Many Kentucky Mares Now Holding Pregnancies at Normal Rate; Impact Seen at 21% of Crop

An informal survey of Central Kentucky farms on May 21 suggests the worst may be over as far as mare reproductive loss syndrome is concerned. While heavy losses already have been incurred, particularly involving maiden and barren mares bred in

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An informal survey of Central Kentucky farms on May 21 suggests the worst may be over as far as mare reproductive loss syndrome is concerned. While heavy losses already have been incurred, particularly involving maiden and barren mares bred in February, the good news is that mares bred from late March on appear to be holding their pregnancies at close to normal percentages.

Based on the surveys and on the normal distribution of Kentucky foals born between January and June, The Blood-Horse estimates the 2002 Kentucky foal crop will decrease by no more than 21%.

One large breeding operation provided statistics that showed the following:

  • Feb. 10-28 — 87% of mares bred during this period lost their pregnancies; ultrasound examination indicates the remaining pregnancies "are not very promising."
  • March 1-14 — 50% of mares bred during this period lost pregnancies; others "look pretty good."
  • March 15-March 31 — 21% of mares bred during this period lost pregnancies.
  • April 1-14 — 13% of mares bred during this period lost pregnancies; farm’s normal loss range is between 5-10%.
  • April 15-30 — 3% lost pregnancies.

Another major farm experienced losses with 61% of its pregnancies from February covers, 38% from March covers, and no losses from April covers. Yet another operation reported losing its first 21 pregnancies from February covers, then saw a steady decline in losses during March; from April 1 onward, only one of the mares reported pregnant has come up empty. Another farm hit hard by February cover losses reported its numbers improved significantly in early March and were quickly back in the "normal" range

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Written by:

Ray Paulick is a former editor of The Blood-Horse magazine.

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