Anyone bought a mare and found she was in foal?

maya2008 said:
10 days before giving birth, our little mare looked like this. All tummy, no fat anywhere else…

The telling thing was the bagging up underneath though. Don’t panic until you see an udder slowly filling with milk!
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Maiden mares often don’t bag up before foaling so that is not a reliable indicator of foaling being imminent at all. Remember mares don’t read the books we do so have no idea what they ‘should’ be doing.
 
Blanche said:
Maiden mares often don’t bag up before foaling so that is not a reliable indicator of foaling being imminent at all. Remember mares don’t read the books we do so have no idea what they ‘should’ be doing.
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....and mares which are very fat and on rich pasture can sometimes show a sort of little proto-bag without being in foal.
 
Sandstone1 said:
Still not sure, her belly looks low to me. Looks less fat in that photo than the other one but as I said her belly is low. Have you seen any more movement?
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To be honest, I’ve stopped looking for all the signs! I’m pretty convinced now that she is just fat! These photos were last night!
 

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her bottom looks quite plump on those photos, usually the mares muscles will soften and leave a dipped look around the pelvis/tail area.
she certainly looks 'well' .
 
I am impressed at how many people here can diagnose pregnancy based on some pictures, truly amazing.
Never mind the opinion of the actual professional who has seen the horse (and groped it!) in person.

Whilst there is a possibility foals can be missed I would be very surprised that happened in this case, to me she looks at a weird growth stage and has been on a bit too much grass.

OP, if you wanted to be 100% you can do an oestrone sulphate blood test which may give clarity. She's a cutie, enjoy her!
 
Northern said:
I am impressed at how many people here can diagnose pregnancy based on some pictures, truly amazing.
Never mind the opinion of the actual professional who has seen the horse (and groped it!) in person.

Whilst there is a possibility foals can be missed I would be very surprised that happened in this case, to me she looks at a weird growth stage and has been on a bit too much grass.

OP, if you wanted to be 100% you can do an oestrone sulphate blood test which may give clarity. She's a cutie, enjoy her!
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I do not think anyone is trying to diagnose pregnancy here. The question was as the title, Anyone bought a mare and found she was in foal? People have answered that question and given their opinion which was asked for. The mare is either in foal or very fat. Vets have been known to miss pregnancy and in the first photo she certainly looks pregnant, that and the owner had seen movement in her belly does tend to lead people to think she may be pregnant. One things for sure, time will tell. There will either be a foal or there wont.
 
Northern said:
I am impressed at how many people here can diagnose pregnancy based on some pictures, truly amazing.
Never mind the opinion of the actual professional who has seen the horse (and groped it!) in person.

Whilst there is a possibility foals can be missed I would be very surprised that happened in this case, to me she looks at a weird growth stage and has been on a bit too much grass.

OP, if you wanted to be 100% you can do an oestrone sulphate blood test which may give clarity. She's a cutie, enjoy her!
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To be fair, the forum is often right when it comes to guessing whether a BOGOF foal is on the way. But I agree with you, in this case it seems unlikely!
 
It's fair, though, that people do point out that vets can miss foals even after doing an internal. It happened to people I know. The vet was adamant at a 5 month check on a brood mare that the mare must have resorbed or slipped the foal, only for a foal to be born outside in filthy weather at the expected time post covering. Foal (very well bred) was ok, but the owners were pretty miffed at the vet as they would have been keeping a proper foal watch if they'd known.
 
Yes and one of last year’s 2 BOGOFs on our yard was told there was no foal - that was within weeks of the birth when she was huge.
In ambers case, her waters went and vet examined a few hours later as no foal was appearing and said foal wasnt coming any time soon and whoever saw the waters go (a very credible sheep and dairy farmer) was mistaken. Felix was born that night after I had abandoned foal watch. They just don’t seem very good at either assessing this or at being clear that it’s difficult to assess and they could be wrong. She didn’t say ‘ I don’t think so’ she literally said: go home and get some sleep - you’ve got a while to go yet”. But I don’t think OP mare is in foal either given age and examination.
 
Murphy's law states if this mare is in foal it will be born in early October, just when OP is about to go, or has gone, on holiday.
This happened to us. Mare went to stud, was covered and confirmed in foal so returned home. In due course she was scoped to ensure that there wasn't a twin.We were told "100% no foal". As the covering had been NFNF we were disappointed but......
.Mare went out on loan over the winter for pony club activities. Eventually vet sees mare when visiting another pony at the loan home and asks "When is the foal due?" Reply from loanee,"You said she wasn't, and we've cut her food back because she appeared to be getting fat". Panic all round!
Mare came home to be fed stud cubes and gave birth at the time we had expected some 3 weeks later.
Unfortunately we'd taken no foal as gospel and booked a break to France for that time and being amateurs we had no foal experienced cover available. Whilst we were away the vet called everyday to check on mare and colt at no charge.
 
Northern said:
I am impressed at how many people here can diagnose pregnancy based on some pictures, truly amazing.
Never mind the opinion of the actual professional who has seen the horse (and groped it!) in person.

Whilst there is a possibility foals can be missed I would be very surprised that happened in this case, to me she looks at a weird growth stage and has been on a bit too much grass.

OP, if you wanted to be 100% you can do an oestrone sulphate blood test which may give clarity. She's a cutie, enjoy her!
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She has been on knee height grass as I had to keep her separate from my other two at first as my older mare hated her! She had come from quite poor grazing in Wales. I did say to farrier to excuse her fatness but he was convinced she was in foal! Haha, then I convinced myself too? She is now in with other two who need restricted grazing so hopefully she will start to drop weight! I’m sure her belly has started to go down! Glad I had vet check though as I was getting worried! Really didn’t need a foal in my life!
 
Red-1 said:
Oh my goodness, I saw this thread pop up and thought something had happened!!!o_O
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Haha! Thank god! No foal and tummy seems to have gone down a bit? My physio came last Monday to treat my ridden mare and agreed that she did look in foal with that huge belly? On a strict diet now, no rug on over Winter and out 24/7 for as long as the field holds out?
 
I bought a young mare some years ago, she was very fat and an odd shape , I found out some months later that she had had a stillborn foal, the seller never told me!
 
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Nikkimac23 said:
I’m in the same situation with my new young mare and awaiting vet tomorrow with severe anxiety

did you find any other reason for the rapid weight was it just grass? Gassy ?
x
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Just grass! My other two were on a track system but my older mare hated baby pony first so she had to go on paddock next to them with knee high grass! So relieved that she isn’t in foal as I really didn’t fancy a foal during Winter!
Fingers crossed that yours isn’t in foal either! ?
 
I’m honestly past myself with worry
My husband wasn’t keen on the idea of pony in the first place and now this is the potential situation he’s going to kill me

this is a pony for my daughter that’s she’s waited a long time for and we don’t have Much experience certainly not with this also a girl at the livery has commented it’s prob not appropriate for her to stay there if she is as it’s all electric fencing

where we bought her was a schooling and livery place and she knew all this but now I’m starting to have my suspicions this is why she was getting rid of her

all I can do is pray to god it’s grass/ gas whatever ?
 
Nikkimac23 said:
I’m honestly past myself with worry
My husband wasn’t keen on the idea of pony in the first place and now this is the potential situation he’s going to kill me

this is a pony for my daughter that’s she’s waited a long time for and we don’t have Much experience certainly not with this also a girl at the livery has commented it’s prob not appropriate for her to stay there if she is as it’s all electric fencing

where we bought her was a schooling and livery place and she knew all this but now I’m starting to have my suspicions this is why she was getting rid of her

all I can do is pray to god it’s grass/ gas whatever ?
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I absolutely feel for you! I was absolutely sick with worry! I’m lucky as got my own field/ stables but it was still a very stressful thought! My husband had no clue for 2 weeks that I had bought another but then was fine and surprisingly ok about the thought of a foal!? Keeping everything crossed for you tomorrow ?
 
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