First Arabian Horse Breeder's Foaling of the Season - Dystocia!

Setting the Stage

After my foaling experience last year with the twin Arabian horses, I was really dreading foaling season this year. I had this nagging feeling that something would go wrong foaling with my Arabian horses. Try as I might, I just couldn't shake it. So when the time came closer for Krugorrs Heiress to foal, I watched the Arabian horse even more closely. With the help of Mare Stare and its many viewers on the Alerts Board , the Arabian horse was watched 24-7.

By late Sunday evening, the mare's (Arabian horse) udder was swollen like a surgical glove with the fingers all blown up but the horse still did not have milk. The mare (Arabian horse) was irritable, flipping her tail a lot and doing some gesturing towards her sides. Close to midnight I went out to check the Arabian horse again physically. There were still no signs of milk in the Arabian horse but the foal had definitely changed position. The mare was having intense contractions, I could see the pressure on her vulva during them. Also, the rest of the Arabian horses were very quiet. A sign, I have noticed over the years, I can count on for impending foaling within this herd of Arabian horses. Somehow, all the horses know what is happening.

I was concerned enough that I cleaned the horse's stall and laid down straw for foaling. Something I only do when foaling is imminent. Then I went back into the house and watched the Arabian horse for a couple of more hours. I also watched the posting on the Alerts board about my Arabian horse. There was lots of activity and a good number of people were following her progress. The horse's contractions seemed to have backed off considerably although she was still switching her tail some.

I suffer from allergies and asthma. I'm allergic to horses, dust, mold, straw, hay, and most everything else to do with horses and farms. For a couple of days I'd been having more problems than usual with headaches and an upset stomach. I also felt like I had an elephant sitting on my chest. So at about 2:30 am PDT I decided to lay down for a while. I felt comfortable enought that I could post on the mare Stare boards that I needed help and they would keep watch for me. So I left my post and laid down for a while, asking the Mare Starers to keep watch on my Arabian horse. I knew I could count on them to call if anything changed with my horse.

I woke up about 5 am and went back to the cam to check my mare. I also checked the and the Mare Stare alert board to read the updates on my Arabian horse. Posts on the board stated a low alert had gone out on the mare (horse. I watched for a while, although I didn't do any posting. I pretty much agreed with the status on my Arabian horse. The mare looked to be in labor but there was no evidence the horse had reached the second stage (pushing the foal out) yet.

My husband called to say he was on his way home from work. I went to take my medications for my allergies hoping I could shake my headache before the Arabian mare (horse) kicked into full gear. I lay down for a few minutes to give the meds a chance to work when the phone rang. It was Dave saying Mare Stare viewers had called and the horse was foaling. The wrong phone number was posted on the web cam.

I raced to the computer to check the horse. The connection had been dropped but the picture of the Arabian horse frozen in the background was not good. I could see a portion of the foal's sack hanging with a bulge of fluid but no signs of a foal. In a normal foaling, the sight should have been a bubble of the foal's sack around both feet appearing out of the mare's (horses) vulva.
Throwing on a coat and pulling on my boots, I headed for the barn calling the vet on my way. Unlike last year, getting a vet was not a problem. I was grateful to have established such a great relationship with Dr Gillette because of the twins, Arabian horses. I knew I could count on him answering my call. Jack answered right away. He gave me instructions to get started while he was on his way. I was equally grateful he was only a couple of miles down the road. Time is of the essence in dystocia.

To be continued......

Part 2

OK, I apologize for the suspense. I alwlays feel like the more I know the better prepared I am. I see these posts as not only a way to tell the story but as a tool to educate people to do that takes details, details, details..........

Arabian horse Arabian horses horses horse foaling