What causes a mares teats to swell?
Excessive swelling of an udder in a lactating mare, indicating that the foal is not nursing, there is udder infection or the udder has sustained trauma. For mares that are not pregnant and are not lactating, swelling of this area could be caused by inappropriate lactation.
How many times can you breed a mare?
In a year, a mare can be bred when ever she comes in heat. Once she is pregnant she should not exhibit signs of heat and thus not be bred. Gestation is 11 months give or take some days, so a mare can produce one foal a year if everything is perfect.
Why are older mares more likely to have problems?
Because of their age, mature mares have had more opportunities to experience a decline in uterine health. Scar tissue could have developed as could endometrial cysts, which can present problems if they become large or are plentiful. These chronic degenerative changes in the uterine lining, or endometrium, are known as endometrosis, says Pinto.
What causes swelling in the back of the horse?
When excess fluid accumulates between the cells and tissues it causes swelling. Edema is recognized clinically because it pits on firm pressure and then is slow to refill, taking 5 to 30 seconds. There are many causes of edema, some inflammatory and some not.
How can you tell if a horse has an edema?
By knowing whether your swelling is inflammatory and/or edematous you can greatly reduce the number of possible causes. Once the cause is known more effective treatment can be instituted. There are a number of common swellings that can be diagnosed by their location and characteristics.
How to diagnose focal swelling in a horse?
For focal swellings see the images below for localization. Often these will be infection that is encapsulated in a joint capsule, tendon sheath, or walled off abscess. Note that in time the overlying tissues will usually become hot and edematous making diagnosis of the exact structures that are infected difficult.
How often does a 15 year old mare ovulate?
For young mares, the dominant follicle (the one that grows fastest in preparation for ovulation) fails to ovulate in less than 5% of cycles. But when mares are 15 and older, that rate can increase to 13%.
Because of their age, mature mares have had more opportunities to experience a decline in uterine health. Scar tissue could have developed as could endometrial cysts, which can present problems if they become large or are plentiful. These chronic degenerative changes in the uterine lining, or endometrium, are known as endometrosis, says Pinto.
When does a mare go back to diestrus after heat?
When a mare is in heat, which lasts four to seven days, the oocyte develops within its follicle, a fluid-filled sac of cells that protects and nourishes it. The enlarged follicle ovulates or releases the egg about 24 to 48 hours before the mare transitions back to diestrus.
When does a mare’s fertility begin to decline?
But from 15 to 20, their fertility declines, says McCue. Reproductive problems only continue to intensify in mares older than 20. Of course, each mare is an individual with her own health history and genetic tendencies. But why does mare fertility decline with age, and what can be done about it?