“While many outbreaks of respiratory disease in foals are infectious in nature, this is not always the case,” she began. “Environmental factors can have a profound effect.”
Japanese scientists recently announced that they have sequenced the genome of Clostridium perfringens. The organism can cause diarrhea, scours, and other intestinal problems in horses. Clostridia are normally found in various environments
Researchers looked at healthy and sick foals and also checked mares at foaling and two days after foaling to see if the mares were shedding the rotavirus into the environment where the foals could pick it up.
Although it’s ever-present, under normal conditions Salmonella will have little influence on your horse’s heath. But, if he’s stressed and his immune system is operating at less than full capacity, the bacteria can sneak in and strike.
“But we’ve never had rotavirus in our foals.” Read on and consider yourself lucky if your foals have never had rotavirus and you have breezed through the past foaling seasons sans diarrhea.
I am a new owner of a broodmare who just had her first foal, which now has diarrhea. How serious is it for him?
Foals born to mares which do not receive proper nourishment during gestation could be born weak.
Encouraging water consumption is extremely important. This often starts by making sure your horses have free access to a good, clean water source.
Any horse which is sick and suspected of having a contagious disease should be immediately isolated from the healthy stock. If possible, a single person should be assigned to the care of this animal, and that person should be educated to use proper
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