b'Caring for ORPHAN Foals Creep Feeding & Weaning depend on a microbial population to Walden says when her filly beganhelp them digest material such as hay. eating the companion mares food, sheTheir colon doesnt develop that capacity brands together, and the filly thrived.started her on a free-choice milk-basedfully until theyre 6 to 10 months old, If you do switch between milk replacercreep pellet in addition to the milk re- she added, and in the wild that works be-brands, however, do so gradually to pre- placer. Then it was a natural step for thecause theyre usually not weaned until the vent gastrointestinal upset. filly to switch to regular feed. next foal comes along. But we wean them Lastly, Walden stresses the importanceFoals gastrointestinal tracts arentearlier, so I recommend starting with a of keeping flies out of the mixed milkprepared to transition to solid food untilcreep-fed complete, pelleted junior feed replacer when leaving it out. I kept live- theyre at least a couple of months old,thats easily chewed and digested.stock fans on a timer, to go off at midnightsays Buechner-Maxwell, and even thenAt weaning Walden put her filly with and on again at 6 a.m., she says.theyre going to struggle because theysix weanlings, adjacent to her companion mare. They can touch noses, and the filly still hangs out with the mare, she says.Behavior IssuesAttachment to humans presents the biggest behavior issue with orphans: their tendency to lack normal human-horse boundaries. They become too bonded to a human, Buechner-Maxwell says. I know of at least two orphans that have had to be put down because their behav-ior was just so (dangerously) abnormal.Even the (now 11-year-old) orphan foal we have is far too aggressivenot in a mean way, but just wanting to be play-ful and near us, she adds. Im always on guard with him. The key is to minimize human interaction with the foal until its bonded appropriately to an adult horse.For these reasons Walden says she tried to have as little contact with the filly as possible. Id scratch her a bit, but only as much as I would the other foals, she says. I get them people-friendly, but I dont halter-break them until I wean them.The only difference I see in her is not even a negative, Walden adds. Like any mare and foal that have been kept sepa-rate from others, she doesnt interact and play as much as the other youngsters do. And even though the mare did her part to correct her when she needed it, she just doesnt seem to get that whole social status thing with other youngsters.Mares serve as ideal companions be-cause theyll typically provide the bonding and socialization that occurs between dams and foals, but geldings can typically do the job, too, Buechner-Maxwell says. Take-Away MessageWalden admits that overall, her experi-ence might have been easier than most because her farm is her business, so she or her staff are present 24/7. But by consulting experienced owners, your vet, and/or a specialist, you can formulate a plan that will fit your particular needs and head off many orphan foal issues. h36TheHorse.comTHE HORSE March 2018'