Mare bagging up and she's not preggo

[lucky]

New to mares.

I have a 14 yr old mare, and I know for sure she’s not pregnant. I’ve had her for just over a year, and no studs. Last Friday I noticed she is bagged up. Her breasts are full of milk. They are both the same size, they are not hot just body temperature and are firm but not hard. If you squeeze they are full of milk.

I’ve been told to not squeeze them, to hose spray them will cold water for 5 min twice a day, and take her off grain. She is still in the pasture so getting grass and just a handful of pellets just enough to mix in suppliments.

They are staying about the same, not getting hot or lumpy. So is this just a false pregnancy? or bad heat cycle? She does not show heat cycles, I never know when she’s in heat, and I’ve never seen her breast swell before and I check her a lot. She has had one foal in 2001 and was bred in 2005/6 but lost the foal around 6 months.

Is this normal? Should I give her more exercise? Or keep doing what I'm doing?

[kiakat]

I don't know if this applies to you but I had something of the same situation with a mare I had that lost a foal at birth. She was in with other mares and a steer (with horns) and was allowing literally anyting (including the steer) to nurse off her. I had her 12 yrs. after she lost the foal and never rebred her and she stayed wet that entire time. It was actually nice because she would nurse the new foals and I could take the mothers out without the hassle of foal separation. I'm thinking that it may be a natural thing in a herd situation but anyway if your mare has any other animals (nursing type) in with her perhaps she is allowing them to nurse when you're not aware. I only found out because my neighbor asked where I got the foal with horns. I am with my horses 4 and 5 times a day and had never "caught" her nurse maiding. If not for my neighbor's spotting the steer nursing I probably never would have figured out why the mare never dried up..