Saturday, March 21, 2009

Herself, the Great Red Menace

As promised, here are some photos of my mare, Lyric. Is that belly (and the horrendously saggy topline) the result of 4 months of vacation and lots of hay, or is there a little resident in there?




If she is in foal, this is the time when the foal's growth will be very rapid. My vet, Greg Dowd, will be coming back April 14th to palpate again, and if there's a foal to be felt, it should be big enough for Greg to reach. I'll be sure to keep you posted!

7 comments:

Melissa said...

I have to admit my Ruby has been looking more like this after a winter off too! But how exciting if its a baby!

saddlefitter said...

I'm hoping! I put her blanket on last night for the first time in a couple weeks, and the surcingles needed to be let out ...

Anonymous said...

It is possible! She would be about 7 months along, right? I had a mare that I figured was barren - living with a stud for 2 years with no results (though the other mare had a baby as expected) led me to that conclusion. After recovering from a spring injury of my own, I was finally ok'd to start riding mid summer and thought my mare was awfully thick. The vet confirmed she was in foal - he coudn't be sure how far along she was since nobody ever let him palpate that far into the pregnancy! We started prenatal care and were rewarded with a healthy colt in early November.

Sometimes though, the vets can't tell, there is a pelvic shelf that can prevent them from finding the fetus.

Rosalie

Anonymous said...

She sure is shaped like my mare was when she was in foal.

saddlefitter said...

Rosalie, she was bred on July 30 and 31 of '07, which would have put her at about 7 1/2 months along when Greg (he of the short arms) first checked her. If she is in foal, she'll be due around the 4th of July. Glad your baby arrived well!

Wynne, I'm trying not to get too excited. I spend WAY too long staring at her belly, waiting to see movement.

Kate said...

I'm ashamed to say that my horse looks more pregnant, and he's a gelding. People ask me when "she's" due a lot. LOL.

Galadriel said...

That belly looks pretty off-center, doesn't it? Hmmm!