Bella Vista Equine Reproductive Services

02/02/2026

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Don't get left behind! 𝐈𝐭'𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐭𝐨𝐨 𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐥𝐲 𝐚 𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐦𝐚𝐬𝐤 𝐭𝐨 𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐧 𝐨𝐫 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐠𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐧!

Open mares:
🗓️Advances breeding season
⬆️Improves fertility

Pregnant mares:
🕒 Optimizes gestation length
⬆️ Increases post-foaling fertility
🐎 More mature foals at birth

01/31/2026

FOALING SEASON IS UPON US!

Are you ready to assist your broodmare? Here are some tried and true guidelines to remember during foaling:

• Unless there's an emergency, allow the foal time to break the fetal membranes. Once the foal breaks through, be sure it’s breathing.

• Generally, it’s not recommended to cut or break the umbilical cord. If it has not broken during delivery, it will usually break when the mare or foal gets up.

• Encourage the mare and foal to rest as long as possible. Give them an opportunity to bond undisturbed.

• Following birth of the foal, the mare and her newborn should be monitored for normal breathing, brightness and alertness. The mare should be non-aggressive, curious and accepting of the foal.

• The foal should stand and nurse within two hours of birth. If the foal has not nursed within three hours, call your veterinarian. The foal may be weak and in need of assistance or medical attention.

• By the third hour, the mare should pass the placenta, and the foal should pass meconium. Once the placenta has been expelled, examine it to make sure it is intact, particularly at the tips of the horns. The afterbirth will be Y-shaped and should have only the hole through which the foal emerged.

• A foal must receive colostrum (the mare's first milk) within the first eight to 12 hours of life in order to absorb the antibodies. If a foal is too weak to nurse, it may be necessary to milk the mare and give the colostrum to the foal via a stomach tube.

Contact your veterinarian to learn more so you can be prepared to help the new mother and foal get off to a great start! If your mare and foal are not meeting these milestones in the appropriate timeframe, call your vet immediately.

01/30/2026

Foaling: Part 2. Written by Elizabeth Martinsen, DVM, MS, ACT

First 24 Hours After Foaling:
If the foal seems weak and not acting normally, you should contact your veterinarian. A normal foal will stand and move around within the first 2 hours. By 3 hours, the foal should have located the teat and nursed. Foals that fail to locate the teat and don't nurse within 3 hours will need some assistance. It is highly recommended to administer a foal e***a to every foal as soon the foal is able to stand.

At times, foals refuse to nurse just because they have not passed enough meconium (first dark stool), even without showing obvious signs of a meconium impaction. Bottle feeding the foal with the mare’s colostrum or frozen colostrum may be an alternative if the foal fails to nurse on its own within the first 5-6 hours from foaling. At this time you should contact your veterinarian for advice. The foal may require tube feeding with colostrum by your veterinarian if it fails to nurse by 8 hours from foaling. The goal is to have adequate colostrum intake before the first 12 hours. The volume of colostrum necessary for the first 12 hours depends on the quality of the available colostrum and the size of the foal. Normally, a volume intake of 1,000 mL of colostrum in the first 12 to 16 hours is adequate. At birth, the foal’s intestinal cells are able to absorb the large immunoglobulin molecules from the colostrum. However, after 12 hours there is very little or maybe no absorption of colostrum. This is why early intervention is important! Intake of colostrum during the first 24 hours is also important to protect the foal’s intestines against diarrhea. Commercial colostrum sold in stores should only be used as a supplementation and not as a replacement of colostrum. Colostrum from other species will not provide adequate immunity to newborn foals. The newborn foal is immunologically naive at birth. The placenta of the mare does not allow the transfer of large immunoglobulin molecules that would provide resistance to infections. Therefore, the newborn foal needs the colostrum intake in order to obtain the immunoglobulins to fight any infections. A foal that fails to obtain the passive immunity from the mare is at risk of becoming sick and may eventually die. A very simple blood test can be performed by your veterinarian when the foal is 16 -24 hours old to check for adequate colostrum intake. Foals that have failure of passive transfer or poor colostrum intake can be treated by receiving a plasma transfusion. Leakage of colostrum prior to foaling can also affect the quality of colostrum intake by the foal and it should be discussed with your veterinarian.

Navels are treated every 8 hours for the first 24 hours, or longer until dry. We recommend dipping the navel with a 2% diluted iodine solution. Stronger iodine solutions are likely to cause burning and necrosis of the navel and it should be avoided. Remember that newborn foals don’t roll. If the newborn foal is rolling, switching the tail, or positioning the legs flexed when lying down and restless, a likely cause is colic. The most common cause of colic in the newborn foal is meconium impaction. The meconium impaction can occur up to 24 hours from foaling, even if the foal has already passed some meconium. Signs of colic in the newborn may also be a sign of a ruptured bladder or a discomfort that precedes diarrhea. If you notice any signs of discomfort in your foal, do not hesitate calling your veterinarian for care instructions.

After 24 Hours:
To prevent complications, a foal navel should be checked regularly. A wet navel after the foal is more than 48 hours old is a worrisome signal and you need to contact your veterinarian. Watch the newborn foal frequently to see if it is bright and alert. The foal should constantly nurse which is often followed by a nap. Foals that wander off and that are not interested in nursing can be cause for concern. If the foal is not nursing, the mare’s udder may remain full. Always check the mare’s udder to see if the foal is consuming enough milk. Be concerned when the mare’s udder is too full or too small. Mares that do not produce enough milk will have udders that are frequently small in size. In these cases the foal will be back to nurse too often and it may also skip nap time. You may think that the foal is nursing well when in fact it is seeking the mare non-stop because it is hungry.

Some newborn foals have weak legs and are down in the pasterns. The legs should become stronger with time. If you notice any limb deformities in the newborn, contact your veterinarian to discuss any treatments or recommendations for the condition. When the foal is about 10 to 14 days old it may present diarrhea associated with the mare being in heat (foal heat diarrhea). Generally, this type of diarrhea does not require any treatment. Diarrhea in the newborn that is not associated with the mare’s foal heat should be discussed with your veterinarian and treated accordingly.

Newborn foals from mares that receive the appropriate foaling shots require no additional vaccinations. In this case, the first vaccinations can be performed after 3 to 4 months of age. Foals can obtain their first wormer at 30 days. Finally, always keep the lines of communication open with your veterinarian and take the time to ask when you are in doubt. Foaling and taking care of the newborn foal is a worrisome period but after a few foaling experiences you will become familiar the foaling process. Soon you will be able to start enjoying your new additions instead.

01/28/2026

With foaling season now underway, we'd like to share some helpful information on preparing your broodmare for foaling as well as what to expect in the first days.

Information written by Elizabeth Martinsen, DVM, MS, ACT

Caring for the newborn foal starts with the broodmare care. Appropriate nutrition and pre-foaling vaccinations of the broodmare are crucial in producing a healthy foal. The pregnant broodmare should receive her pre-foaling shots 4 to 6 weeks prior to the mare’s due date to ensure appropriate level of immunity in the colostrum. Bella Vista Equine does not recommend the administration of modified live vaccines to any pregnant mares. If you plan to move your mare to a large breeding farm for foaling, you may be required to give additional pre-foaling vaccinations to protect the mare and the newborn foal against organisms that may be common in large breeding farm operations. You should always discuss with your veterinarian about the pre-foaling vaccines recommended for your region.

Foaling frequently occurs during the early morning hours. Farm personnel should be observant and call a veterinarian for assistance if a problem arises. Intervention by the owner or farm personnel may be necessary and the level of intervention depends on the handler’s experience. Too much intervention during a normal foaling could be detrimental to the mare and foal. It is important to understand the normal turn of events so you can recognize any problems early on. Foaling is divided into 3 stages. During the first stage, the mare will have uterine contractions that will position the foal and move it toward the birth canal. This stage lasts between 1 to 2 hours and sometimes may go unnoticed by the observer. The fetal membranes will be visible and the sac breaks initiating the second stage. The mare starts delivering the foal during the second stage. If the mare does not progress delivering the foal during this second stage, or if the delivery lasts more than 30 minutes, then you must call your veterinarian. Should you suspect that the position of the foal is abnormal, such as hoof soles in the upward position or only seeing one front leg at delivery, you need to immediately call your veterinarian. After the delivery of the foal, the third stage of labor begins. During this stage, the placenta will be expelled. Expulsion of the placenta may take up to 3 hours. Any delay beyond this point is a concern. Another worry is a Redbag delivery. A Redbag may occur during foaling, when the placenta separates from the uterus prematurely and the oxygen supply of the foal is compromised. During the course of a Redbag delivery, the mare starts foaling with the intact bright red placenta attached to the foal and covering the foal's airways. If the mare is presented with a Redbag at foaling, then direct intervention is necessary. The foal may die from asphyxiation if the placenta is not broken on time and if the foal is not delivered immediately. However, some foals may look normal for the first 12 to 24 hours only to turn into dummy foals 36 hours post-foaling. Redbag foals should always be examined by a veterinarian. It is not recommended to cut the umbilical cord with scissors since it can cause excessive bleeding of the umbilical stump. The umbilical cord can be left alone or separated manually by holding it firmly with 2 hands and twisting and pulling on it, so that it breaks about one inch from the foal's abdomen. After the umbilical cord is ruptured, the blood vessels will shrink and it should stop bleeding by itself. Tying the cord is not recommended. By tying the cord you may prevent the natural closure of the blood vessels and predispose the umbilical stump to infection. Assuming a normal foal delivery and everything appearing normal, allow the mare and the foal time to bond alone.

01/26/2026

We are pleased to announce we are offering oocyte aspirations for ICSI at Bella Vista Equine Reproductive Services in St. Louisville, Ohio!

🐎

01/23/2026

01/21/2026

Did you know? Bella Vista Equine Reproductive Services is a Select Breeders Services affiliate lab—one of only a few in the U.S. and the only one in Ohio.

Since 2018, we’ve offered top-tier frozen semen services using SBS proprietary protocols, advanced technology, and strict quality control—plus access to the Select Breeders International Network for stallion promotion, storage, and distribution.

Learn more at www.selectbreeders.com or contact us for details.

01/20/2026

Meet Dr. Martinsen!

Dr. Elizabeth Martinsen, DVM, MS, ACT, is a board-certified equine reproductive specialist with decades of experience. Trained in Brazil, Texas A&M, and The Ohio State University, she founded Bella Vista Equine in 2005 and is passionate about advancing equine reproduction through expert care, teaching, and education—both in the U.S. and internationally.

01/19/2026

Welcome to Bella Vista Equine Reproductive Services in Saint Louisville, OH—just one hour northeast of Columbus. Led by board-certified specialist Elizabeth Martinsen, DVM, MS, ACT, we bring 20+ years of experience in problem mares, frozen semen insemination, embryo transfer, foaling, stallion services, and more.

Call or text 740-91-BELLA (740-912-3552) to learn how we can support your equine breeding goals!

www.equinedoctor.com

07/01/2025

Some mares need no help getting in foal while others take teamwork. We love a good challenge and welcome them all! 🩷🐎🍀