Ready, Set, FOAL!Foaling Supplies
11 long months and the time is here.
Your mare has thick yellowish white globs of wax on the ends of her teats, her back end looks like a bowl of jello and her tail has relaxed so much you can bend it straight over her back with little resistance.
As night time falls she becomes increasingly restless, ignoring her feed and walking her stall.
Sweat breaks out on her flanks and neck and she starts to look increasingly focused.
Welcome to stage one of foaling.
Do you have on hand the supplies you need? The following list of foaling supplies should be kept on hand close to the foaling stall: Clean towels to dry the foal: Foals have a hard time regulating their body temperature.
Drying them off with a towel will help prevent them from getting chilled.
Unless it is extremely cold, allow the mare to bond with the mare first by licking and talking to the foal for at least several minutes before you enter the stall to dry the foal.
Keep the foal in the sight of the mare and don't threaten the mare by getting between her and the foal.
Navel dip: A 1:3 solution of chlorhexidine and water (DO NOT use 7% Lugal's solution or straight iodine as they can be caustic to newborn skin) is recommended by the AAEP.
Tip: An empty 12cc syringe cases work great to dip navels.
The neonate's umbilicus should be dipped several times a day for the first two or three days.
If the stump seems wet in between dips or appears inflamed or infected, call your veterinarian.
Tail wrap: A word of caution: do not wrap the upper portion of the tail too tightly or leave the tail wrapped for too long as this can cause loss of blood flow to the tail bone and cause serious damage.
Many farms use an old tube sock or elasticon vet wrap to contain the lower portion of the tail and don't worry about wrapping the top of the tail.
The main purpose of wrapping the tail is to keep the long hairs out of the way during the foaling process as they can lacerate a newborn foal.
A bucket, warm water, cotton and mild soap (such as Ivory dish soap) to wash the mare's vulva, udders and flank area.
Newborn foals have a tendency to suckle on anything in sight as they are searching for the udder in the initial stages of learning to nurse.
Washing the mare's flank area and udders reduces the amount of bacteria the foal ingests prior to absorbing immunity providing colostrum.
In the event of an dystocia (malpresentation of the foal), you'll have soap and water on hand to wash the mare's vulva before you attempt to manipulate the foal.
Shoe string or umbilical tape: Always allow the mare to break the umbilical cord on her own.
In a normal foaling you will not have to do anything to the umbilicus after the cord breaks (other than dip it in the navel dip solution listed above).
If, when the cord breaks, blood spurts out of the foal's umbilicus with pulsing spurts, use the shoe string to tie off the umbilicus.
Call your vet.
On rare occasion, the vessels in the umbilicus do not constrict at foaling as they normally do and being able to tie off the umbilicus could mean the difference between life and death for the foal.
Straw to bed the stall.
As much of a pain as straw can be to clean and dispose of, shavings have particles that are too small for the newborn foal and can be inhaled in to his lungs.
Straw is also considered to be softer, warmer and safer for the newborn foal.
A watch, clock or timer and something to jot notes on.
You'll want to record the timing of the events of foaling.
The foal's front legs should be visible within 15 minutes of the mare's water breaking, with complete presentation of the foal in another 10 minutes.
From foaling to standing should take no longer than an hour.
The foal should be nursing within two hours and the mare's placenta should pass within 3 hours.
Scissors: In the event of a red bag foaling (premature placental separation), the foal's oxygen supply has been cut off by the placenta separating prematurely from the uterus.
This foal cannot breathe and must have the sack removed from his face immediately.
The placenta can be very difficult to tear through with your fingers.
Use the scissors to carefully cut the placenta to expose the foal's head.
From there the foal can be delivered normally.
Thermometer: If the mare and or foal aren't doing well at any time, you'll want to be able to report a rectal temperature to your veterinarian.
Stethoscope: Fairly inexpensive stethoscopes can be bought on ebay.
Get yourself familiar with normal gut sounds on a horse so that you can more easily tell when something is wrong.
High pitched pinging in an upper quadrant typically is indicative of gas (we call them sewer sounds).
Decreased or absent gut sounds can indicate an impaction.
Enema for the foal.
Meconium (foal's first fecal matter) impactions can be deadly to a newborn foal.
It is routine on most breeding farms to administer an enema to the foal within the first few hours of life.
Over the counter Fleet type enemas from the drug store work great.
Do not administer more than two over the counter enemas in a 24 hour period as this can cause a severe electrolyte imbalance.
10cc of glycerin in a 12cc syringe also works well.
If the foal is still straining after two enemas, consult your veterinarian.
Trash bag or bucket: The placenta can provide clues to your veterinarian as to the health of the mare's uterus and the health of the newborn foal.
He or she will look for abnormalities as well as make sure that the placenta was passed in its entirety.
Even a small tag of retained placenta can have severe health implications for the mare.
Be sure to keep the placenta up away from dogs and barn cats while you are waiting for your veterinarian.
Baby bottle with large bore nipple: Tip: the largest infant size works fine for foals.
Some foals that are slow to rise can benefit from some colostrum milked from the mare and bottle fed to the foal.
Injectable Oxytocin per your veterinarian's instructions.
Do NOT give the mare repeated doses of oxytocin without your veterinarian's direction.
Post partum mares have a increased oxytocin receptors in the uterus.
Too much oxytocin can lead to a uterine prolapse.
Banamine (flunixin meglamine) per your veterinarian's instructions.
Foal rejection, especially in maiden mares, may have a lot to do with post partum pain.
500mg of Banamine (preferably IV but orally is better than nothing) can help with mare and foal bonding, milk let down and the general comfort of the post partum mare.
Foal blanket, heat lamp or heating pad depending on how cold it is when the mare foals.
Your veterinarian's phone number (and a back up vet) plus a cell phone or barn land line.
If you like your veterinarian and want to keep him happy, don't call him in the middle of the night just to let him know that your mare foaled.
If all has gone well, wait until the morning to share the news.
In the event of an emergency and if you get an answering machine or answering service, speak calmly, clearly and leave a detailed message including a number for your veterinarian to call you back on.
Last but not least is patience.
Time can move agonizingly slowly when you are waiting for critical events to happen.
Mares have an uncanny ability to sense when eyeballs are on her and most prefer to foal privately.
If you can bear to leave the mare alone to her own devices, do it.
Wireless barn cameras are not expensive anymore and can save you money in the long run in worrying and sleepless nights.
Your mare has thick yellowish white globs of wax on the ends of her teats, her back end looks like a bowl of jello and her tail has relaxed so much you can bend it straight over her back with little resistance.
As night time falls she becomes increasingly restless, ignoring her feed and walking her stall.
Sweat breaks out on her flanks and neck and she starts to look increasingly focused.
Welcome to stage one of foaling.
Do you have on hand the supplies you need? The following list of foaling supplies should be kept on hand close to the foaling stall: Clean towels to dry the foal: Foals have a hard time regulating their body temperature.
Drying them off with a towel will help prevent them from getting chilled.
Unless it is extremely cold, allow the mare to bond with the mare first by licking and talking to the foal for at least several minutes before you enter the stall to dry the foal.
Keep the foal in the sight of the mare and don't threaten the mare by getting between her and the foal.
Navel dip: A 1:3 solution of chlorhexidine and water (DO NOT use 7% Lugal's solution or straight iodine as they can be caustic to newborn skin) is recommended by the AAEP.
Tip: An empty 12cc syringe cases work great to dip navels.
The neonate's umbilicus should be dipped several times a day for the first two or three days.
If the stump seems wet in between dips or appears inflamed or infected, call your veterinarian.
Tail wrap: A word of caution: do not wrap the upper portion of the tail too tightly or leave the tail wrapped for too long as this can cause loss of blood flow to the tail bone and cause serious damage.
Many farms use an old tube sock or elasticon vet wrap to contain the lower portion of the tail and don't worry about wrapping the top of the tail.
The main purpose of wrapping the tail is to keep the long hairs out of the way during the foaling process as they can lacerate a newborn foal.
A bucket, warm water, cotton and mild soap (such as Ivory dish soap) to wash the mare's vulva, udders and flank area.
Newborn foals have a tendency to suckle on anything in sight as they are searching for the udder in the initial stages of learning to nurse.
Washing the mare's flank area and udders reduces the amount of bacteria the foal ingests prior to absorbing immunity providing colostrum.
In the event of an dystocia (malpresentation of the foal), you'll have soap and water on hand to wash the mare's vulva before you attempt to manipulate the foal.
Shoe string or umbilical tape: Always allow the mare to break the umbilical cord on her own.
In a normal foaling you will not have to do anything to the umbilicus after the cord breaks (other than dip it in the navel dip solution listed above).
If, when the cord breaks, blood spurts out of the foal's umbilicus with pulsing spurts, use the shoe string to tie off the umbilicus.
Call your vet.
On rare occasion, the vessels in the umbilicus do not constrict at foaling as they normally do and being able to tie off the umbilicus could mean the difference between life and death for the foal.
Straw to bed the stall.
As much of a pain as straw can be to clean and dispose of, shavings have particles that are too small for the newborn foal and can be inhaled in to his lungs.
Straw is also considered to be softer, warmer and safer for the newborn foal.
A watch, clock or timer and something to jot notes on.
You'll want to record the timing of the events of foaling.
The foal's front legs should be visible within 15 minutes of the mare's water breaking, with complete presentation of the foal in another 10 minutes.
From foaling to standing should take no longer than an hour.
The foal should be nursing within two hours and the mare's placenta should pass within 3 hours.
Scissors: In the event of a red bag foaling (premature placental separation), the foal's oxygen supply has been cut off by the placenta separating prematurely from the uterus.
This foal cannot breathe and must have the sack removed from his face immediately.
The placenta can be very difficult to tear through with your fingers.
Use the scissors to carefully cut the placenta to expose the foal's head.
From there the foal can be delivered normally.
Thermometer: If the mare and or foal aren't doing well at any time, you'll want to be able to report a rectal temperature to your veterinarian.
Stethoscope: Fairly inexpensive stethoscopes can be bought on ebay.
Get yourself familiar with normal gut sounds on a horse so that you can more easily tell when something is wrong.
High pitched pinging in an upper quadrant typically is indicative of gas (we call them sewer sounds).
Decreased or absent gut sounds can indicate an impaction.
Enema for the foal.
Meconium (foal's first fecal matter) impactions can be deadly to a newborn foal.
It is routine on most breeding farms to administer an enema to the foal within the first few hours of life.
Over the counter Fleet type enemas from the drug store work great.
Do not administer more than two over the counter enemas in a 24 hour period as this can cause a severe electrolyte imbalance.
10cc of glycerin in a 12cc syringe also works well.
If the foal is still straining after two enemas, consult your veterinarian.
Trash bag or bucket: The placenta can provide clues to your veterinarian as to the health of the mare's uterus and the health of the newborn foal.
He or she will look for abnormalities as well as make sure that the placenta was passed in its entirety.
Even a small tag of retained placenta can have severe health implications for the mare.
Be sure to keep the placenta up away from dogs and barn cats while you are waiting for your veterinarian.
Baby bottle with large bore nipple: Tip: the largest infant size works fine for foals.
Some foals that are slow to rise can benefit from some colostrum milked from the mare and bottle fed to the foal.
Injectable Oxytocin per your veterinarian's instructions.
Do NOT give the mare repeated doses of oxytocin without your veterinarian's direction.
Post partum mares have a increased oxytocin receptors in the uterus.
Too much oxytocin can lead to a uterine prolapse.
Banamine (flunixin meglamine) per your veterinarian's instructions.
Foal rejection, especially in maiden mares, may have a lot to do with post partum pain.
500mg of Banamine (preferably IV but orally is better than nothing) can help with mare and foal bonding, milk let down and the general comfort of the post partum mare.
Foal blanket, heat lamp or heating pad depending on how cold it is when the mare foals.
Your veterinarian's phone number (and a back up vet) plus a cell phone or barn land line.
If you like your veterinarian and want to keep him happy, don't call him in the middle of the night just to let him know that your mare foaled.
If all has gone well, wait until the morning to share the news.
In the event of an emergency and if you get an answering machine or answering service, speak calmly, clearly and leave a detailed message including a number for your veterinarian to call you back on.
Last but not least is patience.
Time can move agonizingly slowly when you are waiting for critical events to happen.
Mares have an uncanny ability to sense when eyeballs are on her and most prefer to foal privately.
If you can bear to leave the mare alone to her own devices, do it.
Wireless barn cameras are not expensive anymore and can save you money in the long run in worrying and sleepless nights.
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