I live in the uk and have never heard of a mare being spayed?

Question

l saw this on here as an answer to a question on behaviour in mares..'spayed for $100' as l breed horses and have never heard of this l wondered if anyone knew more
l would have thought that any mare who was raced successfully would retire to stud?

to the person who throught of doing this to show horses[mares]
their value is in their progeny!

Answer 1

I've heard of it but never known one that has actually been done either here or in the UK. As for Vonya's answer, I think what she is describing is a caslick where you stitch the mare's vulva down and that prevents sucking in air. Spaying a mare and removing her ovaries would have no effect on a mare taking in air. That is not the same as spaying which is basically sterilizing her. Spaying has the same effect on the mare's behavior as being on long term Regumate so it's used to control heat behavior.

Answer 2

First: mares can be spayed, vets DO perform the procedure, and the reasons for it very widely. Second- Lisa is right when she says that Vannya is describing a Caslick's procedure, not spaying, for mares which are windsuckers when they run. I knew a mare which had been spayed- we used her as a tease mare when the stallions on the farm were collected for AI. This was when I lived and worked in NJ on a farm there. They kept this mare on a low dose of hormones all the time, so she was perpetually in heat during the breeding season ( she still had her ovaries, it was just her uterus that was removed because of fibroids) and her big role in life was to tease the guys, and play grandma ( she was quite old, in her late 20's) to the newly weaned foals. No one rode her while I was there- she was considered to have been retired from that for some time back. About a year before I left that farm and moved on to another position, she died peacefully from old age one morning. We were all sorry to see her go- she was a sweet old dear.

Reasons for spaying a mare include cancer, fibroids, chronic cysts, polycystic ovary syndrome ( PCOS), infections, and repeated miscarriages. This is major surgery, just as it is for human women- and the mare generally will need a long recovery time after it's done. A Caslick's surgery, or suturing of the vulva to prevent windsucking and infections, is considered minor and can usually be done in less than an hour, using local anesthetics. Spaying requires general anesthesia, which is one reason why it's much more of a risk to the mare. Caslicks' surgeries ARE frequently performed on racing fillies to protect their fertility during their careers. Once the filly retires to stud, the Caslick's is opened to allow for breeding, and then resutured afterwards. When the mare foals, the same thing is repeated to allow for foaling, and for rebreeding afterwards.

I hope this answers your question.

Answer 3

In that post you are reffering to, the person who said a mare could be spayed for $100 is waaaaaaay off base.

Firstly, this is NOT someting just any vet can do (like most vets can and will do castrations on "normal" stallions). Spaying a mare is a lot more involved, and because the organs are all deep internal, it requires a sterile environment. This is not something that can be done on a bed of straw or in a grass field, like most castrations are done.

It is rather expensive, and rather uncommon, but as the other poster here said, the list of reasons for spaying are numerous. I was at a veterinary university where they had a spayed mare. They did it for the practice, but an average horse owner would look into spaying a mare that has severe issues, like cysts, cancer, and major behavioural issues - especially when hormone therapy/drugs haven't worked.

A spayed mare doesn't usually consist of removing the uterus. It is more of an ovarioectomy (removing the ovaries---or at least clamping them off), than a hysterectomy (removing the uterus.)

Unlike dogs & cats, that are much smaller, and recieve full ovariohysterectomies (when they are spayed, all reproductive organs are removed from the animal - ovaries, uterus, and the ovarian tubes.) Some humans need to have this procedure done too, because of cancer mostly.

And while for dogs, cats, and people, this is major surgery that involves full anesthesia, it is possible to complete this type of surgery in horses without full anesthesia.

Spaying a mare is done in one of two ways:

One way is by an intravaginal endoscope, where they have to expand the abdomen with a gas to allow working room and the ability to find the ovaries on the camera, they then staple the ovarian tubes, or cut them and remove the ovaries. This can ONLY be done at a few universities around the US, and usually runs you around $3000 and can be as much as $5000 USD.

The other way to accomplish this is by an external incision in their flank on one side and removing or clamping the ovarian tubes. This is slightly cheaper, and can actually even be done "standing", withouth the need for full anesthesia. But even this type of spaying will still run you anywhere from $1500-$2500 USD.

I looked in to this for my mare, when I was told by a vet that her riding issues were behavioural and spaying her would solve it. The quotes I got were from 1 private practice vet, and 2 universities.

I am very glad I didn't have it done, though - it wasn't her "hormones" causing the issues - and now she can only be used for breeding.


And, in a hormonal mare that is having behavioural issues, her heat cycle can be supressed by using progesterone. This comes in several different forms - injectable progesterone (commonly called "depo provera), they also have injectable progesterone in oil, same thing, just a bit thicker and can cause calcification at the injection site; they also have implants that go under the skin - these are the "matchstick" things the other poster was referring to; and of course there's oral progesterone - Regumate.

Answer 4

Mares can be sapyed but it is not a common procedure and it is not done unless the mare has serious problems.
Unlike the Casslick procedure that is done to prevent wind sucking on race mares which is routine and very easy to do and undo of you wish to breed the mare. The Casslick only stiches up the mare partially so they do not suck wind into the reproductive track when racing.
Spaying is much more work and more dangerous. Most times they will try to use something like Regumate to supress heat rather than spay.

Answer 5

Whoa! Don't start me on this one!!! I have a HUGE opinion about this
I wish it were a more common procedure.. if it were, equines would be treasured for what they are not shipped off for the meat trade.
If they could develop a keyhole spaying for mares then the majority of mare owners could have to have it done, just like they do for the boys!!!
Stallions have a dreaded reputation because of the racing hormones and we cut of the testosterone supply to stop all that. Well what about the hormones in a mare? They are "Entires" too, yet people don't do anything about that. Feed merchants supply feed stuffs & calmers for "stroppy mares" that get fed by the bucket load in the spring & summer. If we eliniminated the hormones in the girls to wouldn't the average horse owner have an easier time if it?
Breaders who know what they are doing would retaine the option just they they do with their stallions.
(80% of my "problemhorse" cilents are mares with handeling problems in the spring & summer, and it's usually down to the fact that they are not understood by very novis owners who then talk of having a foal from the mare because some twit told them it might "settle her down"
Then there is another one in the world to carefor for another 25 years or so)
Just a thought!!!

Answer 6

It is deffinately not a common thing due to the risks of the procedure. They don't have a nice clean surgery like they do for boys, they go in through the bottom and pull out the ovaries. (and it is just as it sounds, they don't surgically open them up and cut everything nicely away like the do in female humans)
This is not a pretty or gauranteed safe procedure for mares so it is really rarely done.
We do have one mare that was spayed and it was awful to know what they did to accomplish this. (she was spayed before we got her.) The reason they spayed her was because she was having problems with her ovaries and they didn't want to take a chance of her accidentely getting pregnant.
So yes it does happen but not very often due to the saverity and harshness to the body of the mare. It is not done for conveniance sake like gelding a stud, it is usually only done for medical reasons.

Answer 7

Unless there is a valid medical reason, I don't agree with it at all. I have heard of it for behavioral problems but personally I'd try other methods first. As for Z , the wonderful thing about a mare is the fact they are not always in the same mood (A bit like me at certain times), to me that is just part of owning a mare. People who don't want that should only keep geldings.

Answer 8

I saw that answer too and I've never heard of it either!! What is the point? I imagine it is very traumatic for the mare, and they don't get turned loose with stallions UNLESS the owner wants to breed from them, pure madness. There are plenty of supplements on the market now which help control the hormones and keep mares calm, I use NAF Oestress on my mare with great success.

Answer 9

The whole spaying thing is just if the mare has reproductive problems otherwise its not usually done. Some usual problems would be metritis and endometritis (uterine infectiosn) and if they are chronic they take out the uterus. If they get metritis a lot after foaling they get harder to breed same with cows

Answer 10

I have heard of it, however it is almost unheard of in this country and you would struggle to find someone to do it in the UK.

However it is done in america and is as rountine as say getting your dog spayed (although not as common).

I suppose it get's rid of the hassel of a mare being in season, and the moods associated with this. I'm guessing they probabily wouldnt spay competition horses as they are likely to want to breed from them, I think it's more for people who have one horse just for pleasure.