What do you do when you can't watch 24 hours a day?

[suen]

For those of us who have to work, any suggestions on what to do with the mares that are due to foal right away? I've been up every night with mine, and am exhausted. Unfortunately I do still have to work part time, and so far have had a "babysitter" fill in for me, but not this week. I did hear that it would be wise to turn her out with other mares, that makes her get up and take care of the baby faster. My problems is: I've been told her bag is pretty thick and might want to be with her when she foals. Anybody have any ideas???? And... I can't get on Mare Stare as we live in the country and don't have internet access.

 

[disneyhorse]

My horses were at a facility where someone has cameras and foals out mares. I did stay overnight when I knew they were close, but always foaled when I left for work. I always got a phone call when it happened.

I work full time, so that's why I don't have pregnant mares.

I don't think other mares will be of any help in a red bag or dystocia issue which is what kills many mares and/or foals sadly. Human intervention is the only chance they have in those cases.

Is there a breeding farm of big horses around you could send her to?

Even hiring a teenager to hang out while you sleep or are away would be better than nothing.

I hope it goes well for you.

 

[MountainWoman]

What about a foaling alarm?

 

[Matt73]

I wouldn't breed. Or I'd send them to a facility. My mare has consistently foaled during the day (7:30am and 4:00pm), so if I had a job off the farm I would have not been there; when she had her first she needed help and her cervix tore....so, I'd be a nutcase if I couldn't be there.

Do not turn her out with other mares! Willow and Lex are great buds. As soon as Levi was born (Lex's 2011 foal), my sweet little Willow reached through the gap between their stalls and tried to rip Levi's head off. I had to put the board back up and turn Lex and Levi out alone for three weeks. Please make sure she, at least, foals alone if you can't be there. Also, a mare can steal a foal.

 

[vickie gee]

I have been in your shoes. It is exhausting. If you can test her milk to see just how close she is that would give you some peace of mind. If so, when you get a reading that she is near ready I would take off work. This was the first year in three years that I did not miss work on account of waiting needlessly on mine. I learned the habits and signs of my two over the last few years and took everything into account, especially relying on testing the milk and watching for the "v-bottom". They teased me at work this year about always taking horse maternity leave in the past. Still, my sneaky mare foaled while I was at work. I knew she was near ready and had the next day already scheduled to be off. And last but not least, I pray about them first thing in the morning, several times a day, while I am driving home, and last thing at night.

ray

You can also go to the marestare/foaling thread and post pictures of the mare's body parts daily and I assure you those ladies will be giving you support. I wish I had time to hang out there like I did early on in the foaling season. If your barn is close enough to your house to get good reception from a baby monitor at least you can keep from having to be at the barn watching so much. I got mine at K-Mart. It was less than $100 and has been a life saver.

 

[RockRiverTiff]

I'm guessing you read the advice about turning a mare out with other mares here:

http://starsminiatures.com/foalarticle.html

It's a great article for anyone with an expectant mare, and I've referred a lot of people to it this year. On a related (but OT) note, my vet also told me that the pasture is usually a far cleaner setting for a mare to foal than a stall. I can't put a camera on the pasture, so at night the mares that are close are inside. I can't watch my mares 24/7 - I don't know how any single person could. I work from home and that lets me watch them every waking moment, but obviously I have to sleep some time. I'm lucky in that the horses are located on the same property as the family business, so I marestare from the office at night and assuming none of my mares are looking imminent I "clock out" of marestaring and get some sleep when the office and dock staff shows up in the morning. The PG girls get turned out of their stalls and into the front pasture where they are visible from the dock, and if anyone starts acting funny the office staff has my number, my husband's number, my grandmother's number and the number for two different vets on hand. I've gotten a couple calls when the mares napped too long, but better safe than sorry! If I have to be somewhere on any given night, then I have a handful of family members that will watch the mares for me.

It's a bummer you can't do Mare Stare. Like others suggested, do you have a full-sized breeding facility near you? Even another mini breeder might be willing to help. Also, if your vet owns horses or specializes in reproductive services they may be willing to take and foal out your mares for you. Are your horses visible to any of your neighbors? You could also ask them to call you if they see one of your mares acting funny. If nothing else, disneyhorse's suggestion of hiring a horsey babysitter could at least ensure that you and your vet get the call when a mare goes into labor, and I bet a local 4Her wouldn't mind the experience or a little extra money.

 

[JAX]

Have you looked into Hughes Satellite for internet? Thats what most who live in the boonies use for mare stare. I also use halter alarms and watch on tv screens in the house. Oh yeah and the milk strips help out alot too.

 

[suen]

Luckily we have a camera set up in the barn, so I can sit in the house and watch....wonderful inventions! And... the test strips have shown she should have delivered a week ago. I have been communicating with the gals on the marestare forum here, and they have helped tremendously, plus took her to the vet yesterday for a ultrasound. Vet said she is ready to pop.... but nothing yet. They did tell me I could bring her there and they would board and watch her while I am at work, so that is what we are doing now. Wow.... these animals are worse than kids!!!

 

[RockRiverTiff]

I'm so glad you got something figured out, so now you can have at least a little peace of mind! Looking forward to seeing your foal announcement soon!

 

[sfmini]

We are in the same boat, kind of play the odds that they will foal at night and rely on the camera and foal alert so we can sleep. I have been known to be "sick" when they are close, especially one mare with a history of a thick bag. If it is one we are really worried about, we ask a friend to foal her out but haven't done that often.

I don't like it, but it is a risk we have accepted as part of the business.

 

[suen]

Absolutely hate being away from mine when they are due! I'm at work, but mind not in it! Have her at the vets right now for watching, but he did say these little guys (and the big ones too) are going over due dates by two to three weeks. Thinks its because of the heat stress last year.

 

[Jill]

I own a business and have a lot of control over my client calendar, but my closest office is 1 hour away. The bottom line is, when I have mares due, I am home as much as possible and know that I'm owning a large risk if one is close and I cannot be home. We have cameras and buzzers when where home, but when I'm not -- I'm not. Luckily, in the past, when we've had mares close, I have been able to be here when I thought I needed to be and the one time I didn't know I needed to be, everything went fine (came home to a fiesty palomino filly).

 

[disneyhorse]

I'm glad you found a solution! Boarding somewhere is a great idea and I hope it helps your peace of mind!