The most important part of owning a horse is educating yourself on their care. This
week I have had 2 "dead foal" phone calls (asking for emergency help as they
couldn't get a hold of their vet, the foals had already died and they needed to know what
to do) and I realized that I needed to print this article last month instead of this.
Sometimes I forget we have so many new people, and they need the same help that us old
veterans had, and information is precious in this market. First let me state that no
matter what you have heard or read miniatures have more foaling problems than their larger
cousins the pony and horse. Second let me say these are my opinions and I am not a vet.
Your vet should be your most important partner in this business, and his/her word is
sacrosanct! Your relationship with your vet can mean the difference between a quick
lifesaving response from a concerned friend and colleague to a delayed phone call (too
late to help) from a vet who doesn't know you from Adam. That's why you should find a good
vet and take all your business to him from Coggins and health certificates to the
difficult things even if someone else is more convenient. You vet will appreciate this and
know that you take serious care of your animals and not just when an emergency arises.
These are things as I see them and I am offering my help and years of experience for you
here. Most importantly READ, READ, READ. If you can't afford to buy books, your local
library has excellent information on horse care and most all of it pertains to your
miniature.
First we must start with breeding your mare. Most people think that the smaller in height
the stallion, the smaller the foal and the easier time the mare will have foaling. Not
True!
Most smaller stallions are heavier boned and have large heads. This is what causes a lot
of difficult births. You can breed a 28" mare to a 32" stallion and have a tiny
precious foal that slips out like a lizard, I know I have done it. The stallion was
refined, tiny bones and was from a line of very refined horses and I would not have
hesitated to breed the mare to him if he was 33 7/8" tall. The foal was 16" tall
and refined. This was carefully thought out breeding.
One of the most important parts of easy foaling takes place before breeding, your research
into backgrounds of the animals you are putting together. This is a whole article in
itself and I will do it later, it is mentioned here to make you think!
Mares that I have known have foaled from 10 1/2 months to a full year, so don't think you
have the date your mare is going to foal just by looking at a chart. An old breeder friend
of mine taught me a neat trick , count back 20 days from the first breeding, i.e.: if you
breed a mare on May 20 of 1995 look for the foal around May 1 of 1996. Two weeks either
side of this is the anxious time and mares are likely to foal anywhere in that window.
Presumably you have been feeding your mare a good feed during the whole pregnancy to help
ensure a healthy foal, and feeding alfalfa hay or pellets the last trimester seems to help
my mares produce a nice full bag of milk.
I hesitate from using a milk producing supplement before foaling as I have seen it make my
mares produce so much milk before foaling that they drip a lot of fluid out before
foaling, and I don't feel comfortable with that. But if you have read my article on
"wickey leg" syndrome in the Horse World you will know how valuable I feel it is
after foaling.
I prefer to have my mares where they can go out into the pasture to foal. The fresh green
grass is a whole lot cleaner than any stall, and I have had too many friends that have had
foals die from ingesting shavings. Don't use shavings in your foaling stalls as bedding!
Good products to alert you when your mare is foaling:
(prices are from Toys-R-Us)
Try to be with your mares when they foal if possible, but be aware that some mares will
delay foaling if they feel uncomfortable. Just last night I sat up with a mare that had
her foal just after I left to go to bed. If you can afford foal alert systems, whether
attached to the halter, sewn into the vulva, the tampon, or TV monitor systems that is
great and a wonderful help. Sometimes you just have to just go it on your own.
The bag is a great indicator that foaling is near. Some friends of mine have done a study
of their mares and found that the area in front of the bag starts filling about 5 weeks
before foaling. This works for them, with what they feed and the pasture type their horses
are on, it may be different for you. Another friend says that she checks her mares bag and
squeezes a little squirt of fluid out of the bag, if it is really sticky then foaling will
occur usually within 12-48 hours. When a mare starts to bag (3-6 weeks before foaling) she
sometimes has a hard yellowish waxy plug that protrudes a bit from the end of the tit.
This is not waxing! Waxing is a great tale-tell sign of foaling within 5-24 hours, but I
have only observed it once in miniature mares, whereas most of my QH mares did it before
foaling. Waxing really looks like the dripping wax down the side of a candle and falls off
easily when the mare walks or trots. Once you see it you will never forget what it looks
like and you'll agree waxing is the perfect name for it, but don't plan on it in your
mini.
Another indication of a mare foaling soon is their tails get loose like
they have no muscle control for them (except when you start messing with it of course),
and their usually round rears kinda flatten in the back. About a month before foaling it
is a good idea to brush your mare once a day.
Get her used to use touching around her bag and reach for it from the side as a foal would
do not between the hind legs. This helps a young mare get used to that touch. A friend
called the other day and said that he checked his mares bag by reaching between the hind
legs in the back and when the foal was born the mare would not let the baby nurse from the
side, but she would let him stick his head between her back legs, but of course the new
baby couldn't nurse from there. So he had to tie the mare up and let the foal nurse every
2 hours for the first day before the mare would accept him. He might have prevented this
by checking the mare from the side.
When a mare starts labor it usually looks like a mild colic. She fidgets, lifts her hind
legs up one at a time like she is cramping, will took at her sides, and sometimes break
out in a mild sweat on the neck, between the front legs or on her sides. My mares usually
have a mild diarrhea and urinate a lot. As you can tell this takes a lot of observation, a
thing which will educate you and help to form a bond between you and your mare so that
when the little one arrives she will not be as likely to "go after you" when you
go in to help or check the baby. We give a VEWT shot about 2-3 weeks before foaling as
this keeps us from having to give the foal a tetanus antitoxin shot the first day, I hate
poking a new baby with a shot.
The next stage is the water breaking, yes, just what it sounds like. If you observe
this the foal should come within the next 5-45 minutes. By now you are probably more
anxious than the mare, hopefully you have a towel and a bottle of iodine (to put on the
foals navel stump after the cord breaks on its own) and some KY Jelly or Lubricant (just
in case). Don't freak out, try and remain calm you may need that energy later and the mare
certainly doesn't need to be anymore nervous than she is. You should see a front foot come
out, now don't get upset if it doesn't look like a foot. They have these nice little
rubbery cushions attached to the bottom of their hooves and the foal is encased in a
milky-clearish bag, when you look a little closer you will see this. The other front foot
should be right behind the first foot then you will see a little nose peaking out. DO NOT
BREAK THE BAG OFF THE FOALS NOSE YET. Sometimes the mare will get up at this point kinda
turn around and then lay back down. The foal could still slip back inside the mare at this
point and drown if you have removed the bag. The mare will then really start pushing and
heaving hard and then the foal will kind of squirt out about half way. Then there is
usually a couple of more big pushes and the entire foal will slip out. The hardest parts
to get out is the shoulders and the hip area, this will require straining pushes so don't
freak out. It is best to let nature take it's course in the foaling process, and help is
usually not necessary. This process can take from 15 minutes to 45 minutes. ONCE THE HIPS
ARE OUT YOU CAN THEN TEAR THE BAG OFF FROM AROUND THE FACE USE YOUR TOWEL TO DRY THE MUCUS
OFF THE NOSE as you do this run your fingers down the sides of the nasal bones expressing
any mucus contained there as if you were milking it out.
Now don't expect the mother to get up immediately to check out the foal. She is exhausted
and will usually rest at this point. In fact the colt is usually the first to get up. If
you haven't pulled the bag off the nose yet and it has not broken, do it now and quickly.
Clean off the nostrils and the foal should take a breath. If not or if it sounds gurgully
then lift his head so the mucus can drain from his nostrils. When you pull the bag off the
nose and head don't go any further, let the umbilical cord break on it's own. The foal
needs the blood it receives from the umbilical cord at birth, and that little extra may
make the difference in a healthy and an unhealthy foal. The foal 90 %+ of the time breaks
the cord on his own when he tries to stand, don't cut the umbilical cord unless you have
talked to your vet and he suggests it and follow his instructions, certainly don't pull on
it and rip it out of the foals belly. When the cord breaks you need to iodine the navel
cord, squirt the iodine on it, or if the foal is standing up put the iodine in a shot
glass or the cap of the iodine bottle (the stem does pull out). Don't pull the placenta
(white + red veiny bag attached to the foal by the umbilical cord) out of the mare. Let
the mare pass it on her own. If she does not pass this within an hour after foaling, CALL
THE VET! If your mare has trouble seems to not be able to get the foal out and the foal is
positioned properly for a normal delivery, you may help. Grab the front legs with your
hands, and when the mare pushes - pull just a bit and hold what you've got, when she
relaxes don't let the foal slip back inside her just hold what you have, pulling down
between the mares hind legs towards her feet not straight out. Remember don't pull unless
she is pushing, when she is resting just hold what you have. This should help and only use
your hands to help. Any other method to pull should be only used by your vet. Your best
bet is to call your vet when this process starts and he/she can talk you through it or
come out to help. If something appears or does not appear that is not normal call your vet
immediately! But above all else don't ever feel guilty about losing a foal. You have done
your best, some babies were not meant to be, and being there does not always mean you will
have a healthy foal, it just ups the odds a bit. But educate yourself, buy books, check
them out at the library. See if any horse club big or small in your area is having a
foaling seminar in your area and attend. My first seminar was an Arab seminar. Call the
local agriculture extension agent and see if they have any information they can send you
or know of any seminars in the area. Again EDUCATION is the key! Let your vet know ahead
of time that this is your first time to have a foal, discuss this with your vet and get
advice, I'm sure your vet will tell you to call and will help you though this. Save the
placenta and take it to the vet so they can check it to make sure everything came out
correctly, again make arrangements with your vet beforehand for this and he/she will tell
you what to do and how to bring it. 24 hours after our mares foal we have the vet out to
infuse the mare to prevent infection and check and make sure the delivery went ok and the
foal received its colostrum.
Good Luck and may all your foals be born healthy!
- With permission from author, previously printed in the Area 5
Newz
