Caring for Mares & Foals

Lesson 3: Preparing For the Foal

Prepare the Mare

What should you do if you notice these signs and believe your mare is ready to foal? You should be handling your mare daily, to keep her comfortable with you and having you touch her anywhere, especially her udder. You will want to wash it and may need to milk it. If it is late spring or early summer the flies love to feast on the unprotected udder. As the udder swells, the area between the two halves collects dirt and can no longer air out. Washing with mild soap gives relief. Research has also shown that a washing before the foal’s first meal can lower the chance of diarrhea in the foal. Be sure to rinse well. If the mare is used to you handling her udder and you need to milk her to get the foal started, she will already be less likely to kick you.

You should also wash the mare’s genital area with a mild liquid soap and rinse thoroughly. You can tie her tail up with a piece of baler twine wrapped around her tail and tied to her halter. This keeps it out of your way. First wet the vulva, then put about a quarter's worth of soap in your hand and smear it gently onto the vulva from top to bottom. Include the outside edges but never return to the vulva and infect it with the surrounding germs and dirt. To rinse, use a clean piece of cotton and rinse top to bottom, discarding the used cotton from each pass. Stay clear of the anus so as not to reinfect the cleaned area.

Lastly, you need to wrap her tail to keep it out of the way. There are many ways to wrap the tail, but you need to remember two important points. First, a tail wrapped too tightly can cause circulation problems even to the extent a horse’s tail could fall off. Secondly, the main purpose is to prevent the upper hairs from contaminating the birth canal. Leaving the long ends free allows the mare to have her tail for fly control. It is important however that the tail wrap not slip, as its purpose would not be met. Leave the tail wrap on until the afterbirth has passed. This will keep the tail cleaner and lower the risks of fly problems.

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