Oh boy! You just found out that your mare is pregnant! Whether this was a planned breeding done through live cover or artificial insemination, or maybe she’s having a happy little accident, either way, you have a beautiful baby on the way!
Now that your horse is pregnant, you probably are wondering how exactly you should take care of her during her gestation period. The first thing I would address is what to feed your horse.
Caring for the pregnant mare is a little different than caring for another horse. Her nutrition will need to be adjusted to accomodate for the developing foal inside, she won’t be able to be ridden during certain phases of her pregnancy, and so much more! Knowing the changes you will need to make to your mare’s diet is so important to make sure your mare is getting the proper nutritional support throughout her pregnancy. Knowing what to feed your mare is crucial to ensure a healthy foal and a happy mama.
In this post, I will cover the basic breakdown of the increases of feed a pregnant mare should get to make sure her and her developing baby have adequate nutrients.
Feeding the Pregnant Horse
Now that mama horse is going to be eating for two, you probably know that her feed will need to be increased, but by how much?
A common mistake made by horse owners is that they overfeed their pregnant mares. Remember, your horse is eating for two, but her baby is tiny! So make sure you feed for two, but not twice the amount she’d normally get.
At each phase of pregnancy, her nutritional requirements will change. A mare who is 2 months pregnant will require much less feed than a mare who is 10 months pregnant. Knowing how to adjust your mare’s feed according to her size and how far along in her pregnancy she is is crucial to ensuring both mama and baby are healthy.
Feeding your Mare in Early Pregnancy (1st Trimester):
The first trimester of a horse’s pregnancy is actually super short. Unlike in human pregnancies, horse trimesters are not all equal in length. The first trimester starts at the conception of the foal and ends at day 60 of pregnancy. This means, the first trimester is only about 2 months long.
In early pregnancy, your mare will most definitely be pregnant, but she likely won’t be showing that she is. Like in human pregnancies, you can’t tell that someone is pregnant until the baby is bigger and the mother is a good few months into her pregnancy.
Because her baby is tiny and she won’t be ridden or worked, her feed won’t need to be changed very much. At this stage in her gestation, the only adjustment I suggest making is swapping her grain for a “mare and foal” grain rather than the grain she’s normally on. I personally recommend the Nutrena SafeChoice Mare and Foal grain. Gradually introduce this new grain into her diet, and reduce her old grain until she’s made the full transition (if you plan to take her off of her old grain).
The main reason for this adjustment is to make sure mama horse is getting any extra vitamins and minerals she may need to help support her developing fetus inside.
An example you might better be able to understand is this:
Mare’s Meal Plan BEFORE Pregnancy
The mare in this example has a pre-pregnancy weight of 1,000 pounds
| Breakfast | Bermuda Grass: 5 Pounds (1 flake) | Alfalfa Hay: 5 Pounds (1 flake) |
| Lunch | Soaked Beet Pulp: 1 Pound dry (2 cups dry) | Grain: 2 Pounds (4 cups) |
| Dinner | Bermuda Grass: 5 Pounds (1 flake) | Alfalfa Hay: 5 Pounds (1 flake) |
Mare’s Meal Plan During Early Pregnancy (1-2 Months)
The mare in this example has a pre-pregnancy weight of 1,000 pounds
| Breakfast | Bermuda Grass: 5 Pounds (1 flake) | Alfalfa Hay: 5 Pounds (1 flake) |
| Lunch | Soaked Beet Pulp: 1 Pound dry (2 cups dry) | Mare and Foal Grain: 2 Pounds (4 cups) |
| Dinner | Bermuda Grass: 5 Pounds (1 flake) | Alfalfa Hay: 5 Pounds (1 flake) |
As you can see, the only thing that changed in this mare’s meal plan was the type of grain she gets for lunch. At this point in the pregnancy, an increase in her hay and grain is not yet necessary. In early pregnancy, your mare should also not be ridden or worked as it can increase the chances of pregnancy loss. Because of this, she won’t be burning as many calories as she used to so increasing her feed won’t be necessary.
Feeding your Mare Mid-Pregnancy (2nd Trimester):
The second trimester of pregnancy in horses lasts from day 61 and ends at day 270 (or month 3 to month 9). This trimester is the longest and most comfortable trimester in your mare’s pregnancy. During this phase, the foal will do the most growing and developing. Because the baby won’t be huge yet, mama is able to work, be ridden, and get a decent amount of exercise safely and comfortably.
It will be during this trimester that your mare will begin looking pregnant. With her likely returning back to riding and work, and a bigger baby inside, she’ll need more food to make up for the extra calories she’s burning with all the running around and baby growing she’ll be doing.
Both her hay and grain will need to be increased at this point to make up for the extra calories she’ll be needing.
An example you might better be able to understand is this:
Mare’s Meal Plan BEFORE Pregnancy:
The mare in this example has a pre-pregnancy weight of 1,000 pounds
| Breakfast | Bermuda Grass: 5 Pounds (1 Flake) | Alfalfa Hay: 5 Pounds (1 Flake) |
| Lunch | Soaked Beet Pulp: 1 Pound dry (2 cups) | Grain: 2 Pounds (4 cups) |
| Dinner | Bermuda Grass: 5 Pounds (1 Flake) | Alfalfa Hay: 5 Pounds (1 Flake) |
Mare’s Meal Plan During Mid-Pregnancy (3-9 Months):
The mare in this example has a pre-pregnancy weight of 1,000 pounds
| Breakfast | Bermuda Grass: 8 Pounds (1.5 Flakes) | Alfalfa Hay: 5 Pounds (1 Flake) |
| Lunch | Soaked Beet Pulp: 1 Pound dry (2 cups) | Mare and Foal Grain: 4 Pounds (8 cups) |
| Dinner | Bermuda Grass: 8 Pounds (1.5 Flakes) | Alfalfa Hay: 5 Pounds (1 Flake) |
As you can see, the bermuda grass and grain has increased for this mare during this phase of her pregnancy.
The amount of feed she got before pregnancy equaled out to be around 20 pounds of hay and 4 pounds of grain/beet pulp
The amount of feed she got during her second trimester equaled out to be arounf 25 pounds of hay and 5 pounds of grain/beet pulp
When it comes to increasing your mare’s feed, do it gradually so there isn’t a huge change in her diet at once.
Feeding your Mare Late Pregnancy (3rd Trimester):
The final trimester of your mare’s pregnancy starts at day 271 and ends at the birth of her foal.
In the late stages of your mare’s pregnancy, she should no longer be worked or ridden. Her baby will be very big and she’ll appear obviously pregnant. She will be more uncomfortable at this point so the most exercise I would have her do is whatever she does on her own in a turnout.
With a big baby growing even further inside, your mare will need to have her hay and grain amounts increased even further. At this point. I would suggest spreading her feedings out during the day so she consistently has feed if she wants it.
An example you might better be able to understand is this:
Mare’s Meal Plan BEFORE Pregnancy:
The mare in this example has a pre-pregnancy weight of 1,000 pounds
| Breakfast | Bermuda Grass: 5 Pounds (1 Flake) | Alfalfa Hay: 5 Pounds (1 Flake) |
| Lunch | Soaked Beet Pulp: 1 Pound Dry (2 cups dry) | Grain: 2 Pounds (4 cups) |
| Dinner | Bermuda Grass: 5 Pounds (1 Flake) | Alfalfa Hay: 5 Pounds (1 Flake) |
Mare’s Meal Plan During Late Pregnancy (10-11 Months):
The mare in this example has a pre-pregnancy weight of 1,000 pounds
| Breakfast | Bermuda Grass: 8 Pounds (1.5 Flakes) | Alfalfa Hay: 5 Pounds (1 Flake) | ————————- |
| Lunch | Soaked Beet Pulp: 1 Pound Dry (2 cups dry) | Mare and Foal Grain: 6 Pounds (12 cups) | Bermuda Grass: 3 Pounds (0.5 Flake) |
| Dinner | Bermuda Grass: 8 Pounds (1.5 Flakes) | Alfalfa Hay: 5 Pounds (1 Flake) | ————————- |
In the above example, the mare has had her grain and hay amounts increased and added hay to her lunch.
The amount of feed she got before pregnancy equaled out to be around 20 pounds of hay and 4 pounds of grain/beet pulp
The amount of feed she got during her final trimester of pregnancy equaled out to be around 28 pounds of hay and about 7 pounds of grain/beet pulp