Could my mare be pregnant?

[ssophieef25]

ssophieef25 Avatar ssophieef25
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17 minutes ago
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Right I know a lot of people would advise calling a vet but when I did call them they suggested the only thing they would be able to do is an ultrasound which I would be charged £300 for which I am not willing to pay unless she is just fat.

So here's the situation
Last November I purchased a newly broken 12.2 mare, 8 years old for my younger sister. When she arrived she had the appearance of a miniature race horse. Was slim but toned and was a very sociable creature. Flash forward to the summer months we were told by the previous owners that she preferred to live out in the warmer months so that's what we decided to do. Where we have her on livery does not have a lot of rich grass but enough to keep her fed. When I returned from university to spend summer at home and went to see the mare I was very surprised with what I was met with! She has almost tripled in size, her stomach is low to the ground and she is incredibly moody, not wanting to have her tummy touched or anything. After discussing with family members the possibility that she may just be fat it occurred that the people who originally had her, kept her at a stud and only got rid of her due to a family issue. This left me wondering whether she may have been kept near a stallion paddock and may have been visited unbeknownst to the owners, by one of the stallions at the stud. This has left us concerned because looking at the time line if she is pregnant she could be due at any point. However she is showing no signs of bagging up etc.

Was just wondering if anyone else had had a similar situation and what would be the best possible thing to do right now for her? I am loathed to call the vet in case she is just fat as that would be a waste of £300.


Just to clarify, I believe she would be due now as her previous owners purchased her from the stud yard mid September last year.

[Louise Dixon]

If your vets are going to charge you £300 for a pregnancy scan, I'd suggest you find a new vet! She may well be in foal, and time will definitely give you an answer on that one, if she is not wanting to be touched etc probably sooner rather than later, but my concern would be if there is in fact something else wrong, you really need to find out.

Edited to add - my vets charge £30 + VAT, so £36, for a scan.

[honeypot]

An ultra sound should not cost any where near £300, with call out less than a £100

If she is grossly over weight she will be uncomfortable, if you condition score you are looking at the amount of fat deposited all over the body,
equinenutritionnerd.com/2014/02/04/body-condition-scoring/ as if she in of nice whizz popper grass her stomach will be distended by gas and not really an indication of how much weight she is carrying.
Somebody needed to do a study to find out what we have always known, fat ponies tend to be naughty, for a variety of reasons
www.horsetalk.co.nz/2012/04/05/porky-ponies-misbehave-more-research-reveals/#axzz4H9ibJGG6

I would weigh tape her for a start and restrict her grazing, and get the vet, I have been round horses for 50 odd years and if I am not sure I get the vet.

[kayjayem]

If she is due anytime now she wouldnt need a scan anyway, they would be able to pat the foal on the head! I would be thinking of changing vet if I were you.

[sarahp]

Maiden mares can bag up at any stage, even after the birth, I've had one do that. So it's not necessarily a sign for nearness of foaling, and nor is the relaxation of the quarter muscles, both usually pretty reliable pointers in mares who have foaled before.

Mind you, I know of one case like this, pony bought for child, ridden, hunted and PC'd, started looking in foal, vet examined (not scanned I don't think, long ago now) and pronounced empty so owner carried on with full holiday ridden programme, only to come down one morning to find a foal!

If you are dieting her, I'd suggest feeding her the correct amount of a balancer, just to make sure that if she is in foal she gets all necessary micronutrients for herself and the foal.

Another small point - it might be worth finding out the name of the stud if you can. If your mare is reg and the stallion can be pinpointed - most now are DNA tested to be licensed - then you could possibly get any breed registration the foal is eligible for as opposed to just a generic passport.

Good luck!

[flee]

Aug 13, 2016 9:54:59 GMT sarahp said:

Mind you, I know of one case like this, pony bought for child, ridden, hunted and PC'd, started looking in foal, vet examined (not scanned I don't think, long ago now) and pronounced empty so owner carried on with full holiday ridden programme, only to come down one morning to !

This is exactly what happened to me some years ago LOL ! Bought a 3 1/2 yo Fell mare directly from the breeder in the August and it has to be said that she was in pretty poor condition . Took her home , fed her up , watched her blossom and mature and then broke her in the following spring . She was an absolute angel and , one Saturday in April , I hacked her out on her own and remember thinking what a little star she had turned out to be . The following day , Sunday , we were out at the crack of dawn going to a show with another pony and she spent the day out in the field . We didn't get back until gone 10pm when she was brought in from the field for the night . Although I was knackered and trying to get finished up quickly I distinctly remember seeing an odd movement out the corner of my eye when I was changing her rugs , as though she had flinched , but she looked perfectly happy ( not colicky !) and I couldn't feel anything when I ran my hand over her , so off we went to bed ! With hind sight I would assume that what I glimpsed was either the foal moving or a contraction .
The next morning I went out to the stables and there she was with a still wet but standing colt foal looking mightily pleased with herself - two days after hacking out ! Stunned doesn't even begin to describe it !!!
You read about these things and wonder how it could happen but she honestly showed absolutely no signs . She'd even been seen regularly by the vet as she came with a chronic skin condition and had last been seen 10 days before giving birth and given the thumbs up !
When I contacted the breeder she immediately admitted that one of the young colts had escaped and was the culprit and we were subsequently able to register the foal with the FPS .That was our wonderful Rodney .
In the latter stages of pregnancy you can often see/feel the mare's belly moving as the foal kicks inside her - just like you can with human babies , so you could either lay your hand gently on her belly if she'll let you or , if she's tetchy about being touched , just watch for movement . You may have to give it a bit of time though as you can't predict when it'll happen .

[millwillow]

£32 plus call out for a scan, if shes far gone they wont need the scanner, or its about the same amount of money for a blood test which I normally go for.
if shes far gone like flee says you will be able to feel and see the foal moving. they have distinct belly when pregnant, obese is generally all round fat.

Maybe post a picture so we can have a look but I would just call out another vet. £300 is ridiculous, x rays and minor surgery on my horse didn't even cost that much.

You need to know when she is likely to be due so you can keep watch as there are all sorts that can go wrong. don't just go off the lovely stories you hear when people have gone in the field or stable and a little one has popped out. doesn't always happen like that.

good luck

[ssophieef25]

Hi guys, thanks for all your advice etc he's an image (hopefully) of her in the field last night, i know she does look a little porky, but just looking at her belly and the fact its dropped towards her back end a pregnancy may be possible. We have contacted her previous owners and they believe that it may be a possibility given our time frame.

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[millwillow]

may possibly be just hard to tell from angle of the photo but back end of belly towards stifle looks nice and round. doesn't look like the tell take 'V' shape but that could just be the angle. id just get a scan so your not wondering.

[sarahp]

She doesn't look generally fat though, look at the top line, it's just the belly. I'd be inclined to think she could well be - if pregnant the widest part is low and towards the back rather than just round all over. At the end of the day though we could all debate on here for ever and get nowhere, either you wait and see or get a vet to put a hand in!

[brindlerainbow]

If she's due soon you would also see the foal moving