Got the ball rolling for a potential 2025 foal - wish me luck!

[ElleSkywalkingintheair]

No luck this time for Gingerface Jr, so she's staying at the vets for another go. She's cycling as expected currently so not sure if they will short cycle her or leave it to nature at this point but either way except she'll be inseminated again towards end of next week

 

[Titchy Reindeer]

Hopefully better luck second time round for both of us.
I just wish the weather would settle a bit as it can't be helping.

 

[MatHalTed]

Heidi's just had her exam. Cervix and uterus all look very good for a slightly older mare, we've just missed her cycle and vet reckons she's just come out of season either last night or early this morning so we will be short cycling her and then hopefully breeding after that. Timing is actually brilliant as it's the European bank holiday this weekend so if she'd been still in season we wouldn't have been able to get the semen over lol.

 

[MatHalTed]

Had some rather annoying news this morning, Heidi was moved to the vets on Thursday evening for scanning and insemination when she ovulated as the hot weather had brought her cycle on quicker than expected. We ordered our semen yesterday ready for delivery today, only to be told half an hour ago that UPS had somehow lost it in transit. It's likely we will now miss this cycle and have to go again. Irritated is way beyond what I currently am right now.

 

[Titchy Reindeer]

Had some rather annoying news this morning, Heidi was moved to the vets on Thursday evening for scanning and insemination when she ovulated as the hot weather had brought her cycle on quicker than expected. We ordered our semen yesterday ready for delivery today, only to be told half an hour ago that UPS had somehow lost it in transit. It's likely we will now miss this cycle and have to go again. Irritated is way beyond what I currently am right now.

Did UPS manage to locate the semen or is it still lost in transit?

 

[Titchy Reindeer]

We now have an embryo! Little Madam will have another scan in about two weeks time to check everything is still on course, but I'm so glad it took! And a little worried, something will go wrong...

 

[MatHalTed]

Did UPS manage to locate the semen or is it still lost in transit?

Managed to find it luckily! Our lovely vets managed to inseminate her before she ovulated at 10:30 at night. She had a bit of an inflammatory reaction so was flushed and put on antibiotics as a precaution, but is home now. Pregnancy scan in 14 days

 

[Titchy Reindeer]

Managed to find it luckily! Our lovely vets managed to inseminate her before she ovulated at 10:30 at night. She had a bit of an inflammatory reaction so was flushed and put on antibiotics as a precaution, but is home now. Pregnancy scan in 14 days

Great news! Fingers crossed for the scan, now.

 

[ElleSkywalkingintheair]

Great news @Titchy Pony everything crossed for heartbeat scan Gingerface Jr was inseminated again last week, so should find out next week if it's worked

 

[Titchy Reindeer]

Great news @Titchy Pony everything crossed for heartbeat scan Gingerface Jr was inseminated again last week, so should find out next week if it's worked

Thanks. Good luck for Gingerface Jr as well.

 

[MatHalTed]

Good luck and Fingers crossed for everyone, hopefully this time next year we will all have some beautiful babies on the ground!

 

[ElleSkywalkingintheair]

Still no foal. Having a think, I can just do one more try this year as I'm having a knee op mid June that will have me off my feet for 6/8 weeks so I want her home either way before then. Inside whether to stick with same stallion or try a different one. This will be round 3

 

[Titchy Reindeer]

Still no foal. Having a think, I can just do one more try this year as I'm having a knee op mid June that will have me off my feet for 6/8 weeks so I want her home either way before then. Inside whether to stick with same stallion or try a different one. This will be round 3

That's hard luck. I'm afraid being a beginner to breeding, I've no advice either way, but still wishing you and gingerface jr good luck.

 

[Errin Paddywack]

Might be worth trying a different one. Some just don't 'click'.

 

[TheMule]

Still no foal. Having a think, I can just do one more try this year as I'm having a knee op mid June that will have me off my feet for 6/8 weeks so I want her home either way before then. Inside whether to stick with same stallion or try a different one. This will be round 3

Oh that’s rubbish, what a pain. If you have good terms on the semen then I would have another go- what has the quality looked like on the previous 2 goes? And then I'd be super pro-active post insemination to help clear any fluid- has she been on an oxytocin protocol?

 

[ElleSkywalkingintheair]

Might be worth trying a different one. Some just don't 'click'.

I think am going to try again with a different stallion from same stud. They are happy for me to swap stallions. I had 4 failed attempts at AI with one stallion with Gingerface Snr so think changing stallions at this point is worth doing

Oh that’s rubbish, what a pain. If you have good terms on the semen then I would have another go- what has the quality looked like on the previous 2 goes? And then I'd be super pro-active post insemination to help clear any fluid- has she been on an oxytocin protocol?

Yep think will have one last go this year due to knee op. She's at a big vet hospital with a well respected stud side so she's had everything thrown at her, scanned post insemination no issues, nothing to clear, and yes they tend to do oxytocin as matter of course

 

[Titchy Reindeer]

We did the 30 day scan on Sunday and we have a Blob! The vet said next scan around end of July and one in September/October next. He did say if she looses the Blob before then, she is unlikely to come back into season this year, but it would inform her future reproductive career. I was like : what career? She's 15 and I only want one foal! Apparently, he thinks she could carry several more, but I really don't plan on breeding as such, I just want a foal for myself and then Little Madam can come back into work.

On the not so good side, my Old Lady has lost a lot of weight and muscle rather quickly, so I really hope she will still be around to be an aunty. I've contacted the dentist for an appointment (found a tooth this morning, so hope it's just a question of adjusting feed for the elderly toothless). They are also both in at the minute until they poo so I can get worm counts done. Next port of call will be bloods, though she was checked for general liver and kidney function and cushings in October. She is still eating, drinking, walking and trotting around very well for her age and obviously lying down/rolling if the amount of mud on her is anything to go by.

 

[ElleSkywalkingintheair]

Good luck and Fingers crossed for everyone, hopefully this time next year we will all have some beautiful babies on the ground!

Have you had your 14 day scan yet?

 

[MatHalTed]

Have you had your 14 day scan yet?

Yep, vet has literally just left lol. Unfortunately looking like no baby for now, we've swabbed her to check for any infection that may be preventing pregnancy as everything else looks fine on the ultrasound. She's coming into season again too judging by follicle size so she's going back to the vets to be re-inseminated. Hopefully second time lucky.

 

[ElleSkywalkingintheair]

Yep, vet has literally just left lol. Unfortunately looking like no baby for now, we've swabbed her to check for any infection that may be preventing pregnancy as everything else looks fine on the ultrasound. She's coming into season again too judging by follicle size so she's going back to the vets to be re-inseminated. Hopefully second time lucky.

Everything crossed for next time

 

[MatHalTed]

Heidi did indeed have a uterine infection, treated with a course of targeted antibiotics and put on oxytocin protocol after being inseminated. Fingers crossed this time she takes. 14 day scan should be on the 15th.

 

[ElleSkywalkingintheair]

Well our efforts for this year are over I'm afraid. I'm having a leg op next week so this would have been her last try this year anyway, but it's really not gone to plan. The first two tries were quite straightforward, but neither took, so I changed stallion to try again. Sadly, although she had a good folicle for the third try, it never actually burst and ended up becoming hematoid which we had to wait to clear before trying again this week, using second stallion again as she didn't actually get a proper chance with him. This try went very badly, the semen was only 20% mobility and she had a very bad reaction, so is being flushed, antibiotics etc so no chance she will take.

Can't fault the vets, they have tried their best but I think I have to face that my gingers, for whatever reason, don't take AI. I'll start again next year with a stallion that does live cover. At least I have a good while to find one and a stud I like.

 

[ElleSkywalkingintheair]

Ok, so since writing that a small update, the infection is now cleared and she has a very nice folicle apparently, so we are trying one last time, one last time Sticking with stallion #2 as she's not had a straight forward cycle with him and the reaction was most likely to the dead sperm rather than him as a stallion. With any luck she'll be ok to bring home Tuesday

 

[MatHalTed]

Ok, so since writing that a small update, the infection is now cleared and she has a very nice folicle apparently, so we are trying one last time, one last time Sticking with stallion #2 as she's not had a straight forward cycle with him and the reaction was most likely to the dead sperm rather than him as a stallion. With any luck she'll be ok to bring home Tuesday

Sending super good vibes and luck your way!

 

[MatHalTed]

Had 14 day scan today. Potentially looking like there could possibly be a blob hiding near her singular uterine cyst as it is looking bigger than it has on previous ultrasounds and there is no sign of her coming into season again yet. Vet is coming again Monday to re-scan. If not pregnant will do probably do one more definite attempt and if she doesn't take on that 3rd go we will re-evaluate. Horses never make anything simple do they

 

[Titchy Reindeer]

Little Madam had another scan on Saturday and "Mr Blobby" is still hanging on in there. Vet says all looks fine for now.
It's kind of strange because in between scans, there's nothing really to tell me if it's all going ok, which I find a bit stressful if I let myself think about it too much. But Little Madam is looking good, a bit on the chubby side which has more to do with the ridiculous amount of grass there is for July than Mr Blobby. She also seems to have gone a bit clingy to the Old Lady. When I split them up for feeds in the day time, they both hang out under one of the trees where there's a gap in the hedge that splits the two halves of the field.

 

[MatHalTed]

Realised that I forgot to update, whoops! Anyway, Heidi ended up having a uterine infection which was secondary to an infection of the clitoral sinuses, so whenever we treated the uterus and thought it had cleared, it would manage to reinfect. It Took a good few rounds of aggressive treatment with antibiotics to clear it but we've finally had negative swabs. We short cycled her and ordered the semen for tomorrow as she's ready to ovulate. She has two large follicles so looking like it could be a double ovulation, literally praying she finally takes with the infection now cleared, as it's highly likely that this is what was preventing her from getting pregnant the previous times.

 

[Titchy Reindeer]

Realised that I forgot to update, whoops! Anyway, Heidi ended up having a uterine infection which was secondary to an infection of the clitoral sinuses, so whenever we treated the uterus and thought it had cleared, it would manage to reinfect. It Took a good few rounds of aggressive treatment with antibiotics to clear it but we've finally had negative swabs. We short cycled her and ordered the semen for tomorrow as she's ready to ovulate. She has two large follicles so looking like it could be a double ovulation, literally praying she finally takes with the infection now cleared, as it's highly likely that this is what was preventing her from getting pregnant the previous times.

I'm glad Heidi's clear of infection now. Fingers crossed that she takes this time round.

 

[MatHalTed]

We have a blob! All looking good and heartbeat scan in 2 weeks, will see if I can attach pictures

 

[Titchy Reindeer]

We have a blob! All looking good and heartbeat scan in 2 weeks, will see if I can attach pictures

Yeah! Great news!