Mares Milk

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JANANI

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I started the weaning process with my mare three weeks ago by putting the mare in one stable and baby in the other. Her bags went down although there was still a bit of milk but as they we were starting to go down I moved to one of the far fields with her gelding companion a week after I split the two up. A week ago I had to bring them in to the stables as the gelding and her had to be shod so she was in the stable beside her foal and her bags went up fully. She was only in for one day and she went back out to the field. However since then her bags haven't gone down to were they were. At present I do know what to as I am aware that horses can get mistitus (SIC)?

Hope this make sense.

Jana
 
oh dear when i first took my mares foal away she didnt go down and was getting bit uncomfortable so i milked off just enough to let the pressure down and that soon helped her to go down, i had read it in a foaling book and several sites so i would say thats prob best and keep her well away from the foal if poss.
 
Poor baby -- that is likely uncomfortable for her. Check her to make sure there are no localized hot or tender spots on her udder. Milking her down a little bit would be great (In my one attempt to do this, I was pretty pitiful at this unfortunately) so I tried a warm wet rag, and that was adequate to stimulate the let down reflex. Good Luck!
 
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Milking her down a little bit would be great (In my one attempt to do this, I was pretty pitiful at this unfortunately) so I tried a warm wet rag, and that was adequate to stimulate the let down reflex.

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Please do NOT take milk from mares you are trying to dry off! It will encourage them to produce more and obviously increases the risk of infection/mastitis. They NEED to be a little uncomfortable and have NO stimulation of the udder so their system reasises the milk is not required and stops producing it!
 
janetgeorge i had thought the same after i had read in several places so i asked vet and he went with what i had read, she dried up really quick after we had done it as its not enough to make her keep producing.and after breast feeding myself i did the same when weaning as pressure was too much to bare.

but i spose different people say different things. so to be honest if your really worried speak to your vet and see what they recommend as many vets work so much different so i couldnt say wat is right or wrong i just use wat works for us if the vet agrees.
 
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Milking her down a little bit would be great (In my one attempt to do this, I was pretty pitiful at this unfortunately) so I tried a warm wet rag, and that was adequate to stimulate the let down reflex.

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Please do NOT take milk from mares you are trying to dry off! It will encourage them to produce more and obviously increases the risk of infection/mastitis. They NEED to be a little uncomfortable and have NO stimulation of the udder so their system reasises the milk is not required and stops producing it!

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That can depend on several things though. If the mare's bag is big/hot/hard, then you do need to express some milk to check for any curdling, which could mean the beginnings of mastitis. If curdling is seen, then you need to regularly take milk off her - basically strip her out. If caught early enough, you shouldn't need to call the vet, as if really bad then both IM AB's and AB's into the teat(s) will prob be needed, as well as either IV bute/buscopan.
 
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That can depend on several things though. If the mare's bag is big/hot/hard, then you do need to express some milk to check for any curdling, which could mean the beginnings of mastitis. If curdling is seen, then you need to regularly take milk off her - basically strip her out. If caught early enough, you shouldn't need to call the vet, as if really bad then both IM AB's and AB's into the teat(s) will prob be needed, as well as either IV bute/buscopan.

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Sorry - but I couldn't disagree more. If a mare's bag is big, hot and hard - or - perhaps worse - big, COLD and hard - then you need to call the vet soonest! Mastitis in a mare is relatively rare (compared to sheep and cows) but when it occurs it can be very serious and you shouldn't faff about trying to strip the udder (apart from anything else, it'll be so painful the mare will probably kick your head in!) Yes, you may get thick and discoloured milk from that side of the udder - or you may get very thin, watery milk.

Once the vet has been and prescribed antibiotics, anti-inflammatories etc. THEN you need to strip the affected side 5 or 6 times a day - but trying to self-treat could easily result in the mare developing far worse symptoms as the infection takes hold - abcesses, necrosis and death can result from delaying proper treatment!
 
A lot of this depends on your level of experience, I think. After all, when does "a little discomfort" produced by you NOT taking any milk from the mare signal the start of the slippery slide to "necrosis and death" ? Unless you strip a little milk as soon as the mare becomes uncomfortable, you don't know if you've got a problem, or how bad it is. Encouraging the mare to let down and taking a little milk may delay her drying up, but I think I'd rather do that than risk mastitis. After all, we wean suddenly, whereas if the mare were to wean the foal herself, it would be a more gradual process, and the demand would slowly decrease.
 
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That can depend on several things though. If the mare's bag is big/hot/hard, then you do need to express some milk to check for any curdling, which could mean the beginnings of mastitis. If curdling is seen, then you need to regularly take milk off her - basically strip her out. If caught early enough, you shouldn't need to call the vet, as if really bad then both IM AB's and AB's into the teat(s) will prob be needed, as well as either IV bute/buscopan.

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Sorry - but I couldn't disagree more. If a mare's bag is big, hot and hard - or - perhaps worse - big, COLD and hard - then you need to call the vet soonest! Mastitis in a mare is relatively rare (compared to sheep and cows) but when it occurs it can be very serious and you shouldn't faff about trying to strip the udder (apart from anything else, it'll be so painful the mare will probably kick your head in!) Yes, you may get thick and discoloured milk from that side of the udder - or you may get very thin, watery milk.

Once the vet has been and prescribed antibiotics, anti-inflammatories etc. THEN you need to strip the affected side 5 or 6 times a day - but trying to self-treat could easily result in the mare developing far worse symptoms as the infection takes hold - abcesses, necrosis and death can result from delaying proper treatment!

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You misunderstand!! I said big/hard/hot, NOT big, hot and hard - totally different!! The slashes mean or not and!!

Out of the 100+ mares that we weaned this year, only 2 got mastitis and those were 2 mares that were sent to us on the day they were weaned to go into a quarantine to fly to Australia, at the beginning of August!

I might add, that they were the only cases of mastitis that I have ever dealt with, having prevented it many times in the manner I described above. Like many things in this world, there are more than one, or even two, ways of doing things. I think we will have to agree to disagree.
 
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A lot of this depends on your level of experience, I think. After all, when does "a little discomfort" produced by you NOT taking any milk from the mare signal the start of the slippery slide to "necrosis and death" ? Unless you strip a little milk as soon as the mare becomes uncomfortable, you don't know if you've got a problem, or how bad it is. Encouraging the mare to let down and taking a little milk may delay her drying up, but I think I'd rather do that than risk mastitis. After all, we wean suddenly, whereas if the mare were to wean the foal herself, it would be a more gradual process, and the demand would slowly decrease.

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Exactly - which is why one has to be VERY careful about giving advice which may be heeded by the novice breeder who may not notice the earliest signs or be able to differentiate between 'normal' heat and enlargement - and a raging infection. Experienced breeders can make their own decisions as to when to call the vet - I would still advise VERY strongly indeed that anyone in ANY doubt at all calls the vet. What is the cost of a call-out compared to a mare who won't be able to rear a foal in future - or who has died from a particularly virulent mastitis. And the state of the milk is NOT a clear indicator of how serious the problem may be (assuming the person drawing the milk has the experience to recognise what is 'normal'.)

And I DON'T wean suddenly, not purely for prevention of mastitis although it helps. I wean 10-12 foals a year and have not had a case of mastitis - but I've seen a few bad cases!
 
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You misunderstand!! I said big/hard/hot, NOT big, hot and hard - totally different!! The slashes mean or not and!!

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Well big doesn't count - ANY mare who has been milking well will have a big udder after weaning - and if you start expressing milk, it will just get bigger. And the inexperienced breeder will be unlikely to differentiate 'normal' heat - or even hardness - from a problem type heat and hardness.

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Like many things in this world, there are more than one, or even two, ways of doing things. I think we will have to agree to disagree.

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My disagreement is in the advice given rather than with the action YOU might take. As stated before, an experienced breeder WILL recognise what is normal and what might suggest a possible problem and will act accordingly. They won't need these forums. But these forums are read avidly by many one mare owners, perhaps breeding for the first time. The only SAFE advice therefore is - if in doubt - call the vet.
 
Whoa whoa whoa!!! Where did I give advise? I didn't. I never said don't call a vet either, in fact I agree! I rarely give advice, as such, on here for the reasons you state. What I do, do is give my opinion and experience.
 
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