Putting an older mare in foal

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Has anyone put a 20 year old mare to foal?
I know the age is an issue but just wanted to get a feel for what I would need to look into before making any plans
 
It depends entirely on the mare, how fit and well she is and how deep your pockets are. You may be lucky and she catches, but the chances are low and the risks are high. I personally wouldnt bother unless her lines are some that needs preserving for a rare breed etc
 
One of the mares in the RS I worked at back in the late 60's was put in foal, her first, at 18. It was live cover by a well known local travelling stallion. She had two lovely fillies by him. This was after I had left so don't know more than that.
 
I would take advice from your vet as well as taking into account how good she is for her age health/ condition wise.

I have a friend who had a foal off her 20 year old mare last year. She is also back in foal and hopefully expecting this summer by which time she will be 21. She has however had a few foals previously.
 
Both the foals I knew from mares that age didn't thrive and neither of the mares were able to keep milk going for long either despite being pumped full of high quality feed.

Obviously horse dependent but put me off.
 
Interesting responses. My own mare I got her when she was age 10 pregnant, had been an unbacked broodmare her whole life before, had 7 healthy foalings and foals.
Her last foal foaled here and I witnessed her peak health and capability as a broodmare as she was just 10. That was her last foal.

When she was around 18 I did think back then about cut-off ages for foaling as I did start to see ‘aging’ in her. Not necessarily health deterioration, just her demeanour of being more relaxed, not as enthused to hoon around with the younger one. She still did do the odd antics but her character became more reserved and mature.
At 22 she still is that mature self and healthy, rolls and spring up from the ground fine. But in terms of life zest and oompf she had when a younger broodmare, she’s mellowed a lot. I wouldn’t have felt comfortable covering her age 18 when I saw that initial mellowing. A vet likely would have said she’s still healthy enough and could foal another, but just something in me knowing her said it would be risky.

But this thread has made me wonder if a mare has had a ridden career of being very fit, instead of a field kept broodmare, whether at more mature ages they are still zesty in attitude and have the peak health for foaling? It’s possible….if their backs and legs are not knackered from their ridden career.

They would need to have good strong healthy legs without arthritis at all, as my mare when ultra peak health at 10 was close to foaling and had a huge belly, her technique for rolling/sleeping and getting up again was marvellous with rocking herself to get momentum to spring up. Age 10 she managed fine of course, but a mare with leg or back issues, could struggle and so might not sleep much toward the foaling date as she knows she can’t get up - which could impact her health towards foaling date without adequate rest/ REM sleep and ability to roll.

I’ve talked myself round in this response to it being individual on the mare, rather than just an arbitrary age cut-off point. Hopefully, like me, the owner knows the mare well and makes the right call, taking into priority account the mare still having peak health and zest for the tiring job of foaling and milking and managing a very energetic foal.
 
PurBee said:
Interesting responses. My own mare I got her when she was age 10 pregnant, had been an unbacked broodmare her whole life before, had 7 healthy foalings and foals.
Her last foal foaled here and I witnessed her peak health and capability as a broodmare as she was just 10. That was her last foal.

When she was around 18 I did think back then about cut-off ages for foaling as I did start to see ‘aging’ in her. Not necessarily health deterioration, just her demeanour of being more relaxed, not as enthused to hoon around with the younger one. She still did do the odd antics but her character became more reserved and mature.
At 22 she still is that mature self and healthy, rolls and spring up from the ground fine. But in terms of life zest and oompf she had when a younger broodmare, she’s mellowed a lot. I wouldn’t have felt comfortable covering her age 18 when I saw that initial mellowing. A vet likely would have said she’s still healthy enough and could foal another, but just something in me knowing her said it would be risky.

But this thread has made me wonder if a mare has had a ridden career of being very fit, instead of a field kept broodmare, whether at more mature ages they are still zesty in attitude and have the peak health for foaling? It’s possible….if their backs and legs are not knackered from their ridden career.

They would need to have good strong healthy legs without arthritis at all, as my mare when ultra peak health at 10 was close to foaling and had a huge belly, her technique for rolling/sleeping and getting up again was marvellous with rocking herself to get momentum to spring up. Age 10 she managed fine of course, but a mare with leg or back issues, could struggle and so might not sleep much toward the foaling date as she knows she can’t get up - which could impact her health towards foaling date without adequate rest/ REM sleep and ability to roll.

I’ve talked myself round in this response to it being individual on the mare, rather than just an arbitrary age cut-off point. Hopefully, like me, the owner knows the mare well and makes the right call, taking into priority account the mare still having peak health and zest for the tiring job of foaling and milking and managing a very energetic foal.
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I love your take on this and how important knowing the mare is. It’s a topic much on my mind as I’m seriously considering putting my 16yr old maiden into foal, she has been cleared by the vet. My farrier, who breeds, also thinks I should. There is very little milage on her and still kicks her heels up like she did as a 4yr old. This year would be the cut off though, i wouldn’t even attempt it next year. Decisions decisions!!
 
Chonkers said:
I love your take on this and how important knowing the mare is. It’s a topic much on my mind as I’m seriously considering putting my 16yr old maiden into foal, she has been cleared by the vet. My farrier, who breeds, also thinks I should. There is very little milage on her and still kicks her heels up like she did as a 4yr old. This year would be the cut off though, i wouldn’t even attempt it next year. Decisions decisions!!
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It helps to know them for years so you can still say, yes there’s great health and zest. I didn’t think of it being an issue to foal her again until one day when she happened to be 18 I just intuitively knew that was the cut-off for her personally. She still has her moments of charging around when the mood takes her at 22, but for the energy and physical effort of growing a foal, milking it, being watchful of it, that’s months of stamina needed, rather than one-off stamina to be hooning about every once in a while.

It’s good to have experienced eyes on your mare to give their view too, sometimes it goes against us knowing them so well we can be too protective and overly worry, when things usually turn out fine. But knowing them well does help for that moment when you just know for sure it’s too late.
 
As a vet (and I appreciate that means I see plenty of the bad side) my first question is always 'are you prepared to lose them?'. And I don't generally add 'and could you live with making the decision to breed if you did'.

You can come out of choosing to breed with 2 horses, one, or none. And age obviously increases the risk. It is harsh, but most often these older mares are best friends of thd owner and very much loved family members and are being bred because they wish to have another the same. But the risk, although small, is present, and if you do go into it you must be prepared to come out of it it with potentially either losing the mare, foal, or both.
It does not mean that choosing to have a go is the wrong option, and most often the worst that happens is the mare makes the choice by failing to concieve, but a happy outcome is not guaranteed, and all possibilities must be considered.
 
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