Influence of maternal plane of nutrition on mares and their foals: determination of mare performance and voluntary dry matter intake during late pregnancy using a dual-marker system.

This research studied the effects of maternal diet on pregnant mares and their foals, finding that mares on a hay diet had decreased weight and body condition score towards birthing, while those fed concentrate showed gains. This suggests the diet of mares in late pregnancy can impact their physical condition. Further research could explore how adjusting maternal nutrition could influence dry matter intake and overall health and development.

Research Methodology

• A total of thirty pregnant mares, with a body weight ranging from 538 to 695 kilograms and age between 4 and 19 years, were used for this study.
• The mares were split into four blocks based on their expected foaling dates and within each block, they were randomly assigned to two groups: those on a hay diet and those on a concentrate plus hay diet (the concentrate was fed at 0.75% of body weight).
• The feeding/experimental period began 110 days prior to the expected foaling date and continued until the time of giving birth.
• To monitor the dry matter intake (DMI) of hay, a dual-marker system was deployed during the 9th, 10th, and 11th months of gestation.
• In order to gather data on the mares’ performance, variables (values of body weight, body condition scores, and rump fat) were recorded every 14 days.

Results and Key Findings

• It was found that the type of diet tended to influence the body weight of the mares before birthing and had a significant impact on their body condition scores and levels of fat in the rump area.
• Horses on a hay-only diet showed reductions in body weight and body condition scores from the start of the experiment to parturition, while mares placed on a concentrate-enhanced diet experienced gains in these areas.
• Mares consuming only hay ingested about 2.3% of their body weight in forage compared to 1.8% ingested by those on the concentrate-containing diet.
• The month of gestation also had an effect on forage intake, with mares consuming less during the 10th month of pregnancy and more in the 11th month.

Implication of The Study

• The study provides crucial insights on the impact of maternal nutrition on pregnant mares and their offspring.
• The finding highlights the role of plane of nutrition in influencing a mare’s physical condition during the final stage of pregnancy, which might have implications for the foal’s development.
• These observations prompt further research into how manipulation of diets could impact dry matter intake and ultimately affect the overall health and development of the mare and its foal.