New born Foal - Dead Dam.

brian whatcott

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Apr 10, 2012, 10:41:10 PM4/10/12

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Friend of a friend has been bottle feeding goats milk to an orphan foal.
Is there any way to pull the foal through this? A lactating mare?
300 lb or 3 months is the target weaning, even for early weaning, I hear.
Brian W

Melvina

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Apr 11, 2012, 12:57:42 PM4/11/12

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Google 'orphan foal feeding for lots of sites on the subject.

One word of advice... don't treat the foal like a puppy. Don't let it
climb on you, bite (gum) you, or kick at you. It may be cute and
harmless now, but it's not so cute when they're 1000 pounds. Horses
have to respect you from day one. I've seen far too many ruined
horses that weren't taught respect from the beginning and they grew up
to be dangerous horses that nobody wanted.

John Hasler

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Apr 11, 2012, 1:30:20 PM4/11/12

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Brian writes:
> Friend of a friend has been bottle feeding goats milk to an orphan
> foal. Is there any way to pull the foal through this?

Yes, of course. First, lose the goat milk and start feeding liquid milk
replacer for foals (available at your feed store). Second, teach
the foal to drink it from a bucket and then just keep a fresh bucket
available to him at all times. Third, teach him to eat milk replacer
pellets (again see your local feed store). Keep high-quality hay
available to him at all times.

A nurse mare is best, of course.
--
John Hasler Boarding, Lessons, Training
jo...@dancinghorsehill.com Hay, Jumps, Cavallox
Dancing Horse Hill
Elmwood, WI USA

brian whatcott

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Apr 16, 2012, 9:21:58 PM4/16/12

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On 4/11/2012 12:30 PM, John Hasler wrote:
> Brian writes:
>> Friend of a friend has been bottle feeding goats milk to an orphan
>> foal. Is there any way to pull the foal through this?
>
> Yes, of course. First, lose the goat milk and start feeding liquid milk
> replacer for foals (available at your feed store). Second, teach
> the foal to drink it from a bucket and then just keep a fresh bucket
> available to him at all times. Third, teach him to eat milk replacer
> pellets (again see your local feed store). Keep high-quality hay
> available to him at all times.
>
> A nurse mare is best, of course.

Sorry for the delayed response John. That agrees with the best local
advice I could find; "foal-lac" was mentioned. Foals have been
sustained from as young as 1 day olds, I hear. The tendency is to reach
up to nurse, so following a finger to the bottom of the bucket can
overcome the initial reluctance.

Thanks

Brian

brian whatcott

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Apr 16, 2012, 9:25:01 PM4/16/12

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Hadn't heard it put that way before - but caught word of colt foals
getting ugly as they matured, or put with other horses to 'teach 'em
manners.'

Thanks

Brian W

John Hasler

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Apr 16, 2012, 9:52:36 PM4/16/12

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brian whatcott writes:
> Hadn't heard it put that way before - but caught word of colt foals
> getting ugly as they matured, or put with other horses to 'teach 'em
> manners.'

When handling the colt you must discipline it as his mother would. Get
him an companion as soon as possible: an elderly, patient gelding that
is known to be good with foals would be best. Mares are, in general,
_not_ tolerant of foals other than their own. Put the colt and his
companion out on pasture with the herd within a few months.

Get him gelded ASAP, of course.

Dawn J-L

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Apr 18, 2012, 11:03:17 AM4/18/12

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(Knock on wood) I haven't had to deal with any orphaned foals, but
many folks recommend using an easily modified "Igloo" cooler for
feeding. Here's a link to a Word doc that details how to use an
"Igloo" cooler to hold foal milk replacer and other good tips for
raising an orphan: www.fairviewhorsecenter.com/Orphan_foal.doc (the
document does not convert well to a pdf, so this .doc version is the
most readable version I could locate on the web)

Dawn J-L

brian whatcott

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Apr 23, 2012, 7:21:10 PM4/23/12

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Thanks Dawn

Brian

brian whatcott

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Apr 23, 2012, 7:27:58 PM4/23/12

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On 4/16/2012 8:52 PM, John Hasler wrote:
> brian whatcott writes:
>> Hadn't heard it put that way before - but caught word of colt foals
>> getting ugly as they matured, or put with other horses to 'teach 'em
>> manners.'
>
> When handling the colt you must discipline it as his mother would. Get
> him an companion as soon as possible: an elderly, patient gelding that
> is known to be good with foals would be best. Mares are, in general,
> _not_ tolerant of foals other than their own. Put the colt and his
> companion out on pasture with the herd within a few months.
>
> Get him gelded ASAP, of course.

Had a filly, a yearling or younger - walk in on the homestead where I
keep my gelding two or three weeks ago. Initially she stuck close to my
horse, though he was apt to kick out, to keep her at arms length. After
several weeks they graze together, and when I walk my horse out, she
follows along. She won't be roped though....
The sheriff was surprised that nobody turned up to claim her. Horses
are a drug on the market, lately.

Brian W