Has anyone hand raised a foal ?

[dmhstacy]

My foal now almost 4 days old

Had been drinking really well

Yesterday she had a plasma transfusion as her IGG test showed she had no antibodies

Since then she has been doing really well.

(Her mum is the really old mare with no milk just a tiny bit of clear fluid)

The foal has been suckling off her since being born and is drinking about 1100mls of milk a day.

The foal is now turning its nose up at the milk a bit it is still drinking but as much.

Will a foal let its self go hungry?

It prefers to suckle of its mum - would it maybe be getting enough there?

It is strong & perky with good sucking reflexes.

Any input would be appreciated

My email is [email protected] if anyone would rather email me of their experiences!

stacy

 

[Miniv]

Since I've noticed that no one has replied yet, I hope you have been contacted privately.

We have had different situations with different foals over the years, they included needing a plasma transfer (like your's), needing to bottle feed a few for different reasons....etc.....the latest was an orphan.

And although I AM NOT A VET, in my opinion you really should think long and hard about bottle feeding a foal who is alert, perky, and nursing. If you are unsure about the quality of the mare's milk, pull a sample of the milk and have your vet check it out.

Bottle feeding, IMO, should not be done unless really necessary as it can "rock the boat" with a foal's health. Ask your vet and I suspect he/she will tell you the same thing.

MA

 

[rabbitsfizz]

OK the mare foaled and the milk did not come in??? Right?? So you are substitute feeding but also allowing free access to the mare??? Good! I would say the mare is starting to produce milk- she may or may not produce colostrum it will do no harm if she does and the foal has had what it needs if she doesn't. Get another IGG done to make sure, though. I would always offer the amount advised, let her have what she wants and MEASURE what she leaves and keep a list in a notebook. The other thing you could do, if you are 100% happy with the foal, and your Vet is OK with to too, is leave out one feed and see how hungry the foal is. Again, do not rely on guesswork, measure the milk in and out. Best guess? Milk is coming through and you will be off the hook soon....however, the foal will need to be offered feed and good, supplement feed, much sooner than usual as the quality of this mare's milk is highly suspect. Once you are sure the mare is feeding the foal you can have the milk teated, too. Looks like you've turned a corner though, award yourself a big pat on the back

 

[Miniv]

Stacy,

Could please clarify? After re-reading your post and reading Rabbit's I realized you were already subsidizing (sp?) the mare's milk with bottle feeding???

If that is the case, your foal may be turning its nose up to the bottle because it's getting more from mom.

I still recommend that you have the mare's milk be checked out by the vet.

MA

 

[Dorrie & Frank]

AlB and Susan hand raised a foal and did a really fine job of it. You might PM them and ask for some help. I'm sure they'd be happy to share what they learned with you.

 

[dmhstacy]

Thanks for the imput - it does help settle the mind, give me a few new ideas and reasure what I am doing while I cannot contact the vet! (I dont like to contact the vet afterhours unless it is a huge emergency)

I will talk to the vet about quality of the mares milk

Her udder is still very small and the fluid is still clear

Start of day 4 today.

I am praying the milk will come - I am doing hourly feeds through the day & 2 hourly feeds through the night. - It is easier not to sleep then to get up! -

Here is the little girl (not the best photo) 18"

Black with a star her dam is australian bred

but her sire is american bred (bond snippet & triple rowdy bred - Vermilya Farms Stylish Snippet x Griffin K Sera Sera.)

 

[dmhstacy]

Been in contact with the vet (I use an equine specialist for my horses)

He has advised me to wean the foal as the mare only has clear fluid which will not be helping the foal. Then the foal should come to me for milk.

Looks like my sleepness nights are not over.

oh well at least I have a strong foal.

 

[JessiTrist]

Good luck! I would find that quite hard to do! Do you have anyone who can take turns helping you feed her?

 

[dmhstacy]

Good luck! I would find that quite hard to do! Do you have anyone who can take turns helping you feed her?

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Unfortunatley not its all up to me!

 

[Miniv]

If it's any comfort, if you are going to bottle feed...... we had good luck with all of our bottle babies....with feeding every two hours initially. If you are getting ANYTHING out of mom, you may be able to stretch that out to every 3 hours and get a little shut-eye.

By the time our babies were about 4 weeks old, we were able to feed larger quantities every 4 hours. Luckily, there were two of us doing it.

MA