Horses » phantom pregnancy???

ilovemycobs	phantom pregnancy??? I have recently purchased a beautiful traditional cob mare. I have never owned a mare before. When I purchased her she did have a large belly which I was told was a "grass" belly,however my mother fell ill so i had to go away for a month leaving experienced horse keepers to look after my girl, however on my return I couldn't wait to see her again, upon greeting her I noticed her belly had grown ALOT bigger. I phoned the lady who sold her to me whom stated it was fat,her belly is hanging but she insists she is not pregnant, she hasn't come into season. if its a phatom pregnancy can it kill her?. how would I know if she was in foal without calling the vet out first?.xx 8/2/07 Answer this question
stuart	Phantom pregnancy is extremely rare in the horse and even when it does occur does not usually result in any gross abdominal distension. The quick way to determine what is going on in her uterus if not her abdomen is by an internal rectal examination possibly combined with ultrasound. It is possible to test the mares urine for pregnancy between 130 and 250 days gestation. False negatives can occur even within this time frame. I have known mysterious conceptions which when traced back give a conception date around tghe time the gpsy horses were tethered down the road and similar occurances. Mares vary in the overtness oftheir seasons especially at this time of year. They do not normally come into season over the winter (well not before global warming they didn't) The onset of active oestrous (season) is triggered by increasing day length rather than temperature. The cob tends to respond slowly to this so the lack of observable only means that she may not be cycling not that she is pregnant or any abnormality of the ovaries or uterus. Teat and or udder enlargement does occur towards the end of pregnancy. This can occur during a false pregnancy also. I suggest your best bet is to get an experienced horse vet to examine her internally soon and take it from there. Please let us know what is found 8/2/07
stuart	Phantom pregnancy is extremely rare in the horse and even when it does occur does not usually result in any gross abdominal distension. The quick way to determine what is going on in her uterus if not her abdomen is by an internal rectal examination possibly combined with ultrasound. It is possible to test the mares urine for pregnancy between 130 and 250 days gestation. False negatives can occur even within this time frame. I have known mysterious conceptions which when traced back give a conception date around the time the gipsy horses were tethered down the road and similar occurances. Mares vary in the overtness of their seasons especially at this time of year. They do not normally come into season over the winter (well not before global warming they didn't). The onset of active oestrous (season) is triggered by increasing day length rather than temperature. The cob tends to respond slowly to this so the lack of observable 'season' only means that she may not be cycling not that she is pregnant or suffering from any abnormality of the ovaries or uterus. Teat and or udder enlargement does occur towards the end of pregnancy. This can occur during a false pregnancy also. I suggest your best bet is to get an experienced horse vet to examine her internally soon and take it from there. Please let us know what is found. 8/2/07
sarah77	hi im just wondering if a horse is having a phantom do the get milk.iv just got a mare that looks very pregnent and has milk but been told there is no way she can be in foal. 29/1/12
stuart	some times yes just leave it alone and watch her. Amazing how often mares manage to get pregnant in the absence of of a stallion! 31/1/12 If this answer helped you, please consider donating to our website or to the charities we support

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