Module 06 · Breeding & reproduction

Horse breeding and reproduction: from covering the mare to the foaling date

Eleven months of waiting, several checks, a few vaccinations and one date you must not miss. From the mare’s covering date, the breeding and reproduction module in iPalomino calculates the foaling date by itself, spreads the milestones across the calendar and, after birth, creates a profile with a pedigree for the foal.

From covering to foal Milestones in the calendar Countdown of days
In short

A mare’s pregnancy under control from day one

Breeding record

The mare, the covering date, the stallion and notes. Everything about one covering in one place.

Dates schedule themselves

Ultrasound checks, vaccinations and preparing the stall appear in the calendar together with reminders.

Countdown to foaling

You see the expected date and how many days remain — without counting on your fingers or on the wall calendar.

A foal with a pedigree

After birth a foal profile is created, with dam and sire carried over into it.

Horse breeding: why it pays to keep a mare’s covering in an app

A mare’s pregnancy lasts roughly eleven months, and more happens in that time than fits into one note on your phone. An ultrasound pregnancy check, further checks in the first weeks, vaccinations in the second half, preparing the foaling box and finally the date itself. Anyone breeding horses for the first time usually counts the days on paper; anyone with several pregnant mares needs a spreadsheet.

In iPalomino a single piece of data is enough: the mare’s covering date. From it the app calculates the expected foaling date and all the checkpoints in between. The milestones are written into the stable calendar and remind you in advance, so you manage to book the vet for the ultrasound in time.

The breeding record is linked to the mare’s profile in the animal records — her profile has a Breeding / reproduction tile that takes you to the current pregnancy and to the history of previous coverings.

A calculator for the foaling date and gestation milestones

Try out what the app calculates. Choose the species, enter the covering date and you will see the expected date, the number of days remaining and the milestones that would appear in your calendar:

Interactive calculator: foaling date
Expected date
Remaining
Gestation lengthapproximate average

    The calculation is based on the average length of gestation and on the indicative schedule of checks used by the app. The actual date may differ by several weeks, and the schedule of checks and vaccinations is always set by your vet.

    What the app schedules once you enter the covering date

    After you save the breeding record, the app creates a series of dates in the calendar. For a mare these are the milestones:

    • Day 14 — ultrasound to confirm the pregnancy.
    • Day 28 — ultrasound with a check of the foetal heartbeat.
    • Day 45 — follow-up ultrasound.
    • Days 150, 210 and 270 — a reminder of the EHV (rhinopneumonitis) vaccination commonly recommended for pregnant mares.
    • 3 weeks before the date — prepare the foaling box.
    • Expected foaling date — roughly 340 days after covering.

    Each milestone is an ordinary calendar appointment: it has an advance reminder, the team sees it, and you confirm it once it is done. If the covering date changes, the dates are recalculated. You enter completed checks and vaccinations in the horse health record, so that the history stays complete.

    How to create a breeding record step by step

    1. Open the mare’s profileIn a female’s profile you will find the Breeding / reproduction tile.
    2. Enter the covering dateThe day from which the pregnancy is counted. It is the only required piece of data.
    3. Add the stallion and notesThe stallion’s name is later carried over into the foal’s pedigree. The note is the place for the method of covering or the vet’s recommendations.
    4. Follow the countdown and milestonesIn the detail you see the expected date, the days remaining and the list of checks. You have the same dates in the calendar.
    5. Create the foal after birthYou mark the record as born and the app creates a foal profile with its dam and sire.

    Who the breeding and reproduction module helps

    Horse owners

    A first foal is a big event and a lot of unknowns at once. The app guides you through the mare’s whole pregnancy: you always know what comes next, when to call the vet and how many days are left.

    Farms and breeders

    Breeders with several breeding females have all pregnancies in one overview. The module also works for cows, goats or sheep — the length of gestation is set according to the species.

    Ranches and stables with a team

    On a ranch with clients’ pregnant mares, the whole team sees the dates. The groom knows when to prepare the foaling box, and the mare’s owner follows the countdown on their own phone.

    Professionals: farrier, vet, trainer

    A vet or AI technician connected to the stable sees the planned checks in the calendar and, after the examination, writes the result into the health record. Nobody has to work out which day of pregnancy the mare is on.

    The most common mistakes in recording covering and pregnancy

    In horse breeding, dates decide. One day left unrecorded can cause a lot of nervousness eleven months later:

    • The covering date written down only later. “It was around Easter” is not a date. Enter it that day — everything else is calculated from it.
    • A foaling date worked out in your head. The average is around 340 days, but a manual calculation is easily a week out. The app determines it by itself and shows how many days remain.
    • Pregnancy checks without a plan. If the date of a check isn’t in the calendar, it happens “when there is time”. You have the gestation milestones on a timeline.
    • The stallion’s details are missing. You will be looking for them when registering the foal. In the breeding record they are there from the start.
    • Preparation at the last minute. A foaling box and a vet on call aren’t arranged at night when the mare starts to foal. You plan the tasks weeks ahead.

    A foaling date is always indicative — mares don’t follow the calendar. All the more important, then, to have an exact covering date and an overview of what should follow when.

    After foaling: a foal profile with a pedigree

    When the foal is born, you close the breeding record and the app offers to create a new animal. The dam from the breeding record and the sire, by the stallion’s name, are written into the foal’s profile automatically, so the pedigree comes into being without retyping. The date of birth is the day of foaling, and the age is counted from it.

    From that moment the foal has its own history: its first vaccinations and dewormings in the health record, its own appointments, later its own stall QR code. And when the time comes to arrange a passport, the horse passport, ownership transfer and registration module helps.

    Not only horses: cows, goats and sheep

    Although this article is mainly about horse breeding, you can use the same module for other species. The app knows the approximate length of gestation for each animal — roughly 340 days for a mare, 365 for a jenny, 283 for a cow, 150 for a goat and 147 for a ewe — and calculates the expected date of birth accordingly.

    An example from the ranch

    The mare Bella was covered in mid-March. The owner enters the date and the stallion’s name and closes the app. Two weeks later she gets a reminder for the ultrasound, in summer for the vaccinations, and at the beginning of February an alert that the foaling box needs to be prepared.

    All that time she sees the countdown in the record’s detail. When a filly is born in February, one tap creates her profile, with Bella as dam and the sire written into the pedigree. She never once had to think about the nine checkpoint dates.

    Frequently asked questions

    How does the app calculate the foaling date?

    It adds the average length of a mare’s gestation, roughly 340 days, to the covering date. This is an indicative date — foaling may come several weeks earlier or later.

    Which dates are created in the calendar?

    Ultrasound checks on days 14, 28 and 45, EHV vaccination reminders on days 150, 210 and 270, preparing the box three weeks before the date, and the expected foaling date.

    Can the module be used for cows or goats as well?

    Yes. The length of gestation is set according to the species, and the app calculates the expected date of birth and the follow-up ultrasounds.

    What happens after the foal is born?

    You mark the breeding record as born and the app creates a foal profile. Dam and sire are carried over into the pedigree automatically.

    Does the app replace the vet?

    No. The app reminds and records. Your vet decides on the schedule of checks and vaccinations and on everything concerning the health of the mare and the foal.

    Related features of the iPalomino app

    When breeding horses you will also use these modules:

    Module 02Stable calendar and appointmentsFarrier, vet, vaccination and training appointments in one calendar with repeats and reminders.Module 05Horse health recordEach animal’s vaccinations, dewormings, injuries, medication and weight on one timeline with alerts.Module 01Animal records and horse profilesA list of all your animals with photo, microchip, passport and pedigree — the foundation every other module builds on.Module 09Horse passport and formsEach animal’s passport, ownership transfer, registration and microchip together — with an overview of what is still missing.

    Your whole ranch in one pocket.

    iPalomino is now on the App Store. Download the app and try it in your own stable. An Android version is in development.

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