Foaling at home or at stud?

[Titchy Reindeer]

Me again!
So I've managed to get Little Madam in foal, so next big question is where should she give birth? It's my first time (and most likely last in a long time) breeding and I'm trying to make my mind up. Here are my two main options:

Option 1: foaling at home
My stables are flexible so I can have a foaling box of 4m x 6.5m
Old Lady (ex broodmare if that changes anything) will be in the next door stable or alternatively in the orchard near by, depending on what Little Madam appears to prefer
Stables are in my garden, so no far to go, I can set up a camera to keep an eye on things
Orchard just through the garden for mother and foal turn out when ready (are trees a big issue to foals? I assume they figure out how to go around them but some people seem terrified of them crashing into them)
Vets that I would be able to call out are non-specialist (mixed practice, don't know who will be on call, likely to have more experience with cows than horses) they cover a largish area so might take them 30min to get here. Will speak to my vet in October when she comes out for vaccinations
My riding instructor (and Little Madam's breeder) is 5 minutes down the road and has already offered to leave his phone on for me to call if I need help

Option 2: foaling at the stud
About an hour from my home - will have to transport a heavily pregnant Little Madam there and her plus newborn back (How soon can you transport a foal?)
I will most likely miss the birth and not see the foal for a few hours after
Specialist vet nearby, they use foaling alarms on all their horses
Very large foaling boxes, foal would be able to run circuits around it
Not sure how soon turn out would be possible for mother and foal, they flooded this year and couldn't use their fields for ages

Extra questions: could anyone point me to good resources for foaling and foal health and care up to weaning? What do I need to know? What equipment/medication/etc will I need to have ready?

 

[Equi]

Doing it at home is very tiring. It’s lovely but frankly the mare will foal as soon as she thinks you are not looking anyway.

 

[ElleSkywalkingintheair]

I have always foaled mine at home and when Gingerface Jr finally gets in foal plan to foal her at home too. The only thing I will do is make sure I have a local stud specialist vet available to come out at short notice. Luckily my own vet (a one woman practice) is very sensible and would have no problems with me registering with another practice for foaling emergencies.

Yes you will not sleep for possibly months but if you are ok with that it's lovely having them at home. It's handy you have LMs breeder so close too, I wouldn't try and foal at home first time without someone nearby who was very experienced on call

 

[Tiddlypom]

I nearly foaled at home but lost my nerve late on and sent her to Twemlows.

It was a full on emergency night time foaling as the foal got stuck upside down and the two highly experienced stud grooms dealing with her still called in their on site vet to assist.

Had I foaled at home, both mare and foal would have been lost by the time my vets could have got there.

 

[TheMule]

The biggest factor for foal and mare survival is the time it takes to recognize there's a problem and then distance to the vet clinic. If something starts to go wrong beyond a very basic malpresentation then your only hope of saving one of both is getting them in asap- getting a vet out is next to useless because by the time they've got there and made the referral it’s almost certainly too late (my OH is a vet who has attended 100s of foalings!) and one extra person on their own with limited equipment and drugs really can’t do all that much.
If you do decide to foal at home (and I always do, but it’s an accepted risk, and we did lose a mare and foal one year) there are some really good online courses for foaling- Twemlows and Sussex Equine have had good ones in the past that may still be accessible..

 

[lizziebell]

Sorry if I missed it somewhere, but is this a maiden mare?, and I’m assuming your first foal?

Lovely as it is to have them at home, I personally feel with lack of experience of both mare and owner I’d be inclined to say send to stud. When things go wrong - they go wrong FAST… very fast! Even pregnancies that have gone book perfect up to due date can take a turn for the unexpected during labour.

 

[Titchy Reindeer]

The biggest factor for foal and mare survival is the time it takes to recognize there's a problem and then distance to the vet clinic. If something starts to go wrong beyond a very basic malpresentation then your only hope of saving one of both is getting them in asap- getting a vet out is next to useless because by the time they've got there and made the referral it’s almost certainly too late (my OH is a vet who has attended 100s of foalings!) and one extra person on their own with limited equipment and drugs really can’t do all that much.
If you do decide to foal at home (and I always do, but it’s an accepted risk, and we did lose a mare and foal one year) there are some really good online courses for foaling- Twemlows and Sussex Equine have had good ones in the past that may still be accessible..

Thank you for your input. Unfortunately for me, there are no horse vet clinics anywhere near by (I think the nearest is two hours drive away) so if it comes down to needing a clinic in an emergency, whether for foaling or any other reason, then I've already lost the horse.
I will take a look at the online courses.

 

[Titchy Reindeer]

Sorry if I missed it somewhere, but is this a maiden mare?, and I’m assuming your first foal?

Lovely as it is to have them at home, I personally feel with lack of experience of both mare and owner I’d be inclined to say send to stud. When things go wrong - they go wrong FAST… very fast! Even pregnancies that have gone book perfect up to due date can take a turn for the unexpected during labour.

Yes, she is a maiden mare and my first foal as well.
Thank you, our inexperience is definitely a factor in the choice I've got to make.

 

[Titchy Reindeer]

I have always foaled mine at home and when Gingerface Jr finally gets in foal plan to foal her at home too. The only thing I will do is make sure I have a local stud specialist vet available to come out at short notice. Luckily my own vet (a one woman practice) is very sensible and would have no problems with me registering with another practice for foaling emergencies.

Yes you will not sleep for possibly months but if you are ok with that it's lovely having them at home. It's handy you have LMs breeder so close too, I wouldn't try and foal at home first time without someone nearby who was very experienced on call

I will have to ask the stud vet if he would come out if necessary, though it would be more for later potential issues than an emergency during foaling as he is an hour away.

 

[Titchy Reindeer]

I nearly foaled at home but lost my nerve late on and sent her to Twemlows.

It was a full on emergency night time foaling as the foal got stuck upside down and the two highly experienced stud grooms dealing with her still called in their on site vet to assist.

Had I foaled at home, both mare and foal would have been lost by the time my vets could have got there.

I'm glad you decided to send away for foaling in that case! I suppose what I need to know is how many foalings go well versus how many go completely pear-shaped and what many influence Little Madam's particular foaling going one way or the other.

 

[Titchy Reindeer]

Doing it at home is very tiring. It’s lovely but frankly the mare will foal as soon as she thinks you are not looking anyway.

Oh, I've no doubt if she has it at home she will pop it out during the 5min I dashed to the loo or something...

 

[Tiddlypom]

I'm glad you decided to send away for foaling in that case! I suppose what I need to know is how many foalings go well versus how many go completely pear-shaped and what many influence Little Madam's particular foaling going one way or the other.

I believe that 90% of foalings are straightforward. The 10% that aren’t will need urgent emergency intervention, although having one competent person present can often be sufficient.

I wouldn't have been able to turn the foal myself.

 

[ihatework]

On top of what others have said, do you have to work? I say that because if you have one that goes overdue you could easily be on foal watch for a couple of weeks - it's exhausting and if you have to hold down a job alongside it ....

I've only bred 2 and both mine have gone to stud, despite me being very close (10 mins) to 2 of the countries best stud vets. Studs will have vets in most days to check on things, igg, advise of wonky etc. I'd plan to leave mare and foal for a month post foaling at stud.

 

[Titchy Reindeer]

On top of what others have said, do you have to work? I say that because if you have one that goes overdue you could easily be on foal watch for a couple of weeks - it's exhausting and if you have to hold down a job alongside it ....

I've only bred 2 and both mine have gone to stud, despite me being very close (10 mins) to 2 of the countries best stud vets. Studs will have vets in most days to check on things, igg, advise of wonky etc. I'd plan to leave mare and foal for a month post foaling at stud.

Yep, unfortunately I have to work, though I do work from home 3 days a week. Another good point.
Lots to think about...

 

[TheMule]

Yep, unfortunately I have to work, though I do work from home 3 days a week. Another good point.
Lots to think about...

My most precious mare decided to wait until I HAD to go to work, was only gone for 20mins and she was very proudly stood over her new baby when I got back. I had been sleeping in my horse trailer at the field for 3 weeks

 

[tda]

All the ones (about 15) I've bred have foaled at home, usually out in the field. We've not had any issues with foaling, but have had a couple of retained placenta, one came away after the jab, other two took a lot more intervention.
If you are already nervous then probably best to send to stud.
Tremlows /Stallion AI did some fab podcasts a couple of years ago , some parts a bit hairy/gruesome/had to watch thru my hands.....but you need to know/be aware these things
Edited to add, I did lose a foal once but I did not know the filly was in foal, she was 2 when I got her then early in her third year she started gaining weight, nothing unusual but then I started suspecting she may be in foal. Literally the next night she foaled. Fairly big black colt out of a 13hh fell pony filly, it was still in the bag on the floor

 

[claret09]

stud

 

[Xmasha]

I foal at home. I guess you have to ask yourself if you could cope if things went a bit pear shaped. Are you ok to help if foal is a bit stuck, or its a red bag delivery. Can you cope on little sleep ? Even with foaling cameras i wake every hour to see if there are any changes when the mare looks like shes close. ( stay up all night if looks ready ). This has proven vital with a few foalings. One where the mare just wasnt pushing ( maiden ) and one where it was a red bag. Im incredibly lucky that our equine vets are local, senior vet is literally 10mins drive away so we can have all hands on deck if something goes array.

Saying all that, to me its one of the most exciting parts. knowing your mare is in labour, being there at the dead of night. Just you and her , helping bring a new life into the world is an unbeatable feeling. Waitng for foal to stand and to suckle. I wouldnt want to miss any of that.

 

[Titchy Reindeer]

I foal at home. I guess you have to ask yourself if you could cope if things went a bit pear shaped. Are you ok to help if foal is a bit stuck, or its a red bag delivery. Can you cope on little sleep ? Even with foaling cameras i wake every hour to see if there are any changes when the mare looks like shes close. ( stay up all night if looks ready ). This has proven vital with a few foalings. One where the mare just wasnt pushing ( maiden ) and one where it was a red bag. Im incredibly lucky that our equine vets are local, senior vet is literally 10mins drive away so we can have all hands on deck if something goes array.

Saying all that, to me its one of the most exciting parts. knowing your mare is in labour, being there at the dead of night. Just you and her , helping bring a new life into the world is an unbeatable feeling. Waitng for foal to stand and to suckle. I wouldnt want to miss any of that.

Thank you for taking the time to answer.
Whilst I'm nervous about something possibly going wrong, I would really like to have Little Madam foal at home to be able to be there and to be able to witness the foal's first days/weeks, which would be a lot more difficult if she were at stud.
My current plan is to prepare a foaling box anyway as Little Madam and foal are likely to need it at some point anyway whether she foals at home or at stud. I will speak to my regular vet when she comes out for vaccinations and also speak to the reproductive vet when I take Little Madam for her last scan. I will also start looking at the online resources people have recommended on here and then try to come to a decision. Decision will remain flexible and take into account any possible complications and other events right up until the last minute.

 

[Xmasha]

Thank you for taking the time to answer.
Whilst I'm nervous about something possibly going wrong, I would really like to have Little Madam foal at home to be able to be there and to be able to witness the foal's first days/weeks, which would be a lot more difficult if she were at stud.
My current plan is to prepare a foaling box anyway as Little Madam and foal are likely to need it at some point anyway whether she foals at home or at stud. I will speak to my regular vet when she comes out for vaccinations and also speak to the reproductive vet when I take Little Madam for her last scan. I will also start looking at the online resources people have recommended on here and then try to come to a decision. Decision will remain flexible and take into account any possible complications and other events right up until the last minute.

Keep an eye out on Twemlows page, they do a great online free webinar. It talks you through what to do in the event something goes wrong. I watch every year just as a refresher. Or if you watch Bruce Thorpeley on FB, he frequently posts live videos of mares foaling. just watch / learn as much as possible. Everyone who has foaled at home has had a first time.

 

[AnShanDan]

I'll add my tiny bit of experience.
I had 2 mares foal at home, the vet said to me that I'd never manage to be present when it happened but I was.
I waited until they were looking like foaling (all the typical signs) and then tested the milk with the pH and calcium strips and it gave a strong indication of imminent foaling. I only really lost a few hours sleep with them both.
I also had a camera set up, that worked brilliantly, the sound is invaluable.
I do have lambing experience though and my husband is a farmer with calving experience, so we didn't feel like total novices.
Mare 1 was textbook, no issues at all, foal up and drinking within an hour or 2.
Mare 2 wouldn't lie down and push!! We got there but her foal wasn't that strong, he struggled to stand and we had to milk her and bottle feed him, then help him stand to drink, it was hard work but he also was OK. He did need a plasma transfusion.
All in all it was fine and I would do it again. It's amazing seeing them in the first few days and how quickly they come on and gallop around the field

 

[Marigold4]

I was going to have my mare foal at home but in the end she went to a local stud (5 mins away) for foaling down. I just wasn't prepared to risk something awful happening and not being able to save the mare and/or foal through inexperience. Too far for the vet to get here quickly. I also didn't think I could keep watch for that long (mares can foal early or late giving a 40 day + window for "normal" foaling. Mares foal quickly and you really need to be there. The stud had cameras and the stud manager was very experienced. In the end, my mare foaled close to her due date and all went well. The stud manager phoned me when she was sure the foal was on the way and I got there just after the foaling.However, I wasn't happy with the set up after foaling (lots of mares foaled at the same time and my mare and foal were moved to a smaller box in a busy part of the yard), so I brought them home at 1 week. Transporting them was easy and they settled well. All in all, in was WELL worth the money for the piece of mind.