Page 22 - February 2005 The Game

22 The Game, February 2005 Your Thoroughbred Racing Community Newspaper
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LIVE FOAL GUARANTEES
Getting your mare in foal may have been the easy part
Some broodmares seem to cruise through pregnancy almost effortlessly, reliably producing a healthy, hearty baby each spring. Others may make you feel like you've been holding your breath for months. Between breeding and foaling date lurk a couple of dozen tragic ways in which a mare can slip her foal. It's a breeder's most heart-sinking nightmare -- and it's all too common.
Want to dodge the bullet? Knowing what your mare is at risk for, and being able to recognize the warning signs, is half the battle. Here, then, is a run-down of some of the most common ways in which a pregnancy can go wrong.
TROUBLE EARLY ON
Nature can terminate a pregnancy for all sorts of reasons. If it happens early in the gestation cycle (in the first 40 days), the tiny fetus is usually resorbed by the mare's body, leaving no trace. Technically, this is called EEM, for early embryonic mortality. EEM can be caused by external factors including trauma, stress, or malnutrition; by physiological problems in the mare, such as a hormone deficiency or imbalance, or a scarred uterus; or by genetic defects in the embryo; or by twinning, in which more than one fetus is vying for the limited nutrients available. The incidence of EEM has been estimated at somewhere between 5% and 24%, and it's most likely to occur in the interval before pregnancy can be detected by ultrasound (before day 11). In such a case the owner may never know the mare had 'caught' at all.
Abortion is defined as the situation in which the mare actually delivers an unviable foal, somewhere after 40 days and before 300 days (after 300 days, a living foal which is delivered is premature, but may have some chance of survival ... and a dead foal is generally known as a stillbirth). Abortion can occur at any time during the pregnancy, though it often goes undetected if it happens prior to the four month mark. Overall, the incidence of abortion in the general equine population is estimated at about 15%.
A late-term abortion (in the last 100 days of the pregnancy) comes with warning signs - sometimes. Breeders should watch their mares closely for changes in abdominal shape (indicating an early "dropping" of the fetus as the pelvic muscles relax), premature udder development (sometimes including dripping milk), or vaginal discharge. Occasionally, though, the first indication of trouble is when you see shreds of placental tissue hanging sadly from your mare's vulva, or a wet, bloody tail ... indicating she has already slipped her foal.
Catching abortion before it happens isn't always possible, as the signs are often extremely subtle (and by the time they're noticed, there's usually nothing you can do anyway). "There's often very little warning," confirms Terry Morley, DVM, whose practice near London, Ontario includes a large number of racehorses. "It can happen even to very experienced breeders who check their mares every day."
Abortion doesn't just dash your hopes for a healthy foal ... it can also be dangerous for the dam. A fetus which dies in utero is unable to position itself properly in the womb in preparation for birth, so the mare may struggle to expel it. In some cases veterinary intervention may be called for. Once the fetus is delivered, you'll have to make sure the placenta passes within three to four hours at most; if it doesn't, the mare is at serious risk of infection and laminitis.
Though researchers have catalogued many causes of abortion, the majority of cases remain undiagnosed. Only an estimated 40% of equine abortions are ever assigned a definite cause. If you're unlucky enough to find yourself with an aborted foal, it's important to submit it, and the placenta, to a laboratory as soon as possible for analysis, especially if you have other broodmares on the property. If the cause is infectious, you'll want to make immediate changes to your routine to protect the other unborn foals you're expecting ... and even if it's non-infectious, a necropsy may provide you with valuable information to help you prevent a repeat tragedy.
It's important to keep in mind that stress, either physical (an episode of colic, for example) or psychological (such as weaning the foal-at-foot, or long-distance shipping) can predispose a mare to aborting. The security of a late-term pregnancy depends on a number of factors, including the health and vitality of the placenta, the integrity of its attachment to the uterus, the maintenance of the cervical seal, and the mare's blood pressure and blood oxygen saturation.
There are other causes of abortion, too -- everything from ingesting toxic plants, to malnourishment, vitamin or mineral deficien- cies, infections, placentitis, and overdosing on certain medications. Even if you watch over your broodmare every second, you can't protect her from all of the possible invaders from her environment, and from within. Like all breeders everywhere, all you can do is take every sensible precaution, ensure she's in the best possible health when you start, feed her right .... and cross your fingers. Here's to a crop of healthy foals for all in 2005.
Not Impossible dies from complications after colic
Equine Health
by Karen Briggs
Dave Landry Photo
The Charles Fipke owned stallion, Not Impossible, fought valiantly to survive after suffering from a bout of colic on December 12.
At the time of the initial colic attack, there happened to be two veterinarians on the farm, and he was immediately sent to the Equine Hospital in Guelph. Upon first examination, the diagnosis was not good. He was given a 20% chance of survival. By December 15, paratinitis had set in and his chance of survival had dropped to 5%. Not Impossible did not give up and he won over the hearts of the people who were tending to him at the equine hospital.
Just after Christmas, the veterinarians put him at 75% and by January 10th, they estimated he would be back at Anson Stud Farm the following week. However on January 13, he took a turn for the worse. His colon had adhered to his stomach wall and later that day, when the attempt was made to detach it, the colon perforated and Not Impossible had be to humanely euthanized.
“He had such a personality.” said Andy McKinnon, who admitted that he and his wife Sonja were very attached the stallion, even though they know you’re not supposed to be, “He stayed alive for a month, he had such heart and defeated all the odds.”He shouldn’t have made it through the first night. He hung in there. He had such courage and personality.”
Not Impossible, was a full brother to Perfect Soul, Sadler’s Wells - Ball Chairman, by Secretariat, and will have his first crop of two-year-olds hitting the racetrack this season.
“I think he has left a good crop of babies and the future will show that he is as good as Chuck, Sonja and I thought he was.” said Andy who says that Charles (Chuck) also took the death of the personable stallion really hard.
Charles decided shortly after that he would extend an offer to the owners of the mares who were already booked to Not Impossible in 2005 (Approximately 25 total). He offered a discounted breeding rate to his millionaire stallion, Perfect Soul, who is standing his first year at stud at Darby Dan Farm in Kentucky for $15,000. He also extended a foal share arrangement as another option for those breeders. “This shows a huge commitment to the small Ontario breeder.” said Sonja.
Funds Raised for Tsunami Relief
Coolmore stallion owners donated a nomination to every one of their Flat and National Hunt stallions to raise funds for the International Red Cross and their tsunami relief effort.
The stallions included Sadler’s Wells in Ireland, Fusaichi Pegasus in the USA and Encosta de Lago in Australia.
The bidding for the nominations began on December 31 and closed at 5pm local time on January 11 during the Keeneland January sale.
A total of $2.2 million was raised from the bidding and the fund was increased to $3.5 million through a donation from an anonymous friend of Coolmore. There was a rally of bids for Sadler’s Wells before the 5 pm deadline which saw Khalid Abdullah’s Juddmonte Farms winning the nomination for 300,000 Euros. Underbidders Mr. and Mrs. Gary Middlebrook donated 50,000 Euros to the fund.
Members of the racing industry in Australia and Britain also showed their support for the tsunami relief efforts with Cheltenham Racecourse donating £1 pound for every paying customer on New Year’s Day. Customers also had the opportunity to make donations throughout the day at other track locations.
The Hayes and Sangster families, Collingrove Stud, donated a 2005 nomination to each of their six stallions to the tsunami relief efforts. Their stallions includes Bianconi, Court of Jewels (AUS), Dash for Cash (AUS), Hold That Tiger, Jeune (GB), Perugino and Rory’s Jester (Aus).
Locally, the 25 Champions locations in the GTA donated half of all the admission money which was collected at their Champions Off-track betting locations on Thursday, January 20, to the Red Cross in support of tsunami relief.
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