Labor occurs in three distinct stages. In stage one, the mare is restless. She may take a bite of feed, then walk around the stall. Sometimes she goes off feed and will not eat. She may lie down and roll, get up, stomp her hind feet and make a kicking like motiontoward her adomen as if colicky. These signs "may continue for 12-24 hours During this period the fetus is positioned for delivery and the cervix is dilated. This stage ends with the breaking of the water bag.
The actual birth, stage two is rapid, with most foals born in 20-30 minutes. As the foal is squeezed thrugh the pelvis canal, the umbilical cord becomes compressed and the foal can suffocate if not born quickly.
Please remember, I'm not there to see. I'm basing this on the posts that I've read. So I could be over reacting:)
Becky
The trainer says that she is just laying down because the foal is so big that sometimes she's hurting and needs the relief. That is pretty much what I thought, too. Sugar looks like she may actually be taller laying on her side than she is standing up. : ' )