I was at my vet's the other day checking on my mare that is being borded there. He told me that he had given her a shot of banamine yesterday due to her being down so much and "acting" uncomfortable. He thought for sure she would foal that night, but of course, NOTHING! He told me that he had also okayed her to have Bute PRN. I question if this is safe for the baby. Do you guys know? Also, can this increase length of gestation?
Amber- we've used bute before on our pregnant mares but long term use of it can lead to ulcers. We've never medicated our mares because of rolling as we considered this normal behavior to get the foal into position. (though if your mare is rolling like she had collic, banamine could be a good idea) Jos would be the one to answer that question best.
I have been told that banamine can lengthen gestation. A lady i just talked to used it purposely to lengthen a mare who looked to foal early (311 days)(waxed, v'd, milk the whole nine yards) it let her go an additional month.
Neither 'bute not Banamine have been specifically identified as being a major problem with pregnant mares (note of course that any drug can result in a reaction, pregnant or not!), but both are prostaglandin release inhibitors, which hormone is essential for the foaling process, so it should not be given close to or during the foaling unless there is a very specific veterinary reason for doing so.
Isn't that just dandy. I have just had the worst week with a pregnant mare. 333 days today. She has an arthritic ankle and has done super with it until about a week and a half ago. Started out a little lame, then went crippled, and ankle swelled up. We had vet out last Monday(20th). We searched her ankle for any tiny cuts or scrapes and finding none, we assumed with all the extra weight the ankle wasn't holding. Vet didn't want to use bute, and we agreed. Wednesday, mare got down was puffing and wouldn't get up. No signs of foaling anytime soon I might add, but as a maiden, just didn't know. So he gave her a shot of bute and we kept her on bute until yesteday. On Sunday took her bandage off to see the most grotesque filling i have ever seen in an ankle with a huge soft spot on the inside, by that evening it popped and the stuff was coming out. Still is as of yesteday and it's still big. Obviously some kind of abcess. Being as we had the vet out twice last week, just called and told him. Now she is on Pen-strep as vet doesn't want to use gentomycing with a foal on board. Have to keep him posted on what's happening, but it's horrible for this to be happening at the end of her pregnancy and now with the above I'm worried about the effect the bute has had on her.I trust my vets completely by the way, they are very good and do a super job. It has been a very stressfull week I can tell you. Terri
Terri, I had a mare on bute the last 9 months of her pg. and she and baby did just fine. I had no choice as she could not walk without it, with special attention to her trimming of her feet as she had a major bout of founder that included abcesses and major trouble. She foaled right on time and baby was healthy.
Thank goodness because we are really worried. And in fairness to my vet we all discussed it at length and decided we really didn't want the mare in pain. We also have her on Aloe Vera Juice for her stomach. I feel much better now. Terri
Terri- we had a mare on bute too for a time during her pregnancy last year, ( a lameness issue as well ) she did ok, so hopefully, yours will be fine too. If I interpreted what Jos said correctly, it's more an issue in late pregnancy as it inhibits the hormones that bring labor on. ( our mare was mid term when it was prescribed for her ) We've never medicated them while in labor though and I think that's what the original question on this thread was about. I figure if I can have my 9 pounder naturally, the mares can do it naturally too!
My mare received her normal dose of bute even on the day that she foaled(we had no idea that she was going to foal, this was her first baby-she couldn't walk without it anyways). She was on minimal abouts of bute. One tab twice a day. No trouble with her tummy and no trouble with delivery. Sure hope that all goes ok for you.
Kim- isn't it interesting learning all this stuff? Because the vets at K State had told us to give our mare bute for her lameness, I never questioned the safety of it's use. The same with the info that the old vet "Doc" that's been around 100+ years gave us about strangles and it laying dormant in the ground for long periods of time. ( I knew it was actually strep but assumed what he'd told us to be factual ) I'm learning a lot on this site, mostly to keep my mouth shut...lol...but also that medical science isn't always exact.
E Watkins, medical science is always evolving to something new.I have to heard the dormint issue with strangles in the ground, but its been 15 years since I dealt with it (and my mare then tested negitive for it--go figure)It sure seems that there is alot of disease that goes back to a "strep" bacteria. ?? Don't know if its all the same. Humans carry a strep virus that they are now testing preg. women for before delivery--like at 7 months, if you are a carrier you get iv meds before delivery. And alot of times a medical doctor of any kind will tell you to use something after they weigh what is important. Keeping the mare comfy and tolerating pain or putting her in undue pain and maybe compromising the life of the foal because the mare is in too much pain and the development of the foal will suffer. So instead of discussing it with a patient and trying to relay the pros and cons, they make the medical decisions--have seen it many times, in both humans and animals. They will give a med to help something because a the complaints of owner/patient/seeing what pain the animal is in and will deal with the radifications at a later point if trouble should arise from the given medication. I would side with keeping the mare comfy and tolerating her problem on a med than opting not to medicate just because of the foal..... No mare=no foal . That is just my personal opinion, some will view differntly. I would use it again if I had too.
Don't keep your mouth shut... It is by experience that others learn. Although some of use might not have a medical degree, that dosen't mean that we don't have experience. Sometimes lifes experiences are of more value than book knowledge. There are always the execption to the standard. I know I have seen many of them. NO case is the same. Iposted a post last year looking for help, no one seem to have any ideas for me. I learned and posted the results. My mare had a pinhole in her udder. She was within two weeks of foaling Boy was I worried.
Kim- what did you do to treat the pin hole? that's one I've never heard of or seen, it sounds very interesting. There are a lot of "remedies" and wives tales that seem to have some credence to them, if it works for me, I don't mind sharing it. (rather like the MD who told me Vicks would not help my childs asthmatic cough at night, he was wrong, it did.. but he never came over to spend the night with us so that I could prove it to him..lol)
I'm a little anti-medication when it comes to childbirth, both human and equine. Having done it both ways myself, I have seen the side effects/benefits. For me, without was a whole lot better, I'm all for getting it over and done with and since birth is a natural process, unless there's trouble, I prefer to not intervene. I'm with you though, I'll give up my foal before I'd loose my mare if the decision became necessary, though that's one choice I hope I never have to make.
E Watkins, Well, for me it was a bit different , all three of my kids came postterer (sp?). So I did have to have meds to get all three of them out ! I had two c-sections out of three. the first was not good as she was pinned in the birth cannel and when they did the c-section they had go back and push her up so she would come out. The second the came naturally although the doc had to turn her to get her out(don't do that without meds ! )-she was the smallest And the third, he was the biggest they didn't want to wait for him to go into distress, he was turned and not going the correct way-so it was a c-section before things turned for the worse. Those are my stories ! After the last section, I said I was done !
As for the pin hole.... sat and worried! The vet said there was nothing to do at that time just to watch. He said that after foaling, and the situation would depend on if we had to suppliment or not. Well the mare is a big time waxer, always alot of it. once she waxed, it was if the hole was sealed up. She then started to squirt a ton of milk, as usual. The vet said , he was hoping that after delivery and the udder was emptyied and the pressure was release that the problem would get better --- and it did as her milk veins were so full as well.... If it didn't resolve then we would have to watch for infection, not enough milk on that side and possible future problems on that side in subsqueint foals. So far so good. It seems that after all the pressure was gone, the hole seemed to seal up--heal up ..not really sure , but glad it hasn't caused a problem since. I was worried that we would have to bottle feed, wasn't looking forward to that. This mare is a big stocky bred mare, always a fantastic milk producer and huge babies. The baby is now a yearling and just shy of her dam at 15'2 !
Vicks will help keep the attention of a stallion away from the ladies at a show too! Just need a bit of it! We have trouble with Croup here-my 4 year old was just in the hospital the beginning of feb, because all home remedies wouldn't work first
I don't choose meds first either anymore. Had my mare have a allergic reaction to pennicilan and thats who foundered , then the test came back that she didn't have strangles and was toxic levels of penn. in her. I was so frustrated, tried telling the vet it wasn't, but he insisted that treatment for either cause would be the same. She was a maiden mare/in foal. Her neck started swelling at the injection sites. so I don't use antibiotics unless there is a real good cause, not just to see if it helps something.
Kim- I've had a hard time with my maiden mare and her reactions to the pneumobort shots. her 2nd and third she really reacted to and she has a large knot on both sides of her neck, the oldest injection site is smaller, so maybe in time, they'll resolve on their own. Poor thing, the vet said next year we'll give her something to counteract the reaction she gets..
Poor mare, her udder was so full it sprung a leak, how painful that must have been.. ouch. Glad she's ok now though.
Thank all of you guys for you comments/suggestions/input. She is on a minimal dosage; however, he didn't okay it with me before starting her on it. I trust him, but this whole foaling thing with her has kept me nervous. I guess I just don't see a need to "keep her comfortable" as she has not appeared to be in that much pain. Not to mention that fact that they get the living heck kicked out of them by other 1,000 pound animals and don't bat an eye. Perhaps he is administering it because she has went well beyond his estimated foal date (end of Dec)? I really don't know, but I really am very tired of being worried about her. I went and checked on her last night and noticed that she was expelling water/fluid out of her rectum (yes, I'm sure it was her bum ). She had major diarrhea while I was there as well. My vet checked her and said that this was due to the position of the foal and was common. Went to check her this evening and she was obviously uncomfortable and sweating. I would get my hopes up, but it was in the mid 70's today . To anyone reading this that is thinking about breeding, "Save yourself ALOT of worry and make sure you have accurate breeding dates!" I feel like lovingly strangling my father-in-law right now .
Kim We were told to keep it dry if possible and to use animlintex to draw it out. I will have to say it is draining quite well. Just so nasty! She's happier though!
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My mare had a pinhole in her udder. She was within two weeks of foaling 
). She had major diarrhea while I was there as well. My vet checked her and said that this was due to the position of the foal and was common. Went to check her this evening and she was obviously uncomfortable and sweating. I would get my hopes up, but it was in the mid 70's today 
. To anyone reading this that is thinking about breeding, "Save yourself ALOT of worry and make sure you have accurate breeding dates!" I feel like lovingly strangling my father-in-law right now 
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