HEALTHY START FOR BROODMARE AND FOAL

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A speculum passed into the uterus can be used to check for urine pooling in the vagina and to assess the cervix. Injuries to the cervix can occur during dystocia (difficult or abnormally painful births) and may not allow the cervix to close properly during subsequent pregnancies, increasing the risk of uterine infections. Biopsies taken from the inside lining of the uterus are often very useful in determining if there is scarring or inflammation of the uterus. Uterine biopsies are graded, enabling your veterinarian to predict your mare's chances of carrying a foal to term.

Eating for Two

For the first two trimesters, the pregnant mare's nutritional requirements are the same as before pregnancy. Mares in early- and mid-gestation can easily maintain their weight on good quality legume (clover or alfalfa) pasture or hay and a trace mineral salt block.

The period of greatest development is during the last trimester, when 60% to 65% of fetal growth occurs. The mare's nutritional needs increase during this time to meet her own requirements, as well as those of the rapidly growing fetus. In the last three months of pregnancy, the mare's protein and energy requirements increase 32% and 20%, respectively. Unless you are feeding your mare a high-quality forage, she may need X to Y4 pounds of a high quality grain mix per 100 pounds of body weight daily to meet her increased requirements. She'll also need more calcium and phosphorus in order to mineralize the developing fetal skeleton. Calcium requirements increase by 85% in the last trimester-an amount that can't be met simply by increasing your mare's feed. At this stage, you'll want to supplement a grass hay diet with a 50:50 mixture of trace mineralized salt and dicalcium phosphate, fed free-choice. To avoid possible bone disease in foals, it's important that pregnant broodmares be fed nutrients to meet but not exceed recommended requirements .

Keep off the (Fescue) Grass

Never feed pregnant mares tall fescue grass during the last trimester of pregnancy, as this may lead to prolonged gestation, oversized foals, dystocia, decreased milk production, and thickened placentas, or afterbirth. Tall fescue grass is the most widely grown forage in the U.S. and is found mainly in the Southeast and Midwest, where there's an estimated 35 million acres of the stuff. The toxicity of fescue is linked to a fungus that grows between the cells of the plant and produces toxins. While the fungal toxins are generally bad news for animals, they're a boon for fescue grass, boosting the plant's resistance to drought and insects and enhancing its growth. It is estimated that 80% of fescue pastures are infected by the fungus.

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