Placentitis and Foals’ Athletic Prognosis

There were few performance differences between foals born to healthy mares and those treated for placentitis.
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Editor’s Note: This article is part of TheHorse.com’s ongoing coverage of the 14th Hagyard Bluegrass Equine Symposium, held Nov. 1-4 in Lexington, Ky.


Placentitis, which often is caused by an ascending infection that enters the mare’s uterus through the cervix, is the single most important cause of premature delivery of a foal. Placentitis accounts for nearly one-third of late-term abortions and fetal mortality in the first day of life, and typically costs thousands of dollars to treat each case ($2,000 to $10,000 per case, a previous study estimated).

Some breeders might wonder if treating placentitis is worth the expense said Ed Squires, PhD, Dipl. ACT (hon.), or whether the foal will have decreased athletic potential and, thus, decreased value. At the 2012 Hagyard Bluegrass Equine Symposium, held Nov. 1-4 in Lexington, Ky., Squires, director of University of Kentucky (UK) Ag Equine Programs and executive director of the UK Gluck Equine Research Foundation, presented research examining whether or not foals’ athletic potential is affected by placentitis.

Previous studies on the topic have yielded contrasting results, Squires said, so he and his MS student, Sydney Hughes, set out to evaluate the performance of foals from mares suspected of having or being treated for placentitis

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Erica Larson, former news editor for The Horse, holds a degree in journalism with an external specialty in equine science from Michigan State University in East Lansing. A Massachusetts native, she grew up in the saddle and has dabbled in a variety of disciplines including foxhunting, saddle seat, and mounted games. Currently, Erica competes in eventing with her OTTB, Dorado.

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