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Mare- possibly carrying a foal, but shows no signs2007-11-24 21:18:23

she was bred in august of 2006 and we think she is pregnant, but she is not as big as she should be, and she has been having discharge, but it is most definitely not her going into heat. she has milk, but she has also been a "surrogate mother" to a colt who refuses to stop nursing. she has started to force him away to wean him, and he is old enough to be weaned.[1 year and 6 months old]. she is starting to want to be alone out in the field, and has a sucky attitude sometimes. she is somewhat assertive toward the other horses, and her attitude has changed completely since she returned from being bred.

Answers:

Why on Earth are you letting a colt that is nearly old enough to be ridden stay with his mother? He SHOULD have been weaned completely when he was 6 months old at the latest, and separated permanently from mares ( inclulding his mother) shortly after weaning, to prevent him from mounting and attempting to breed her. The first thing that has to happen is that this colt has to be taken away from his mother- and efforts should be made to start groundwork and the training that is necessary to make him rideable. You also need to give some thought to whether or not you need to geld this colt, as it is against the law in most residential and suburban areas to keep a stallion. I can't for the life of me imagine why you have waited so long to wean this colt- you are on the verge of making a serious mental case out of this horse ( which may make him not only unrideable, but viscious as well- horses that are never weaned properly tend to develop serious problems with attachment and can become very hard to handle and train) and you have already done him a big disservice. Plus, your mare needs to be putting all her energies into providing nourishment for the foal she is carrying- and this is impossible as long as she is still nursing this LONG YEARLING. If your mare is having discharge, as you have said, what color is it? If it's bloody, then the mare either has an infection or she is in the process of aborting her pregnancy ( which would not be all that surprising, given that she has been subjected to so many unreasonble demands on her system since she was bred) and needs to be seen by a vet as soon as possible. She may want to be alone because she's uncomfortable or in pain- miscarriages aren't pain free, whether in a horse or a person. If you bred her in August of last year, her foal would normally not arrive until July of this year - a big mistake, because this is right in the middle of the hottest part of the summer in most parts of the country ! The flies and bugs are at their worst about that time, and again, I have to wonder why anyone would do such a thing and subject their mare to such torment in the process.You are right about one thing, though- it is WAY too early for your mare to be experiencing either discharge or for her to have milk or be bagged up- and the fact that she is does not bode well for either her or the foal, if in fact she is still pregnant. I would get my vet out to look at her, and very definitely, I would get that colt of hers OFF of her !!

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You need to get the colt that refuses to stop nursing away from her ASAP! All her energy should be going to the unborn foal and preparing for birth, not supporting the mooch!