Vet says mare is obese not PG! Hay belly?

[CrescentMinis]

I'm going to vent/whine a bit, but if anyone has any opinions about this, please share.

This mare was bred last year and would be due NOW; however, the vet was just here updating everyone's vacs, and she thinks Annie is just obese

, not PG. This opinion is based on the palpation she did in November where she was sure she felt the uterus without the muscle tone it would've had if pregnant. Dang, I wanted to hope for a baby after losing the other foal last week.

Before that, I thought this mare was probably in foal, I could swear I feel/see some random movements that wouldn't be breathing.

So unless Annie is just getting entirely too much hay, what gives? (The horses are on dry lot and other than hay, get a cup of Strategy in the morning and evening. That's it...no grass!) Yet that belly has gotten bigger. Her neck is fat too. Is there any danger in decreasing her hay gradually over the next 2 weeks, IF there is a sneaky foal hiding in there? She's been spending some time when stalled, leaning back against the wall with her back end. Vet was concerned this could be a sign of founder, but her feet seem OK as of now. Oh great, something else to worry about!

Thanks for reading. I don't know what to think, and I guess it won't hurt to monitor on the Equifone and camera regardless of the end result.

Any opinions or "been there" advice would be very welcome.

edited to add picture

 

[Riverdance]

I would have to say compared to 9 of my mares that are due any time, your mare does not look pregnant.

I had one last year that looked pregnant, even the vet thought she was, though we did not do palpation. She was getting a little bag and all, but never had a foal. OH!

This year she is hugh, but I still do not know if she is pregnant or not. Some of these mares just get big, even eating the same amount as other mares who do not look fat at all. I have even seen stallions with bellys that look pregnant.

Cutting back her hay a bit will not hurt a foal if she is pregnant, but I would cut her back slowly, as if she looses weight too fast she could go into liver failure.

 

[Donna S]

I'm going to vent/whine a bit, but if anyone has any opinions about this, please share.

Hi this is my first time to add anything to this forum, so I hope I am doing it correctly!

I have a mare that looks jsut like that and she is pregnant, not due until mid May. She looks the same, the vet was out last eve, and said she is too heavy. Oh well, I am limiting her intake, but she does have a foal as I have felt movement, so she does need to eat!

This mare was bred last year and would be due NOW; however, the vet was just here updating everyone's vacs, and she thinks Annie is just obese

, not PG. This opinion is based on the palpation she did in November where she was sure she felt the uterus without the muscle tone it would've had if pregnant. Dang, I wanted to hope for a baby after losing the other foal last week.

Before that, I thought this mare was probably in foal, I could swear I feel/see some random movements that wouldn't be breathing.

So unless Annie is just getting entirely too much hay, what gives? (The horses are on dry lot and other than hay, get a cup of Strategy in the morning and evening. That's it...no grass!) Yet that belly has gotten bigger. Her neck is fat too. Is there any danger in decreasing her hay gradually over the next 2 weeks, IF there is a sneaky foal hiding in there? She's been spending some time when stalled, leaning back against the wall with her back end. Vet was concerned this could be a sign of founder, but her feet seem OK as of now. Oh great, something else to worry about!

Thanks for reading. I don't know what to think, and I guess it won't hurt to monitor on the Equifone and camera regardless of the end result.

Any opinions or "been there" advice would be very welcome.

edited to add picture

 

[Echo Acres]

Sounds a lot like our mare who did founder. She is however confirmed in foal and due the end of may. Each one carries different and ours is not as big as yours.

The things you were describing though sound like our mare when we found out she had founder. The "thick" or crusty neck, and the rocking back on the hind end. (ours was only in her front feet) Our mare did not have any heat in her feet or legs and had no change in diet. The vet thinks she has foundered in the past. I would have a vet or farrier check for it. You definately want to change your program if she is.

 

[CrescentMinis]

Thanks...the vet did check her feet thoroughly today and does not think she's foundered *yet* so we are adusting her amount of feed downward gradually.

If this mare is open, which she likely is, I could look at the bright side because the stallion she was bred to (I purchased her in foal) would not have been my choice. So I can take her to the one I think would be more complementary to her strengths/weaknesses, this year.

 

[WLS]

You just never know. From experience, I would wait till she comes into heat to confirm she is NOT pregnant.

Years ago, we had bought a bred mare. Vet diagnosed her NOT in foal, even blood test confirmed no foal. She appeared to have a hay belly, (but not real big) so I put her on a diet. Well I was quite surprised when I found a dead foal in her stall a couple months later. Obviously the breeding dates we were given were WRONG. I felt so bad, I had quit " foal watching" this mare and even put her on a diet.!! So I never give up hope until they come into heat, then you know for sure.

 

[CritterCountry]

Looks like it could be a hay belly because it is in the center of her abdomen not further back like a pregnancy. BUT I have been wrong before. Sable pulled this on me last year and I am quite certain she is PG this year and she looks a little like your mare. Only difference is Sable still has almost two months to go and her belly is further back.

Check out the pregnancy gallery I made a couple months ago for everyone to compare, lots of mares do not even look in foal compared to the others. Each mare is different.

http://minipony.onestopequine.net/pggallery.html

 

[Marty]

I think she looks pregnant.

I have had an ultra sound and blood test both be wrong.

A vet told me the same thing about my mare so right before she foaled, there I was cutting back on hay and grain

Hang in there and keep watching her and I hope you get a very nice surprise!

 

[HGFarm]

She looks like a 'typical' thryoid mare to me... have you had that checked??!!! If she is out of balance, I dont care what you feed, she will not be able to take off the weight, nor will she probably ever carry a foal.

 

[Katiean]

I have a mare that we bought in foal. The only thing that made me even think she was pregnant was the massive movement in her belly. She was delivered to my house on may 15th and foaled on june 17th. The mare that she was with really did not look pregnant at all and she foaled 2 weeks after the one we bought. You can't tell on some of them until they pop one day.

 

[targetsmom]

Did anyone consider a false pregnancy? She looks and acts a bit like our mare that had the false pregnancy last year. Our mare bagged up and rubbed her butt against the fence, her milk went from clear to cloudy... but she had lost the foal sometime early on and it was not detected. Can your vet do an external ultrasound? That should tell you. Don't rely on what you think is foal movement because that fooled us!

Regarding the founder issue - she does look like she might be prone to founder. You might want to put her on Remission which is made to reduce the risk for founder prone horses (especially those with cresty necks).

 

[CrescentMinis]

Thanks for the tip about Remission. I will look into that today. She is also going to be walked up and down the lane a few times each day for some extra exercise.

It could be a false pregnancy, or one of the other things mentioned. I'm monitoring her & keeping that camera on just for the remote possibility there's a foal.

When she comes in heat, since we have no stallion here, is she likely to show any signs?