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Every month around the 13th or 14th of the month, my mare starts to lose interest in her feed and starts to lie down more frequently. By the 15th or 16th, she won't eat her evening meal and seems uninterested in everything but sleeping and hip sitting. I usually end up getting her up and putting her in a stall so she can sleep undisturbed. Most recently, however, on the 15th of March she had shooting diarrhea and acted "off" in the early evening. Her temperature was normal (100.8), and she didn't have any flags on her physical exam other than the wet diarrhea and that she was also butt pressing on the stall wall. We administered a biosponge, and she was eating and acting brighter several hours later. Could this all be from her heat cycle? If so, should I still breed her as I intended? If she acts like this from being in heat, how will she handle labor pains and birth? I have dealt with many mares, but none quite like her.
Last Updated: May 23, 2008
It is possible that this could be related to her heat cycle, although it is hard to determine. Her current behavior related to this problem doesn't mean that she will do poorly during parturition. If your veterinarian indicates that she is healthy and appropriate to breed, then you might go ahead and breed the mare. You should continue to work closely with your veterinarian to manage this mare.
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