Hi, i was wondering what to supplement my pregnant mares with, my vet said the oats (I put a probiotic on) i have been feeding them make their blood sugar go up. They are Pmu mares out of Canada.

Where are you from? Ca

How did you locate this forum? On the internet

Hi Robbyn,

I would not recommend oats for your pregnant mares. First, oats will not supply your them with much nutritional value other than energy. And second, the type of energy is not as safe as other sources.

Depending on what you are already feeding, you’ll want to make certain that they are getting additional calcium, magnesium, and phosphorus. This can be accomplished several ways, but an easy approach is to offer her a pregnancy supplement such as Mare Plus.

You also want to offer hay – preferably a grass/legume mix. And, as their pregnancies progress, they’ll need more feed, especially past the 8th month.

To best prepare you for the event (other than nutritionally), I highly suggest reading The Complete Foaling Manual by Theresa Jones. I offer it on my website.

So, you are correct in your concern about oats raising her blood sugar level. You can supply energy through other means such as rice bran, beet pulp, alfalfa pellets/cubes, flaxseed, soybean meal, etc.

All the best,

Dr. Getty