Question about placenta

[Dona]

Just had a foal last night....very textbook delivery, no problems. Foal healthy & robust & up nursing withing 15 minutes. My question, is about the placenta. I saw something on it that I've never noticed before in other placentas....and I've had many to look at over the last 18 years.

There are small "tags" of skin (various sizes) attached to the placenta. They seem to be filled with bloody tissue. Just curious....has anyone else ever seen this? Maybe it's common...but the first time I have ever seen them.

This is a shot of the biggest one....maybe 2" in length.

And here is a shot of three smaller ones.

 

[Flaxenacres]

Dona, I have seen one or 2 like the 2" one. I have not seen several on 1 placenta. I dont know what they are. you wuld have to ask the vet. Or maybe someone else can help. Lorie

 

[Nathan Luszcz]

I've never seen those, nor seen them described. Make sure you post the answer when you find out!

 

[Irish Hills Farm]

Dona,

I usually get a placenta with those "tags" once a year. The first year I took the placenta up to the vet's office, actually a vetinary hospital, and they told me that it was nothing to worry about and that it's just one of those things that can happen.

 

[Dona]

Dona,

I usually get a placenta with those "tags" once a year. The first year I took the placenta up to the vet's office, actually a vetinary hospital, and they told me that it was nothing to worry about and that it's just one of those things that can happen.

Thank you! I figured it was nothing...since all went well with the delivery & the foal is strong & healthy. But I was still curious, as I had never seen this before.

 

[muffntuf]

The so called tags are actually ovum that were inseminated, but since the first egg attached to the wall of the uterus, the mares body would not allow them to mature. But they still stick to the placental bag.

I just read about this in Blessed be the Mares last night.

 

[lil hoofbeats]

Those are ovum that were fertilized, but the dominate one (that developed into the foal) supressed the others so they never developed, we even had a "mummified" one that developed to about a 5 inch at one time, and was atached to the placenta of a healthy foal. They are harmless, and just one of Mother Natures way of handeling things. Alot of pregnancies even start out as twins, but they ususally resolve with one healthy foal, as that is all (ususally) that the mares uterus is capable of handeling. Learned that at a recent foaling seminar put on by Colorado state. Thought that was interesting

 

[Dona]

How interesting! That was actually something that crossed my mind they could be....but really had no idea.

Thanks for clearing that up!

 

[Suzie]

We had a mare abort this spring with a mummified twin foal. It developed fairly far along, detached and that caused the 2nd healthy placenta to detach too early and the foal did not survive. We actually had two placentas with that delivery. Really amazing. I thought at first the uterus had prolapsed there was so much placenta. After we delivered the aborted foal, the vet checked our mare and said all was okay with her. First time we had seen anything like that. Looked really weird but may never happen again.

 

[Matt73]

Very neat!

 

[mininik]

That must be one fertile little mare...

 

[Joanne]

Thanks for sharing this information!

 

[Candice]

This was very interesting to learn. You've got a very fertile little mare there.

 

[Nathan Luszcz]

I find this VERY hard to believe... there are several places in Blessed Be The Broodmare which are completely incorrect, this may be another.

Mummified fetuses aren't terribly uncommon, but if a mare truely had twins and lost one (as an embryo) that embryo would be absorbed and removed, it wouldn't become entombed in the very, very immature placenta of the second embryo. At the stage you are talking about the placenta doesn't even exist yet! I think I'd keep researching looking for a second possibility

It is also INCREDIBLY rare to have a mare truely ovulate FIVE follicles. The average, even with hormone assistance in the form of superovulation, is only 1.9 embryo's per breeding. It is actually physically very very difficult for a mare to ovulate three follicles, never mind at LEAST five. The mare's ovary is set up in such a way that the follicles actually get in the way of each other. This combined with the above two points makes me think this is an old wive's tale.

 

[Connie P]

Very interesting post! Thanks for sharing the photos Dona - I've never seen this in all the years of having foals.

 

[barnbum]

Wow! This is my favorite kind of info to find on this forum. Thanks for posting Dona--and thank you to everyone who knew the answer.

 

[Suzie]

Nathan, I assume you are not a vet. Our vet confirmed our beliefs of the twins and mummified foal being aborted at 10.5 months when he examined the mare, her placenta and flushed her out. I know you think you have all the answers, but I trust my vet more.

 

[Nathan Luszcz]

At 10.5 months the pregnancy is no longer in the embryo stage. Its only an embryo for the first 20 or so days. Mummified fetuses with twins aren't uncommon at all (which I mentioned earlier) but they will only happen after the fetus has developed to the point where there is something to mummify. The placental issue mentioned above mentions the structures as vessicles enveloping nonviable embryos, meaning they formed at an extremely young age. This is not possible from what I described in the post you are replying to. This would only be possible if the mare was bred while pregnant, the sperm managed to enter the uterous without aborting the current pregnancy, fertilize the oocyte which isn't ovulated while the mare is pregnant, and re-enter the uterous to be enveloped by the much more mature placenta. This is not possible.

I'm not a vet, I'm a reproductive physiologist versed in reproduction and only reproduction. To become a vet I'd have to do another four years, even though I've been instructing the vets and vet students off and on for several years.

 

[Irish Hills Farm]

Nathan,

I just want to say that I appreciate any time you share your knowledge both on the forum and privately.

 

[Charlotte]

Dona, first congratulations on a live healthy foal! (I bet it's another pretty one!)

And I thank everyone for their input on this subject. This is something I've never seen with over 40 years of horse breeding and I personally examine every placenta.

I learn something new every day on LB!

Charlotte