It’s Brrr-eeding Season

Story and Photography by Abigail Boatwright IT’S BRRR-EEDING SEASON

Manage your broodmares during the winter with six tips from David ricks, DVM.

EEPING BROODMARES HEALTHY DURING THE WINTER MONTHS can present a management challenge, particularly if they’re gestating or preparing for springtime breeding. But David Ricks, DVM, the breeding veterinarian at Brazos Valley Stallion Station LP, says being mindful of a few management protocols will help keep them healthy and warm. Here, Ricks outlines how to best prepare horses for a healthy and successful breeding season.

David Ricks, DVM, is the breeding veterinarian at Brazos Valley Stallion Station LP in Stephenville, Texas. He is experienced with cutting-edge reproductive technology, and has been a veterinarian since 2001. Brazos Valley Stallion Station represents stallions in the cutting, cow horse, rope and barrel horse industries, including many leading sires. For more information, visit brazosvalleystallionstation.com.

1. RAMP UP ROUTINE CARE

“We like to vaccinate mares about five months after we breed them, which typically falls in the winter,” Ricks said. “Some mares, if we’ve bred them early enough in the year, they could be coming up on foaling, and the set of vaccines due a month before they foal will fall in the winter months as well.”

He also suggests making dental appointments since mares aren’t tied up with breeding season or early pregnancy vet checks, and they’re not yet navigating with a newborn foal.

During the winter, Ricks also routinely goes through all the mares at the stallion station to palpate and confirm pregnancy.

“The winter is also a good time to do an ultrasound of the pregnancy and check for placentitis—an infection of the placenta,” Ricks said. “That usually shows up around seven months of gestation. If you catch it early, and that’s usually in the winter, you can treat it.”

Most pregnant mares should receive several of their vaccinations during the winter months, Ricks advises. He also recommends scheduling routine pregnancy vaccinations around the same time, particularly against rhinopneumonitis, which affects mares late in gestation.

2.TIME THE LIGHTS

Mares are seasonal cyclers, coming into heat during the spring and summer months, as the days get longer.

“Mares have a gland in their brain that senses light, and tells the brain that it’s spring or summer and time to start their reproductive cycles,” Ricks said. “So, we can trick her body into thinking it’s spring or summer by artificially lighting her, which allows light into her eyes to think the days are getting longer.”

Although it’s not foolproof, this process most of the time takes about 60 days. About two months before you want your mare to go into heat, Ricks recommends putting her under artificial lights—either in a stall or in a lighted outdoor pen. A rule of thumb: If you can read a newspaper, there is enough light, Ricks says.

“Typically, the rule is December 1, put them under lights,” Ricks said. “That puts them at February 1, they’ve been under lights for 60 days and they should be cycling, which is when we start collecting from stallions.”

You don’t have to keep the lights blazing 24/7, though. Ricks says the light from the sun throughout the day, plus an additional couple of hours of artificial light each evening will do the trick. At Brazos Valley Stallion Station, the lights stay on till 10 p.m.

Placing a blue-light mask on a mare beams a small amount of light into the mare’s eyes at the appropriate hours. This is handy for a small herd of broodmares, but it can be cost-prohibitive for large facilities.

3. FULL-TIME FORAGE AND FLUIDS

Making hay available round the clock can help keep horses warm when it gets really chilly.

“Feeding a horse grain is not necessarily going to warm them up, but feeding them grass and hay products causes fermentation inside their gut, and that fermentation generates heat.”

In cold climates, ensuring horses have fresh water is even more crucial, Ricks says. Be vigilant about frozen water sources, and if a horse seems to slack off on water intake, add a supplement to increase its desire to drink.

There’s a general thought that horses don’t drink as well when it’s really cold,” Ricks said. “They may not require as much water, but it wouldn’t hurt to add some salt on your horse’s feed to encourage drinking during those colder months.”

Feeding a horse hay around the clock helps it generate more heat during the winter months.

4. SHELTER IS KEY

Make sure your horses have at minimum a roof over their heads, if living in a cold climate. A shelter that protects from wind, rain and snow is even better.

“Blocking the wind from the north and keeping the snow or rain off the horses will help keep them more comfortable,” Ricks said. “If you want to fully enclose them and put a heat lamp inside, all the better.”

Horses living outside during the winter months should have access to a good shelter that blocks wind, rain and snow.

5. BLANKET JUDICIOUSLY

Horses can handle the cold better than humans, but Ricks says when the temperature drops below 15 degrees Fahrenheit, it’s best to pull out the blankets for horses outside on pasture with natural winter coats.

“That doesn’t mean if it’s 30 degrees outside and you blanket your horse, they’re going to die of heatstroke,” Ricks said. “But it becomes medically necessary to provide warmth when it’s 15 degrees [Fahrenheit].”

If a horse is living in the barn and has a slick coat, blanket it before it gets that cold— around 40 to 50 degrees Fahrenheit.

“Use your judgement here—if the horse is shivering, give it a blanket,” Ricks said.

6. PREPARE FOR CHILLY DELIVERIES

Many mares foal outside, but if the weather looks bad close to delivery date bring her inside the barn.

“If a mare is going to be foaling in January, it’s going to be cold and you’ve got to be more diligent about controlling her environment,” Ricks said. “That may mean being inside with heaters, or building walls with hay bales, giving the mare a place that is more inviting to have a foal.”

Horses kept outside should be blanketed when it’s 15 degrees or below, says Ricks. A horse with a slick coat may need a blanket when it’s closer to 40 degrees.When in doubt, blanket if a horse is shivering.