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Mare scanned not in foal but ...

Sport Horse Breeding
#1

… really looks like she is. Maybe she’s just putting on weight and that is fine if that’s all it is. I don’t think she can be as when she was scanned at 17 days post breeding the vet found 2 follicles (around 30mm and 35mm) and no embryo. So, there’s no way she could be pregnant … right?

I’ve been considering having the vet come and scan her again but haven’t as thought with the findings on the 17 day scan that it was not possible but now I’d like to ask those more knowledgable than me whether it is. I soooo wanted this breeding to work and I admit I was pretty disappointed when the vet said she hadn’t taken.

As a further piece of info, this mare has always been very showy with her heats. I can tell a mile off when she’s coming into heat. Since being bred, back in June, she has not shown any heats.

I don’t want to build up my hopes needlessly so any anecdotal stories appreciated.

#2

I have had it go both ways, where the vet said not in foal and the mare actually was.

Then I had this mare that was just weird. Scanned not in foal. Time went by and she got a huge belly. Not just a hay or worm belly, but a pregnant belly. My vet was out and he said we checked her and she wasn’t in foal right? I said yes, and he rechecked her again for free to make sure. She was even getting bagged up. Still not in foal. After that 2nd check by the vet she started to lose the belly and the bags. I never was able to get that mare in foal though.

A second check never hurts. I’ve also had the vet tell me that the mare had a cyst, when in fact it was actually a foal and not a cyst at a 16 day preg check.

#3

Wouldn’t hurt to get another scan. That’s pretty definitive. After 60 days the weight of the fetus can pull it beyond the edge of the pelvic brim making it hard for the ultrasonographer to reach it - unless they have really long arms. It’s still do-able, but they have to try harder to find it.

This thread might be of interest to you:

http://chronofhorse.com/forum/showthread.php?p=6560118

#4

I’ve had a mare scan not in foal and then end up being pregnant. I’d check her again.

#5

We are in the same boat–both mares have not teased in season and we are on our second heat cycle since being found not in foal at 17 days.

I am hoping the vet screwed up in reverse and they are both in foal. Wishful thinking I am sure but they just look like they are in foal the way they are carrying their weight in certain areas. One mare has always been ample but now–even more so.

Good luck I will keep fingers crossed for you.

(And good to know to check again before 60 days)

#6

FWIW, follicular development while pregnant is totally normal and indeed, desirable. Those follicles develop into secondary CL’s and attribute to maintaining adequate progesterone levels for normal pregnancy. Over simplification, but developing follicles is by NO means a reason to assume the mare is not pregnant. :wink:

#7

Thanks for the responses. I had previously read the linked thread, but thank you for posting it Rodawn :slight_smile:

If she is pregnant she would be at 82 days now. I have had other mares over the years that have been checked and found to be not in-foal but I’ve been sure they are and had them rescanned and found that they definitely are in foal. But those times there’s been no mention follicles, just that the fetus has been found.

Most of the people who know this mare have said she looks pregnant, so it’s not just wishful thinking on my part lol. This particular mare lives in a herd with a couple of geldings so it’s always noticable when she’s in heat.

For those who have had mares scanned not in foal, to find out later that they are in foal, has the vet mentioned the presence of follicles of this size on both sides? She had 30-something on one side and a 35mm on the other side. I thought that usually when follicles are present at that stage they are smaller than 30mm? Can they grow larger than 30mm if the mare is pregnant at 17 days? It’s the fact she had a 35mm that is convincing me she can’t be pregnant.

I’m not sure scanning is going to prove much at this stage as she’s in that funny inbetween stage where fetus may not be visible anyway.

#8

Crossposted with you Kathy. Thanks for your reply. In your experience are 35mm follicles the norm at this stage? If you were to find one that size and couldn’t find an embryo would you also conclude the mare is probably not pregnant?

#9

I had a mare scanned at 16 days and we almost missed it because it was smaller than normal. I was suprised she actually did find the “black dot” We rechecked a few days later to make sure it was growing and it was. So I would think if you had a similar situation with an abnormally small embryo, it could have been missed

#10

My mare Granada was scanned 18 days and vet had some hesitation - not clearly pregnant, but not clearly NOT pregnant either, so we waited and scanned again at 30 days and nothing was found. We decided not to try breeding again for the season since it was now August 1 by this time, and sent her out to pasture and one warm February day pulled her blanket off and lo and behold there was a bulge in an odd place. Make note, this mare never bulges anywhere. She is always maintaining a svelte figure. Sure enough she was preggers. I keep a picture of her on my website when she is at-term pregnant exactly 10 days before she delivered a healthy, fabulous premium Regazzoni filly. She hardly looks pregnant and indeed never even bagged up until day of delivery. She was sneaky on delivery day too. Even with me sleeping in the barn and checking on her hourly, she snuck the foal out in between checks and never once broke a sweat. To say she is stoic is the understatement of the century. I popped my head into her stall at 1:30 AM to find filly wobbly and starting to nurse.

#11

Thanks guys :slight_smile: Nice to hear happy ending stories. I guess I’ll just have to wait and see how it pans out over the next few months but I won’t get my hopes up.

#12

have had it happen 3 times in 12 years…so yes it can happen

#13

Is this the mare you bred with frozen?

#14

I have had this happen also…my vet told me my mare wasn’t in foal, and when she continued to gain weight, he came back out to check her and she was pregnant…

#15

I had a mare do this to me this year too…Bred her had her scanned and nothing…but she was acting differently…so when the vet came out again to scan another mare…he scanned her too…to find that she was OPEN… :cry:

A few years back he also scanned a mare said she was not pregnant…and you know what happened next…FOAL in 11 months…I felt badly too since I didn’t figure it out until she was 7 months…I wasn’t adding anything to her meals like the other mares…but made up for it in her last few months…

Good luck…I sure hope she’s got a little bun in the oven

SH:)

#16

Thanks, I really would have liked this one to take but time will tell.

Yes Galileo, it was the frozen-AI mare. She is positively blooming at the moment. When you’re next here, have a look at her and see what you think :slight_smile:

#17

I was once working for a TB operation that had a mare who had been covered by Incurable Optimist…twice as I recall…and came up empty. She was checked several times because we “thought” she was preggers. Nope.

Later checks finally showed her in foal, but apparently she had caught later than anticipated.

Imagine our surprise when the foal arrived a good 2 months earlier than the vet had told us! Just a few days earlier she was out with the herd in the north 40 and was only brought into the barn because she sustained a laceration on one of her front legs that needed to be treated. Days later, in a regular stall, we discovered her wee one and I immediately panicked thinking that he was premature!

Not so much!

He was a full term colt and he went on to win the 2004 New York Derby. That mare was named New York Broodmare of the Year in 2010 IIRC.

Some mares are good at hiding their precious cargo!

#18

What a lovely story Foundationmare :slight_smile:

#19

Cloverbarley, I’m in a very similar position as you are and the hardest part is just not knowing for sure.
I will keep my fingers crossed!! As I told my husband I would much rather have her lose the pregnancy now than have her deliver an unhealthy foal next spring.
Best of luck!!!

#20

Yes it really is a strange position to be in.

My mare is a finely built mare, quite lovely to look at, very elegant and with a greyhound-type build to her. She doesn’t get fat although she has nice covering … but never around her belly, or at least she’s never had this barrel belly during the time I’ve owned her. Right now she does. Even when she’s right at the top of the hill in her large field (a fair way from my deck) I can easily see how “good” she looks. I think I’m going to start taking a photo diary of her over the next couple of months.

Best of luck to you, and all who are in the same boat. By spring we’ll know for sure :slight_smile:

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