So my mare due in 3 weeks has had a lot of edema for about the last 6 weeks. Last week her belly button area seemed to pool the fluid and start to hang down. I took her to the foaling farm yesterday, and the woman there suspects it may be an umbilical hernia. The vet is checking today, but I was wondering if anyone here could enlighten me a little. How does this happen? How detrimental is it to the mare during the foaling process? Should I consider taking her to a vet clinic to foal out? Any advice is appreciated.
Haha! Sorry I am laughing because I had this same issue with my first 2 legged foal! In humans it’s no cause for concern regarding delivery unless maybe you had a huge tear. Good luck with your mare - did your vet seem to think she may need specialized care?
Thanks…he’s checking her today. Was just hoping for some COTH wisdom while I was waiting 
My maiden who just foaled did the same thing. She developed a lot of edema, and now her belly button area is somewhat prominent. My vet checked her yesterday and didn’t feel anything alarming, so hopefully when the edema goes away, so will the swelling around her belly button. I have never seen a mare do that before.
clint, sounds exactly like what mine did!
OP, much of the edema on my mare has gone, and the belly button area is almost normal. She is back to being an innie instead of an outie. 
vet checked mare and it’s not a hernia
