be
expelled by this tremendous pressure build up. This allows colostrum (the first milk) to leak from the teats and it forms wax balls on the end of the teats. These sticky, yellowish secretions are referred to as
wax. A high percentage of all mares will wax sometime before foaling. Sometimes the mare will knock the wax off by laying down and getting up. This can cause colostrum to begin dripping too early. If you see this happening for a few days, call your vet so they can be prepared to give the foal colostrum after it's born, if the mare has lost too much colostrum during this time. It has been reported that 90% of mares that produce wax, will foal within the next 24-48 hours. (Below is a picture of wax.)
Another good thing to check is the calcium in the mare's milk. When you are noticing all the above signs, milk a few drops of the mare's milk into a collection cup and test it. There are several good kits on the market that you can buy to do this. I prefer the "Predict-A-Foal" kit. It runs about $57. I've used this one for over 25 years and feel very comfortable with it's accuracy of predicting a foaling within the next 12 hours. The kit contains everything you need to perform 15 tests.
Literally right before the mare foals, she will often become restless.
She may pace the stall, begin to sweat, bite at her sides, get up and down repeatedly and swish her tail vigorously. You may think she is showing signs of colic! As long as she has been eating, drinking, defecating and/or urinating just prior to this, she is more than likely experiencing the first stages of labor. Even at this point in the game, she may decide to "stall" or "hold" her labor!! A mare can delay her labor up to a few hours or even days! If the mare feels uncomfortable in her surroundings, feels threatened or simply wants solitude, she can (and usually will) put the brakes on and wait!!
Try to keep it quiet in the barn and keep the same routine. Don't invite the whole family over to watch the event. Don't have the lights blazing in the barn, so you can catch the moment of glory on video. I'm telling you, 9 times out of 10, your mare will wait until you give up and leave the barn and she once again has her peace and quiet! Don't be surprised if you go to the house for a hot cup of tea and
bathroom break, to come back and find you are the owner of a brand new
filly (or colt)!
If you can install a video camera in your foaling stall, that is ideal. Then you can watch her from the comfort of your home, letting her have the solitude that she wishes for. When you see the foaling actually happening, you can quietly go to the barn and be ready to assist if needed. It's best to just leave her to it, but if it looks like she's having a lot of trouble, then it's time to step in and help. There is also a wonderful website called "Mare Stare" where you can pay them to host your foaling camera. People from around the world watch your mare for you and call you when they see her go into labor! WONDERFUL idea!!!! Here's the link to their site.
www.marestare.com
Next week's topic: What to expect during the actual foaling. Until then, enjoy the longer days and hopefully warmer weather!
