Up to 15 percent of broodmares who were checked safe-in-foal at 45 to 60 days lose their pregnancies by late fall, says Thomas Lenz, DVM. It’s a good idea this time of year to recheck all of your mares by ultrasound or palpation to confirm that their pregnancy is progressing normally, he says.
Too often, a mare owner doesn’t know a mare lost her pregnancy until she doesn’t foal in the spring. . . The owner loses an entire year.
Source: AQHA, November 9, 2018. Link. If mare(s) will be sent to a broodmare farm or across state lines to be re-bred, now is a good time to ask your veterinarian to draw blood for a Coggins test for equine infectious anemia. EIA is a non-treatable, often fatal disease that can only be managed by preventing exposure to infected horses. A negative Coggins test and health certificate are required by most states and broodmare farms.
Too often, mare owners are not aware of the test and certificate requirements and learn of it only when they are ready to ship their mares.
INSIGHTS: Veterinary teams can use this article as a reason to set December pregnancy check appointments and inquire about certification needs.
Don’t have time? Try this.
- Pick 10 regular customers with five or more mares.
- Call them to discuss the potential of open mares and inquire about their testing and certificate needs.
I’ll bet you will find two or more of those customers will set preg-check appointments or come in for certificates.