New to pregnancy

[sarahhh_jean]

Hello all!!

Since I have searched high and low and all over the web for info I am bugging you guys as a last resort. First I will give a little background

This past year I came across a bulletin at my local feed store here in Naples, Fl about an ad someone was giving away a mini. I have had horses since I can remember and will be 21 this year. I compete in barrel racing on occasion and have always wanted a mini. I went to see the horses and they were very malnourished. I later found out they had never been fed anything but a sweet feed without hay which is crazy to me. Once i saw my little guy I was in love. A 2 year old woolly mammoth of perfection.





So I took Winnie (as i named him since buddy wasn't too original) and introduced him to my 2 big guys who went from scared to hateful to very tolerable and even let him eat out of the same bucket. Well it took alot of grooming and ultimately shaving to get Winnie from that to this and about 100 lbs later he is almost to normal weight.



Should also note he does have slight issue with his feet pointing inward as they had never been trimmed and his bones slightly formed that way but farrier said might be able to be corrected. So after 4 months I decided he needed a friend and why not a girlfriend. So I searched and searched until I found the girl of his dreams and drove 11 hours yesterday to go pick her up. This is Ruby

My perfect little girl with one blue eye. She is so cute!



She is 3 and Winnie is 2 so he doesn't know too much about girls but they are hitting it off and he's keeping the big ones off her back. So the point to this whole post is she is pregnant and I am panicking as I have never bred a horse or dealt with any of that. The palomino pinto in the background is the father and the woman I got her from said she might be about a month and unsure if she said she had it verified with a vet or not. So i am basically asking for any and all advice, I need to know what her diet should be, her vaccine schedule (I know there is some controversy there) and any other helpful tips I figured this is the place to ask!!

Thanks in advance!!

Sarah

 

[disneyhorse]

You will love them!

Is Winnie a gelding yet?

 

[wingnut]

If she is just pregnant, than you have time to get up to speed. Is your vet familiar with minis? Finding one that is would be a great first step, though not everyone is able to do that. I will be the first to say that one reason I am NOT breeding my mares is that I am far from ready for all that breeding entails. It is not for the faint of heart. You are right to be concerned. There will likely be others that follow my post with actual advice on nutrition, vaccines, etc. I'm just here to say: good luck! And please consider the idea that breeding is not something you're ready for in the long term and get that lovely little guy of yours gelded. You can always go back and find a great stallion later if you find that breeding IS where you want to go, after you've become educated about what it all takes to do it successfully. If your new girl is not bred, your boy is old enough to do the job even though he doesn't seem interested at the moment.

You've done an excellent job getting that boy out of a bad situation and getting him healthy and looking great. You are on the right track! Keep up the good work!

 

[sarahhh_jean]

He is not yet gelded, I want to wait and see how I like the whole process but I can't imagine not loving the experience . That said it is something I will wait to decide on which is why I want to get as much information as possible. Thanks

 

[LittleRibbie]

Hi Sarah and welcome to the forum. You will get lots of advice from here....I know I sure have!! congratulations on your new horses, they are darling and I have the gelding version of your new mare.

There is a foaling area here, where, when you find out if your mare is pregnant, you can ask anything you want and not feel uncomfortable. The ladies are wonderful and want only healthy safe foalings ( well they like fillies better but thats another story) They will all help w/questions and concerns you may have w/foaling....go now and introduce yourself!!!

I live near the Miromar Outlets on Corkscrew Rd. and you are more than welcome to stop by and visit anytime......not an expert but will be more than happy to help you with anything mini related.....except for taking pictures!! LOL

PM me if you would like to give me a jingle.

P.S. did we get the names of your 2 new chips??

 

[tagalong]

And please consider the idea that breeding is not something you're ready for in the long term and get that lovely little guy of yours gelded. You can always go back and find a great stallion later if you find that breeding IS where you want to go, after you've become educated about what it all takes to do it successfully. If your new girl is not bred, your boy is old enough to do the job even though he doesn't seem interested at the moment.

That ^ was excellent advice.

That said it is something I will wait to decide on which is why I want to get as much information as possible. Thanks

I would suggest that you geld Winnie and enjoy him for what he is - and have a vet check to see if Ruby is indeed, pregnant....

 

[Matt73]

Deleted because I read the rest of your post and realised that you hadn't bred her....Sorry....:s