| Author |
Message |
    
Merissa
Nursing Foal
Username: Merissa
Post Number: 16
Registered: 12-2006
| | Posted on Thursday, April 12, 2007 - 10:57 pm: | 
|
The first day my foal was born she was passing a good amount of meconium and everything seemed to be going fine. Today her stools are pretty runny - almost like strait liquid and butterscotch in color. She is not as playfull as yesterday.. she gets up to nurse, walks around a bit, then goes back to bed. The vet and another breeder I talked to said this is normal just because she is not used to milk and it is probably pretty rich for her (We are feeding pretty rich hay) I'm just getting concerned because of her lack of playfulness. I am waiting from a phone call from a different vet right now, but until then any help would be great! |
Sandy Smith
Yearling
Username: Sandystone
Post Number: 59
Registered: 05-2006
| | Posted on Friday, April 13, 2007 - 07:22 am: |
|
Have you wormed the mare with ivermectrin? I had a filly that had scours for 3 weeks and as soon as I wormed the mama, the scours stopped. The foal will still get scours during foal heat, but that's 9-11 days after foaling. |
cathy Cook
Breeding Stock
Username: Razmacat
Post Number: 195
Registered: 08-2005
| | Posted on Friday, April 13, 2007 - 07:43 am: |
|
I would both worm the mare and give the foal Probios. |
Mood Swings
Yearling
Username: Mood_swings
Post Number: 63
Registered: 12-2006
| | Posted on Friday, April 13, 2007 - 06:52 pm: |
|
How is your foals temperature? |
Jennifer Graef
Weanling
Username: Kakadu
Post Number: 28
Registered: 07-2005
| | Posted on Friday, April 13, 2007 - 07:11 pm: |
|
Wow, a repro forum and no one has said give Pepto yet? Go get a big bottle of pepto bismol. Give about 20 ccs every 3 hours until the stools harden. That is your FIRST action...then think about worming for threadworms and giving probios. A foal that young can NOT handle this for very long. |
cathy Cook
Breeding Stock
Username: Razmacat
Post Number: 197
Registered: 08-2005
| | Posted on Friday, April 13, 2007 - 10:29 pm: |
|
I always found Probios to work faster than pepto type stuff. We don't use the name brand Pepto I use some other stuff called Gastro Cote. You also have to be very careful with stuff like pepto that you don not stop them up too much and give them colic. |
Dusty Housh
Yearling
Username: Belles_momma
Post Number: 51
Registered: 02-2007
| | Posted on Friday, April 13, 2007 - 11:11 pm: |
|
This may be a dumb question. But why do foals get scours during foal heat? My filly is 5 days old. She had some butterscotch colored diarehea but it stopped on wednesday. Thanks |
cathy Cook
Breeding Stock
Username: Razmacat
Post Number: 198
Registered: 08-2005
| | Posted on Saturday, April 14, 2007 - 07:55 am: |
|
From what I understand it is not caused by the mare at all it is just changes in the foal's GI tract which causes it. Dumb timing! I had an orphan a few years ago get it! |
Merissa
Nursing Foal
Username: Merissa
Post Number: 18
Registered: 12-2006
| | Posted on Saturday, April 14, 2007 - 11:06 am: |
|
Thanks for all your help guys! I ended up giving her some Kaopectate and she was feeling a lot better by night time and today she was back to her normal self.. run, buck, eat, sleep! Not just eat and sleep. Her temp was normal and I had just wormed the mare that day, maybe the wormer was hard to the foal's stomach too? |
cathy Cook
Breeding Stock
Username: Razmacat
Post Number: 199
Registered: 08-2005
| | Posted on Saturday, April 14, 2007 - 11:09 am: |
|
Nah I worm every mare the day they foal and have yet to have it upset the foal. |
Dusty Housh
Yearling
Username: Belles_momma
Post Number: 52
Registered: 02-2007
| | Posted on Saturday, April 14, 2007 - 12:04 pm: |
|
Cathy--what do you worm your mares with? my vet told me to wait until Lilly is 2 weeks old before I worm Jill. Then she said to use strongid. |
Nancy McGee
Breeding Stock
Username: Ndv101
Post Number: 222
Registered: 08-2006
| | Posted on Saturday, April 14, 2007 - 07:03 pm: |
|
Dusty I gave ivermectin on day 2 |
cathy Cook
Breeding Stock
Username: Razmacat
Post Number: 201
Registered: 08-2005
| | Posted on Sunday, April 15, 2007 - 08:55 am: |
|
I worm with Ivermectrin day one. |
Jennifer Graef
Weanling
Username: Kakadu
Post Number: 29
Registered: 07-2005
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 18, 2007 - 06:08 am: |
|
Pepto or Kaopectate are what you give to a very young foal that has diarrhea immediatly and without question. Probios are good in general but are not a valid treatment for a foal that is showing signs of stress from having loose stools. It takes at least days and more likely a week to establish a culture in the GI tract that will be of any benefit. And, a normal foal gets dosed by their natural tendency to eat their mother's poop. Also, a healthy culture will not be established in a foal that has diarrhea. It will just be squirted out with no chance to take hold. It is best to give probios after the runs have been stopped so that they can establish. This is true in every species. Anytime an animal is treated with antibiotics it also needs a dose AFTER the treatment has stopped.
It is recommended that you worm a mare 1 week before foaling by most vets, not post foaling. The mass shedding/die-off that results from worming can have toxic effects on a foal. It is also not good practice to introduce a toxic substance into the body of an animal that has just recieved a big insult. A recovery period is best.
And, it is currently being studied...but there is a theory that worming a horse right after foaling passes only ivermectin resistant worms on to the foal and the foal develops an more serious issue then if it had recieved both resistant and non-resistant worms in the milk. This is just a theory though. |
Kris Moos
Senior Stallion or Mare
Username: Kris
Post Number: 1069
Registered: 01-2006
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 18, 2007 - 10:45 am: |
|
I was told to give peptom bismal as well as 1/2 cup plain yogurt am and pm(be sure it is the kind with live cultures~ L.bacillis acidopholus) for the entire time the foal has loose stools to keep healthy bacteria in the gut, and even a couple days after, and give probios. |
Britnie Ann
Nursing Foal
Username: Britnie
Post Number: 14
Registered: 03-2007
| | Posted on Friday, April 20, 2007 - 02:08 pm: |
|
Jennifer, I've never heard of worming the mare before, always right after she foals. Do you know of any websites supporting this? What you say does make sense!
Although in my case, not knowing the due date, it'd be pretty impossible.
(Message edited by britnie on April 20, 2007) |
