The arrival of a new foal is the culmination of planning, hopes and dreams—unless something goes wrong.

Only about 5 percent of mares experience foaling difficulties, but it happens. Sometimes a mare dies during or shortly after foaling. Some mares reject their foals, while others don’t produce adequate milk or get seriously injured and can’t care for their babies.

In any of these scenarios, prompt intervention is needed to give the foal its best chance for survival.

Raising a “bottle baby” is certainly possible, but not the best option for a foal, who ideally needs to be raised by a horse to be properly socialized.

Enter the nurse mare.

In the traditional nurse mare business, mares are bred to have a foal each year so they’re available for lease if needed to raise another mare’s foal. When that nurse mare is called into duty, her own foal is left behind to be raised on milk replacer. Often called “throwaway foals,” some of them end up in the slaughter pipeline.

The nurse mare industry has long been a reality, but not one that people spoke of with pride. It’s a tragic irony that a business created to save valuable foals makes orphans out of others.

Using a More Ethical Option

As a young woman, Laura Phoenix worked in the traditional nurse mare business, but grieved over the brutal truth of those foals left behind.

“It was always sad,” she says. “I didn’t like coming home to the orphans.” She later left the business because of that aspect.

Decades later, she learned about the concept of hormonally induced lactation (HIL). With HIL, mares are safely brought into milk production without being pregnant and having a foal.

In 2011, Phoenix gave it a try with two of her mares. After finding demand for the service, she started adding more mares. Today, Phoenix owns and operates Nursemares of the Northeast at her home base in Walton, N.Y., and Nursemares of Kentucky in Paris, Ky.

Raised on a working horse farm in Virginia, Bronwyn Watts became a professional groom, working at the highest levels of eventing competition for years.

She’d worked in the horse industry her whole life, but learned about the traditional nurse mare business by reading an article in 2017. This inspired her to look for a more ethical way to help orphans.

After researching HIL, she got her first two mares and in 2018, launched ColdSpring Nurse Mares, LLC, in Ocala, Fla.

Although their businesses are totally independent, Phoenix and Watts are both driven by the same passion.

How HIL Works

With HIL, mares are given hormones for a short period to mimic late-stage pregnancy and stimulate milk production, explains Alan Riggs, DVM, a veterinarian with Peterson Smith Equine Hospital in Ocala, Fla.

After a brief hormone protocol, the mare has mammary gland development. It typically takes anywhere from five to 10 days for her to come into milk. Hand milking encourages further milk production until a foal is nursing her.

“Once the mares come into milk, they are milked at least twice a day to keep up the milk production. This is done until a foal is on them. It’s completely safe for the mare and safe for the foals,” notes Riggs, who specializes in reproduction.

Each mare is different, and the protocol can be adjusted for each individual.

“With [HIL], lactation can be timed to when the mares will be needed,” he adds. “By far the biggest benefit is not having a foal that becomes an orphan.”

Phoenix and Watts each have their own unique protocols they’ve developed over time and personal experience.

“The mares have 21 days of hormonal support protocol, and then they’re treated just like any other mare,” says Phoenix. “They dry up after weaning just like a mare who’s had her own foal.”

Because one never knows when a nurse mare will be needed, Phoenix and Watts both keep mares ready in different stages of protocol throughout foaling season.

Bonding with the Foal

The traditional nurse mare leaves her own foal at home, and must often be sedated, blindfolded, hobbled and forced to accept the orphan foal. That trauma is never part of the process with HIL nurse mares and proper pairing.

But just having a lactating mare doesn’t ensure success. The strategy is pairing the right mare with the orphaned foal so they can bond quickly and thrive together.

“There’s a lot of misconception that any lactating mare will make a nurse mare,” says Watts. “It’s a very delicate situation. You have to really know the mare and know what you’re doing bonding mare and foal.”

Great care goes into matching mare and foal, taking into consideration size, personality, history, and health of the foal.

If the foal is having health issues on top of being orphaned, it takes just the right nurse mare to fill the spot. Sometimes the foal is sick and already in the clinic. This situation requires a mare who is not only going to bond with the baby, but whose personality can handle the NICU (neonatal intensive care unit) setting.

The mare is hauled to the foal’s location. Every effort is made to ensure that conditions are optimal for bonding. The less distraction, the better. A team of two people is optimal: one to safely handle the foal and one to handle the mare.

The mare is brought into the stall with the foal and the handlers stay in place until the foal is nursing, which helps cement the bond.

“The bonding process is dictated by the mare,” says Phoenix. “Safety is the No. 1 thing, so we take every precaution.”

Pairing can take only minutes with very young foals but can take a little longer if the orphan is older when he loses his biological mother.

What Makes a Good Nurse Mare

What makes a good nurse mare? For starters, she must previously have had her own foals and proven to be a doting mother with good milk production.

Personality is a crucial factor. Nurse mares are sent to both small farms and large breeding operations. Either way, they need to be easy to catch and handle.

Vices like stall walking or weaving will disqualify a mare, as will aggression or serious lameness issues, such as laminitis.

“If a mare is cribber, that’s not a deal breaker if she’s a good mom, but she will wear a crib collar,” says Phoenix.

Since most nurse mares are on the older side, averaging late teens to 20s, age isn’t a negative factor, providing the mare is healthy.

Both Phoenix, who has 220 mares, and Watts, who has 80, have built their herds through donations. Mares often come from clients who want their retired broodmares to have great homes.

Although many are retired Thoroughbreds, there are plenty of other breeds in the mix, including warmbloods, Quarter Horses, Appaloosas, Arabians, Standardbreds, and draft crosses.

For most nurse mares, raising orphans is their third career.

“In the beginning, we said we were saving a life,” says Phoenix. “However, we quickly realized we’re saving three: the unwanted broodmare, the client foal, and the throwaway foal.”

Situations with Unusual Orphans

Not every client who calls needs a nurse mare for a horse foal. On occasion, baby equines of different species need a mom.

In 2023, Nursemares of Kentucky came to the rescue when a zebra foal lost its mother. In addition to their dramatic stripes, zebras don’t vocalize like horses, so it required just the right nurse mare to adopt this unusual newborn.

“The client was licensed to have exotic animals, but they didn’t have the facilities to keep them in for bonding, so they brought the zebra foal to us,” says Phoenix, who had prepped two mares for the unlikely orphan.

The first mare took to the zebra immediately and the two were able to return to the owner’s farm within four days.

ColdSpring Nurse Mares has provided nurse mares for three donkey foals. One of these was a Poitou, a rare long-haired French donkey breed that is considered endangered.

Watts says her nurse mare who raised the Poitou donkey foal was known for her powerful mothering instincts and had even nursed a calf.

Lease Arrangements for Nurse Mares

Nurse mares are leased for a flat fee plus delivery charge, which varies depending on distance. Between Phoenix and Watts, their nurse mares have been sent to clients in the entire eastern half of the U.S. and beyond.

Foal owners lease the mare for as many months as needed to nurse the baby. During that time, the lessee is responsible for all mare care (feed, hoof care and deworming), as well as shipping the mare home after weaning.

In the traditional nurse mare business, the lessee is required to breed the mare back, but obviously, this isn’t required with HIL nurse mares.

“What these mares do is so special,” says Watts. “We’re giving these older broodmares a job they love to do, helping an orphan foal, and not contributing to the population of unwanted horses. You can’t go wrong with this.”

Phoenix agrees.

“Even with us putting out this many mares, I’m still shocked to find out so many people don’t know about this option,” she says. “These nurse mares are heaven sent. When we can fill that need without having an unwanted foal, everybody feels good at the end of the day.”

This article about the improving practices of the nurse mare industry appeared in the March 2024 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!

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Della was a grade mare with a crooked right front leg who had been purchased from a kill pen. On my first visit to examine her, I also learned that she wasn’t halter trained.

“I know, I know,” said Maggie. “But we just couldn’t leave her there, Doc.”

Treatment Plan for a Neglected Mare

Maggie and I both knew that the kill pen industry was a bad business. The horses are crowded into filthy pens. They are generally sold to meat buyers, but the public can also purchase them (typically at a large markup). I completely understand wanting to help these horses, but buying from these places perpetuates a horrible industry.

Kill pen managers plant sad stories on social media (of course with an urgent deadline), lick their chops, and wait for the would-be rescuers to arrive with their checkbooks. Individual horse sales bring in far more than meat sales, and with a never-ending flow of horses to populate this market, kill lots laugh all the way to the bank. (Note to readers: Visit reputable horse adoption centers instead!)

But Della needed our help today. I’d managed to draw her blood the week before, and she was approximately 200 days pregnant. Normally I’d palpate and ultrasound the pregnant mare to make sure all was well with the pregnancy, but this simply wasn’t possible with Della.

Her belly wasn’t very big, but she was streaming milk from her udder and there was a discharge under her tail. These are common signs of an infection of the placenta, which can harm the fetus.

The neglected mare was surely unvaccinated, and I had to take my best guess as to what infectious agent could be causing the symptoms and come up with a treatment plan. Della would have to be on the medications until she foaled.

The mare stood at a safe distance as I placed a small tub of grain on the ground with some medicines carefully mixed in. I’d added a dollop of molasses for good measure.

Della pretended to ignore the tub, but after doing battle with herself for several minutes, the food won. She lowered her head to eat, never taking her eyes off me. She took a few suspicious bites, then devoured the mixture and licked the tub clean.

“This is what you’ll be doing twice a day,” I said to Maggie. “If the symptoms begin to improve, it’s a good sign that we’re on the right track.”

Maggie looked anxiously at Della, who was still licking the dish. “Can the baby be saved?”

I sighed. “Fifty-fifty. Horses tend to get wary of oral meds after a while, but even if we do everything right, we could still lose the foal.”

Maggie set her jaw, a look that I knew well, and I chuckled at the unsuspecting Della, who was going to be medicated twice a day no matter what. Over the next month and a half, Maggie used a rotating arsenal of applesauce, ground carrot, peppermint, and molasses to trick Della into eating her meds. Maggie was also halter-training the once neglected mare and getting her used to being handled.

Foaling Night

Della improved, but I was still concerned and wasn’t surprised to hear from Maggie late one night. She was very experienced with foaling mares, so when I heard the worry in her voice, I hurried to pull my boots on.

“Something’s wrong. Della’s been showing signs of labor all evening but she’s not progressing.”

Della was on her side breathing heavily when I arrived. Her vitals were stable, mucus membranes were a healthy pink, and her water hadn’t yet broken. There was no baby in the birth canal, although the cervix was dilated. As I gently pulled my gloved arm free, the mare strained vigorously and suddenly a red structure ballooned from the birth canal.

I gasped. “Red bag!”

Maggie looked at me in horror. “What on earth?”

There wasn’t time to explain. This was a true emergency. Because of the damage done by the infection in the mare’s uterus, the weakened placenta had separated from the uterus with the foal still inside. We had to get him out immediately or he would die.

I grabbed my knife from my belt and sliced open the thick red membrane, being careful not to cut the foal. Maggie and I each grabbed a front foot, and soon we had the foal on the ground. I cleared the mucus from the small nose and gave him a few rescue breaths while Maggie rubbed him vigorously with a towel.

His heart rate was too low, so I ran for the emergency kit as Maggie took over the rescue breathing. I injected a strong stimulant into his vein and continued toweling him off. When his chest finally began to rise and fall, Maggie and I high-fived each other.

I heard the mare get to her feet behind me. It occurred to me how vulnerable Maggie and I were, hunkered on the ground by the foal, but the mare simply reached her head between us and began to lick her baby. It’s amazing how they always seem to know when we’re helping their babies.

Will to Live

I monitored the foal’s heart rate and gave him a second dose of the stimulant. He was still very weak, and I knew that he was going to need a lot of care.

We had to milk the mare, tube-feed the colostrum into the baby, help him stand, and place an IV catheter. Poor Maggie had to feed him around the clock and get many medications into him. He was unable to nurse on his own for almost a week, and he had a crooked right front leg like his mama, but he lived.

Maggie was exhausted but happy the next time I saw her. And she was actively working on new legislation to close the kill pen businesses down for good. It would be an uphill battle, but if anyone could do it, it was Maggie.

This edition of Vet Adventures about a neglected mare appeared in the June 2022 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!

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Raising a foal is a long-held dream for many horse lovers. Perhaps you’d like to do it without adding a new breeding to the horse population and feel that adopting an orphan foal is the perfect solution. But unlike the decision to adopt or raise an adult horse, this choice can be fraught with challenges: Globally, the population of foals available for adoption is low. However, opportunities do pop up occasionally.

Here’s what you need to know to prepare to help a foal in need.

Optimal Timing

According to Emily Weiss, Ph.D., vice president of ASPCA Equine Welfare, when coming to the aid of an orphan foal, the first step is to try pairing that foal with a nurse mare.

“These young foals need a lot of attention,” she explains. “We want to make sure they have tactile experiences, because there is a huge amount of brain development that’s going on. These foals can end up being sensitive to sound or touch. It’s important to make sure they have experiences that are similar to when they were with a mare.”

Adoption can be considered an appropriate next step once the foal has been placed with a nurse mare or their situation has otherwise been stabilized. Because their requirements are different, pairing orphan or nurse mare foals with just the right person is a critical part of the adoption process. Timing is everything.

“[The age at which] foals are adopted often depends on when we have the right person to adopt them,” Weiss says. “The more attention they can get, the better. Some of our Right Horse Adoption Partner organizations are adopting them out [when they have a match] to people who can give them what they need, while others keep them until they are older.”

If the foal is a colt, gelding age (typically between 6 and 12 months) is often a factor when considering when to put an individual foal up for adoption. According to Weiss, these foals will often either be gelded before adoption, have an agreement in place that the foal comes back to the adoption center for gelding, or have the adopter provide confirmation that the gelding procedure took place.

Special Considerations

If you are considering adopting an orphan or nurse mare foal, it’s important to not only think about the large commitment of time involved, but also your facilities. Ask yourself the following questions:

◆ Do I have time to adequately accustom my new foal to stress-free, basic handling? At a minimum, you’ll want to teach your foal to be led and become comfortable with the handling required for routine vaccinations, deworming, and farrier care. It’s easy to become distracted by the foal’s small size. Remember, some behaviors may be cute for a foal but can be downright dangerous when performed by an adult horse.

Examples of these behavior include small things, such as nibbling, to large things, such as hugging their handler with their neck and front leg. Establishing a respectful relationship with a foal at this young age is paramount.

◆ Am I well acquainted with the vaccination and deworming schedules for a foal? For example, a foal requires a series of vaccinations when getting his first shots rather than a single annual booster.

◆ Do I know enough about the nutritional management of a young foal? As with vaccination and deworming, these requirements differ from those of an adult horse.

In addition to bottle feeding or mare’s milk, you’ll want to learn at what age to introduce feed, what appropriate feed options are, the correct amount to feed, and creep feeding, all with an eye toward meeting your foal’s unique nutritional needs.

◆ Are my facilities set up to handle a foal? While many facility requirements for foals and adult horses are similar, there are some key differences. You will need to make sure that your fencing, stall space, waterers, feed buckets, et cetera, are all set up to accommodate the size of the horse you are adopting.

◆ Can I accommodate additional enrichment beyond that traditionally provided for adult horses? According to Weiss, foals have hyper-oral behaviors and a need for stimuli.

“Make sure you have lots of enrichment around,” she explains. “The more big, colorful things you can have, the better.”

She encourages flapping tarps and flags, umbrellas, and large toy balls to help youngsters become comfortable with a variety of sights, sounds, and smells, all while in the confines of a safe environment. This helps the foal to build the right neural connections. As an adopter of a foal, you’re responsible for a lot of the brain development that occurs during the first year of life.

Buddy Power

Additionally, horses are herd animals and can experience significant stress when housed alone. To reduce psychological stress that may also physically affect the foal, it is vital that you have at least one other horse that can serve as a companion for the foal.

Companion horses can also help keep behavioral issues at bay by teaching the foal boundaries and how to interact with other horses. However, not having a companion horse already in place does not preclude adoption.

“We are happy to find someone a companion horse,” Weiss says.

While an enormous undertaking, the decision to adopt a foal can be a rewarding experience and an opportunity to start with a clean slate, molding your new young horse into the perfect companion.

This article about adopting an orphan foal appeared in the March 2022 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!

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So I did what any responsible horse owner would do. I had her examined for pain and checked the fit of her tack. Nothing. It would not be until much later that I was able to determine that her estrous cycle was the cause of the problem.

Although mares are known for their heart and have proven that they can compete at the highest levels of any sport, social media posts abound reflecting the sometimes-impossible behavior of this often-maligned gender. Lew Strickland, DVM, M.S., Dipl. ACT, uses his specialty in theriogenology and years of experience with the University of Tennessee’s Extension Service and College of Veterinary Medicine to provide insight into the sometimes-frustrating experiences of mare ownership.

Common Mare Concerns

Common complaints by mare owners include that their mounts have trouble focusing, irritability, and changes in their consistency and performance during their heat cycle.
“The biggest complaint we hear is when the owner is trying to take their mare to a show or other important riding performance [when she is in heat], and the mare has some back soreness, causing her to be unable to perform,” says Strickland.

While bad behavior due to pain or soreness caused by estrus is understandable, it’s important to be able to rule out other possible causes of the poor behavior. Ovarian tumors, urinary tract infections, bladder infections, urinary calculi, lameness, joint pain, an abscess, or a bruised hoof could be the source of discomfort.

A physical exam performed by a veterinarian can help determine if the root cause of the pain comes from estrus or another issue with similar clinical signs, such as the ones mentioned above. As with any horse, the fit of her tack should also be investigated.

“Otherwise, you’ll have to go back and do a little investigative work to see what she was doing 21 days ago,” says Strickland. “That’s the length of her estrous cycle, so you have to see if she was acting up and whether or not a pattern has developed. An accurate history can also help to tell you if the pain is from something else. For example, did it show up at the same time as a new saddle?”

Strickland says that excellent records are key when mapping the mare’s estrous cycle. Physical signs of estrus include squatting, urinating, squealing, and vulvar “winking,” especially in the presence of other horses.

“You need to understand exactly when her cycles start and how long they are,” he says. “Not all of them are exactly 21 days. There’s a range of about five to seven days. One mare may be shorter and another goes over a week.”

Drug Therapies

Once you’ve determined that your mare’s estrous cycle is the cause of her behavior issues, there are several options that you can try.

The main one is progesterone supplementation, such as altrenogest (Regu-Mate) in the feed, but that can get a little pricey after a while.

“Though some studies have shown that it doesn’t work reliably well, Depo-Provera shots are another option,” adds Strickland.

While the brand name Depo-Provera has never been approved for use in horses, the drug itself, medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA), can be obtained through a compounding pharmacy when prescribed by a veterinarian. However, this treatment has been banned by the U.S. Equestrian Federation (USEF) and cannot be used in mares competing in USEF-sanctioned competitions.

An alternative to MPA is oxytocin injections. A chief disadvantage to its use is the frequent injections required over a specified time period. As with any medication, it is important to discuss the costs—both physical and monetary—versus the benefits with your veterinarian.

Physical Measures

A more invasive measure would be to have a veterinarian give the mare an ovariectomy (surgical removal of both ovaries).

“This option would be for someone who never wants to breed their mare,” says Strickland. “You walk a fine line here, because taking the ovaries out will take away soreness from the estrogen when the follicles are building up, but it might not take away her receptivity,” meaning her interest in stallions or showing other signs of heat.

Intrauterine devices (IUDs) are a less drastic option than an ovariectomy and can still prove to be a good choice, especially if you prefer that your mare maintain reproductive functions.

“An IUD is an object that is placed into the mare’s uterus that makes her brain believe she is pregnant,” Strickland says. The length of effectiveness for an IUD varies from six months to two years, but they can always be replaced.

The IUDs themselves can be a large marble or even magnets. Undesirable side effects with marbles include the possibility of uterine infection and inflammation of the uterine lining. It is for these reasons that it’s recommended that they be removed after one year.
When considering an IUD, it’s important to have a preparatory discussion with your veterinarian. In addition to being the only person qualified to complete the procedure, he or she can recommend the best product for your situation.

Because they can be inserted in the field, IUDs are the most economical of the two procedures. However, ovariectomies may still fit a mare owner’s budget.

The bottom line is that the criticized behavior of some mares is often undeserved. With a little study into the possible causes of behavior issues, and a discussion with your veterinarian on the best way to manage her estrous cycle and signs of estrus, your mare may become as reliable as your favorite gelding.

This article about the bad behavior in mares originally appeared in the September 2021 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!

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Have a foal due this spring? Congratulations! There’s nothing quite like an equine youngster to add happiness, fun, and a dash of cuteness to your barn. But along with the excitement comes a big responsibility—a young foal’s early training during this critical time is up to you, and it’s important to make these first simple “lessons” calm and beneficial.

What’s the first step on the road to being a “big horse?” Halter training the foal. Sure, it’s true that many foals are happy to just follow their dams everywhere, but allowing your foal to do this for too long doesn’t teach him anything for the future. For his sake and yours, halter training your foal is a must-do task. Here are a few tips that can help you successfully complete this important step.

Don’t wait too long to halter train your foal

This first tip may seem obvious, but it’s well worth noting. The time to teach your young horse to lead is when he’s small, easy to handle, and isn’t already set in his ways (although some foals seem to have opinions from day one!) Waiting until he’s several months old—or worse, waiting until he’s a yearling or two-year-old—will turn this normally simple training job into a difficult project, as your foal will weigh a lot more and be much stronger. Another added bonus to halter breaking your foal while he’s young is that he’ll generally want to follow along with mom, and you can use this tendency to your advantage.

Work with your foal every day

Your foal won’t learn much if lessons are spaced far apart. A small amount of work each day (or as close to daily as possible) is key to turning him into a model citizen on the lead rope. These lessons don’t need to be—and shouldn’t be—long or complicated. Simple tasks like taking him and his dam from the barn to the pasture and back can serve as excellent “learning to lead” lessons. Ten or fifteen minutes of daily practice should be all you really need.

Guide—don’t pull when halter training

When your foal is young, he’s delicate, and you need to be careful with him. It’s a good idea to let him get used to the feeling of wearing a halter, but you don’t want to actually apply any pressure to it (his neck isn’t very strong yet, and he also might begin trying to back up fast or flip over). Instead, let him follow behind his mom (with someone else leading her) and teach him to walk alongside of you by “guiding” his body with one arm. You may also need to put an arm or a foal “rump rope” around his hindquarters to encourage him forward. Hold the lead rope, but only use it for slight guiding. Don’t let the foal’s mom get too far ahead, or he might get upset, but just stay close and allow him to get used to you walking alongside. Gradually, as he gets older and more confident, you’ll be able to remove your “guide” arm and begin to lead him like a normal horse.

Ask for assistance

If you’re unsure about handling your foal, be sure to get assistance from someone who has experience. You definitely want to keep yourself and your foal safe during this process, and you also want it to be a productive, positive time for everyone. Enjoy your new foal!

The post Tips for Halter Training Foals appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.

George still hadn’t quite gotten used to talking on cell phones, and I winced as he answered his phone at his usual volume. It increased twofold when he realized it was me.

“WELL, HOWDY COURTNEY, WHAT DO YOU KNOW?!”

I held the phone away from my ear.

“Hey, George! if you’re not busy, I have a quest—”

“IT’S SUNNY HERE RIGHT NOW, BUT I SEE CLOUDS MOVING IN, AND DANG IT, I’VE GOT COLTS TO GELD!”

“GEORGE, I NEED TO ASK YOU A MARE QUESTION,” I bellowed.

Once in a while, George remembered to put his hearing aids in, but today was not one of those days. I explained the situation at the top of my lungs and asked if it was safe to allow the pregnancy to continue.

“THAT FOAL WILL GROW TO THE SIZE OF THE UTERUS. IT’LL BE BORN NORMALLY, AND THEN WHEN IT HITS THE GROUND, IT’LL REALLY GROW!” George boomed. “AND TELL LONNIE TO QUIT FEEDING THAT MARE ALL THOSE DANG SUPPLEMENTS—ONLY THING THOSE’LL DO IS MAKE HER FAT!”

George knew that Lonnie was an indiscriminate user of feed supplements, and her barn shelves were lined with every possible product, powder, granule, additive and oil. He made his opinions clear to Lonnie, and he liked to joke that she probably used a supplement dartboard to guide her protocols.

Incessant Calls about the Pregnant Pony

Lonnie was still worried about her pregnant pony, although she was grateful for George’s advice, and the waiting game began. We had an estimated four months to go, plus or minus.

Looking back, I think it might have been the longest foal watch of my career. Lonnie made sure the pregnant pony stayed on my radar with many helpful evening and late-night calls informing me that the mare had lain down twice and groaned several times, or that her udder wasn’t tender yet, or that she hadn’t finished her alfalfa hay in the same time frame that she’d finished it the night before.

I liked Lonnie, but I started letting the calls go to voicemail after a while, as having my dinner interrupted to be told that the mare was scratching her butt on the fence was getting old. When Lonnie couldn’t reach me on the phone, eventually she started paging me.

“Lonnie, what is it this time?” I asked wearily after my pager had gone off three times in a row.

“You need to come right out, Doc! I think she’s bleeding from her birth canal!”

That got my attention.

“How much blood? When did it start?”

Lonnie wasn’t sure, and when I arrived, she was holding a towel to the pony’s backside.

The towel was black, so I couldn’t tell how much blood there might have been.

I gently removed the towel and inspected the little mare. Nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary. Lonnie had a chair ready for me, and we watched the pony for about 20 minutes, but there was no sign of any bleeding or leaking fluids.

“Well, she was wet back there, and it seemed red,” said Lonnie defensively. “But the towel was so dark I couldn’t really tell.”

I stared at her. “Lonnie, I’m going to say this once. The pregnancy is progressing normally, and you need to leave her be and get some rest. Don’t call me again unless she’s showing actual signs of labor!”

The Wait is Over for a Pregnant Pony

My phone was quiet for the next few weeks. Finally, early one morning I finally got the call that I was waiting for. The pregnant pony had given birth during the night. Her foal was nursing well and the mare was up and eating. I didn’t see any reason to cancel my morning calls, and I told Lonnie I’d be along in a few hours.

Her number popped up on my cell a few times, but I was busy and didn’t answer. Then my pager went off.

“Where are you?!” Lonnie demanded. “The baby’s down, and she’s twitching!”

“Lonnie, she’s sleeping!” I said in exasperation. “I told you, I’ll be along when I finish my calls. Don’t page me again!”

Lonnie was sulky when I finally arrived, but she cheered up when I examined the mare and her huge foal and pronounced them perfect. The filly had the largest knees I’d ever seen, the mare was bright, and she hadn’t even torn during the delivery. I was charmed by the big filly with her whiskery, milky muzzle, and Lonnie was beaming when I drove off.

Growing Like a Weed

When the foal was a week old, her back was level with her mother’s hip bone, and by one month of age, she had to squat down to nurse. It was comical to see the pony with her huge gangly baby, and soon the filly was taller than her mother. Lonnie was much calmer now that the pregnancy was over, and my phone stayed fairly quiet.

One day, Lonnie announced that she was still hoping to find her driving team and was planning a trip to the horse sale.

I stared at her. “No more auction mares, Lonnie!”

She grinned. “Oh, don’t worry, doc! I’ve got my hands full with this elephant out in the field, and I’m sorry to have been such a pain about the whole thing.”

We gazed out at the enormous filly, now six months old and dwarfing her mother. Lonnie winked at me.

“Doc, make sure to ask Dr. Platt what supplements he recommends for the filly to get her ready for weaning.”

If you missed the first part of this story, click to read it now.

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She’s pregnant,” I called triumphantly over my shoulder to my technician.

She was writing down notes for me in my daybook so that I could transcribe them into my computer records that evening. “Right horn. Sixteen days. Single vesicle.”

The owners, Carl and Celia, were standing nearby. Celia’s face lit up, but Carl snorted.

“I know Maggie’s pregnant! That mare always lets me know when she’d bred. This ultrasound thing is just a waste of time, if you ask me.”

I raised my eyebrows at Carl, then looked over at Celia, who was still clasping her hands tightly.

“She’s really pregnant, Celia!”

“Oh, thank goodness,” she exhaled. “I’ve been an absolute mess since we scheduled you to come check her. Thank you so much, Dr. Diehl. You’re really an amazing veterinarian!”

I laughed.

“I think the stud and Maggie did all the work this time. I’m just the bearer of good news.”

Celia patted my shoulder.

“Well, you got her all fixed up so she could get pregnant one last time. I don’t know how to thank you!”

“Well, you’ve spent enough on vet bills,” grumbled Carl. “That should be thanks enough.”

Celia swatted him.

“Now that’s enough, Carl. Say ‘thank you’ to Dr. Diehl, and go on back to the house.”

Carl turned to me soberly.

“Thank you to Dr. Diehl and go on back to the house.”

I hid a smile as he shuffled off, hands in the pockets of his overalls whistling tunelessly as he headed toward an old Victorian farmhouse. A black-and-white dog slunk from the shadows and fell into step behind him.

My assistant was cleaning up my machine and gave me an enthusiastic thumbs up, then mimed wiping sweat off her forehead. I’d been nothing but the bringer of bad news for the last four months while we tried to get Maggie bred with cooled shipped semen. The broodmare had had a lot of difficulties conceiving.

Broodmare Difficulties

It had been a rough time, and between Carl’s dry comments, Celia’s disappointment and my own frustration, I’d wanted to quit many times. It was even worse having to send bills. The checks always arrived promptly, written in Celia’s cheerful script, and I just wanted to hide them away in my daybook.

Maggie was normally an easy breeder, but I’d inseminated her twice this season without any luck. She’d developed an infection in her uterus, and I had to spend another few weeks treating her and cleaning the infection out.

She was an older mare, and realistically this would be the last season we’d try to breed her. Celia had been distraught over the long chain of misadventures, as she desperately wanted one last foal out of Maggie. Another stud was available at a nearby farm, and I’d suggested live-covering Maggie this last time rather than doing another attempt with artificial insemination.

Maggie was trailered to the farm and stayed for three days. We waited until the 16-day mark to check Maggie, and neither Celia nor I had slept much during those last few weeks. Of course, Carl claimed he was sleeping like a baby and wasn’t one bit worried. He scoffed at us when we complained about our lack of sleep and muttered that it was good that at least someone had some sense in this equation.

When Words Aren’t Enough

Beyond the broodmare with difficulties, Celia had some other horses for us to see, and as we worked our way through her list, my mind kept returning to Maggie and the beautiful image of her pregnancy on my ultrasound screen. I’d worried and fretted and obsessed about this for so long, and it felt like Christmas had come early. My emotions were all over the place, and I kept smiling and chuckling to myself randomly as my assistant and I checked sore legs and bandaged cuts.

There was one damper on my mood though. That darn Carl could have at least said something nice or shown just a little appreciation, I thought. He’d given me a hard time over the last few months, and it would have been nice if he’d at least seemed pleased.

I was placing a few stitches in a cut on a gray mare’s muzzle when the same black-and-white dog I’d seen following Carl appeared. He nudged Celia’s leg, then plunked himself down at her feet and whimpered once.

“Patch, what are you doing out here?” said Celia. She looked at me. “That’s odd. Patch never leaves Carl’s side.”

I frowned.

“That is odd. Do we need to go check on Carl?” She nodded.

“I think I will. Are you OK here for a minute?” We assured Celia that we’d be fine, and she left, then returned quickly.

“Well his truck’s gone, but I don’t know where he went. And why he left Patch behind is anyone’s guess. He takes that dog everywhere!”

After a while I heard the roar of an old truck rumble up the road. Patch jumped to his feet and shot under a gate. A door opened and clunked shut, something banged and thudded, and then there was a slam of another door.

“That’d be Carl,” said Celia. “What on earth is he up to now?”

We all headed outside. Carl was disappearing into the house, and I stopped short at a flash of color visible through the driver’s window of my truck.

My entire front seat was filled with flowers. Mixed bouquets of daisies, roses, carnations, lilies and daffodils were jumbled in a heap and spilling onto the floor.

Celia peeked over my shoulder.

“Oh, that man will be the death of me. I swear, just when I’ve had it with him, he goes and does something like this.” She nudged me. “Look, there’s a card!”

I pulled the little envelope free and slid out a stiff white square of heavy paper. There were just two words on the card, written in a shaky script.

“Thank you.”

This Vet Adventures column about broodmare difficulties appeared in the June 2020 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!

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In 2017, 1.2 million web viewers around the world watched April the giraffe give birth on a viral live stream from the Animal Adventure Park in Harpursville, N.Y. That following year, horse lovers had the chance to await the birth of several foals from Thoroughbred breeding farms in various states, thanks to a creative initiative from the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in Saratoga Springs, N.Y, called the Foal Patrol, and now they are on Season 4.

John Hendrickson, who created the “Foal Patrol” concept with the late Marylou Whitney, once commented, “Once you see a foal born, you will never be the same.”

Watching a foal be delivered is an experience like no other for horse lovers, and if you’ve not had that experience before, then the Foal Patrol initiative has you covered. Followers can view a one-of-a-kind collection of live streams from participating farms to watch mares during their pregnancies, foalings, and the first few weeks of a foal’s life at FoalPatrol.com.

“One of the greatest aspects of Foal Patrol is that anyone with an internet connection can participate,” says National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame Museum Educator Lindsay Doyle. “This program provides a behind-the-scenes look at what daily life is like for an in-foal mare, granting access to an aspect of a mare’s life most people don’t have up-close access to. This access allows dedicated racing fans, as well as general animal lovers, a chance to ask questions, engage with farms, and deepen their understanding of the Thoroughbred industry as a whole.”

Foal Patrol now has fans all over the world, and Season 3 received more than 1.6 million views.

Fans can choose from a range of mares to follow, watch a daily feed of them as they go about their lives on a beautiful Thoroughbred farm, and enjoy the excitement of impending birth. Afterward, the blog gives updates on those foals born from previous seasons as they go through weaning and the beginning stages of training or to a sale (depending on the path the horse takes), and then to their appearance on the track.

In addition, FoalPatrol.com offers a variety of information about racehorses in general and also the stallions and broodmares in the program. There is also a kid’s area in partnership with Godolphin, one of the world’s leading horse racing and breeding operations.

Season 4’s roster of mares will be announced with webcams going live around the end of December.

In addition, keep an eye out for the following Season 1 foals, who kicked off their racing careers in 2020: Navratilova (Medaglia d’Oro x Centre Court, by Smart Strike) won her first race with Julien Leparoux on August 21 at Ellis Park. La Kara Mia (Medaglia d’Oro x La Verdad, by Yes It’s True) captured a second-place finish in her second start at Belmont Park on July 2, 2020.

This article about Foal Patrol Season 4 appeared in the January/February 2021 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!

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I was driving as fast as I dared. The roads were wet and slippery, and I could feel my tires lose and regain their grip on the road as I rounded the curves, my equipment rattling in protest. Where was the stupid turn to the farm? I’d already traveled a good distance up the canyon. Had I missed it?

Rain splattered against the windshield as my wipers beat a steady tempo. I clenched the steering wheel tightly.

Mare in Distress: Breech Dystocia

Evelyn was pacing in front of several buildings and threw up her hands angrily as she spotted me speeding towards her. I skidded to a stop, leapt out and threw some things in my tote, running after her as she flung open the door to a nearby run-in shed perched on a small hill. My heart sank as I peered in and looked at my patient, a huge draft mare standing miserably in the corner. Her sides heaved and she was lathered with sweat. Two feet protruded from under her tail. Two large feet.

I examined the mare and in dismay, I realized that they were hind feet. It was a breech dystocia, meaning that the foal was positioned wrong and was trying to come out rear-end first, a dreaded presentation. Given the size of this baby, my odds of success weren’t going to be good at all.

I had no helper with me—it was only me and Evelyn to tackle the breech dystocia. And she had no trailer and no way to bring the mare to a hospital.

I took a quick set of vitals on the mare and sedated her heavily. I wrapped her tail in a bandage and quickly washed her up, pumping some lube into her. Evelyn and I each took hold of a foot and began alternating traction. We made a little progress, but the foal was stuck tightly, and soon we couldn’t move it any further. The mare pushed a few times then stopped, her head hanging low.

If I didn’t think of something quickly, we were going to lose them both. I needed an overhead hoist, a whole team of strong people, and a referral hospital, not two people in a cold, damp shed.

I returned to the truck for more sedation and more lube. I attached a set of obstetric chains to the feet and we took turns pulling, but the foal wouldn’t budge. If I didn’t think of something quickly, we were going to lose them both. I needed an overhead hoist, a whole team of strong people, and a referral hospital, not two people in a cold, damp shed. What was I going to do?

The mare started to push again and began to stagger around the stall, the foal’s feet waving feebly. She circled for several minutes, then abruptly crashed to the ground, groaning.

Turning the Tide of Breech Dystocia

I studied her and realized that her position could actually work to our advantage. The run-in shed sat on a slight hill, and her body and hindquarters were now angled downhill. We quickly opened up the door, positioning ourselves just outside the shed, and connected the chains again.

Evelyn took one foot and I took the other, and on the count of three, we braced ourselves and pulled together. The mare lifted her head briefly and pushed again, and wildly I imagined that I could feel the foal moving towards us.

Little by little, the foal slid towards us, and soon the hips were out, then the torso, and finally the foal was out completely. But he wasn’t breathing, and I couldn’t feel a heartbeat.

We stopped for a moment, and Evelyn gasped, “Dr. Diehl, it’s working!” Sure enough, the hocks and upper limbs were visible, and we seized the chains and pulled in rhythm with the mare’s pushing. Little by little, the foal slid towards us, and soon the hips were out, then the torso, and finally the foal was out completely. But he wasn’t breathing, and I couldn’t feel a heartbeat.

We spun him around, angling his head and neck downhill, and frantically I compressed his chest as Evelyn blew into his nose. I kept checking for a heartbeat, and thought I was imagining the flutter under my fingers until the foal took a gasping breath and his limbs pedaled slightly. I injected a respiratory stimulant and some other medications to help him recover, and gradually he was able to sit up, then finally stand.

The mare had gotten to her feet shakily. I gave her some pain medications and started antibiotics for good measure. It was several hours before I was able to leave, but as I drove off, more slowly than I’d arrived, the foal was nursing well and the mare was happily munching hay. It was an absolute miracle. The breech dystocia was over.

Attitude or Gratitude?

Mother and baby did well over the next few weeks, and

I sent several bills to Evelyn, all of which were ignored. Finally, I called her. I was thrilled that her mare and foal had both survived the awful situation, and I admit, I was feeling a little pleased with my amazing vet skills. Surely Evelyn would have some high praise for me as well as some money to take care of the bill.

“Hello, Evelyn. Have you been receiving my bills? I haven’t seen your payment.”

“Yes, I’ve gotten them,” said Evelyn. “There were some mistakes on the bill.”

I glanced through it quickly and it looked correct. “What seems to be the problem?”

“Well,” huffed Evelyn. “Your bill is ridiculous. I shouldn’t have to pay your emergency fee because you took so long to get here, and since I helped you out for free, I think you also need to discount your professional services fees or at least pay me an hourly rate!”

This article originally appeared in the June 2019 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!

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Q: I have a wonderful riding pony that I am thinking about breeding, but I’m afraid she might be too old. She’s 20 years old, but has always been healthy. I don’t know if she’s ever had a foal before. How old is too old?

A: As a general guideline, broodmares are past their reproductive prime as they approach about 15 or 16 years old. That being said, of course there are mares out there successfully foaling past this age and well into their twenties. However, most of these mares have a thorough reproductive history filled with numerous previous healthy pregnancies.

The best thing to do to properly evaluate your mare’s reproductive health and capacity is have your veterinarian perform a BSE (breeding soundness exam) on your mare. Rectal palpation with ultrasound will help your vet evaluate the health of your mare’s uterus and monitor her ovarian activity. Some mares begin to experience a decrease in the number of estrus (heat) cycles, or have more irregular cycles, as they age and palpation will detect the presence of follicles, cysts, and other ovarian structures, both normal and abnormal.

A uterine culture and biopsy may also be a good idea, especially since you indicate you have no knowledge of your mare’s past reproductive history. A uterine culture will indicate the presence of a subclinical uterine infection that would decrease your mare’s fertility and a uterine biopsy would show the microscopic details of the endometrium, or lining of the uterus, and may detect abnormalities that could not be felt on palpation.

If your mare is cleared with a clean reproductive exam, there are still further questions to think about before breeding her. Firstly, do you consider her genes good enough to pass on to another generation? You state she is a wonderful riding pony, but as carefully and objectively as possible, please evaluate these aspects further:

• How is your mare’s overall conformation?
• Does she have a good personality?
• What health problems has she had since you’ve had her?

Also consider your intentions for the foal: will you be raising this foal, or selling it? If you plan on selling the foal, does there appear to be a market for it? Do you or someone you know have the experience to properly train a young horse? Will your current financial situation be able to handle the increased costs of a foal in terms of veterinary care and extra feed? Keeping in mind that the last half-decade or so has seen an increase in unwanted horses in this country. Do you have a plan as to where this foal will fit in? Although these may seem like harsh questions, they are meant to get you to honestly assess your mare and think about whether it is really a good idea to breed your mare at all, regardless of her age. I would ask these questions of anyone considering breeding his/her mare for the first time.

My opinion is that I would be hesitant to breed your 20-year-old mare, given her age and her unknown reproductive history. I strongly encourage you to consider the above questions before making your choice on breeding your mare to become an old broodmare.

The post How Old is Too Old to Breed a Mare? appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.