I found out my mare is preganant(not intentional nearby stud got loose but didn’t think he got her that quick) she is about 6 months now and I’m feeding her buckeye gro n win 1 lb and 0.5 lbs of rolled oats. She is a 13hh paint mare about 800 lbs. Should I increase her oats or do yiu think she will be ok with this ration now?? I just want to make sure this baby is getting everything it needs to come out healthy. She has access to 24/7 grass hay and has a large pasture to run around in. I was referred here by another member saying you all are very experienced. I appreciate any advice you are willing to give me.
I forgot to say she is a 3 yr old maiden mare and this is my first foal so I’m a little bit worried.
Call a vet.
How is her weight now? Assuming she is in good condition now you shouldn’t need to change anything for quite a while as their calorie needs don’t really increase a lot until they are lactating. Read the back of the bag, they should have a broodmare recommendation. Not an oats fan so won’t weigh in on that. I always add alfalfa hay to their ration towards the end and then make it free choice after foaling.
There’s Mare and Foal formulations of commercial feeds out there, at least one should be easily available in your area. Follow label directions and keep an eye on her weight and condition. And lots and lots of good hay and clean water. Mare is about halfway through her term so it’s probably appropriate to go to one of those pregnancy specific feeds now. Those companies have mixed the feed for those special needs in large quantities and it’s lots easier to buy and store theirs then try to source and custom mix your own tiny batch.
Have always had friends who breed, they don’t do anything special other then adjusting nutrition via the Mare and Foal feeds, might add a targeted multi vitamin supplement to meet pregnancy and nursing needs and being sure the calories are adequate. Be careful not to throw every supplement in the catalogue or that pops up on the internet in the feed tub…it’s expensive and not needed if the basic diet is well thought out.
Lots of healthy mares on normal diets have dropped healthy surprise foals or weren’t known to be pregnant until the last month or so. Don’t overthink it.
If your veterinarian hasnt seen your mare, have him out for an examination. He will tell you what she needs. Feeding isn’t difficult. Good quality hay, some grain and suppliments…don’t let her get thin but not overly fat either. I think a big concern is where she will give birth. It needs to be safe, clean, draft free, and she needs to be very familiar with the birthing area to be anxiety free. Get a book on recognizing potential birthing problems and as the time gets close (your vet or book can help you to recognize this stage also) someone needs to keep close watch and be there to call the vet if necessary. Most mares don’t have problems, but the more you are prepared, the more you will enjoy the entire event.
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Ours really don’t get anything different. We foal mostly TBs and even they typically don’t need much extra until they foal. We do rhino vaccines at 5/7/9 months, so if you haven’t done that, I would. The other thing to check with your vet about is that you don’t want her to have access to fescue grass/ hay for the last few months of her pregnancy. http://poisonousplants.ansci.cornell…ts/fesalk.html
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My pregnant girls have always done great on a ration balancer - that way I don’t need to worry that they’re getting all the vitamins and nutrients they need. I’d especially worry about that as she’s still growing herself. I usually add alfalfa as well, 5-10lb/day. Mine have 24/7 access to orchard hay and generally are eating 25-30lbs a day at this point. You can add extras on like beet pulp/rice bran if her weight dictates such. Also make sure she gets her rhino vaccines.
I would do 2lb of the GNW, and drop the oats.
You need a lot more nutrition in her condition, and while 1lb of oats isn’t harmful (assuming not a majorly metabolic horse), it’s not beneficial either, whereas increasing the GNW provides a great many more benefits.
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And you’ll want to remove her from pasture, and feed non-fescue hay, by at least 60 days before expected foaling. 90 is better.
If that simply isn’t an option, and I get it, then you will want to start Equidone 15-20 days out (as best you can guess), but then you also need to have tested frozen colostrum to give the foal, as domperidone is known to decrease colostrum quality.
Pre-foaling shots 30 days out.
Deworm the mare as you would any adult, but use ivermectin (or Equimax) within 12 hours after foaling to help minimize the risk of passing intestinal threadworms to the foal.
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This is a helpful chart for determine how much you should feed 
https://www.buckeyenutrition.com/tools/balanced-nutrition-solutions-guide.aspx
Thank you everybody for your advice!! I think I will increase the gnw and keep feeding the oats becasue she won’t eat the gnw without it and that should be good enough cause she is actually kinda fat right now lol. I will definitely get the rhino for her and I don’t use to worry about fescue beca use it doenst grow here. Maybe some alfalfa when it starts to get really cold.
Has a vet seen this mare?
It isn’t possible for people on the internet to know the specific needs of your mare.
A well balanced diet made up mostly with excellent quality hay is all I’ve ever fed and added a mare /foal feed in the last trimester. After foaling I upped the feed as needed. You want her to remain well fed and well fleshed throughout the pregnancy, but not be too fat.
How big was this stud who can’t be kept at home? A vet check with the info on the stud will be helpful for when she foals.
1st thing should be a call to the vet, not an internet horse forum. Please have a vet out ASAP.
Post some pics of the tyke when your mare pops.
One more thing. It’s stallion not stud.
“Stud” is appropriate for a stallion who has been breeding
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