MANAGEMENT OF IN-FOAL MARES

MANAGEMENT OF IN-FOAL MARES

• Each mare should be kept in very good breeding condition. Sole function of the brood mare is to be a machine for the production and rearing of young.
• Exercise is most important during pregnancy. Liberty stabling and graz­ing provides enough exercise for these mares and those confined to stables suffer ill effects of it. While grazing, the mares should be scattered all over and not allowed to stay in groups. Any mare isolating from others and standing alone may be examined for illness.
• Provided the mares are properly trained, there is no harm in riding or using them in cart during early stages of pregnancy but they should be worked at a slow pace and not more than 1 ½ hours daily. As the time approaches for the mare to foal, care should be taken to prevent sudden frights and violent galloping.
• It is good plan to divide the mares into conve­nient sized groups according to their expected date of foaling.
• The mares generally bring forth their foals at an average 338 days after covering. Some mares invariably go overtime while others do the reverse. Mares with low condition exceed their time for foal­ing by about two weeks, while mares in good condition foal in time or several days in advance of it.
• 30 days before foaling, the mare should be given a booster dose of tetanus to booster the high antibody titer in the mare’s colostrum.
• All pregnant mares should be shifted to the foaling boxes about 3 weeks before the expected date of foaling.
• The mares foaling 20 days ahead of expected date should be considered as premature foaling, if the foal is alive. The birth of a dead foal 20 days before should be presumed as an abortion. The birth of a dead foal within the range of normal foaling i.e. 20 days either side may be considered as stillbirth.

MANAGEMENT OF FOALING MARE

• Generally foaling takes place during night time.
• All in foal mares should be closely watched for signs of approaching parturition when they get within a fortnight of their expected date of foal­ing.
• As the foaling time draws nearer, the filling of udder increases, which becomes firm and of rather turgid consistency. Doughy swelling under the skin in front of the udder often appears in some mares. There is nothing to worry about it as it disappears when the flow of milk starts after foaling.
• The advanced stage of foaling is marked by sinking of the quarter on each side of the croup, in the hollow on both sides of the root of the tail.
• The pelvic muscles between hip joints, croup and back to the root of the tail may feel slackened and depressed due to influence of hormone ‘Relaxin’ (which is produced during last days of pregnancy). The swelling and relaxation of the vulva is often seen.
• There is appearance at the end of the teat of little nodules of wax like substance produced by the secretion of clear thick serum like material from the teat canal. It is always better to get the waxing mare into foaling box at night and keep her under constant observation.

SIGNS OF NEARING PARTURITION

• As a mare approaches parturition, the concentration of calcium ions in the mare’s milk increases. A water hardness test strips can be used for this purpose.
• The usual symptoms of approaching labour are that the mare shows excitement, pacing uneasily round and round in the foaling box, profuse sweating, paws the ground, gazes around her flanks, lies down and gets up again repeatedly and passes small quantity of urine frequently.
• At this stage, care should be taken to regulate the ventilation while the mare is perspiring and is in a heated state.

AFTER CARE OF FOALING MARE

• The placenta of the mare should normally drop within one hour after foaling.
• In case of delay beyond three hours, it should be removed by administration of hormones and by manual interference.
• After foaling, a mass of tangled foetal membranes will be hanging from the mare and if these are inclined to get in the way and strangled or stampeded upon as the mare turns and moves about in the foaling box, then the membrane should be tied up by a string into more compact mass, a little above the level of hocks.
• Tying the weight to the placenta is not advocated as it might cause pull at the roots and cause injuries to the uterine walls. It should be ensured that the placenta is expelled as a whole and intact and no piece is left inside.
• The placenta is then examined thoroughly by spreading and opening it inside out. Any defect or abnormality should be noted.
• Before disposal, the placenta should be weighed and disposed of either by burning or by burial. A normal weight of placenta ranges between 5.9 to 6.4 kg. If it weigh about 8.2 to 9.1 kg and is very bloody, the uterus may be infected and need treatment. The container and the attendant’s hands should be thoroughly disinfected.
• If the expulsion of placenta is delayed beyond three hours, it is liable to become infected with organisms and may lead to uterine infection and consequent sterility. Haemorrhages after foaling should be viewed seriously. a
• The colostrum of the mare is rich in protein, minerals and vitamins and is heavily loaded with antibodies produced in the mare’s serum against most of the common harmful bacteria. It has stimulating and slightly laxative effect on the meconium (first faeces voided by the new born). The first secretion of colostrum only is rich and after 12-15 hours, its original antibody concentration is reduced to nearly half and in about 36 hours, the amount of antibody is very small and practically normal milk is secreted.

MANAGEMENT OF FOAL AT FOOT MARES

• After foaling, the mare with her foal should remain in the foaling box for about 4 days.
• By this time, mare would have cleansed herself. The mare then is taken out of the foaling box in an open loose box and kept there with her foal for about 15 days, by that time the foal starts recognizing its dam and is ready for mixing with the other foal at foot mares of approximately the same age.
• The foal at foot mares should be kept in small groups of not more than 10 in the paddock, according to the age of the foals.
• The mares which foal in a month may be kept together, similarly other foal at foot mares should be grouped according to the month of foaling.
• A general rule to deworm a foal at foot mare, is the next day after her dhaman (foal heat) covering.
• As the foals start growing in age, the suckling of milk causes drain on the mares and some start losing condition due to the heavy drain on their health. Best care and management is required to keep foal at foot mares in reason­ably good condition.
• They should be given extra grain feed, barley should be fed after boiling. Good grazing pastures have tremendous effect in main­taining the falling condition of these mares.

MANAGEMENT OF WEANLING MARES

• The foals are separated from their dams when they are 6 months old.
• Early weaning of foal may be carried out on veterinary grounds if the foal is maintaining healthy condition and the mare is rapidly going down in condition.
• For 12 hours prior to separating mare and foal, the mare should be deprived of food and only small quantity of water is allowed to her.
• The foal’s regular drain on milk supply and withdrawal of mare’s food, com­bined, will ensure that the udder will be practically depleted of milk at the time of actual separation.
• After the separation has been completed, the mare can have small quantity of hay and on expiration of 4 hours, the udder should be fully relieved if distended.
• If small quantity has been secreted, it should not be milked dry but only a portion is drawn off.
• The object to be kept in view, is to dry up the milk supply as quickly as may be, while avoiding any risk of congestion or inflammation. Engorged udders are liable to cause damage to the tissues.