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Discussion on Getting ready for first foal at home
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Member:
imogen
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Posted on Wednesday, Apr 14, 2010 - 11:53 am:
Hello horse advice people!
Due to lack of cash, my 19 year old mare will be having her 5th foal at home. Hopefully she knows what to do at this stage! It's me that doesn't.
Would people share their tips on what kits to get, whether to bother with foaling alarms, calcium milk testing kits etc?
She has been wormed and vaccinated and is due in about 2 weeks. My plan is to leave her on her own in a safe pasture but have her stable clean and ready just in case. She has had a uterine cyst which was reduced before she could go in foal again - I am not sure if that increases her risk of uterine bleeding after birth?
If she is at high risk, someone please tell me and I will try to find the cash but as we all know, times are tough.
Thanks for your advice. Have just been re-reading Dr O's parturition articles - Horseadvice is without question the best value money I spend on my horses each year.
Imogen
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Member:
imogen
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Posted on Thursday, Apr 15, 2010 - 8:21 am:
Well I shall answer my own question with help from Catherine McCourt, once of this parish, and my own vet John Osborne.
- well-banked large straw stable with good lights (tick) becuase she is higher risk of holding on to the placenta due to the previous cyst
- bring her in at night (after the weekend) because of above and because it is still cold at night
- CCTV (my friend Martine is lending it to me (getting it) to save on night checks
- 5% iodine solution for navel (getting it)
- Plenty of good hay for the mare after the birth
- foal must stand and suck
- check foal meconium passed (can get an enema from the coop)
- check foal urinates
- check placenta has been passed and appears complete
- check mum seems ok if tired and is eating and drinking
- possibly will need oxytocin if part placenta retained
- if she runs milk for a good bit before the birth as she has before, have IgG levels of foal blood tested
Please add anything we all forgot...
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Member:
scooter
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Posted on Thursday, Apr 15, 2010 - 8:32 am:
Wish I could help you Imogen, I haven't had a foal since Hank. All my foals were born out in pasture and found the next day, never a problem. Of course it don't hurt to be prepared, that makes it more likely that things will go well Looks like you got things covered, hope things go well and would love pics of the foal when he/she gets here.
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Moderator:
DrO
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Posted on Thursday, Apr 15, 2010 - 11:20 am:
Hello Imogen,
The best (and cheapest) foaling alarm I have found is a simple baby monitor like you buy for listening to an infant at night. The range was 500 feet and the sounds of a problem foaling are unmistakable with all the banging around and it will wake you up. This makes it better than video alone. Of course video with sound would be best.
DrO
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Member:
paardex
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Posted on Thursday, Apr 15, 2010 - 12:07 pm:
Hello Imogen even though after my last experience[Tax's dead foal] I might not be the best person to tell you:have fun! I still will. Had about 70 mares foal out over thirty years, first was a dead twin at 7 months[she was alone but got over it and had two VERY nice and easy foalings after] last was Tax's dead foal[she was alone too] All the inbetween I caught with and without devices[in the beginnin due to lack of money] and only really had to help once with a leg bent in the front knee. No problem at all. Ofcourse there were to early weak babies and lamitis mares[one indeed with a cyst and invariably problems with placenta but that was 15 years ago and with no acces to a very good vet] But everybody in the end survived.[even me!] And the old mares esp. LIKED staying at home! At home has its advantages too. It seems as if you have covered your bases and if something unexpected happens[hey we are talking about horses!] you will phone and be sensible and get help.
So I can only say: statistics are good your horse might enjoy this situation perhaps even better and have fun with the baby!!
Jos
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Member:
cathy33
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Posted on Thursday, Apr 15, 2010 - 3:09 pm:
Hi Imogen, I had my first foal last summer and decided to have it at home because I wanted to witness the birth. I read up about everything and took lots of advice and thankfully everything went well with the foaling itself. I had a video monitor with sound in the stable and also used a foaling alarm halter that is triggered by horse's sweat. It worked a treat - I went to check her about 10pm and she was showing no real signs of giving birth (although she had been dripping milk for 10 days). At 11pm the foaling alarm went off and sure enough 15 mins later we had a beautiful colt. It was a textbook birth and the placenta came out whole. We did end up calling the vet as Harley had difficulty standing to feed due to DrOpped fetlocks on his hinds. My mare did give birth very close to the stable wall so having high thick banks of straw was very important.
I would definitely get an IgG test done post foaling especially if your mare drips milk. My vet had advised me to milk off her colostrum pre-birth as he thought she would lose it all through dripping, and then told me I should feed it to the foal immediately post birth with a bottle. It turned out that my foal had zero immunity (from the IgG test) and as he refused to drink colostrum out of a bottle, he ended up needing 3 plasma transfusions. Personally I think I should have left the mare's milk well alone pre-birth as she would still have had plenty of colostrum for the foal, but you live an
d learn. It ended up being a very expensive mistake but he is a very healthy and gorgeous youngster now and the mum recovered well and is back competing.
You sound like you have prepared yourself well so good luck and enjoy the experience!! Let us know how it all goes.
Cathy
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Member:
leslie1
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Posted on Thursday, Apr 15, 2010 - 4:08 pm:
Hey Imogen
You will probably have a safe ,easy and healthy foaling...
Here is a great video to watch~~ just to know what to do in the case of red bag.
https://www.blip.tv/file/3135415
I learn easier thru watching than reading and find it helpful to see what a red bag even looks like.
Remember if you need to help do to a normal but extrmely tired mare...(most mares dont need help) pull the baby toward the hocks with each contraction. Inless its a red bag delivery,.then get that baby out as fast as possible ...you would need a knife to open a red bag...you cant tear it with your own fingers.
Cheers
leslie
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Member:
stek
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Posted on Friday, Apr 16, 2010 - 11:49 am:
I worked at a standardbred farm back east as lead foaling attendant years ago, delivered 177 babies in 6 months (!) which was about as intensive a foaling course as I could hope for.
Some things I would add:
-tail wrap for mare to keep her tail clean and out of the way
-check that the foal presents with two forefeet and a nose. if that is not what you see, get the mare up so the foal can slip back in and hopefully realign
-if you have a mild dystocia such as one foreleg back, don't be afraid to put your arm in to go after it, but do it when the mare is up and not pushing (that is my own personal advice, check what your vet would like you to do, and only do what you feel comfortable with)
-if you have a dystocia you can't resolve get the mare up and walking till the vet gets there
-only assist by pulling if you are sure the foal is presented correctly. if you assist, ONLY PULL ONE FORELEG! shoulders are meant to pass one at a time and if you pull both fores you can get the shoulders stuck
-we always gave a warm enema VERY SLOWLY immediately after birth. be careful of the angle you insert, if you encounter resistance, stop
-clean rough towels for giving the foal a quick rub
-a large syringe container - 35ccish (the thing the syringe comes in) full of solution is the easiest way to dip the navel
-20 oz bottle and sheep nipple just in case foal has trouble nursing (never heard of milking the mare off beforehand, even when dripping. also never heard of a milk calcium test?). we would give a bottle if the foal hadn't nursed after 3 hours but ask your vet's protocol. if you must bottle feed do it under the mare's belly near her udder.
-baling twine for typing up membranes above the mare's hocks after the foal is out. if the mare steps on it she can tear it. also 20oz bottle full of warm water that can be tied onto membranes after a couple hours if she is having trouble passing the placenta
-garbage bag inside a 5 gallon bucket with a lid for the placenta - we always had the vet review it the next day to be sure it was complete
-leave the mare and foal alone as much as possible after birth for bonding and to keep the mare's stress level low
-we always gave a hot bran mash to the mare after the placenta had passed
Above all I would say interfere as little as possible. Your mare knows what to do. Don't be afraid to call the vet if you have any worries/doubts. In all likelihood she will pop the colt out the minute you turn your back =)
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Member:
imogen
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Posted on Saturday, Apr 17, 2010 - 2:57 pm:
Superb post, Shannon - thanks so much!
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Member:
stek
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Posted on Saturday, Apr 17, 2010 - 6:23 pm:
Best of luck to you and your mare .. as you can probably tell from my post I miss the foaling business this time of year. Though do NOT miss working at night!
Can't wait to see pics of the new baby!!
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Member:
imogen
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Posted on Sunday, Apr 18, 2010 - 5:12 am:
Update: I'm in England (took me 17 hours to get here) for my Dad's 75th. Should have been no problem as mare not due for another 2 weeks... and my partner was there to check her. He managed to fall over in the yard and break his leg and is currently in hospital awaiting surgery to screw it back together again!
Have friends checking mare a couple of times a day because she suddenly started to bag up, but it is going to take me another 17 hours by ferry to get back home because of the volcanic cloud stopping air traffic. Fingers crossed she keeps her legs crossed for another 24 hours!
Imogen
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Member:
frances
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Posted on Sunday, Apr 18, 2010 - 6:08 am:
Oh no Imogen - true example of sod's law isn't it? I really really hope you make it back in time - or if not, that when you get back you find she's just done it all perfectly by herself (would save you some missed sleep).
GOOD LUCK!
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Moderator:
DrO
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Posted on Sunday, Apr 18, 2010 - 9:05 am:
That is a great post Shannon, for those concerned about dystocias we have an article that further explains the principles you outline above, see Diseases of Horses » Reproductive Diseases » Birthing Problems » Dystocia or Difficult Birth. Be sure to use the link in that article to take you to images of a a normal birth so you can visualize what the article is talking about.
DrO
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Member:
mrose
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Posted on Sunday, Apr 18, 2010 - 10:51 am:
O.K. 3rd time's the charm, right? I've tried to post here twice now and what I write disapears when I hit the "enter" key!
Imogine, you've gotten some great advice here. I wish I'd had this site when we first started breeding and foaling out. Wish we'd had Shannon working for us, too!
Since this is your mare's 5th foal, it would be very unusual for her to have problems. Also, most experienced brood mares bag up several days, and sometimes weeks, before foaling. I wouldn't be worried about her starting to bag up.
For future reference, it's a good idea to write down the dates when she starts to bag up, when starts to develop colostrum - all the different stages of parturation. Then, next time you will have a good idea of what she will do and how long from first time until delivery. I always did this and found it very helpful. Most mares develop a pattern which most of the time (but not always) they follow.
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Member:
imogen
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Posted on Monday, Apr 19, 2010 - 11:20 am:
Back in Cork thanks to Fastnetline and the MV Julia, though my nephew is incidentally stranded with a school trip in Shanghai! See here: https://tinyurl.com/y52xc29
Mare is looking smug, but otherwise unruffled. Paul is cranky, and won't be let out of hospital until tomorrow at the earliest. I am so lucky because I have great friends who trekked down here to look after things while I was away. Will keep you posted on foal progress...
Sara, my mare usually takes 2 weeks from first signs of bagging up to foaling. I still think she'll be another week based on past dates and maybe longer as we are promised wind and rain on Friday.
All the best
Imogen
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Member:
canter
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Posted on Monday, Apr 19, 2010 - 12:44 pm:
Glad you made it back home, Imogen and that your mare decided to wait until you got there. Sorry to hear of your partner breaking a leg, though. Looking forward to hearing of an uneventful delivery and to pix of your new baby.
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Member:
imogen
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Posted on Wednesday, Apr 21, 2010 - 3:22 am:
My friends installed their CCTV for me last night. It's great! Nice to see that the mare is lying down. Now to try and get a baby alarm. I just know she's going to wait until I have to start a new job next week before she has it, though...
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Member:
imogen
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Posted on Wednesday, May 5, 2010 - 4:16 pm:
Foal finally arrived... sorry that I haven't time to re-edit pics for HorseAdvice today but check out my facebook for anyone interested.
Foal was born in the field I think about 4 am (placenta hadn't been bird pecked, foal was dry when I found it at 6.15 am). Unfortunately it is wobbly and lax and a filly. Fortunately it's fine and healthy and tall with a nice attitude.
Could not get it to stand up in the field and it had obviously been unable to stand for some time - a cold morning and rain on the way. Tried a straw bale to give it purchase but no luck so called the vet and the guy who foaled the mare before (I have a broken rib, hubby has a broken leg!).
Between us we got it up the field into the stable wibbly wobbly step by step. It was a bit dopey about nursing but did nurse, and had its enema and mare and foal got their shots, and we did the umbilicus with 5% iodine.
Placenta all intact, checked by the vet. As of tonight it can now motor about the stable and nurse, but still cannot get up on its own without a bit of help, so it will be back on the cctv and out there to get it up every couple of hours if it doesn't start standing up of its own accord.
Fingers crossed but it is glossy and chirpy and starting to get sassy...
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Moderator:
DrO
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Posted on Thursday, May 6, 2010 - 7:27 am:
Imogen, I always worry when foals don't stand well by the end of the first day, is there a well established reason for the difficulty standing?
DrO
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Member:
canter
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Posted on Thursday, May 6, 2010 - 7:37 am:
Congratulations, Imogen. I hope your little filly starts standing on her own and continues to gain strength from there.
Looking forward to some baby pictures! I was just thinking we haven't had too many this year.
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Member:
imogen
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Posted on Thursday, May 6, 2010 - 5:38 pm:
Dr O, I was worried too but it just has enormous back legs. I was thinking wobbler, or some kind of pressure on the spine in the womb caused by it being such a tall foal and it seems a little shakey even when lying down. I rang my vet to report it still isn't standing up independently but he doesn't seem too worried based on its size.
It has now stood three times today on its own, but if you don't go and disturb it then it's quite happy to just "swim" around the stable floor. It is nursing fine and able to motor about the stable once it is up on its legs. Its pasterns have come up a lot in 24 hours which is helping. I figure it may just be lazy - when the vet gave it a shot yesterday, it stood up pretty sharpish!
Imogen
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Member:
imogen
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Posted on Monday, May 10, 2010 - 3:00 pm:
Just an update - the foal is absolutely fine now. It's gambolling about the field during the day, and when I was leading them in tonight, took the opportunity to try to let go at the mare with both barrels!
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Member:
scooter
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Posted on Monday, May 10, 2010 - 6:28 pm:
Glad everything is going well Imogen Sounds like you got yourself a feisty one..be careful around those flying back hooves!!
Any pics??
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