Pregnancy and horses

PurplePickle

PurplePickle

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Im expecting in July and unsure as to if ill be able to go straight back to doing the horses after having the baby, I'm not on livery, did you get help and when could you actually go back on the yard and look after them?

Wondering if I should sort someone to check on them for a couple of weeks or longer :O
 
It depends on loads of things... I'd have something ready just in case, you may have a c section/bad birth or a baby that never sleeps or clings to you so you can't put it down... or you could have an 'easy' birth and a baby who sleeps 18 hours a day - I've had both these situations and my ability to cope afternwards was indescribably different... One I could barely function and after the other I backed a youngster...
 
im not planning on much, they will be turned out in summer any way ,its just checking and making sure ones not stuck in a hedge, husband could do it but i want someone a little more experienced too just in case.
 
PurplePickle said:
Im expecting in July and unsure as to if ill be able to go straight back to doing the horses after having the baby, I'm not on livery, did you get help and when could you actually go back on the yard and look after them?

Wondering if I should sort someone to check on them for a couple of weeks or longer :O
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Congratulations! I'm expecting my second in July too, very exciting! Come into the Club House and join us in Pregnancybox!

I am quite tough and just expected to 'get on with it' right up to and after the birth. Unfortunately I got quite bad SPD (google it and hope you don't get it! :D) so for around a month before the birth I could hardly walk so was pretty useless. OH taught the horse to lead off the quad so I could bring him in and out lol.
Then, I had an emergency caesarean (totally unexpected) so was pretty useless again for around 6 weeks post birth. Luckily we live on a farm so the horses live here and OH is usually around so he just had to take over, which he was thrilled about ;). Had one that had to stay in at night but turfed the other one out.

If you possibly can get help, then do. There are all sorts of superwomen who do it all but once you start questioning, pretty much everyone gets some sort of help ;)
And there's absolutely nothing wrong with that!

Once I was up and about I used to go into the stables on an evening and muck out etc, and OH would ring me if the baby needed a feed. I didnt start riding for about 4 months as tbh I just wanted to be with the baby - soppy! :)
 
Agree with above, my first I was in hospital for best part of three months, couldn't even think of anything other than my son - luckily some lovely friends steped in and looked after the boys
With my second I had an emergancy C section so couldn't get out of bed for weeks let alone do anything else!

Better to have someone in place that you have to cancel if you feel fine after a few days than having to worry about finding someone in a rush when you've got other things to worry about!!
 
Plan for the worst I would have a plan for someone to do them for at least four weeks after, and with them in standby before just in case. I wasn't able to do much for 8 weeks or so after as I crippled my back when she was three weeks old.

It's also lovely to have nothing to do or go out for if you don't want to, probably for the first time ever for us horsey folk. Having a newborn is pretty special and it's something you'll just want to immerse yourself in selfishly without being tied in to doing chores :)
 
Congratulations!! I did everything up until the birth, and expected to carry on straight after even though we had 24/7 t/o.

An emergency ceasarean put paid to anything immediately afterwards but luckily had horsey friends at yard and a good husband.

Back mucking out and tending to horse twice a day now.

Plan for help immediately afterwards just to be on safe side. Play it by ear thereafter.
 
Agree with what's been said, I would put some backup in place in case you need it, every pregnancy and birth is different. I found myself doing my horse right up until birth in both pregnancies and went back to mucking out only a few days after - I was lucky in that apart from some (albeit) substantial stitching I had normal births and the stitches didn't stop me going out :-) After pregnancy and with the new babies I was glad to be doing some "normal" stuff for a short period during the day, but again everyone is different. There is no rule as to how this affects every single person. Hope all goes great for you and congratulations! xx
 
Congratulations!

I'm due at the start of June and I've decided to look for a part loaner for her. At least that way she will be kept fit and the heat will be off me a little bit!
 
Patterdale said:
Congratulations Elsiecat!! :D

Right that's it, there are so many of us now I think we need a new Pregnancybox! :D
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Is it bad I started flicking through shetland adverts online before I thought to look at prams!?

And I think a new pregnancybox is required also! :) There does seem to be something in the HHO water doesn't there!?
 
It's worth having a plan, just in case things go wrong, but to provide some reassurance - I was very, very lucky with my pregnancy. Baby was due in September, had to give up riding at 6 1/2 months only because getting off became a problem (bump stopped me getting my leg over her back), but after the birth (just a few stitches) I was determined to get riding again. Wanted to ride after 2 weeks but a stupid midwife told me I would be in agony and I would split myself open (hated horses I found out). Anyway left in another week so 3 weeks to the day after my baby was born I was back in the saddle. My horse was an absolute angel and looked after me, the stitches didn't hurt at all, and my husband looked after my daughter when I wanted to go riding. My mare was turned out 24 hours when my daughter was born and a friend (who was at the yard anyway) brought her in an fed her for me for 3 days while I was giving birth etc. I went up to the yard on the day I came home from hospital and resumed duties as normal from that day - much to the yard owners disgust who thought I should be confined to bed for 10 days (even asked her midwife friend if I should be "allowed" to look after my horse!!). So prepare for the worst, but hopefully you'll be as lucky as I was. Good luck
 
Anniecarer said:
I went up to the yard on the day I came home from hospital and resumed duties as normal from that day - much to the yard owners disgust who thought I should be confined to bed for 10 days (even asked her midwife friend if I should be "allowed" to look after my horse!!). So prepare for the worst, but hopefully you'll be as lucky as I was. Good luck
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Dont you just love know it alls, I dont know about you but im finding more people want to tell me what to do and horror stories than be nice.
 
I got a sharer and moved my mare to 24/7 turnout before my daughter was born. I ended up having a long and difficult birth so was out of the saddle for 6 weeks, plus my daughter had dreadful colic for the first few months so I was fit for nothing for a while anyway. Once she was older I found that a baby carrier was a total life saver. I got an Ergo one (you can find them cheap on ebay) do I could sling her on my back and get on with stable chores while she was safe but still close. Fantastic invention :)
 
How exciting :)

I had really bad SPD whilst pregnant and it really hung around for about 3 months afterward aswell! i had help for about a week after but saying that i still went down and chucked hay and fed them whilst waiting to drop! a few times when i was particular bad with my SPD OH did them. He was born jan last year, it was snowing at the time too so laid of the riding till around march when the SPD and the snow buggered off!
 
blitznbobs said:
It depends on loads of things... I'd have something ready just in case, you may have a c section/bad birth or a baby that never sleeps or clings to you so you can't put it down... or you could have an 'easy' birth and a baby who sleeps 18 hours a day - I've had both these situations and my ability to cope afternwards was indescribably different... One I could barely function and after the other I backed a youngster...
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Or you could do what I did and have an emergency c-section and stay in hospital for 5 days, demand to leave on the 6th day on blood pressure pills then try to back a youngster 4 weeks later... then get thrown off twice (in big ways) on the 5th and 6th weeks! Really though, don't do that, not a wise idea. But as others have said - you can't really plan anything as it totally depends on how the birth goes and on the baby. From just doing day to day stuff with them though, if you have a c-section then you're not meant to do much for 6 weeks. My mum was brilliant and did my horses for me for the first 3 weeks until I was doing them properly (only thing I didnt do was lift buckets until 6 weeks). Some peoples c-sections go better than mine though and they can be up and about the day after, I wasn't due to complications so mine was very painful for a few weeks which seriously limited what I could do. If you have a "normal" birth then Ive heard people can be back to normal the day after with the baby in a buggy!
 
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