Mare-Care

Diet Description

A broodmare’s feeding programme should be divided into three separate stages:

1.  Early pregnancy, from conception through seven months of pregnancy. Barren mares and pregnant   mares without foals by their sides fit into this nutritional category.
2. The last trimester of pregnancy, from seven months of pregnancy through to foaling.
3. Lactation, which generally lasts for five or six months after foaling.

The nutrient requirements for these three stages differ markedly and adjustments should be made in the mare’s feeding programme to accommodate these differences. The most common mistakes made in feeding broodmares are overfeeding during early pregnancy, and underfeeding during lactation.

Early Pregnancy

• The foetus does not grow at a constant rate throughout the entire eleven months of pregnancy. It is very small during the first five months; even at seven months, the foetus equals only about 20% of the foal's weight at birth
• At this stage in pregnancy the foetus equals less than 2% of the mare's weight and its nutrient requirements are low compared with the mare's own maintenance requirements
• It is unnecessary to greatly increase a mare's energy intake after she is pronounced in foal, but better to ensure that she receives adequate quantities of key nutrients by using good quality forage to meet energy and protein requirements, and adding supplemental minerals and vitamins in the form of Stamm 30®

Late Pregnancy

• After seven months of pregnancy, the foetus begins to develop rapidly. At this point, its nutrient requirements become significantly greater than the mare's maintenance requirements
• Digestible energy (DE) requirements only increase about 15% over early pregnancy. Protein and mineral requirements increase to a greater extent. During the last four months of pregnancy, the foetus and placenta combined retain about 77 grams of protein, 7.5 grams of calcium, and 4 grams of phosphorus per day
• Trace mineral supplementation is very important during this period since the foetus stores iron, zinc, copper, and manganese in its liver for use during the first few months after it is born. The foetus has developed this nutritional strategy of storing trace minerals during pregnancy because mare’s milk is quite low in these elements

If the pregnant mare becomes fat, she should be given a feed that is more concentrated in protein and minerals so that less can be fed per day. This can be achieved by using low levels of Mare-Care topdressed with Stamm 30®.

Lactation

• After foaling, the mare's nutrient requirements increase significantly, with a particular need for glucose in milk production. On average, they experience a 44% increase in their energy requirements. During the first three months of lactation, mares produce milk at a rate equal to about 3% of their body weight per day
• Underfeeding mares at this time can result in decreased milk production, loss of body weight and condition, and compromised reproductive efficiency
• Calcium and phosphorus are the minerals that should be of primary concern
• Feed intake should be increased gradually during the last few weeks of pregnancy so that the mare is consuming nearly the amount that she will require for milk production by the time she foals
• After about three months of lactation, milk production begins to decline and decreases to about 2% of the mare’s bodyweight. Feed intake can be reduced to keep the mare in a desirable body condition. When the foal is weaned, and the mare has hopefully been rebred, the cycle begins again

Mare-Care is a specifically formulated diet for broodmares during late pregnancy and lactation. Body condition can be a significant factor affecting mare reproductive performance as mares maintained in moderate body condition cycle earlier in the year, require fewer cycles per conception, have a higher pregnancy rate, and are able to maintain pregnancies better than very thin mares. A body condition scoring system usually ranges from 1 to 9. A mare at the bottom of the range is emaciated and a mare at the top of the range is obese. Using this system, research has determined that a mare in a condition score of less than 5 may not have enough stored body fat to support efficient reproductive performance. Those mares are more likely to skip a breeding season than mares with a condition score of 5 or 6. This is especially prevalent in mares that are 15 years of age or older.

Mare-Care is fortified with Stamm 30® for nutrient continuity, and has the additional benefits of flexible energy levels to control body condition when the two feeds are used together between early and late pregnancy. Mare-Care can even be introduced just 30 days before the mare’s due date to provide her with balanced and appropriate nutritional support leading up to foaling.

Provides a natural source of Vitamin E. Natural Vitamin E is retained in tissues for longer periods of time, creating a reservoir that allows it to be instantly available when the horse needs it most – in times of stress or during periods of confinement. Due to modern management practices, including early breeding dates, mares may not be receiving adequate Vitamin E nutrition through rations composed largely of hay and grain and limited access to fresh pasture. Mare-Care will help to increase circulating levels of Vitamin E, which may positively affect fertility.

Contains a properly balanced ratio of Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acids. Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acids are necessary for the production and distribution of hormone-like substances which increase the chances of a successful pregnancy, as mares are more likely to carry their foals to term, and the foals are more likely to have higher birth weights. These findings suggest that mares with a history of abortion may benefit from nutritional support with Omega-3 fatty acids. Mare-Care provides supplemental Omega-3 fatty acids, which can give many reproductive advantages as research suggests that they can optimise conception rates and boost fertility. Fertility studies have shown that the follicles grow faster, forming more vigorous embryos in Omega-3-supplemented broodmares. These fatty acids can be passed from the dam to the foal through milk, so supplementation of the mare can provide for the foal as well. Supplemented mares produce richer colostrum, which could jumpstart the health of their foals to have a stronger immune system.

Contains BioMos to improve mare health by attracting and neutralizing bacteria, such as E-Coli and Salmonella. Bio-Mos is a source of manna oligosaccharide, a five carbon sugar complex derived from yeast cell walls that is not absorbed by the digestive tract. It has the unique ability to bind with pathogenic bacteria and simply carry them out of the horse’s body. Bio-Mos has also been shown to support the horse’s immune system. Studies have shown that the inclusion of Bio-Mos in broodmare diets optimises colostrum quality, as their foals have higher IgG levels in their blood giving them added protection against pathological organisms.