My horse is pregnant and my foster daughter asked me some questions that I simply didn't know the answer to. Can horses miscarry or give birth to a stillborn? Can they give birth prematurely? How are pregnant horses and pregnant women the same?

Yes they can miscarry, yes they can delivery stillborn foals, yes they can birth prematurely, and sometimes the foals can die soon after birth. I don't know how similar the conditions of pregnancy are between horse and human though, sorry.

I'm not sure what you mean by how are they the same? Both have higher nutritional needs while pregnant as they are eating for two. Both have a need for restricted exercise as the pregnancy progresses. They have to be careful about getting sick as it could cause complications. Horses can miscarry, birth prematurely or late, have a stillborn or absorb the embryo depending on the situation. They can also have the birth canal partially stitched shut to help keep contaminants such as manure out, which is done often if the mare has a tipped uterus.

I've often wondered if mares get cravings like women do. I can just imagine a mare having a craving for say molasses at 2am and making her stallion wake the owners to get some, lol. Otherwise as mentioned the nutritional needs are similar as well as the body condition. Most mammals have very similar patterns when pregnant and birthing.

Lol, yeah I like the idea of sending Mr Horse out to the convenience stable for craving fodder. Incidentally women too can sometimes need to have the cervix stitched shut if they have an incompetent cervix (which can lead to loss of the baby through prematurity or miscarriage). I didn't know they did the same for a horse, even if it is for a different reason.

Thanks for all the information, I didn't know half the things you told me about. I told my daughter about the cravings, and that they can lose their foal just like women can. Now she keeps trying to feed the horse pickles.

Pickles? That is too cute! Thats one of the things my mother ate when pregnant with me, and probably why I don't really like them now! :)