Ectopic pregnancy in a horse

Summary An ectopic fetus was discovered in the abdominal cavity of a 21‐year‐old Haflinger mare, which was referred to an equine clinic because of colic symptoms. The mare had been inseminated 3 years previously and was confirmed pregnant at 90 days. Although an abortion or foaling had not been observed, the mare was found empty a week before the expected foaling date. Upon presentation at the clinic 2 years later, abdominal ultrasonography displayed a dead fetus cranioventrally in the abdominal cavity. It was expected to be located outside the uterus. A mummified fetus coated in a membrane, which was assumed to correlate with the fused fetal membranes after resorption of the fetal fluid, attached to the peritoneum, was removed by laparotomy and the mare recovered uneventfully. In this rare case of an ectopic mummified fetus, a secondary abdominal pregnancy was presumed to have occurred following a uterine rupture at approximately 210 days of gestation. To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first report of a 2‐year long‐lasting secondary abdominal pregnancy.