Pregnant Mares and Lambing Season

J

jelibean

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As my horses are kept on our farm along with sheep and other livestock can anyone tell me if the ewes during lambing season will increase the risk of my mare slipping her foal through toxoplasmosis or some other disease.
Its something that has only just dawned on me today as other half was talking about bringing the sheep home for feeding as they will be due to lamb in Feb. They usually dont share the same grazing as theres plenty of it but theres always one or two especially lambs that stray from field to field. Mare wasnt in foal last year when they came home and that was the 1st year we'd kept sheep in years.
Must add am mega stress head and over protective at the moment as I am also 13 weeks in foal and have major paranoia, so apologies if i make this sound like a panic attack just a faze i go through.
 
Sorry, i have no idea, but here's my theory...!
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I've worked on farms for the past 2 lambing seasons, and the farmers' daughter had two in-foal mares. They were turned out with the sheep who had already lambed and never had a problem. I dont know what would happen if ewes had actually given birth in the same field though.
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The farm opened to the public for 2 weekends every year and we had signs up everywhere to discourage pregnant women from being there. I dont know how it works for horses though. I'm sure if you give your vet a ring, they'll be able to advise. I'd probably be tempted to keep them seperated once they'd started lambing, particularly if the ewes lamb outdoors and the afterbirth isnt disposed of. I'm also a stresser though!
Good luck anyway. Hopefully someone else will be of more use!
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Lou. x
 
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Must add am mega stress head and over protective at the moment as I am also 13 weeks in foal and have major paranoia, so apologies if i make this sound like a panic attack just a faze i go through.

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YOU stay away from the ewes - just in case. Toxoplasmosis can occur in most animals - including horses - but it is not associated with abortion or birth defects in equines. (Symptoms in horses include ataxia, circling, paresis and apparent blindness - but clinical disease is rare in horses.)
 
I have to say, i can't say for sure, but I am 99.9% my friend has had her mares in foal and ewes about to lamb in the same field in the pass. I would double check with your vet to be a 100% sure. You on the other hand shouldn't have close contact with the expecting ewes.
 
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