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HorseAdvice.com » Equine Reproduction » Pregnancy, Foaling, & Neonatal Care » Pregnant Mare Care and Nutrition » |
Discussion on Pregnant rescue mare | |
Author | Message |
Member: pfdusty |
Posted on Sunday, Jul 19, 2009 - 12:34 pm: We took in a pregnant mare yesterday. Her medical history is unknown. She looks highly pregnant (I don't know how much time we have till she foals) and she would look much skinnier if she wasn't pregnant. I'm guessing her age to around 20 yrs. We do have a vet scheduled to come out hopefully Monday.Here are my questions: I would like to deworm her, is it safe to do this and if so what wormer to use? Assuming she hasn't been vaccinated for a few years what vaccines can be administered this late? We are feeding her equine senior and Vitality 10. Should we change her to a mare and foal food even though she is emaciated? Is it safe to give her a bath since she just got here or would it be too much stress after the move, new location etc. A couple pictures of her: https://i260.photobucket.com/albums/ii18/DTHR/2009%20Cases/C%20County/r6.jpg https://i260.photobucket.com/albums/ii18/DTHR/2009%20Cases/C%20County/r9.jpg |
Member: juliem |
Posted on Sunday, Jul 19, 2009 - 3:32 pm: Can't offer any advice, but BLESS you! |
Member: akila |
Posted on Sunday, Jul 19, 2009 - 4:03 pm: Ivermectin is safe to use throughout pregnancy (I stand to be corrected here Dr O)but one option would be to worm her literally at or just post birth so you do not expose the foal to a parasite overload. In the pics she does not look as bad as I expected - pretty bad but she is very lucky to have ended up with you. |
Member: lvmyhors |
Posted on Sunday, Jul 19, 2009 - 6:53 pm: Hi Moni, Kudos to you for saving this mare! I too have a rescue mare that came to us bred and she just gave us a beautiful and healthy filly so I know exactley where your'e coming from! I would definately go ahead and worm her with Ivermectin and vaccinate her with both a 4-way for mama and a Pheumabort vaccine for her unborn foal. After the foal is born than go ahead and re-worm at 1 week and boost mama's vacc at 4 weeks. Good luck and thankyou for rescuing this mare! And remember to share your story and pic's of the new baby with us all! |
Moderator: DrO |
Posted on Sunday, Jul 19, 2009 - 9:59 pm: Hello Moni,Because we cannot examine the mare we cannot tell you what to do with this mare particularly with the reference to her being emaciated. Emaciated horses are prone to a number of metabolic complications when you attempt to bring them back so great care must be exercised in refeeding and managing the mare. Based on the practical notion that to save the foal you first have to save the mare her special needs trump those of the pregnancy. We do have an article on managing and refeeding emaciated horses and I recommend you start there, Horse Care » Equine Nutrition, Horse Feeds, Feeding » Rehabilitating Malnourished Horses. The article on taking care of pregnant mares associated with this discussion will answer your questions about pregnancy needs but the assessment by a professional who has examined the mare is what is needed to balance and optimize the management with the hope of saving both. Images of the mare might help us with further assessment and allow us to give further advice. DrO |
Moderator: DrO |
Posted on Sunday, Jul 19, 2009 - 10:03 pm: My apologies Moni, I see you have images at the bottom of your post and I missed them in the email edit. First I would say she is far from emaciated, I would grade her thin (say a 4.5) but not dangerously so. I think the recommendations on deworming and feeding in the pregnancy care article will work fine. I would also consider with your veterinarian bringing all her vaccinations up to date.DrO |
Member: pfdusty |
Posted on Sunday, Jul 19, 2009 - 11:22 pm: Thanks Dr. O. I know she is not at deaths door (in regards to skinny) and I would rate her a 3 by the henneke scale if she wouldn't be pregnant(which makes her look bigger)she is also a big boned horse.In the last 3 months we had 2 horses which were emaciated to a 1. Could not stand, looked horrible, here are 2 of them: https://s260.photobucket.com/albums/ii18/DTHR/2009%20Cases/Miracle/?action=view&c urrent=165f2f3a.pbw https://i260.photobucket.com/albums/ii18/DTHR/2009%20Cases/Pintlala/Pintlala017.j pg Both are doing fine now. We never had a pregnant mare and the current one is our first. I just wasn't sure when vaccines would be considered not safe due to pregnancy. |
Member: frances |
Posted on Monday, Jul 20, 2009 - 4:09 am: You've done wonders with them Moni. I echo Julie: BLESS YOU. |
Moderator: DrO |
Posted on Monday, Jul 20, 2009 - 8:10 am: Remember not to use the belly at all for evaluating condition, Moni. It is the rib and spine coverage that mainly effect evaluation at the lower condition numbers, this is a firm 4 plus on the Henneke scale.DrO |
Member: pfdusty |
Posted on Monday, Jul 20, 2009 - 1:08 pm: Thanks Dr. O.The vet was here today, gave her the shots and said to go ahead and deworm her. She believes she is a few weeks out still but we have to start watching. The girl is around 20 and it looks as if she had babies in the past. So hopefully all will go well |