Maiden mare question

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White Socks Miniature

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Hi everyone!

My mare who is 3.5 years old slipped her foal today. She was about 3 months along (via ultrasound). The circumstances were a bit funny though and I didnt know if anyone had any insite on this. We had her ultrasounded a week prior to all this happening.

Yesterday AM I got up to feed as usual and noticed my mare lying down in her stall which is normal (she is such a princess and how dare I wake her up from her beauty sleep!) So i snuck in to have an am cuddle as per usual. but when I went to get her feed she didnt move. Looking more closely at her I noticed that her ENTIRE head and neck was swollen! She then had some diarrhea while lying down :DOH! Of course I called the vet immediately - temp was normal, heart and lungs were normal with no breathing difficulty. Vet gave her some banamine and some dexamethasone as her face was pretty itchy. We then noticed her vulva was swollen as well but thought that may just be due to the rest of her reaction. We thought that it may have been a bug bite at the time. Swelling went down over the day and this am she was happy as a pig in mud. I let her out into the paddock for the day and then got called into work. Came home at 2 pm and she was down and rolling. I went into the paddock to see what was up and she came over and lay down right in front of me and was pointing with her head to her belly. Crud now shes Colicking is my thought. I go into the barn to get the lead rope and while I was putting on her halter she passed the fetus.

So I dont know wether it is just a coincidnece that she had an allergic reaction and then slipped the foal, or possibly the foal was dying and she had an allergic reaction to the fetus? Didnt know if anyone had any similar situations?

This was her first pregnancy and wasnt intentional... I went away for a conference for a week and the people who were looking after my horses turned them all out together (even though I said not to!) The said stallion was gelded soon after I returned which was planned before my departure. I was planning on breeding this mare next year to a very nice stallion that ive had my eye on now for 3 years! So the loss of this foal isnt really a huge deal, I am just more concerned about my mare (she is my baby, Ive trained her, shown her and she has the most wonderful temperment ever! I could go on but this post is long enough and thats a completely different topic!)

Thank you everyone!
 
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I thought but wasnt sure that Dex shouldnt be used in pregnant horses. I came across this on an advice site posted by a Vet

Please note with dexamethasone in it, it should not be used in pregnant mares unless the benefit is considered to outweigh the risk of possible abortion. For more on this see the articles on steroids and dex.

So I am thinking maybe it was the Dex that caused her to abort.
 
Thank you guys!!
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I realize that stress can cause them to abort but I guess I thought that she would have done so earlier since the reaction occured early yesterday am. hmm... I thought too if it is an injection of dex that it does not cross the placenta as readily compared to orally. hmm... well hopefully we can all learn from this... maybe someone has some more info on Dex? I read the label and it does not have any warning about early pregnancy, in later/ full term pregnancies it does have a warning for premature placental seperation and early deliveries.
 
My mare had a Dex shot last week and one of the first things the vet asked me before he gave the shot was whether or not she was bred. He was not going to give Dex if she had been exposed/bred. Something for you to check on, for sure. My mare had not been exposed/bred so she got the shot.

Peggy
 
I am no expert either but I know anytime we have had to have a Dex shot that the vet has asked if they are bred or not and if so he wont give it...
 
hmmm interesting...the vet knew she was bred as he did the ultrasound and even asked. I will definately keep this in mind for future references!!!

I love my vets and I will take this a blessing in disguise as well as a learning experience. Things just happen for a reason!

Thank you everyone for your responses!

Masako
 

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