August was the month two of our five foals of 2021 were due and as foals are generally my department, it was a busy, sleep-deprived month for me. I have wanted to write about my experiences before, but got busy with other things, so I will write a series of articles in the next few days.
I love having babies and after 11 months waiting for them between conception and birth, I am always impatient to finally see the outcome.
Due to Corona and our inability to organise and run horse trails, we decided last year to cover some of our mares, so that at least they would not stand around, doing nothing. At the same time, we finally got the permission to cover four of our mares by the Palace stallion of Udaipur, a special honor not bestowed on everybody and one we had coveted for many years. Why it was bestowed on us last year after asking many times, we also don’t know, but sometimes when one door closes, another on opens.
We looked at different stallions in and around Udaipur and finally settled on three stallions to become the father of our 2021 babies. Raj Swaroop, the Palace stallion of Udaipur was one of them. He is a magnificent bay of the Sultan line, very tall, strong-boned and showy with the calm and friendly temperament which all Sultan off-springs have.
The second stallion also is also stabled in Udaipur. His name is Krishna Raj and he is a beautiful piebald with a star on his forehead. His sire was the famous stallion Raj Tilak, another horse of the Palace of Udaipur, descendent from the late Raj Shringar, a famous piebald stallion belonging to the Royal family of Udaipur.
The third stallion is from Rajsamand, around 65 km north of Udaipur. His name is Devroop and he is a stunning black with two white feet and a pretty blaze. He is a grandson of the famous black stallion Pavan, father of our beloved mare Anokhi. Pavan is the son of Toofan, so we call it the Toofan line. Devroop was suggested to us by a friend who had one of his mares covered by him and as we really liked Pavan before (unfortunately he is no more) and liked the look and confirmation of Devroop, we decided to go ahead.
All this covering happened last year between September and November. We took our mares to the stallions as there is only live covering available in Rajasthan, no artificial insemination.
Then it was time to wait and hope. There is no ultrasound here, so no pregnancy check-up except by hand after three or more months when the embryo is big enough to be felt by inserting a hand into the backside of the mare.
But then I know my mares fairly well. Kirti and Ashtami where the first to have been covered and I was quite certain they were both pregnant after eight weeks. If you know your horses well, you know how they behave when they come in season each month and if they stop coming in season which was the case with both of them.
Radha and Lakshmi got covered in November and they were harder to tell. Radha never had a foal at our place before, so I did not know how she would react. But she showed me soon that her hormons were changing by becoming extremely interested in our yearling Ambika. This was new, so I suspected her to be pregnant as well. Laskhmi was a bit of a black box. I did not know her much as she had just joined us the previous November from Pushkar and I still cannot read her as well as I can with the others.
The vet finally came and checked those mares which let him. Ashtami and Lakshmi refused but he confirmed Kirti and Radha and I had confirmed Ashtami before. So only Laskhmi remained uncertain, but sometimes this is just how things are.
Spring came and the bellies slowly got rounder and finally Laskhmi also could not hide her secret anymore. So, I counted on four mares due between early August and early November.
My counting got upset when a mare we had sold the previous year, was returned to us due to the poor financial situation of her new owner. I am still happy, that he gave her back to us rather than selling her off to the first person available to turning her out on the streets.
She was also pregnant even though we still don’t know the exact covering date but estimate that she was covered in the second half of October which is an educated guess.
We did not get any notice before, so she just arrived back one evening at the farm and I had to juggle our horses to make room for her. As she had been gone for almost one year, her previously best friend Kirti (pregnant, so with altered hormone levels) refused to be friend with her anymore and made it clear, that she was not welcomed. Mares can be mean sometimes, just like humans. She then attached herself to Radha and the tow of them have become best friends.
So, now I knew I had two babies due in August, one probably somewhere in September and two in the beginning of October.
August came and I was prepared. I had all medicines and things that might come in handy and I started with getting up and check on the mares each night just to make sure everything was alright.
The problem with horses is, that they don’t always foal on the exact dates, sometimes not even close. Technically the gestation period in horses is around 335 days. Foals born 15 days early or late are quite normal though and I know breeders who had foals on both day 305 and day 385 without any issues. So how can we know when to expect the birth of a foal?
There are several indicators and a method I have been using successfully over many years. First of all, it is important to look out for all the small signs the mare will show before giving birth. The udder grows full and there might even be droplets of milk coming out. The muscles of the hind quarters relax and become soft to allow the passage of a foal. Sometimes the shape of the belly of the mare changes a few days before birth. This is due to the foal turning inside to get into the birthing position. All these might be tiny changes to watch for, but if you know your mare, they will tell you a lot.
But what is a pretty good method to know is the measurement of the ph-value of the milk droplets. It drops sharply in the 48 hours before birth from 8 till about 6. So, if you can collect a tiny drop every day before the baby is due, this gives you a very good indicator. Apparently, there are mares which never have this drop or where the drop occurred days before the birth. But in my limited experiences, this method, so far has never failed me.
It is also a good idea to get the mare used to touch on her udder. Particularly maiden mares might not let their foals suckle as they are ticklish if they are not used to it.
Of course, you must proceed with due caution and never just touch your mare there out of the blue. She might kick you out of surprise. Rather get her used to it slowly, even before a pregnancy. I make sure all my youngsters are used to being touched between their legs so they accept it without any fuss. If you have a mare which is extremely squeamish and will not allow you to touch her udder, then there is not much you can do, particularly not in the last weeks of her pregnancy. It is better not to get her all nervous and panicky. Then you can only keep a tight watch over her.
But both my mares Kirti as well as Ashtami are fine with me touching their udders. The next problem is, some mares do not have any drops of milk. While you can massage gently and hope for a tiny droplet to fall on your indicator strip, it is better not to do too much manipulating. The first milk, the colostrum, is too important for the foal to be wasted like this. If you collect drops, try to use only one tit all the time.
Even though the ph value was still around 8, I got up each night to check. And each night, both mares were comfortably napping, feeding or resting when I came around. So, I knew, not tonight.
Finally, Kirti’s ph value dropped towards 7 and then below 7. I ramped up my night patrols to twice, then trice to make sure I would not miss the big event. Still, only napping, feeding or resting. Kirti definitely was not in a hurry.
I was getting more and more sleep deprived and started walking around like a zombie during the day. Still my mares were unfazed. Kirti’s due date arrived and went. She was still ph around 7 and still no foal.
I even considered leaving them inside their paddocks during the day as I was scared, they might give birth during the day with the other horses around. One day after her due date, her ph value dropped to 6,5 than to 6,2, usually a sure sign that the birth was around the corner. I was super exited and hardly slept at all, checking ever so often, only to find her happily munching her feed or resting.
Four days after her due date, they came in as usual in the evening and got their dinner. I relaxed a bit on the terrace, sitting on my deck chair with my cup of tea and my eyes closed, dozing off a little as I was really tired, not sleeping at night and unable to regularly sleep during the day.
Suddenly my riding student came running and told me that Kirti was giving birth. Immediately I was wide awake and sprinted to the stable. Kirti had laid down and two little hooves and a small nose was already showing.
We kept our distance. Kirti was apparently not happy with her situation, she got up -almost giving me a heart attack- only to lay down again in a slightly different place. She pushed hard. The foal half outside, still covered in the white membrane, appeared lifeless. My heart skipped a few beats and I was half panicky. Things appeared to be at a standstill and time itself seemed to be suspended. Each second lasted what felt like an hour. I could barely breath. Finally, Kirti gave one more push and the foal slipped out. It lifted its head and the membrane broke. I heaved a sigh of relief, so far so good.
Kirti was visibly exhausted and did not move. The foal started moving a little and the membrane fell away. It shivered. Normally the mares get up after the baby is born and lick their foals dry. This also stimulates the foal’s circulation and gets the system up and running plus it will break the umbilical cord.
As Kirti was too tired, I moved in with a towel and gently rubbed the baby dry. It was of light brown color with a cute, regular blaze, just like Kirti’s and it had two white socks. It was a little boy. Finally, Kirti got up and turned to sniff her baby. I left the two of them to bond without disturbance and she licked him for a good while before he decided to try to get up. Foals have super long legs and getting up and standing on them is a challenge. He tried several times and finally with a little assistance from our side, stood on shaky feet, wobbling around to find the milk. He was tiny and skinny and did not look very strong, But once he was on his feet, he found the udder quickly and started drinking. By now it was totally dark and we fed Kirti some special goodies for good milk in the light of a torch. I was still worried as the placenta had not come out.
Every horse breeder will not leave a new born foal until he has gotten up, nursed, passed the first stool and until the placenta is out and examined to be intact. That all can take 1-2 hours, even though in the face of such a miracle, time becomes meaningless. I also did not realize how the time went by, standing in the paddock, totally covered in birthing fluids and blood, dirty but happy. Once the placenta came out, I checked it and it was luckily complete. Sometimes parts of it remain inside the uterus where they can lead to infections and might pose a serious risk to the mare. But it looked good to me. Kirti nibbled on it a little which is totally fine. The placenta is loaded with nutrients and hormones which the mare might need.
While the other horses had not noticed at first, now they all looked and called out to the newest member of the herd. They always welcome every new addition like this, knowing that something wonderful has happened.
Finally, everything was well and I could head to the shower only to fall into bed straight away.
The following morning, I gave Kirti a tetanus injection, to make sure she and the foal would have enough antibodies against this terrible illness and gave a colt starter to the baby.
Then I took both of them for a first round outside. Kirti grazed a little and the foal stretched his legs. His hind legs were still quite weak, which is often the case. A lot of walking and running on hard ground helps the tendons to straighten out and become strong enough. After half an hour outside, I put them back into the paddock and let the rest of the herd outside. They all came running to see the new addition and to welcome the baby. Kirti was not so happy and kept him close to her side well away from the rest. It will take time until she will allow anyone else near her son.
Now you think, I could sleep properly for a few nights, right? But I was so habitual to getting up and I wanted to check on our little baby boy, so I anyway got up at night and check on the two of them. During his second night, the foal managed to slip outside under the stable bars and wobbled around outside, saying hello to the other horses while Kirti called out to him to come back. I had gone for my routine check and brought him back to his mom.
We decided to call the little boy Raj Kalyan. Raj means king and Kalyan means auspicious. A big name he will certainly grow into!
Ashtami’s ph value dropped to 7 two days later, so I knew she would also not take so long anymore.
If you want to know more about the pregnancy of horse, have look at this wonderful Pregnancy Wheel which tells you about the development of the foetus each month!