Foal Movement

[bannerminis]

Does everyone find that most mares tend to be from 180 days onwards before they feel the first foal movement?

Also how hard are the kicks compared to gestation? As in do you find that at 180 days they are only very slight vs. further on in the pregnancy where you are getting something that resembles being tapped and then to stronger kicks.

My 2 mares will be foaling late next yr as in June/July. I normally aim for May but this yr their seasons were all over the shop (I blame the weather) and it was hard to catch them in season as I wouldnt put the stallion with them till I knew they were in season. Their foal heats were like full blown seasons that lasted about 8/9 days.

So my ladies are now around 112 days and 105 days so I know there wont be any movement for another couple of months so maybe end of Jan or early Feb if I am lucky I might get some movement.

Maybe I am not patient enough but I find it hard to feel movement early on and they tend to be 8/9 months before I seem to feel the kicks.

So when you feel your first kicks from the 180 day mark on what is it that you feel a flutter, a tap, squirm etc.

I suppose I just want to be more in tune as to what I am trying to feel for and maybe be more patient.

I usually try to feel for movement when they are eating as it does seem to set the foals off and the mares are busy stuffing their faces so not usually bothered by what I am at.

 

[weerunner]

I find that it is possible to feel the foals at day 170 pretty consistantly here. The first movements are just taps that you feel on your hand. then around day 190, the kicks get much stronger and more like thumps. Hope you get to feel something in your girls. It never fails to make me smile.

 

[2minis4us]

Where do you put your hands to feel the baby kick ?

 

[weerunner]

Right in front of her udder. Most mares have a pudgy area in front of their udder, I place my thumb and forefinger around the pudge just behind the belly button. Here is where I find hte first kicks are most easily felt. As the mare gets further along you can feel kicks in different areas.

 

[bannerminis]

Thats where I feel for kicks too but still never seem to catch the really early movement. Pushing into 250 days get the kicks no problem and as they progress you can see the belly bounce too. I must say Shimmer filly used her as a trampoline as her belly bounced so much and poor Shimmer was not impressed LOL.

I think I need to work on my patience and I might succeed.

Cant wait to feel those first kicks though.

 

[supaspot]

at five and a half months I cam feel a flutter or a movement that is so light im not sure what it is , by six months its an obvious kick and the kicks quickly get stronger over the next couple of weeks

 

[supaspot]

Im not sure if this is coincidence but as a general rule Ive noticed many unborn filly foals are far more active than the colts , once theyre born they switch roles , the colts are then non stop playing while the fillies tend to chill a bit more

is it my imagination ?

 

[weerunner]

Yes, I find as a general rule this is true in my barn. I used to assume the active ones were colts and I was wrong most of the time, they would be little fillies. The laid back ones were the colts. Not sure why this is.

amanda

 

[a mini dream come true]

Great topic. Thanks everyone. Now I can start feeling and know I'm in the right place. Got a mare due in April or May. Need to check the calendar to be sure.

 

[Genie]

I never have much luck feeling movement till 8 or 9 months along.

On another thread someone talked about using a stethoscope.. . . Possibly placing the stethoscope in the area in front of the udder may detect some sounds???would that be likely???? since I doubt there would be an audible heartbeat????

 

[weerunner]

I tried using the stethoscope to hear the kicking but I ended up feeling it before I heard it, so I gave up on that method. You cannot hear the heartbeat, but some say they hear kicking near 5 months. I usually feel it by 5.5 months, so that is the method I prefer. I love feeling those first kicks.

 

[bannerminis]

I am the same as you Gene I only tended to get movement from the 8/9 month mark but I think its because I didnt have the time or patience to sit there for too long plus its to know if what you are feeling is a foal movement.

 

[Genie]

They say "patience is a virtue" and I obviously have very little of it, sadly

 

[Eagle]

I breed for spring foals and I can usually feel flutters from late January on, gradually getting stronger and then kicks. I think the foal movement depends on the foal or the mare. One of my girls has really wild babies (both fillies and colts) in her tummy and it is really easy to feel them and see them move.