As an article by the CBC explains, Lisa Pfister, a student at the University of New Brunswick, is testing a system that may be able to pinpoint – within a 12 to 24-hour window – when a mare will foal.

Pfister has a background in civil engineering. Utilizing a three-dimensional printer, she has developed a device that measures the PH levels in the milk of the broodmare.

She has told the CBC that the system can measure the levels and send that information straight to a smartphone.

"You take a milk sample from your mare, then you put it through a preparation system, then that test strip goes through the device and then you get your reading of when your mare will give birth," Pfister told the CBC.

She has tested the system before and has said that it has been able to pinpoint – with a 12 to 24-hour range – when the mare in question will foal. Pfister has planned a summer pilot period to further test the device. Eleven mares – including one of her own – will participate in the pilot.

(With files from the CBC)