Pregnant Mare Belly & Symptoms

My little mare "Sugar" in question is 309 days today and has been going through some major changes with her belly and other foaling symptoms but alas, still no foal - she is, a true mare!

As you will see below, she went from a normal belly that was a slightly dropped, to REALLY dropped, and now she has "flattened" out again (even a little bit more than you see in the last belly pic) and is now slab sided.

For those of you that have been following us on marestare, Sugar has done PLENTY of belly biting, belly kicking, flehming, pacing, going on and off with her hay, is soft in the tailhead, easy to raise tail, is pretty much bagged up, had sticky milk last night and has been very "moody" with her neighbors in adjacent stalls and here recently she has been DYING for some attention from our herd sire - I am assuming her hormones are going wild.

As always, it's a guessing game when it comes to these girls but it seems like she is......never.......gonna.......foal! It makes it worse that I am most anxious over this baby since it is out of an outside stud that I just adore and it's my favorite mare!

So, any guesses as to why her belly has changed back to "flat"? Is that the foal moving into position? If you've had a mare do this with her belly shape - how long was it until she foaled? Any guesses until how much longer she's gonna put up with this fight?

FEBRUARY 2ND:



FEBRUARY 8TH



FEBRUARY 15TH:



FEBRUARY 20TH:

do you have a new baby yet? She sure looks like she could have gone any day!! Can you express anything from her teats to test strip her? Good luck - hope you have a safe and easy delivery ........... keep us posted of course!

As to her belly going flat - I sure don't see that unless you're referring to the photo taken from the rear. Its normal that when the baby drops down low into the belly (the V you see), their sides deflate as all the baby stuff is in the bottom of the belly LOL That sounds silly but its best way I can describe it.....

Can you express anything from her teats to test strip her?

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Yes, I do get plenty expressed from her and right now it is white/yellow and very cloudy and is sticky after a few times pulling your fingers apart. I do not use test strips anymore - I won't go into further detail on the forum but I believe they are a waste of $$ and I don't go by them.

As to her belly going flat - I sure don't see that unless you're referring to the photo taken from the rear

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The 2/20 picture doesn't show it as well as in person but her V belly has went from being a very pronounced V belly to being more of a flat belly than a V shape.

Her udder is hard although her teats still point inward.......I am not quite sure what she is waiting for.

Wow, looks to me like the foal is in position now! Cant be much longer! Sending many good foaling vibes your way!

I'd keep a close eye on her, looks to me like the foal is def. in position for a delivery soon.. I've noticed on my mares (and I'm sure there's some on here that will argue this) that when they drop the point of "v" is in fact more in the middle of the belly, but when they are within a day or so of foaling, the point tends to point more to the front, like your girl in the 20th pics. JMO

I say you'll have a foal before the weekend

I hope she doesn't keep you hanging on forever! It looks like you are keeping a close eye on her.

If that is vet wrap on her tail I would suggest not to leave it on more than a couple of hours. And put it on loose. Vet wrap and other wraps with elastic can cut of circulation over time when put on the tail bone area.

Keep us posted.

Charlotte

Do you know how long her previous foals gestations have been?

I think i've shared a picture of one if my mares on a previous thread who looked dropped for 3 months before she foaled. Her biggest sign was her milk and bag. I also think the way your girl is shaved makes her v shape look more defined than it actually is. I give her a couple more weeks depending on her bag.

I've had the most consistant luck with prediciting foaling within hours by testing the ph of the colostrum/milk AND looking at the color of the vulva. Dark pink/red has always meant a foal was on its way. Also keep in mind that many mares like some privacy during this time. We stall our term mares but don't spend a lot of time with them other than to feed, clean the stall, and check their status. Supervised turn out as well to get things moving along.

I say you'll have a foal before the weekend

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I wish she would, all this waiting is killing me!

If that is vet wrap on her tail I would suggest not to leave it on more than a couple of hours. And put it on loose. Vet wrap and other wraps with elastic can cut of circulation over time when put on the tail bone area.

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I've been very careful about her tail wrap - I never wrap anything too tight but thank you!

Do you know how long her previous foals gestations have been?

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Her 2008 filly was close to 350, her 2009 colt was 343 days and her 2010 filly was a much shorter date around the 320 area.

I think i've shared a picture of one if my mares on a previous thread who looked dropped for 3 months before she foaled. Her biggest sign was her milk and bag. I also think the way your girl is shaved makes her v shape look more defined than it actually is.

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She definately is not one who shows long in advance as I have pictures of her in october, november, december and january and none of them look even close to this. I take weekly pictures so I can definately see that she has dropped into the V shape because you can feel it as well. Even if you "pretend" the clip is not there, you can see it so I do not believe it is the way I clipped her that makes the V shape.<BR sab="659">