Milk colour and testing pics

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mel_s

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I thought i'd post my pics in case they are useful to anyone. It was my first foal and a learning curve. I also missed the fact it was coming! Although i was all set to stay thinking the foal would come in the next day or 2 - the test strip i thought indicated we had a bit longer as the PH hadnt dropped. As you can see from the strip the calcium is high (purple at the top of the pic) but the PH remained high. The colour was very red/pinky (its less obvious from the pic but the lower colours are quite orangy and the higher colours pinky/ red). Although the milk was clearly whiter - it wasnt thick and was never sticky like i'd read it should be. It was clear fluid with bits of white in it, which got more bits over time. But i was expecting it to look more like white fluid with no bits in (like milk looks).

This is 3 april


8th april


9th april


And the test strip from 9th april


I arrived in the morning on the 10th april to find a foal! Anyway - luckily all was fine and foaly is now a month old! Hmmm, better put a pic of him hadnt i! Here he is - he thinks hes a dog! I was expecting a bay tobiano colt (mainly because thats what she had last year - in her old home) but thats not quite what happened! He is called Cole :)

 
Thanks for posting this - my mare is 350 days today, she has all the signs and her milk now looks like your pic from 9th April so I'm guessing it's close! :)
 
I have those strips too, but the colour change is not dramatic enough on the pH for me, so I use these ones for the hardness, and different ones for the pH. Congratulations on your safe arrival! :)
 
Those were the ones i read were recommended. But i'd now be inclined to agree with you!

No harm done though this time. But it shows that nothing is reliable.
 
The problem with milk testing a horse you have never foaled before is that you don't have any history as to how quickly they can progress. In your strip readings Mel, the calcium is very high which shows that foaling is definitely imminent. The pH will have dropped dramatically had you tested her later that night. It is unusual, but not necessarily unheard of, for the pH to drop that quickly. I have one mare who drops pH from high 7s to under 6pH in a matter of a few hours. I only know this as I've foaled her out 4 times previously and have milk tested all of those years. I have had 'odd' results from milk testing with the occasional mare but again this has given me the experience to know what that mare can do, so the following years I pick up more and more information on that particular mare which helps me understand and know when she will foal and when she won't.

Calcium is always the first thing to change with milk testing. Once you have readings of above 500 you need to step up your testing as the pH will change, how slowly or quickly depends on the mare. Any readings with VERY high calcium readings such as Mels would be classed by me as the mare is almost ready to foal and as such you then need to keep a very close check on what the pH is doing. Under normal circumstances, a mare will foal at 800-1000 calcium and 5.8 - 6.2pH. Had Mel tested the mare an hour prior to her foaling then those readings above are what she would have seen. BUT as said, Mel wasn't to know that the mare would progress as quickly as she did.
 
My mares bad feels really full and tight. On day 326. Cannot express any milk yet for testing. Does this mean she has ages to go?
 
Deli said:
My mares bad feels really full and tight. On day 326. Cannot express any milk yet for testing. Does this mean she has ages to go?
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No it doesn't mean anything except she isn't letting down for you. You can express milk from her now if you know how to do it. A little encouragement will get the mare to let down. I don't even think about milk testing until all other signs are in place however. With a maiden I may do a couple of off-hand tests just to see where she's at, but with my seasoned broodmares I know when to use milk test strips on them and it's usually only once, maybe twice right at the end of their pregnancy. I do however express a little milk on the lead up to foaling as I can tell by the colour and consistency whether they are close or not. I keep records of each mare every year so I know pretty well what they are doing when the next foaling season comes along.

Tinkam - milk testing strips give you the calcium and pH levels of the fluid coming out of the mare. The results tell you when the mare will foal and when she won't foal.
 
Yes - i would know now for if i ever did it again! I was actually surprised i was able to do it at all, as the mare is quite a sensitive one. But she was fine about it all.
 
I have a mare whose milk is like your pic of 8th April and she looks very dropped but her muscles havent relaxed fully yet. I am assuming this HAS to happen before they can give birth??

This thread has made me nervous seeing how quick your milk turned from yellow to white!!!
 
You'd hope not but then if the milk is already going the right way then i wouldnt rule it out! My mares muscles were relaxed ages before so i didnt use that as an indicator. They are all different though so it makes it difficult when guessing. Have you tested the milk?
 
I havent tested it but it is thin and clear/amber so not even cloudy yet! Her belly is really starting to drop. She is bagged up pretty well but still has a crease!! The only thing that hasnt really is her quarters and i am not sure when and how long it will take for yhem to relax......
 
Are there different types of aquachek strips as mine are red at the top rather than purple. Ph is about 8.4 but milk coming out easier still a little yellow but mare looked uncomfortable
 
Deli said:
Are there different types of aquachek strips as mine are red at the top rather than purple. Ph is about 8.4 but milk coming out easier still a little yellow but mare looked uncomfortable
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Yes there are loads of types of Aquachek strips. They do strips for all kinds of pools and hot tubs. You need to check you have the ones which check pH and Total Hardness.
Magicmadge said:
Is it normal for calcium levels to go back after several days of being on the second colour on the aquacheck ones , we are today back to square 1.
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It's not usual, but it does happen with some mares. Either way if you're only on the 1st or 2nd square your mare isn't doing anything yet.
 
I had the aquachek bromine ones as they were the ones i saw that had hardness and PH both on them. But any with both of these things will do the job.

Milk can sit at amber for a while so dont panic. And yes, the calcium levels can fluctuate - i've read many posts from people thinking its coming, and then for whatever reason the mare delays for a few days.
 
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