Nurse mares

[erhrdt3]

Hi all,

Can someone provide some info. on how the nurse mares are "made" I mean I know they have to be bred and all, but I had read somewhere that some places do bad things to their foals so that the mares are available for the 'better' mares in the event they are needed? I hope this is not true, and I know alot of foals are stillborn yearly, so I'm hoping that is the case as opposed to what I read.

Reading that Rachel's foal is now mothered by another nurse mare reminded me of this so I thought I would get others opinions on this????? thanks

[photofinish]

Nowadays there are a lot of rescues who take in proffessional nurse mare's foals to bottle raise them. In the old days, most were euthanized.

[TJ]

Rachel's foal's nurse mare is a quarter horse. TJ

[madelyn]

Nurse mares are mares of indeterminate breed that are bred every year to any available stallion to have them foaling throughout the TB breeding season. The ideal nurse mare is one who has just foaled. They take away that mare's foal and take the mare to the TB foal who needs a "mother". I don't believe in the fairy tale "rescue" of those orphaned foals that are taken off the mare; I still believe they are mainly taken out back and "bang". It's a business I find so appalling I just would NEVER, EVER support it. I raised an orphaned TB of my own with Buckeye Mares Milk Plus and foal pellets and he grew up just fine.

[Pan Zareta]

Can't argue with anything Madelyn said. The idea of sacrificing a healthy foal in order to place a foal of greater commercial value on its dam is something that just about anyone other than the most hard-hearted stockman would find generally appalling. That's probably why Stonestreet has gone so far as to post considerable info re. the nurse mare's natural foal. http://www.stonestreetfarms.com/info/?page_id=144

[erhrdt3]

that is absolutely terrible. A little baby horse, that did nothing wrong except be born, is shot because they want the mother to nurse a more full blooded horse?! What is wrong with these people???? Have they no hearts?

[erhrdt3]

And Madelyn, good for you to raise up one on a bottle. Other animals are raised up by bottle, there is no reason a baby has to be destroyed for another.
I'm sure, as Madelyn mentioned, there are plenty of baby formulas for them. This is just another ugly side to this sport. I know some foals are not born alive, but not that many to suit the demand for nurse mares.

Either that or isn't there a way to get a barren mare to lactate with hormones? Or do they HAVE to have a foal?

Good for you Madelyn. give Rocky a pat for me. He's beautiful!

[TJ]

Rachel's foal's nurse mare, Miss Beutiful Ojos....has been used before at this farm because of her sweet disposition and abundant supply of milk. For those worried about her foal, which Miss Beutiful Ojos had on Wednesday. Miss Beutiful Ojos stayed with her foal till she received the all important colostrum from her dam. Read the entire story below. TJ

http://www.drf.com/news/rachel-alexandr ... ood-health

[erhrdt3]

thank you for posting that TJ, how important it is that the farms all constitute that rule as far as nurse mares go. What a beauty of a mare she is; either flaxen or a dark palomino. I think if more folks would be willing to raise up foals after they get that colostrum in them, the bad way of dealing with them would eventually be erased. I thought I had heard or read that what Madelyn had said somewhere before and its just hurtful to think of those innocent babies getting killed so their mother can be used elsewhere.

Thank you again for posting that!

[madelyn]

......Either that or isn't there a way to get a barren mare to lactate with hormones? Or do they HAVE to have a foal?...

There has been a lot of experimentation, and success, with using hormones to get a non-pregnant mare to lactate; I think where that process would fall off is behaviourally - ie: the mare did not just have a foal , is not expecting a foal, and might not be receptive of the foal. Bearing in mind that this entire process is to ensure the survival of the foal, it is possible that they have yet to convince a mare, once lactating, that she did, in fact, HAVE a foal and that this foal is hers..

[KBEquine]

......Either that or isn't there a way to get a barren mare to lactate with hormones? Or do they HAVE to have a foal?...

There has been a lot of experimentation, and success, with using hormones to get a non-pregnant mare to lactate; I think where that process would fall off is behaviourally - ie: the mare did not just have a foal , is not expecting a foal, and might not be receptive of the foal. Bearing in mind that this entire process is to ensure the survival of the foal, it is possible that they have yet to convince a mare, once lactating, that she did, in fact, HAVE a foal and that this foal is hers..

There are some mares who love babies so much they want to steal another mare's little ones. Those are the ones for whom the shot works and the mare takes the foal immediately (they call the shot "Dom Perignon partially because that is close to the real name & partly because of the price of the shot).

But I think it takes a while for the shot to take effect, so the baby needs to be fed some other way in the interim. We have had a couple orphans to raise - lost the dams, as we don't do nurse mares.

Like Madelyn, we raise our own. We used Mare's Match (by Land O Lakes, the folks who also bring you butter!) & an igloo cooler:



[Billa is now a 3 y.o. & doing well.]

[photofinish]

......Either that or isn't there a way to get a barren mare to lactate with hormones? Or do they HAVE to have a foal?...

There has been a lot of experimentation, and success, with using hormones to get a non-pregnant mare to lactate; I think where that process would fall off is behaviourally - ie: the mare did not just have a foal , is not expecting a foal, and might not be receptive of the foal. Bearing in mind that this entire process is to ensure the survival of the foal, it is possible that they have yet to convince a mare, once lactating, that she did, in fact, HAVE a foal and that this foal is hers..

My 22 yr old, open, mare is raising an orphan right now. The domperidone is now oral. It isn't working that great and we are still having to supplement the filly a lot, but at least she has a "mom" and will grow up knowing she's a horse. Some bottle raised foals grow up to be really dangerous horses if they can't get enough "horse" influence early on.

[erins isle]

Photofinish this is great for this foal, a horse must not be raised on his own.
In my country we had an advertisement in our racingpaper during the breeding season which you could call and the people involved did their best to find a foster mare.

[xfactor fan]

Molly mules are notorious for "stealing" foals, wonder if the hormone would work on them?

[KBEquine]

Some bottle raised foals grow up to be really dangerous horses if they can't get enough "horse" influence early on.

Yeah, you do have to avoid creating a "Lord of the Flies" scenario. Ours are literally surrounded by tolerant older horses & a friend who has a breeding farm & so an occasional orphan, actively tries to find a 2nd orphan if she has a first (and does get nurse-mare foals on occasion) and uses the milk-repacer cooler but puts an older mare with the orphans, so the babies get some "mama discipline." and "learn to read horse."