Editor’s note: This article is part of TheHorse.com’s ongoing coverage of topics presented at the 2012 Western Veterinary Conference held in February.

When a mare is bred, her caretakers typically aren’t thinking about how they’ll raise her foal should something happen to her during parturition. But unfortunately, orphaned foals are a breeding reality that all caretakers should consider. At the 2012 Western Veterinary Conference, held Feb. 19-23 in Las Vegas, Nev., Carol Clark, DVM, Dipl. ACVIM, discussed the important aspects of feeding orphan foals.

Colostrum

The first thing any foal needs to consume is the mare’s colostrum, explained Clark, a practitioner at Peterson & Smith Equine Hospital in Ocala, Fla. Colostrum, or "first milk" as some call it, is the thick, yellow secretion from the mammary gland that’s present immediately after birth that contains concentrated antibodies that help protect the foal against infectious diseases