Heres an article on salmonella with foals at the bottom and one on foals with transfer failure. If her back legs arent working you would also have to suspect joint ill. The thing is off of these or any of these can lead to septicimia
What to Watch For
In the mild form, and in the early stages of infection, there may be little or no diarrhea, but fever is prominent in most cases. At this stage, there may be some mild colic signs. Fever and mild colic should suggest that Salmonella might be brewing. This is the stage when Salmonella is often wrongly disregarded.
In more severe cases, the diarrhea is projectile, malodorous, brown, profuse and watery. There is no discernible texture or form to the feces. Defecation makes the horse uncomfortable so tail switching, straining and periodic rectal prolapsing may occur. The horse searches in futility for a comfortable stance. Lying down and getting up repetitively is common when the diarrhea starts to pour.
In the most severe cases, there is considerable bloat, colic, flatulence and even bloody diarrhea. In these horses, Salmonella has probably caused considerable damage to the large and small intestine.
Diarrhea rapidly leads to dehydration of the horse. This is the biggest concern initially, because the horse cannot keep up by drinking. The losses are too much and too fast. Diarrhea washes away water and electrolytes, and proteins leak out of damaged blood vessels.
Horses with Salmonella become very toxemic due to a breakdown between the lining of the intestines and the blood stream. Toxic substances ("endotoxins") enter the blood stream and cause the affected horse to appear very sick and depressed. Endotoxins go everywhere in the body, damaging vessels and organs. This appears as a dark or even bright red discoloration of the gums. In the most severe cases of Salmonellosis (peracute Salmonellosis), the affected horse may be found dead.
Signs of colic during Salmonellosis are attributed to the damage inflicted on the lining of the intestinal tract by the invading Salmonella bacteria. The capability of the damaged intestine to move digesta and gas along is reduced leading to accumulations of distending gas that causes colic pain.
Effects on Foals
Young foals may also develop diarrhea associated with infection by Salmonella bacteria. Certainly, Salmonella infection should be considered as a possible cause in any foal presenting with diarrhea. Unfortunately, Salmonellosis in young foals appears to have a relatively unfavorable prognosis.
In many cases, the Salmonella bacteria invade the body of foals and cause septicemia (bacterial dissemination to different parts of the body). Common locations for Salmonella bacterial spread in foals include the joints (lameness attributable to septic arthritis) and the lungs (pneumonia). The most common symptoms of Salmonellosis are diarrhea and fever.
# Diagnosis (transfer failure)
The veterinary care of the foal with complete or partial failure of passive transfer begins with identifying the potential risk factors, performing a physical examination of the foal and conducting various blood tests. Treatment of failure of passive transfer depends on the foal's age. Specific tests include:
# Measure immunoglobulin (IgG) levels in colostrum before the foal suckles.
# Measure immunoglobulin (IgG) levels in high-risk foals at 12 hours of age. Adequate passive transfer is considered over 800 mg/dl of immunoglobulins (IgG). Complete FPT is defined as an IgG level under 200 mg/dl. Partial FPT is defined as measurements in the foal between 200 and 800 mg/dl IgG.
# Measure immunoglobulin (IgG) levels in normal foals within 24 hours of birth.
Treatment
# If the foal is less than 12 hours of age and has not nursed, then it is assumed that the foal has FPT and that it is in need of immediate colostrum.
# For the average 100 pound foal approximately 32 ounces of adequate quality colostrum is needed. This amount can be divided into 3 equal feedings, given hourly for 3 feedings.
# After 12 hours of age the foal's ability to absorb immunoglobulins is decreased and it is absent at 24 hours of age. In these cases it is important to provide the foal with immunoglobulins from another route. The only way to increase immunoglobulin levels after 24 hours of age is to administer plasma, the immunoglobulin-containing portion of blood, to the foals intravenously. It can also be given to the younger high-risk foal with complete or partial FPT as a supplement to colostrum administration.
Prevention
Not all foals with complete or partial failure of passive transfer will develop a life threatening infection. However, it has been shown that virtually all foals that develop life-threatening infections have at least partial failure of passive transfer. So making sure your foal gets good quality colostrum is the most important prevention.
Another way to decrease the chance of infection (septicemia) in the newborn foal, is to keep a clean foaling environment, especially when partial or complete failure of passive transfer is suspected. In fact, one study of a large well-managed breeding farm in Kentucky reported that foals with FPT did not have a higher rate of infection, in contrast to the common theory that all foals with FPT succumb to infection. What distinguished this farm was likely the immaculate sanitation of the stalls, and a policy that all foalings are attended by experienced foaling personnel. Foaling stalls were cleaned multiple times a day and freshly bedded. Foaling attendants made sure all foals stood and nursed within 2 to 3 hours of birth.
You can also decrease the amount of bacteria that the foal is exposed to by cleaning the stall and the mare immediately after the foal is born. Because the normal foal will suckle the walls, the mare's flank or her shoulder before finding the udder, cleaning the mare thoroughly may help. This has been shown to reduce the rate of transfer of Salmonella to foals, in one study. Special attention should be paid to cleaning the mare's udder, vulva and rear legs.
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