Just like a human baby, newborn foals need a lot of care in their first few days. As the owner of a new baby horse, there are quite a few things that need to be checked and done right after the baby is born. Here we cover a few of the key things to remember to ensure your foal care is top notch.
Check your foal is breathing
As soon as the foal is born, check to make sure it is breathing. Do not panic if it isn’t, there are a few things that you can do.
Make sure that the amniotic sac is not covering or is not inside the foal’s nose. to do this you need to pass your thumb and index finger down the sides of his muzzle and lightly squeezing as you go down. If the sac is still there, break it using your finger.
If the amniotic sac is not there, take some hay and rub it against the foal’s nose to try to get it to breathe. If he still is not breathing then you need to lift him about a foot off the ground and drop him back down. Yes, you read that right, drop him. this should jar him to take his first breath.
At this point, if you still can’t get it to breathe, call your vet.
If this is your first foal or even if you would just feel more comfortable with it, then call your vet when the mother’s water first breaks so the vet can be there on hand if anything goes wrong.
Check the umbilical cord
With foal care, dealing with the umbilical cord is part of the process. . It is always best for the foal to break the cord itself. If it is broken too early then it can cause the foal to have convulsions and circulation problems.
Allow the foal time to break the cord. If this doesn’t happen and you need to do it yourself, never use a knife or scissors of any kind. Use only your fingers to break it apart.
Once the cord is broken by you or the foal, the end that is still attached to the baby needs to be dipped into iodine (1 to 2 percent only). The easiest way to do this is to have a dish nearby filled with the solution and put it under the foal as it’s standing or if it’s easier for you, wait until the baby is sleeping and simply pour it over the umbilical cord.
Repeat this process three times a day for the next couple of days. This process will guard your foal from an “umbilical stump infection”. Check the end of the cord several times a day. If it looks wet you need to call your vet. Usually, a wet umbilical cord is a sign of urine leaking out which requires treatment.
Keep a lookout for heat, swelling, and discharge. These are signs of a possible infection.
Helping the foal to nurse
Within the two days after being born your foal should be up and nursing. Allow it to figure this out on his own unless he cannot find the teat. Should this be the case then you need to milk the mother to get a bit of the milk on your finger and put it to the foal’s mouth.
Make sure that you have your finger next to the teat as the foal suckles it. Then take your finger away and gently guide the teat into the baby’s mouth.
If for some reason, the mother refuses to allow the foal to nurse, you will need to have your vet come in and tranquilize her. This will probably have to be done for the first couple of days until she accepts her baby nursing.
Add some hay
If the ground is wet or slippery you will need to add more hay. Your foal should be getting up on its own within ten minutes after birth. If this doesn’t happen and the foal is not able to stand yet, do not help it. Its bones may not yet be strong enough to hold its weight. Put some more hay around the foal and beneath it if possible so it will be able to get a better foothold to stand and not slip.
Adding more hay to ensure the foal doesn’t slip is important because it should be walking/running within about ninety minutes after birth.
You will also need to put out extra high-quality hay for eating. Granted, sometimes a foal isn’t ready to eat hay for up to ten weeks, but some will start eating it within ten days of birth.
You can also let your foal graze in the pasture with the mare for forage.
Arrange a vet check within 24 hours
If you have gotten through the birth of your foal without having to call in your vet, you will still need to do this within the first twenty-four hours after the foal is born.
There are some things that you need to watch for because your vet will probably ask you about this.
- Lifting its head – within five minutes after birth
- Trying to stand – within ten minutes after birth
- Defecating – within thirty minutes after birth
- Vocalizing – within forty-five minutes after birth
- Standing – within fifty-five minutes after birth
- Nursing – within an hour after birth
- Walking – within ninety minutes after birth
- Napping – within two hours after birth
Feeding times
Your foal needs to nurse at least every two hours during the first couple of days. Be sure not to interrupt this. It is extremely vital that the mother and foal bond for the baby to be able to get all of the nutrition that it needs.
If for whatever reason the foal isn’t nursing or the mother won’t allow it to, call your vet and talk to him about getting colostrum for your foal. The colostrum helps to give your foal a concentrated source of the nutrition it needs.
Diet supplements
Once your foal reaches four to six months old, you will need to add a supplement of grain that is high quality. It will need one pound of food for every month it is old or for every hundred pounds of its weight.
So, if your foal is five months old or five hundred pounds then you need to feed it five pounds of food a day.
You need to divide that five pounds into at least two servings. Three would be better. Three servings a day would be approximately 1.6 pounds per serving per day.
This, of course, will change as the baby grows.
Foal care issues
With foal care comes foal problems. They usually have some common problems that you will need to know about and watch for. Below is a list of the most common ones.
Diarrhea
When your foal is a week or two old you can expect it to have diarrhea. This is called “foal heat diarrhea”. The cause of this is that foals tend to eat feces, but the problem will resolve itself within days.
Just make sure to keep an eye on the foal, making sure that it nurses as it should, that it stays alert, doesn’t get dehydrated or become weak. If you notice any of these things, call your vet.
Limb deformities or weakness
If your foal has limb weakness or deformities, don’t panic. This is normal in newborns. When it starts to build its strength then the problem should correct itself. Make sure to mention anything to your vet so he can check and make sure it’s not anything more serious.
Scrotal or naval hernias
If your foal has a scrotal or naval hernia then you will find a bulge in that area. Smaller ones will normally go away on their own, but the larger ones may cause your foal to need surgery. Your vet can assess the situation and refer you.
Check for entropion
This problem occurs when the baby’s eyelashes and eyelids have flipped inwards in the direction of the eyeball. If the animal will allow you to then you can turn the eyelid back the appropriate way.
But, if your foal wants to struggle against your efforts then you will need to call in your vet to take care of it. If there is any irritation for the foal’s eye then your vet can get an ointment to help calm the irritation.
There will be other types of conditions that your vet will need to check for. This will be done by taking blood for tests. These tests allow your vet to detect things like Jaundice Foal (neonatal isoerythrolysis) Be sure that you call your vet as soon as the baby is born and set up the foal’s appointment.
Enjoy caring for your newborn foal!