mare due to foal losing a lot of milk already

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horseandshoes77

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Hi Mare on my yard about due to foal, owners have never done this before and mares first foal she is 11years, anyway she has been dripping milk from teats for couple of days so much so that her legs are covered, shes still out during the day and has been out 24/7 until yesterday with mixed herd, just wondering as she is losing so much milk/collostrum is she close to foaling? will this be detrimental to foal...also they are planning on jjust leaving her to it(sometimes its for the best) but they also arent experienced if something goes wrong....any advice on what to look out for that may need a vet etc....just asking on their behalf as i have not a clue and no-one on yard has had anything younger than 8 months ty
 
i know some people who lost their foal because the mare lost all her collustrum beforehand, they need some mare milk powder to make sure the foal has its first milk do they have good vets?
 
I hope for their sakes they are lucky and it's all straight forward. There are people on here v v v v experienced (I'm not one of them) I'm sure they will help you. However I would say if she is losing alot of milk the foal will def need testing once it's born by vet to see if it's gad enough colostrum. Some mares can drip for wks, but usually it's a sign that things are close.
I hope they are planning on trying to be there at the birth, I was, but unfortunately my mare went 19days early, when she'd gone 1wks over last time so hadn't put foal alarm or CCTV in yet, thought I had plenty of time. She showed no signs and foaled alone, at 9pm foal wad wriggling in her belly, she was eating at midnight then by 7am there was a foal. Unfortunately it seems although he appeared normal he had got caught in the sac and suffocated. I don't want to scare you, but if our story can save another foal from the fate of our Dream it's worth it. I would say they need to either camp out or send her somewhere that has experience if they want a happy ending.
Wishing all my best wishes for a healthy happy mare and foal.
 
The Best advise any one can give you and the owners is to call the vet and have a good chat and maybe a visit from them :)
 
If it is just drips rather than pouring out, I would not worry too much. Its a bit like blood, a little looks a lot!! But if it is pouring out then I would suggest you get hold of some colostrum (not just mares milk) so that you can either syringe or drench it into the foal as soon it has been born.
 
Foal milk as far as I know doesn't replace colostrum, they either need colostrum from another mare, fresh/frozen or testing foal and perhaps a plasma tranfusion if results come back low.
 
Tbh i dnt think they have even consulted vet since scanning, they very old school in ways and havnt even moved mare from her normal 12x12 stable? they are planning on her birthing in there and keeping foal with her in there too.....im asking as if anything were to go wrong then i would like to have an idea when to ring vet if they dnt!.... also does it make a difference if the mare still has all feet shod? as she does...sorry for the bombardment (sp) but she seems close and i would be devasted if something happened to mare or foal....iv offered my stable which is the largest on yard maybe 5m x 3m but they said no! so just asking for any advice so if im there and something happens ill be armed with a little info thanks
 
You must let us know how this turns out. IMHO it sounds like they aren't being v responsible, it'll prob be all fine, but normally mares don't have shoes on and a 12x12 stable is small for foaling.
Ps a few typos in my 1st message, darn the iPhone! My mare was 2wk over 1st time!
 
i will let you know....im just at the yard mostly all day and check back on mine at night...they just put her in box at tea time and dnt return til 9am...so would just like to what to look for if theres a prob and im there....shes got both back legs covered in milk and you can see milk dripping from teats....both teats are swollen and abdomen has large protruding lump (im guessing foals back ) iv googled a few images etc but just worried that if the foal doesnt come soon its nt going to get collostrum and i dont think they will consult vet unless something drastic happens during birth !
 
Once the foal arrives the vet can Test the colostrum/milk to test the quality of it, if a tester is not available and you suspect all the colostrum was lost the vet may know of a colostrum bank nearby or may have some powdered colostrum, bovine colostrum can be used as a last resort. The vet can do a snap test on the foal to test the IgG levels if they are not high enough then it could have a plasma transfusion, mares will sometimes still have front shoes on when foaling, personally I would have them all taken off.
I would be concerned that the mare is being 'left to it' but the only thing you can do is talk to them about your concerns, if they do not take notice then you can keep an eye out yourself.
Unfortunately it is not your horse and horses are left to it all too often. I hope that nature isn't cruel in this instance and intervention isn't needed.
 
I do hope the mare manages ok - its good that she has someone like yourself also looking out for her.
What i would maybe be tempted to do is to get a list of places that hold colostrum locally - when a foal on my yard needed some last year - the vets didnt have any and couldnt even suggest anywhere to try! We were really shocked by this. The owner of the mare even called the WHW to ask if they knew of anywhere (as they are onlyy about 5 miles away) and they couldnt suggest anywhere we hadnt already tried. Maybe a list of local studs etc may be handy to keep at the yard incase you/the owners have to call around for some once she foals.
Hope it all goes well.
 
i don't suppose that the owners will be interested and it is not your resonsibility but.. when my mares foaled (and i have only had two foals..but used to do foal watch as well for other people) we always had alarms fitted to the mare, so that when she laid down and put her head down, the alarm went off. I found these very reasonable in price to hire, and accurate as wll. I was there for all the foalings.
 
Hi just thought id update the thread... slightly worried as mare has still been continuosly losing milk..nt sure how much it covers back legs and you can see it dripping from teats...she was due to foal approx 10th may but owners arent 100% she is turned out during the day and has now started charging around the field! is this a sign ? shes turned out with a mixed herd if that makes any difference...she isnt really that big compared to most pregnant mares but she does look fed up if that makes sense...will this foal be ok if born late and mare has lost a lot of milk ? sorry for all these questions but i have no clue and tbh no one is even bothered on yard its just "no baby yet"

anyhow thanks for all the advice and info much appreciated
 
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