Veterinarians with Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital in Lexington, Ky., have put out a call for colostrum donations as their supply has dwindled in the midst of foaling season.
Your new foal is struggling to his feet and instinctively wobbling toward mom. You watch in anxious interest as she licks and nudges to encourage him–while he noses at her front leg, her flank, her buttock, and finally, DINNER!
The mare’s
A new invention by Buck Wheeler called the Udderly EZ mare milker is helping breeding farms manage colostrum collection and the sometimes difficult task of milking a mare.
The device is a hand-held, trigger-operated pump that fits on a
Many think that lactation in the mare is not that important, especially compared to the dairy cow, from which milk is taken directly for human consumption. However, the importance of lactation in the mare must not be underestimated. Indeed, some
There might be ongoing debate as to the value of a woman’s colostrum versus commercial colostrum products, but for a foal, nothing is better than a mare’s milk. Colostrum is specialized milk secreted during the first 24 hours following birth and
This article will describe procedures that should be done before foaling, the events that take place just prior to foaling, what events take place during a normal foaling–along with the normal post-foaling events–and will describe some of
Infectious disease is a major cause of death in neonatal foals. The foal is born immunocompetent, meaning it probably is able to initiate an immune response to organisms to which it is exposed. However, a newborn foal lacks
Neonatal isoerythrolysis is a silent stalker of foals. At birth, the foal is normal. In some cases, the foal shows subtle signs as an internal enemy attacks and the disease progresses to a point of no return; in others, it takes only hours for
The foal is born with a functional immune system (if all is normal), but has a general absence of immunoglobulins to aid in the defense against infection. The foal acquires his initial immunoglobulin protection from the mare’s first milk, which
Final preparations will need to be made so that the newborn foal gets the best chance at life.
The birth of a long-awaited foal is an occasion to celebrate. But what if the unthinkable happens?
(Author’s note: Sera, Inc., who markets oral and IV equine IgG products approved by the USDA, sponsored a roundtable discussion on Biological Solutions for Biological Problems in Lexington, Ky. Participating in the roundtable were: Michelle
Stay on top of the most recent Horse Health news with
