"Foals" encompasses a stage in the lifecycle of equines with distinct physiological and developmental characteristics. Foals are young horses, typically under one year of age, undergoing rapid growth and development. They require specific nutritional, health, and management practices to support their transition to adulthood. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the growth, development, health challenges, and management practices associated with foals and horses, providing insights into their care and welfare across different life stages.
Williams JL, Friend TH, Collins MN, Toscano MJ, Sisto-Burt A, Nevill CH.While imprint training procedures have been promoted in popular magazines, they have received limited scientific investigation. Objective: To determine the effects of a neonatal imprint training procedure on 6-month-old foals and to determine if any one session had a greater effect than others. Methods: Foals (n = 131) were divided into the following treatments: no imprint training, imprint training at birth, 12, 24 and 48 h after birth or imprint training only at birth, 12, 24, 48, or 72 h after birth. Foals then received minimal human handling until they were tested at 6 months. Results: Dur...
Boyd NK, Cohen ND, Lim WS, Martens RJ, Chaffin MK, Ball JM.Foals are uniquely susceptible to a wide variety of opportunistic infections normally associated with immunodeficiencies. Little is understood about the immune system of foals during the neonatal period. An apparent age-related susceptibility predisposes neonatal foals to infectious diseases and hinders therapeutic and preventative interventions for these diseases. Cytokine expression is correlated with the type of immune response as well as the severity of a disease. In this study, we measured foal peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC)-specific mRNA cytokine expression from 72 foals from t...
Giguère S, Hernandez J, Gaskin J, Prescott JF, Takai S, Miller C.The performance of four enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) (ELISA-6939, ELISA-33701, ELISA-VapA, and ELISA-California) and an agar gel immunodiffusion test for diagnosis of Rhodococcus equi pneumonia in foals was evaluated. Antibody concentrations of foals with culture-confirmed R. equi pneumonia (n = 41) were compared to those of age-matched pasturemates that remained clinically healthy during the entire breeding season (n = 24). For each serological assay evaluated, selection of a low cutoff resulted in high sensitivity but low specificity. Increasing the cutoff value resulted in be...
Bihr TP.A 5-month-old Morgan filly was presented to the Atlantic Veterinary College with a history of lethargy, fever, depression, anorexia, and dependent ventral edema. Diagnostic tests revealed severe inflammation, hypoproteinemia, and thickened small intestinal loops. Protein-losing enteropathy caused by Lawsonia intracellularis was diagnosed and treated successfully with erythromycin-rifampin.
O'Connor SJ, Fowden AL, Holdstock N, Giussani DA, Forhead AJ.Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) has an active role in the control of blood pressure and body fluid homeostasis both before and after birth. This study investigated the ontogeny of pulmonary and renal ACE concentrations in fetal and neonatal horses. Fetal pulmonary ACE concentration increased from 250 days towards term (c. 335 days). Newborn foals showed significantly higher mean concentrations of pulmonary ACE (4.40 +/- 0.62 nmol min(-1) mg protein(-1)) than both fetuses during late gestation (1.23 +/- 0.51 nmol min(-1) mg protein(-1)) and animals aged 1 day to 2 weeks of postnatal age (0....
Cuteri V, Takai S, Moscati L, Battistacci L, Pieramati C, Valente C.A serological survey of Rhodococcus equi infection was carried out on 602 blood samples collected from foals in central Italy. The assay was performed with an ELISA test using two different antigens prepared with reference strains of R. equi, ATCC 33071 and ATCC 6939. A positive reaction was obtained on 81 serum samples (13.45%) (OD > or = 0.3) using antigen ATCC 33071, and on 73 serum samples (12.12%) using antigen ATCC 6939. Although the frequency of the disease was not high, the serological positivity was about 13%. There was no statistically significant difference between males and fema...
Chaffin MK, Cohen ND, Martens RJ.To identify farm characteristics as risk factors for the development of Rhodococcus equi pneumonia in foals. Methods: Prospective matched case-control study. Methods: 2,764 foals on 64 equine breeding farms with 9,991 horses. Methods: During 1997, participating veterinarians completed paired data collection forms, 1 for a farm with > or = 1 foal with R equi pneumonia and 1 for an unaffected control farm. Matched data were compared by use of conditional logistic regression analysis. Results: Farm characteristics found in bivariate analyses to be associated with increased risk for pneumonia caus...
Chaffin MK, Cohen ND, Martens RJ.To determine whether foal management practices, environmental management, and preventative health practices are risk factors for development of Rhodococcus equi pneumonia in foals. Methods: Prospective matched case-control study. Methods: 2,764 foals on 64 equine breeding farms with 9,991 horses. Methods: During 1997, participating veterinarians completed paired data collection forms for comparison; 1 for an affected farm (containing > or = 1 foal with pneumonia caused by R equi) and 1 for a control farm. Information collected pertained to stabling facilities, environmental management, foal hu...
Kettner NU, Parker JE, Watrous BJ.A 2-week-old Morgan filly examined because of lameness of 5 days' duration was found, on the basis of clinical and radiographic findings, to have septic physitis of the distal end of the radius. The foal was treated by means of intraosseous regional perfusion with penicillin and amikacin and systemic administration of antimicrobials. Intraosseous regional perfusion was performed 3 times. The foal was anesthetized for the first episode of intraosseous regional perfusion, but was only sedated for the subsequent 2 episodes. Antimicrobials were administered systemically for 22 days. Foals with sep...
Schambourg MA, Laverty S, Mullim S, Fogarty UM, Halley J.Thoracic trauma occurs in newborn foals and may cause associated clinical signs; this condition remains poorly documented. Objective: The purpose of this study was to describe the pathological features of thoracic trauma in newborn foals presented for necropsy examination between 1990 and 2000. Methods: Necropsy reports of foals with thoracic trauma from 1990-2000 were reviewed. Subject details, clinical signs, thoracic and abdominal lesions were noted and analysed statistically. Results: Sixty-seven (9%) of 760 necropsied foals had thoracic trauma. In 19 foals, fractured ribs were considered ...
van Weeren PR, Knaap J, Firth EC.To elucidate the highly contentious role of copper in the pathogenesis of osteochondrosis. Objective: There would be no relationship between liver copper concentration of mares and foals and incidence of radiographically detectable osteochondrotic lesions in foals and yearlings was tested. Methods: Liver copper concentration was assessed in biopsies taken within 4 days after birth from both mares and foals and from the same foals at age 5 months. Biopsies were taken in the standing, sedated animal under ultrasonographic guidance. Radiographs were taken of both hocks (lateromedial, dorsoplantar...
Byron CR, Embertson RM, Bernard WV, Hance SR, Bramlage LR, Hopper SA.Dystocia in the mare is an emergency in which duration has a profound effect on survival of the foal. Specific examination of the effects of dystocia duration on foal survival provides information to enable horse care personnel and veterinarians to manage these cases more effectively and maximise the chances of obtaining a live foal. Objective: Dystocia duration would have a negative impact on foal survival while method of dystocia resolution would not have an effect on foal survival. Additionally, we were interested in determining the effects of dystocia on subsequent fertility. Results: In t...
Gläser KE, Davies ME, Jeffcott LB.This study was designed to examine a new role for cysteine proteinases in the process of endochondral ossification. Objective: The aim of the present study was to investigate the presence and distribution of cathepsin B and cathepsin L in equine articular cartilage during development. Methods: Full-depth cartilage samples from a total of 40 horses (age range: 4 month fetuses to 2 years) were examined and enzymes detected by immunocytochemical localisation. Results: Observations on the presence of cathepsins B and L revealed significant age-related differences, resulting in clear division of th...
Hospes R, Hospes BI, Reiss I, Bostedt H, Gortner L.In the following, we describe the isolation and sequencing of the equine surfactant protein A (Sp-A) as found in both the cDNA and the genomic DNA. We found a length of the cDNA sequence of 747 bp (base pairs), in translation into amino acids of 248. Compared with the known molecular biological facts about Sp-A in other species, the cDNA sequence obtained showed highest homology with that of sheep (85.01%). The genomic DNA of equine Sp-A, as in other species, includes three introns. There were no hints for the existence of two different Sp-A genes. These results should form the basis for a bet...
Båverud V.In human medicine, Clostridium (C.) difficile is since many years a well-known cause of nosocomial diarrhea induced by antibiotic treatment. In horses, C. difficile was recently suggested as a possible enteric pathogen. The bacterium is associated with acute colitis in mature horses following treatment with antibiotics. C. difficile, and/or its cytotoxin, is also associated with acute colitis in mares when their foals are being treated with erythromycin and rifampicin for Rhodococcus equi pneumonia. The colitis can have resulted from an accidental ingestion of erythromycin by the mares. In an ...
Donahue JM, Williams NM, Sells SF, Labeda DP.Over the course of the past decade, actinomycetes have been isolated from the placentas of horses diagnosed with nocardioform placentitis. The incidence of this infection has generally been low, with typically no more than 30 animals affected in most years, but the incidence increased through 1999, with placentas from 144 mares found to be infected. Approximately half of the cases result in loss of the foal. A typical actinomycete with branching mycelium was isolated from placental lesions, and a comparison of the sequence of the 16S rDNA gene against the public databases indicated a relations...
Ferrell EA, Gavin PR, Tucker RL, Sellon DC, Hines MT.Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging was used as a neurodiagnostic modality in the assessment of 12 horses with neurologic disease localized cranial to the foramen magnum. This retrospective study included a mixed population of horse breeds and consisted of three foals and nine adult horses. MR sequences of the head and central nervous system of each horse were acquired. Routine MR sequences included transverse T1 weighted (T1wt), T2 weighted (T2wt), and proton density images. Additional imaging sequences were obtained on a patient-dependent basis. Eight neurologic related diseases were diagnosed. ...
Nicol CJ, Davidson HP, Harris PA, Waters AJ, Wilson AD.Nineteen young horses that had recently started to perform the stereotypy of crib-biting were compared with 16 non-stereotypic horses for 14 weeks. After initial observations of their behaviour and an endoscopic examination of the condition of their stomachs, the horses were randomly allocated to a control or an antacid diet At the start of the trial, the stomachs of the crib-biting foals were significantly more ulcerated and inflamed than the stomachs of the normal foals. In addition, the faecal pH of the crib-biting foals (6.05) was significantly lower than that of the normal foals (6.58). T...
Tanaka Y, Taniyama H, Tsunoda N, Herath CB, Nakai R, Shinbo H, Nagamine N, Nambo Y, Nagata S, Watanabe G, Groome NP, Taya K.To clarify the source of inhibins in equine female fetuses, concentrations of immunoreactive (ir-) inhibin, inhibin pro-alphaC, and inhibin A in both fetal and maternal circulation and in fetal ovaries were measured. In addition, the localization of inhibin alpha and inhibin/activin beta(A), and beta(B) subunits and the expression of inhibin alpha(A) and inhibin/activin beta(A) subunit mRNA in fetal ovaries were investigated using immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization. Concentrations of circulating ir-inhibin, inhibin pro-alphaC, and inhibin A were remarkably more elevated in the feta...
Guay KA, Brady HA, Allen VG, Pond KR, Wester DB, Janecka LA, Heninger NL.Matua bromegrass hay (Bromus willdenowii Kunth) is a high quality forage, but its value for mares during gestation and lactation is not well known. Intake, rate of passage, performance, and reproduction by gestating and lactating Quarter Horse mares fed the hay was investigated. In this experiment, 12, 2- to 12-yr-old gravid mares (mean BW = 553 kg, SD = 36) were fed Matua hay (CP = 11.5%) or alfalfa hay (Medicago sativa L.) (CP = 15.4%) for variable days prepartum (mean 59.9 d; SD = 23.5) and for 70 d postpartum. Matua and alfalfa hay were fed as the roughage portion of the diet with a grain ...
Aleman M, Gillis CL, Nieto JE, Renaudin CD, Bea J.Knowledge of normal renal parameters, as documented in mature horses, is essential for the accurate evaluation of abnormal kidneys. Although the ultrasonographic appearance and location of the abdominal organs in foals and the renal dimensions in neonates have been reported, there is currently no information available for the assessment of normal organ growth in foals. The objectives of the study were to describe the ultrasonographic characteristics, location and variations of the thoracic and abdominal organs with relation to age, height and weight; and provide a growth table for comparison w...
Hultén C, Demmers S.Differentiation between infectious and noninfectious disease and rapid initiation of accurate treatment are essential in managing diseases in the neonatal and young foal. Identification of useful inflammatory markers for these purposes is, therefore, of great importance. The aim of this study was to compare the responses of the acute phase protein serum amyloid A (SAA) with the responses of fibrinogen and total leucocyte and neutrophil counts in infectious diseases encountered in the young foal, and to assess whether SAA measurements give additional information useful in the management of thes...
van de Lest CH, Brama PA, van Weeren PR.This study aimed at the determination of the influence of exercise on the levels of a number of bone morphogenic enzymes in subchondral bone and at the comparison of these data with other (subchondral) bone-related parameters that have been investigated in the same experimental population.Forty-three foals were reared until weaning at 5 months of age under similar conditions, except for the type and amount of exercise. Fifteen foals remained at pasture (Pasture group and also control group), 14 foals were kept in box stalls (Box group) and 14 foals were kept in the same box stalls but were sub...
Perkins GA, Yeager A, Erb HN, Nydam DV, Divers TJ, Bowman JL.The purpose of this study was to determine if colostrum-deprived foals with experimentally induced Rhodococcus equi pneumonia have a decreased severity of the disease and decreased mortality rate when given hyperimmune (HI) R. equi antibody plasma (R. equi titer at least 100 % and virulence-associated protein A [VapA] at least 10000) prophylactically versus when given normal equine plasma (R. equi titer less than 20 % and VapA less than 160). Sixteen colostrum-deprived foals (R. equi titer less than 5 %) each received normal equine plasma in the first 24 hours of life (R. equi titer less than ...
Maleski K, Magdesian KG, LaFranco-Scheuch L, Pappagianis D, Carlson GP.A 13-day-old foal with profound tachypnoea and respiratory distress was examined. Thoracic radiographs revealed a severe, diffuse miliary pattern, and the foal was markedly hypoxaemic. It failed to improve with empirical treatment, and was euthanased. Lesions associated with Coccidioides immitis infection were identified at postmortem examination, and were limited to the lower respiratory tract.
The Journal of physiologyNovember 15, 2002
Volume 547, Issue Pt 1 67-76 doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.2002.027409
Giussani DA, Forhead AJ, Gardner DS, Fletcher AJ, Allen WR, Fowden AL.This study used between-breed embryo transfer in the horse to investigate the effects of maternal size and uterine capacity on fetal growth and postnatal cardiovascular and neuroendocrine functions. Equine embryos were transferred to establish eight Thoroughbred-in-Thoroughbred (TinT), seven Pony-in-Pony (PinP), five Thoroughbred-in-Pony (TinP) and eight Pony-in-Thoroughbred (PinT), pregnancies. Maternal and foal weights and placental microscopic area were measured at birth. At 6 days of postnatal life, arterial blood pressure and heart rate were monitored and blood samples were taken for horm...
Jacks S, Giguère S, Gronwall RR, Brown MP, Merritt KA.Clarithromycin offers numerous advantages over erythromycin and thus, is an attractive alternative for the treatment of Rhodococcus equi infections in foals. The disposition of clarithromycin was investigated in 6 foals after intragastric administration at a dose of 10 mg/kg body weight. Detectable serum concentrations of clarithromycin were found in 3 of 6 foals at 10 minutes and in all foals by 20 minutes post-administration. Time to peak serum concentration (Tmax) was 1.5 hours and peak serum concentration (Cmax) was 0.92+/-0.17 microg/ml. Mean serum concentrations decreased to 0.03 microg/...
Davies Morel MC, Newcombe JR, Holland SJ.In order to assist in the accurate prediction of the timing of parturition in the mare true gestation length, along with the potential effect of a number of factors, was investigated. Data from 433 Thoroughbred foal pregnancies were used. Sequential ultrasonic scanning allowed the true gestation length (fertilisation-parturition) to be ascertained, as apposed to previous work, which used the mating-parturition interval. An average gestation length of 344.1 +/- 0.49 days was evident. Colt foal pregnancies were significantly (P < 0.001) longer (346.2 +/- 0.72) than fillies (342.4 +/- 0.65). Mont...
Henry M, Prasse K, White S.Multiple myeloma was diagnosed in a 3-month-old Quarter Horse foal with chronic weight loss, chronic bronchopneumonia, and epistaxis. The foal had pancytopenia, thrombocytopenia, and monoclonal beta-globulinemia. Bone marrow aspirates contained between 80 and 90% plasma cells.
Jeffcott LB.The mechanism of transfer of maternal immunity to the foal is reviewed. Maximal efficiency of macromolecular absorption by specialized cells of the small intestine exists soon after birth. The absorptive cells are progressively replaced by more mature-looking cells incapable of taking up large molecules and the rate of absorption is reduced in a linear decline and ceases completely within 24 hr. Passive antibody levels fall rapidly in the first 4 weeks of life to less than half their original values and have usually completely disappeared by 6 months of age. The foal shows immunological compet...
Gilday R, Lewis D, Lohmann KL.Neonatal mastitis is a rare occurrence in the horse. This report documents a case of mastitis caused by an organism within the Streptococcus dysgalactiae group in a 1-week-old Paint filly. Un cas de mastite chez une pouliche nouveau-née. La mastite est une maladie rare chez les pouliches nouveau-nées. Ce rapport documente un cas de la mastite causé par un organisme du groupe Streptococcus dysgalactiae qui se présente dans une pouliche Paint á l’âge de sept jours et discute la litérature pertinente au sujet de la mastite des nouveau-nés.(Traduit par les auteurs).
McIlwraith CW, James LF.Five of 26 pregnant mares observed ingesting locoweed (Astragalus mollisimus) subsequently aborted and another 10 produced foals with various limb deformities. Seven of the foals had deformities of a flexion-extension type and 3 had angular deformities. Four foals were normal. The limb deformities either resolved spontaneously (5 cases) or were treated successfully (in 4 of the other 5 cases). The problems of abortion and limb deformities were attributed to locoweed ingestion on the basis of the mares having eaten the plants, and the similarity of the syndrome to that previously reported in sh...
Jones RS.Surgical repair of a cleft palate was carried out in three horses. Mandibular symphisotomy allowed adequate exposure of the defect. The first subject, a young foal died from inhalation pneumonia but the other two made satisfactory recoveries. The problems of closure of the lip and symphysis are discussed.
Weldon AD, Zhang C, Antczak DF, Rebhun WC.Selective IgM deficiency was diagnosed in a 3-month-old Standardbred colt that was referred for chronic respiratory tract disease. Immunoglobulin quantification revealed normal IgG and IgA concentrations, but undetectable IgM concentration. Stimulation of blood lymphocytes with the T-cell mitogens concanavalin A and phytohemagglutinin yielded results within the normal range. However, stimulation with the B-cell mitogen lipopolysaccharide produced no response. A B-cell defect similar to that associated with several immunodeficiency disorders in people was suggested as the cause of the IgM defic...
Sielhorst J, Roggel-Buecker U, Neudeck KC, Kahler A, Rohn K, Luettgenau J, Bollwein H, Hollinshead F, Sieme H.The aim of this double-blinded placebo-controlled study was to investigate the effect of acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) on uterine blood flow, gestation length, placental and foal weights in pregnant mares. Sixteen Thoroughbred mares of different age (13.3 ± 4.1) and parity (7.4 ± 3.1) were randomly assigned to three treatment groups. Mares in group C (n = 4) served as controls and received 5,000 mg lactose orally once daily from D 120 (D 0 = day of ovulation) until parturition. Mares in group ASA1 (n = 7) received 5,000 mg ASA orally once daily from D 120 until parturition. Mares in group...
Pastorello M, Gastal MO, Godoi DB, Gastal EL.Among female livestock, the mare has the shortest interval from parturition to first ovulation. Due to the scarcity of research on postpartum mares, little progress has been made on the characterization of the resumption of ovarian cyclicity after parturition. This study compared follicular and gonadotropin dynamics during follicle emergence and deviation in postpartum lactating (PP Lactating) versus non-postpartum cycling (N-PP Cycling) mares. On the day of parturition, every PP Lactating mare was paired with a N-PP Cycling mare. Comparisons were made by considering the partum-ovulation inter...
Pusterla N, Packham A, Mackie S, Kass PH, Hunyadi L, Conrad PA.Thirty-three foals from a farm with a high exposure rate to Sarcocystis neurona were assigned to either an untreated or a diclazuril-treated group. Treated foals received daily 0.5 mg/kg of diclazuril pellets from 1 to 12 months of age. Monthly blood was tested for IgG against S. neurona using the indirect fluorescent antibody test. Following ingestion of colostral antibodies to S. neurona, there was a steady and continuous decline in seroprevalence to S. neurona until foals from both groups reached weaning age. Thereafter, the untreated foal group showed a significant increase in monthly se...
Watanabe T, Ohta C, Shirahata T, Goto H, Tsunoda N, Tagami M, Akita H.Foal diarrhea due to serotype 3 rotavirus broke out on a foal-raising farm in the years 1987 and 1989. In 1989, all of the foals, regardless of whether or not they suffered from diarrhea, received bovine colostral immunoglobulin (Ig) powder orally for 3 to 5 days during the epidemic. The morbidity of the diarrhea was lower than that observed in 1987, when the Ig powder was not administered to foals. These data suggested that the administration of Ig powder might partially prevent foal diarrhea with rotavirus infection.
Cullinane M, O'Sullivan E, Collins DM, Byrne AW, More SJ.Recently, considerable international attention has been paid to the problem of unwanted horses. In Ireland, stray horses, particularly in urban areas, are a further problem. The Control of Horses Act 1996 was enacted in response to an ongoing problem of uncontrolled horses in public places. As yet, no research work has been conducted focusing on stray horses in Ireland. This paper describes horses impounded under the Act in the Munster region of Ireland during 2005-2012 and the factors influencing decisions regarding their disposal. A logistic regression model was developed to investigate fact...
Carson K, Wood-Gush DG.Thoroughbred foals were found to nurse in bouts of nursing activity delimited by intervals of non-nursing activity lasting 27 secs or longer. Nursing activity included nosing, sucking and interval behaviour. During the first week after birth, foals nursed, on average, seven times an hour with a mean bout duration of 147 secs but were not successful at sucking during all nursing bouts. Time spent nursing decreased as the foals grew older until before weaning, at 24 weeks of age, the foals were nursing once an hour with a mean bout duration of 74 secs. The dams hindered their foals' nursing acti...
Armstrong SK, Raidal SL, Hughes KJ.Three foals, aged between 5 and 10 days, were presented for assessment of lethargy, abdominal pain and joint effusion. Fibrinous pericarditis and pericardial effusion (PE) were recognised in each foal and considered as sequelae to systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) and suspected or confirmed septicaemia. Unassigned: Diagnosis of pericarditis was made in two foals by echocardiographic examination and analysis of pericardial fluid, and during postmortem examination of the third foal. In both of the foals that underwent pericardiocentesis, PE was an exudate, no bacteria were identifie...
Reuss SM, Chaffin MK, Schmitz DG, Norman TE.The sonographic characteristics of intraabdominal abscesses in 11 foals and intraabdominal lymphadenitis in five foals with Rhodococcus equi infections are presented. Intraabdominal abscesses were usually present in the ventral abdomen adjacent to the ventral body wall, well-marginated, and contained a mixed or complex echo pattern. Lymphadenitis appeared as singular or multiple clusters of lymph nodes of mixed echogenicity adjacent to any portion of the gastrointestinal tract or body wall. Sonographic findings were supported by necropsy examinations, but sonographic measurements consistently ...
Gurfield N, Benirschke K.The placenta from a 300-day-gestational age, female, Arabian equine fetus was examined. Multifocal to coalescing, 0.5- to 4-cm-diameter, white, smooth nodules covered 50% of the placenta. Microscopic evaluation of the nodules revealed undifferentiated germ cells and a haphazard arrangement of immature, mesenchymal stroma, cartilage, squamous cornifying epithelium, scattered ducts and secretory acini lined by cuboidal to columnar epithelium, and mineralized foci. No umbilicus, arrangement about an axial skeleton, or organized polarity of structures was present. The lesion was diagnosed as a pla...
Perryman LE, McGuire TC, Hilbert BJ.Selective immunoglobulin M deficiency was diagnosed in 5 foals, on the basis of reduced serum immunoglobulin M concentrations (more than 2 standard deviations below the normal mean). All 5 foals had clinical signs or lesions involving the respiratory tract. Lkebsiella sp was isolated from joint fluids, bronchial lymph nodes, or tracheal washings from the 3 foals in which such samples were available for microbiologic evaluation.
Holbrook TC, Moore JN.Endotoxemia and septicemia are encountered frequently in equine veterinary practice. The deleterious effects of endotoxin are related to the severity of the response of the host's inflammatory system. Consequently, it is imperative that appropriate steps be taken to identify animals at risk of developing endotoxemia or septicemia, and to initiate treatments that will reduce the inflammatory response. This article discusses the anti-inflammatory and immune support of horses and foals with endotoxemia and septicemia.
Kopper JJ.Equine rotavirus is one of the most common causes of infectious diarrhea in foals. Although the infection itself is self-limiting, the resulting diarrhea is due to multiple mechanisms and can be severe, requiring supportive care including fluid and electrolyte support. Prompt diagnosis is important for treatment and biosecurity decisions and can be achieved by several means. Prevention, while imperfect, currently relies on vaccination of pregnant mares before parturition, ingestion of adequate colostrum from vaccinated mares and biosecurity measures.
Bauer C.The prevalence of Eimeria leuckarti infection and the intensity of faecal oocyst output were determined in a herd of 14 mares and their foals in northwest Germany using a sedimentation technique at weekly intervals during a summer grazing season from May to September. None of the mares, but all foals shed oocysts on at least one occasion. The patent periods lasted up to 16 weeks. The mean intensity of oocyst output (0.1-33 o.p.g.) was very low. No clinical signs of gastrointestinal disorder were noticed in any of the foals during this study.
Nuñez CM, Adelman JS, Rubenstein DI.Adoption of nongenetic offspring occurs in a variety of species but is rare in equids. We report a case of adoption by a free-ranging, feral mare Equus caballus and compare the maternal care received by her genetic offspring (born 1995) to that of her adopted offspring (born 1996) for the first 30 weeks of development. We compare five measures of care: (1) total time spent suckling, (2) mare aggression during suckling, (3) number of mare-terminated suckling bouts, (4) contact maintenance, and (5) mare-foal distance. For most behaviors, we detected no difference in the mare's treatment of the t...
Szeredi L, Hornyák A, Dénes B, Rusvai M.A 4-days-old foal died after a short course of respiratory syndrome and fever. Large areas of the alveoli, bronchioles and bronchi were partly or completely filled by hyaline membranes. Pronounced oedema and mild interstitial pneumonia were present and, in the small muscular arteries, fibrinoid necrosis and vasculitis or perivasculitis could be seen. Vasculitis was found in several other organs, and it was most severe in the thymus. The virus was detected in the lung, kidney and spleen using virus isolation and in the lung and spleen using polymerase chain reaction. The virus was also detected...
Holdstock NB, Allen VL, Fowden AL.During the switch from parenteral to enteral nutrition at birth, endocrine glands such as the pancreas must assume a glucoregulatory role for the first time if the neonate is to survive the transition to extrauterine life. Objective: To determine the adaptations in pancreatic endocrine function during the neonatal period in term pony foals delivered by different methods. Methods: By measuring insulin and glucagon concentrations, pancreatic alpha and beta cell responses to exogenous glucose (0.5 g/kg bwt) and arginine (100 mg/kg bwt) and to endogenous muzzling for 90 min were determined periodi...
Mazaheri-Khameneh R, Azizi S, Davoodi F, Gooran MM.One of the traumatic fractures occurring in the hindlimb of the foals is physeal fractures of the tibia. The most common type of proximal tibial fracture in foals is reported to be Salter-Harris type II. Methods: This case report describes the history, clinical signs, radiographic findings, and surgical management of a proximal physeal fracture of the tibia due to the kick trauma in a 2-weeks-old Kurdish female foal, with signs of left pelvic limb lameness, valgus deviation with non-weight-bearing, non-mobility in stifle region and crepitation in the affected area. In this case, radiography wa...
Govaere J, Hoogewijs M, De Schauwer C, Van Zeveren A, Smits K, Cornillie P, de Kruif A.Naturally occurring monozygotic twins are extremely rare in the horse. This paper describes an abortion in a mare after 260 days of pregnancy with monozygotic twins, one a fresh foal and the other a mummified foal.
Knottenbelt DC, Harrison LJ, Peacock PJ.Three foals under four weeks old and two under six months old with a history of oesophageal obstruction, had oesophageal strictures of different characters in the rostral cervical oesophagus. One case, which was complicated by severe inhalation pneumonia, was euthanased without any treatment and in another initial treatment by bougienage under general anaesthesia was attempted without success. The four surviving cases were provided with progressively firmer and coarser food, starting with liquid only, over a period of three to four weeks. The treatment is recommended in the early stages of str...
Okumura M, Asano M, Tagami M, Tsukiyama K, Fujinaga T.Serum concentrations of copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), manganese (Mn), calcium (Ca) and inorganic phosphorus (P), as well as antigenic ceruloplasmin (Cp) and oxidase activity as a functional index for copper metabolism, were measured in 10 foals (5 males and 5 females) and their dams. Samples were harvested from the foals within 1 wk after birth and monthly from 1 to 17 mo of age. Samples were collected from their dams in the perinatal period (monthly from 2 mo before delivery to 5 mo postpartum). Serum oxidase activity, antigenic Cp and Cu in foals were extremely low at 1 wk. Serum Cp had the lowest...
Dickinson CE, Gould DH, Davidson AH, Avery PR, Legare ME, Hyatt DR, DebRoy C.A postpartum mare and foal were presented for evaluation of fever and lethargy in the mare. The mare was diagnosed with endometritis and initially responded well to treatment. On the second day of hospitalization, the mare developed renal insufficiency characterized by oliguria, azotemia, hemolysis, and thrombocytopenia. Concurrently, the foal developed rapidly progressive central nervous system signs culminating in refractory seizures. Both animals failed to respond to treatment and were euthanized. Thrombotic microangiopathy involving glomeruli was evident on microscopic examination of the m...
Santos TM, Santos HA, Massard CL.The aim of this study was to demonstrate, through nested PCR (nPCR) method, the occurrence of congenital babesiosis in two foals born of carrier mares. All mares were positive for T. equi based in visualization of intraerytrocytic parasites in blood smears, in indirect fluorescent antibody test (IFAT) and nPCR reactions. Just one mare was nPCR-positive for B. caballi. After the birth, all foals presented nPCR-positive for T. equi, while just one foal presented nPCR-positive for B. caballi. The present study prove the occurrence of congenital babesiosis in new-born foals, however, new studies a...
Robles M, Hammer C, Staniar B, Chavatte-Palmer P.Forage availability should cover most needs for mares bred during spring and summer. Out-of-season breeding, lack of access to pasture, or good quality forage calls for nutritional supplementation. Current evaluations of broodmare needs are based on fetoplacental tissue requirements, but do not consider endocrine changes or that the maternal diet quality affects long-term foal health. This article reviews pregnant mares' current nutritional recommendations. Secondly, fetoplacental developmental stages during gestation are outlined, defining critical periods in the context of the developmental ...
