Mare not letting stallion breed again,

[love_casper]

VERY excited to announce we'll have our first home-bred foals next year! I've owned Freedom for 2 years now, but due to 2 moves and a colic surgery on another horse, didn't have the time or space. But NOW I'm home all day on 17 acres and life is good.

So mare #1 - teased her daily for two weeks until she finally came into heat. And when she's in, it's pretty obvious, as she was pestering a quarter horse gelding and peeing on the barn floor, AND mounting the mini gelding. On the second day of her cycle, Monday, I hand bred her. She peed for him from about 100 feet away when she saw him coming, and it all went just fine. Better than I expected even, since it was his first time.

Tuesday got Mare #2. All went well.

Wednesday, I tried going for mare #1 again (plan being to breed them every other day until end of cycle) and she absolutely wanted nothing to do with him. Acted like she does when she's not in heat, but it didn't really seem like she was out of it. She was walking around with her tail up, not peeing much, but she seemed like she was still in heat, just did NOT want to be bred. This mare is an experienced broodmare with 6 foals.

Today: Teased Mare #1 again.... nothing. Today she doesn't even act in heat. And Freedom's beginning to KNOW who's in heat, as I had to use him to tease the mares that weren't interested in the gelding .... he would stand right next to a mare not in heat, and be way more interested in grass. In heat, he screams when they walk into the barn, and starts getting excited about 20 feet away. And today I had her on one side of the fence and brought him over, and he didn't so much as whinny at her. But we got mare #3 done after that. Funny, nobody's in heat and then they ALL come in at the same time.

I'm quite certain that we bred her (mare #1) on day 2 of her cycle, and usually it lasts more than just two days, I've noticed from years of cleaning her stall lol. Would the effect be that immediate if she actually got in foal on the first try? Or is this just an abnormally short cycle? Or is she just playing hard to get? Anyone had that had a mare do this before???

Thanks!

 

[Echo Acres]

I am new at breeding, so can't say a whole lot from experience. But we bred an outside mare last year and she did the same thing. She was a young mare though and had never been bred before. We really questioned if she got bred. I bred her the 1 time when she came in, never bred again since she went right back out. She took and foaled this summer. So yes it could be that she takes on that single breeding. Just watch her and see if she comes back in.

 

[Dona]

Sometimes they just have short heat cycles, or sometimes they just don't "show" that they are in heat enough to notice. And yes, I've had some do the same thing....breed them one time & then they are OUT. They had foals the following year from that one breeding.

 

[ssshowhorses]

Often when mares are very, very in heat it means that they are already well into thier cycle. So when you bred her she may have already been a few days into her cycle and she just wasn't showing when she first came into heat. I have one mare that is like that you have to catch her the second she shows in season and hope that you get a day or two of breeding before she is out again. I would keep trying her over the next few days and watch for her next cycle.

 

[lilnickers]

Last year I had two mares that were only bred one time(Would not stand for the stallion after that)and they both foaled this Spring.Like the other forum members said, sometimes they don't "show" they are in heat til it's full blown heat.

Keep an eye on her....see if she comes back in heat around 21 days.

Experienced stallions "know" when a mare is in standing heat.

 

[love_casper]

Thanks for the suggestions and experiences everyone!

Good to know that it's not entirely impossible that she could have taken with the first breeding... If she comes back in I'll likely wait till next spring to try again, gettin a bit late for me. We'll hopefully get at least the other two's foals.

So exciting!!!