Every horse owner who ever breeds their mare(s) needs to learn to recognize
grasses in their pastures and in their hay. Fescue is a predominant variety
of grass in many areas of the United States; most of the Midwest and
surrounding states have it. Speak with your vet and/or extension agent about
this. You can recognize it from other grasses such as Orchard Grass by its
shiny yellow-green leaf and pointy seeds. This description is likely not
sufficient to recognize it: find pictures or let someone show it to you.
Fescue is a very robust cool weather grass; it forms a very resilient turf -
it comes back vigorously year after year and crowds out other varieties. It
also carries an endophyte fungus. You can't see it. There are varieties that
don't have it but my extension agent told me that sooner or later the Fescue
with the fungus will take over from adjoining land even if you exterminate
the fescue with the fungus on your own land.
If pregnant mares are on fescue pasture, especially during the last
trimester of their pregnancies they are certain to develop problems. These
include: no milk, a very tough amniotic sac in which the foal can suffocate
if no one is there to tear it - you literally have only minutes to do this,
and distocia (very difficult birth because for some reason gestation is
prolonged and the foal gets too big to come out). You can easily loose both
mare and foal if the mare does not have immediate assistance.
The mares do not have to be off the fescue pasture during the entire
pregnancies. Our pastures are mixed: fescue, orchard grass, bluegrass,
clover, lespedeza and other good weeds. They get and orchard grass/alfalfa
mix hay during the winter. I plan the births in such a way that I just leave
them on the hay until the foals are born in April. The green grass may come
in a little earlier than the actual delivery but the horses have to stay in
the foaling paddock near the house where I can observe them until the foals
are born.
If the due date of the mare falls anywhere else but early April, the mares
should be removed from the pasture for a minimum of 60 days prior to
foaling, better yet: three months. Also make sure there is not fescue in the
hay you feed your mare during that time. End of sermon!
Poor Stor got pregnant when trees fell on fences and the stallions got in
with the mares in early August last year. So she had to be kept in the
paddock with hay for three months while the others were free to roam in the
pastures.
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Icelandic mares are just as vulnerable to fescue as any other mares. This is
the reason why we breed for April foals. The horses are on hay during the
winter and the pregnant mares simply stay on hay until they have given
birth.
If your mare is on fescue now, the best thing for you to do is to put her in
a dry lot and give her good hay that has no fescue in it - or at least three
months prior to her due date. We use a mixture of half Orchard Grass and
half Alfafa. The horses do very well on this but you cannot feed it free
choice.
We have had plenty of (really bad) experiences with fescue and pregnant
mares before we knew what was causing the problems. I have not had to use
the dopamidone (sp?) but I know it is quite expensive. I think putting the
mare on good hay to prevent the problems to begin with may be better
solution.
Also, you should try to be there when the foal is born, regardless of
whether your mare is given medication or switched to hay prior to giving
birth. Fescue can make the sac very tough so it may not break when the foal
is born, causing the foal to suffocate if there is no timely intervention.
This tough sac apparently does not become more breakable instantly by giving
medication or by a switch to hay if the mare has been on fescue for a long
time.
The fungus is not "on" the fescue but in it, the seed
and all and it is propagated along with the grass. Apparently, infested
fescue is very hardy and will infest non-infested field very easily. Thus,
if you see any fexcue at all, you should assume that it is infested to be on
the safe side.
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Research has shown Fescue affects all pregnant mares. In an all-fescue field
100% of the mares had severe problems.
In Unicorn Valley, our pastures are mixed: Fescue, Orchard Grass, clover,
etc. In the old days, when I was ignorant about the problem, late-foaling
mares in tow instances had problems such as no milk. And then 11 years ago,
I lost my favorite mare and her foal due to distocia. She had, unbeknownst
to me, been fed fescue hay during the winter.
We now know more about this than we did then. There are now also drugs
available to counteract the pernicious effect of the Fescue. They are very
expensive, so it is simpler and easier to plan pregnancies in ways to avoid
the problems.
By the way, the negative effects of Fescue are not breed specific; they
affect all pregnant mares.
