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Pregnancy Loss Isn’t Always Easy to ExplainBy Kentucky Equine Research Staff · February 17, 2011
Loss of pregnancy in mares is not uncommon. One statistic quoted in Equine Disease Quarterly Newsletter says that, for all mares bred in a season, only about 80% will give birth to a live foal at term.
Early embryonic loss (loss of pregnancy at less than 40 days) and abortion (loss of pregnancy after 40 days) may be related to a number of different factors. Of 921 aborted fetuses submitted to the Kentucky Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory in 2008 and 2009, the most commonly diagnosed cause (33% of total) was some sort of bacterial or viral infection. Among noninfectious causes, torsion (severe twisting) of the umbilical cord was the most common cause. However, in 31% of cases, no definite cause of pregnancy loss was diagnosed.
While the lack of a specific explanation is frustrating to owners and managers of broodmares, it is sometimes just as important to identify factors that did not cause the abortion. Ruling out infection, for example, can ease concerns that a farm's entire foal crop might be at risk for that problem.
