Re: maiden mares?

["Code-Co, Byron Harward" <byron@code-co.com>]

At 04:02 PM 12/8/98, you wrote:
...
>Any comments on the quality of foals from a maiden mare? 
...
>I would imagine reality is somewhere in the middle, especially if you
closely watched the mare to make sure she was letting the baby eat and
nurse and so on


I couldn't help making a comment on this one because I had such an unusual
case.  I owned a quarter horse maiden mare that I bred to an Arab stallion.
It was my first time owning a pregnant mare of any kind. I was told what
signs I should watch for to tell when she would be close to foaling. The
last signs were "bagging up" and a waxy build up on her nipples or even a
bit of dripping. 

These last things never happened. I arrived at the pasture one fine June
morning and was very surprised to see that I had 5 horses out there instead
of the usual 4. It took me a stunned minute to realize that the extra one
was quite small and must be the mare's foal.

I called the vet and my wife and kids. We were all excited. The vet came
and gave the foal his care, attention, shots and examination. Then we tried
to help the foal nurse.  Moma mare was very patient but had no milk. The
vet explained that very important antibodies and other good things were in
that first colosterum (sp?) milk and if the foal didn't get it, the foal
could be in trouble.  

I was lucky enough to track down some frozen colosterum milk from the Arab
Horse Association in my area. We fed the foal about 6 cups through a bottle.

We fed the foal powdered mare-replacer milk until the foal was drinking
water from the tank and eating mare-replacer milk pellets (that was about 2
1/2 months). Then we let the foal eat the pellets and "gum" hay and grain. 

The mare was always a good mother in protecting and caring for her foal
except she never had any milk. However, the experience of a feeding
schedule that started at every 2 hours and expanded to about every 6 hours
just before we stopped bottle feeding wore our whole family out. (The
pasture was about 2 blocks from our city-subdivision home.)  I got so tired
of it that I sold the mare when the foal was about a year old. I didn't
want to go through that again.

The reason that I choose to comment was that I later decided I had been far
to hasty in selling that mare. We discovered that this foal grew into a
wonderful horse. If I could buy the mare back and go through the pain of
feeding another foal by her I would. This foal grew to be bigger than
either his dam or sire! He has all the good points from each. He is well
proportioned and very healthy.

Most importantly, he is disposed very kindly and trustingly to humans.  He
always let us handle his feet, touch him anywhere. He will leave the herd
to come to the fence to see what humans are up to. Sacking out was
unnecessary for anything a human might do or wave at him. (That made it
difficult to convince him that he was not wanted in the stall with another
horse at times.) He let us put anything on his back with out any fear or
resistance the very first request. The first human ever on him was his
13-year old owner. (My daughter.)

I know that lots of factors went into his nature and attitudes, but at
least this one maiden mare gave a wonderful physical structure and basic
attitude to her foal. Add to that the foal's experience that all good
things came from humans, and I could not ask for a better experience with
raising a foal. (Tropico is now 5 and has his AERC number and will start
endurance next summer. We will see how he does at that.)

If I could find his mother again, I would buy her back in a minute.

Byron Harward