The Depressed Foal

The most common reasons a foal might become depressed, Franklin said, include infection, poor nutrition, acidosis (unusually acidic blood from diarrhea), lameness (multiple lamenesses can often depress a foal
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"We all know this little guy–he’s the one who will stand under the mare getting milk dumped on his face without nursing, sleep too much, just look ‘off,’ and often be in the hospital," said Robert Franklin, DVM, Diplomate ACVIM, of Goulburn Valley Equine Hospital in Victoria, Australia, during the Western Veterinary Conference held February 15-19 in Las Vegas, Nev.

"Start with his history–was he delivered normally? Dystocia? C-section?" he said. "Was there a failure of passive transfer? What about his herdmates–do any of them have rotavirus, strangles, Clostridia, R. equi, or anything else? Look for infectious and/or endemic problems. Has there been previous disease on the farm? Was the mare vaccinated against it? What about the mare’s udder–does she have mastitis or an underdeveloped udder? Is she letting the foal suckle? Is he getting enough food?"

Getting More Information

Once you have the foal’s background, it’s time for a physical examination. Franklin described starting with the basic evaluations–temperature, pulse, respiration, mucous membranes, and sclera (the white part of the eye, which can be yellowed with neonatal isoerythrolysis, also called jaundice). He also recommended checking for any jugular vein problems due to catheter use in previously hospitalized foals, and palpating the entire foal from nose to tail on both sides. With this evaluation, he said a practitioner can find swellings and sensitivities that might not be visible on a cursory visual examination

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Written by:

Christy West has a BS in Equine Science from the University of Kentucky, and an MS in Agricultural Journalism from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

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