Cesarean C-sections for miniature horse mare & foal

The surgical process of delivering a miniature horse is called an equine Ceasarian section (also spelled Cesarean section).

Equine veterinarians say that keeping your miniature horse in a horse hospital during the last 48 hours before parturition will significantly improve the chances of survival for both the miniature horse mare and unborn foal.  This is because hospital c-sections have a very high survival rate and are often the only option for survival in the serious cases of miniature horse dystocia.

The day of parturition can be reliably detected with a series of blood test and mike test strips, often giving the miniature horse breeder enough time to transport the miniature horse mare to a equine hospital within hours before the onset of labor.

Once in a hospital, other medical tests (CT scans, x-rays or deep-penetrating abdominal ultrasounds) can be used to detect a dystocia before labor, thereby allowing time to schedule a c-section to save the life of the miniature horse mare and miniature horse foal.

Marcia King, in an excellent article on horse C-sections for TheHorse.com, notes that horses with a history of delivery problems (e.g. miniature horses with a history of Dystocia) are often scheduled for non-emergency C-sections.  Here King describes the foaling procedure: 

"When signs indicate the mare is about one to two days from delivery, she is sent to the veterinary hospital where the C-section will be performed. "The surgery needs to be done in a hospital environment," says White, "and for an optimal outcome these procedures should be done by specialists." Two veterinary teams are necessary--one to perform the actual surgery and the other to attend the foal while the surgeon completes the uterine and abdominal closure on the mare. "

Vets say that because you must act within minutes to save the life of the foal, a hospital delivery will greatly improve the chances of the miniature horse foal's survival. 

Vets also note that if your miniature horse has a too-large foal or a foal that has not moved successfully into the birthing position, this can be detected prior to parturition via deep-penetrating ultrasound.  Hospital personnel can then delay the onset of labor with drugs and possibly perform a Caesarian section delivery. 

Note that a c-section may reduce the probability of the mother foaling again.  Cyberhorse.com notes that the famous mare Eau D'Etoile was unable to carry a foal full term since a Caesarean section in 1997.

According to a comprehensive article on horse C-sections in TheHorse.com, Marcia King notes:

"Many horse breeders and owners are familiar with the circumstances that necessitate an emergency cesarean section. Those circumstances involve the mare and/or unborn foal being in imminent danger due to birthing difficulties (also known as dystocia)."

"When signs indicate the mare is about one to two days from delivery, she is sent to the veterinary hospital where the C-section will be performed. "The surgery needs to be done in a hospital environment," says White, "and for an optimal outcome these procedures should be done by specialists." Two veterinary teams are necessary--one to perform the actual surgery and the other to attend the foal while the surgeon completes the uterine and abdominal closure on the mare."

USA Miniature Horse is a non-profit web site dedicated to collecting useful information about miniature horses in the United States.