Blind mares

[Becky]

Anyone dealt with blind mares foaling? Did you take any extra precautions? How do the mares deal with their foals after delivery especially since they can't see them?

 

[Eagle]

Excuse me asking and I don't mean to be rude but why would you reproduce a blind mare? was it an accident?

 

[Nathan Luszcz]

We bred two blind mares all the time. The mares were wonderful mothers. One suggestion is to put a bell on her foal's neck so she can find it

 

[drmatthewtaylor]

Its no surprise to her that she can't see, so I doubt there will be a shock factor. I would likely have her removed from other horses so she has less to deal with and I usually recommend putting a bell on the baby so it is easier to find each other.

There are some ophthalmic conditions in minis that produce blindness and is inherited, I'll hope this blindness was due to trauma and not heredity.

Dr Taylor

 

[Becky]

What way would you attach bells to the foal? Braid them into the mane?

 

[Matt73]

But if it's a risk for Appaloosas and you have a blind Appaloosa mare, why would you breed her? It's, obviously, a hereditary condition, then. Wouldn't you want to lessen that risk for a foal? Like Dr. Taylor said, if it's due to trauma then go ahead. But why would you breed a mare that has a condition that is genetic/hereditary?

 

[Charlotte]

I'm going to have one here in a few days to foal out that is vision impaired. Blind in one eye and I understand limited in the other. I realize that doesn't equate with totally blind but she will require special accomodations and considerations. I do understand that she is very concerend about the location of her foal and that they will need to be in a small area where mom can find baby.

I would think that a little bell braided into the mane would be a good plan.

I'll watch this with interest. I hope we hear from others who have experienced this issue and learn how they managed it.

Charlotte

 

[Eagle]

Excuse me for saying something, and maybe I'm just taking this the wrong way, but what kind of a question is this? By accident or choice, the implication is that they have done something wrong--which they haven't. Blindness is no reason not to breed -- it's not like breeding two dwarves together. There are many reasons for blindness -- I breed appaloosas, and sometimes they can get a condition that causes them to go blind. I also have a couple of mares who are "night blind", but they produce wonderful babies, and I just make accommodations for them at night. This condition is a risk for appaloosa horses, and many appaloosas have been successfully bred with night blindness or even after going blind.

So maybe I'm off to a bad day, but your question to this breeder just hit me wrong. I don't mean to be rude either!

• I am new to miniature horses and I just wanted to know why. I have bred Show jumpers for many years and for the last 3 we use AI and surrogates but all our stallions and eggs are chosen for quality in conformation and character. I only reproduce if they have a long string success. As for my very humble mini barn I am trying to find the correct combination of stallion and mares that will produce good quality foals. I just thought that a blind mare would not perhaps be the easiest mare to use for reproduction. I repeat I am new and trying to learn.
• I apologise if I offended anyone or if i started your day off wrong.
  
  
  

 

[TomEHawk]

Becky, I've been breeding a blind mare for many years, (is blind do to accident at a young age). This mare is the best mother on the farm. Though she lets her foal get away from her to play as it gets older, she never lets her foals get to far away. I've never needed to tie a bell on her foals. The only problem we have with her is when we start weaning. She gets a bit worked up and it takes a longer to wean her foals.

 

[drmatthewtaylor]

What way would you attach bells to the foal? Braid them into the mane?

You could do that, but I've used a halter or dog collar before. Don't put it on right at birth. If she foals in a stall, she shouldn't need one. Put it on @ day 2 or 3 prior to turning them outside and allow her to learn the bell for 1 or 2 days.

Dr Taylor

 

[txminipinto]

Leah Johnson has a blind mare that she breeds as well. She makes sure the mare foals in a stall and makes sure not to turn the mare/foal out with any baby stealers.

 

[Michelle@wescofarms]

I don't have a blind mare, but have three that each have lost one eye to accidents. One had her eye removed while pregnant, and delivered a gorgeous colt. Jiji is notorious for sticking her head where it doesn't belong, and has a star in her remaining eye and scratches on her face, BUT she's on acreage and does wonderfully. It took the other horses time to realize the normal horse behavior (ears back, etc.) was not being observed, but visitors can't tell unless you're right up on the horse. They all do well and are excellent mares.

Vanna another poked both eyes when she was 4 months old. One had to be removed the other was treated for 6 weeks and she has enough vision to get around quite well and torment our dogs. We left her with her dam and she still hangs with her (two years later).

If this was an inheritable condition I'd not breed them any more than any hereditary issue.

I wouldn't worry about breeding a blind mare if she got around well and wasn't stressed from the blindness, etc.

I've heard about the bell, I guess if the mare associated the bell with their foal, it would work. It's kind of like the bell on a cat collar, a bird won't necessarily associate the bell to a cat until it sees the cat, but the noise might startle it.

 

[stormy]

I have a blind mare that I have bred in the past and is in foal again for this year. Here is a picture of her filly tearing things up in the pasture a few days after birth. I did keep them seperate for a couple weeks until mom was past the extremely protective stage then put them out with a small group of mares and foals. This was her first foal as a blind mare and she did very well after some anxiety right after her birth (was born outside as mare was more comfortable outside but too many noises, has been foaled inside with no issue since).

The bell is tied to her neck with a piece of string that would break easily if caught on something.

 

[Eagle]

OMG Stormy, she is just gorgeous. Have you used the same stallion again?

 

[rabbitsfizz]

If I had a mare that was settled and happy within the herd, and for some reason went blind, and her genes were so important that I had to breed her, I would use the bell method as it is tried and tested and known to work.

I would not breed a mare that had a hereditary blindness of any kind.

I would think hard and long before I bred a blind mare, anyway.

I would have no problem with breeding a mare with one eye, so long as it was trauma caused.

I had a one eyed stallion (Rabbits sire) for many years and he was never any different.

 

[MindyLee]

WAIT A MINUTE!!!

What is moon blindness? lol

Ive heard of it just dont know really what it means.

I have a friend who has a appy mare whos eyes water up in the sunlight so she keeps a fly mask on her during the day. The mare also can not see from one eye and limited from the other. She breeds her with great sucess and has very healthy foals. I wonder if her mare has the "moon blindness" too.

PS Stormy your little filly sure is so sweet looking. Also hows your little dark bay filly from the same foaling crop, she was stunning!!!

 

[Riverrose28]

I have a mare that is totally blind in her left eye because a rooster got her, he was in her feed bucket and when she went to bite at him he pecked her right in the eye, the vet bills were awful. Now she is 19 and has a cataract in her right eye but still sees shadows and light. I have always put her in a small paddock at 300 days, sometimes she delivers between 305 310 days with a birthing stall. I leave a 25 watt bulb in a night light away from my camera so the light doesn't interfere with the camera. She is my best brood mare and had her last foal, her first colt last year. I won't breed her again as she is getting on and I have 5 of her daughters. she was produce of dam winner in area one two years ago. I once had a totally blind paint mare result of a trailer accident and head trama. Since she received no light what so ever she wouldn't come into season to be bred. Maybe your mare does see some light, try using a night light, plus the bells on the foal.

 

[Millstone Farm]

We had an older mare who developed cataracts in both eyes and had diminished vision. She wasn't completely blind. She produced wonderful foals for us, but as she got older and her vision decreased, we stopped breeding her = not because foaling was difficult or because she wasn't a great mom - she was! it became increasingly difficult to wean the foals safely. This mare would panic when it came time to foal her babies, even if we left them with her for an exaggerated time. Her last foal wasn't weaned until she was nearly 7 months old. The mare panicked to such a degree no matter what we tried that she became a danger to herself and anyone around her. After that experience, we stopped breeding her. However, she was still a problem in that she attached herself to a smaller horse and would panic when that horse walked away from her. We couldn't take the chance that she would injure herself or the people around her, so she was given to a friend who has a small mini gelding. It's only the 2 of them at this barn and they get along fabulously! The mare is in her mid-30's now.

That's my cautionary tale about breeding a mare with sight issues.

 

[Riverrose28]

to answer Mindy Lees question, moon blindness or uveinitis, not sure I spelled that right, is a condition that is very painful to a horse, and appy's are more prone to it then others. It causes inflammation of the eye, the vet will prescribe atropine to open the eye and antibiotic ointment. It usually results in the horse going blind. Your friend should have her appy checked by a vet for this condition.

 

[RhineStone]

I have bred Show jumpers for many years and for the last 3 we use AI and surrogates but all our stallions and eggs are chosen for quality in conformation and character. I only reproduce if they have a long string success. As for my very humble mini barn I am trying to find the correct combination of stallion and mares that will produce good quality foals.

Sounds like a responsible, quality breeder to me!

Much more so than anyone who breeds a horse because she has a uterus.....