“Fluid” in the uterus after breeding - what is it?!
When breeding mares, it’s not uncommon for an owner to hear from their vet about persistent “fluid” in the uterus after insemination or natural cover. Fluid in these cases indicates inflammation of the endometrium of the uterus, or ‘endometritis’.
Endometritis is a part of the post-breeding process in all mares, but what makes the difference is that some mares cannot clear the inflammation on their own. The uterus then becomes an unfavourable environment for a pregnancy, which contributes significantly to infertility in mares.
Why does it happen?
There are a number of factors which influence whether your mare will develop persistent endometritis post-breed. These include:
- Age
- Perineal conformation (think mares with Caslicks)
- Anatomic abnormalities (e.g. previous foaling trauma)
- Poor contraction ability of the uterus
- Cervical incompetence (i.e. cervix not relaxing appropriately to facilitate fluid clearance)
- Defective lymphatic drainage
- Degeneration of the cells of the uterus
What do we do about it?
A number of treatment options exist for us to attempt to settle down the inflammation in the uterus after breeding. Our first line options include the use of injectable hormones (oxytocin, prostaglandin), uterine lavages with sterile fluids, intra-uterine antibiotics and anti-inflammatories. We aim to settle the inflammation down by 48-72h post-breed in order to optimise our chances at success.
If attempted treatments aren’t getting us the results we want, we may suggest further diagnostic tests on your mare. These help us gather more information about the problem and guide more specific treatment going forwards - meaning we can maximise our chance of getting your mare pregnant!
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