Foaling Management:

 Management of high risk pregnancy - Mares with a history of abortion, early delivery, premature foals, or weak foals should be considered a high risk pregnancy. We monitor these mares starting at 7 months of gestation to identify problems and treat them before you lose a foal.

Vaccination's for the Pregnant Mare - At Conley and Koontz we believe that mares should be vaccinated to prevent: herpesvirus, rotavirus, eastern equine encephalitis, western equine encephalitis, tetanus toxiod, influenza, potomac horse fever, rabies, west nile virus, and strep equi. We can help design an effective vaccination program for your mare. We can help implement the program using our staff to administer vaccines or we can drop off vaccines for you to give at the appropriate time.

Management of Parturition (foaling) - In our hospital we have several heated foaling stalls with cameras installed to monitor foaling. We also use a Foal Alert System, milk calcium testing, and ultrasound to monitor impending parturition so that a veterinarian can be there to attend and assist in delivery of your foal. If the foal is not able to be delivered vaginally our surgical suite is across the aisle for immediate cesarean section. Always remember, if foaling complications occur, time is the most important factor in a positive outcome.

The Neonatal Foal:

 All foals should be seen 24 to 48 hours after birth - The first few days in a foals life can be the most important. All maternal antibodies are absorbed thru the colostrum in the first 24 hours of life. The newborn foal is particularly susceptible to: septicemia, pneumonia, colic, rupture of the bladder, genetic disorders, neurologic disease, diarrhea, and failure of passive transfer. It is imperative that a veterinarian examine your foal to identify medical issues and perform blood work in this dangerous period of life.

Emergency neonatal intensive care - If your foal is not acting normally or is sick it is an emergency; call Conley and Koontz Equine Hospital (877-499-9909) immediately. Many foals can be treated on the farm if the medical problem is identified and treated early. Foals that we are not able to treat at the farm can be brought to our hospital for neonatal intensive care. In the hospital we are able to maintain IV fluids, administer plasma, perform lab work, administer medications, administer oxygen, radiograph, and ultrasound to give the intensive care needed for a full recovery.

Neonatal surgery - Foals are rarely born with conditions that require surgery. However, some will or will develop conditions that are amenable to surgery. Surgeries that are commonly performed on foals include: umbilical hernia, inguinal hernia, umbilical abscess, patent urachus, or bladder rupture. It is very important that foals born with hernias are inspected daily to ensure that intestine or abdominal organs do not become entrapped within the hernia sac. If this occurs, surgery is almost always an emergency. With our neonatal intensive care program, foals are often taken to surgery and then recovered in one of our intensive care stalls where they can be monitored 24 hours a day until recovery.

Plasma administration - Foals that do not receive at least 800 mg/dl of antibodies from the maternal colostrum in the first 24 hours of life are considered to have failure of passive transfer of antibodies. The majority of these foals will develop septicemia and die. The ones that live will be small, slow to develop, and sickly. Fortunately, if identified, foals with failure of passive transfer of antibodies can be treated with plasma. It is best to treat before the foal develops clinical signs of disease; therefore, have your foal tested in the first few days of life.

 Angular limb and flexural deformities - There are a variety of ways we at Conley and Koontz Equine Hospital treat foals with limb deformity. Treatments include: corrective shoeing, splints, shockwave therapy, oxytetracycline, and surgery. The most important factor in a successful outcome is timing of the treatment. Have your foal evaluated in the first several weeks of life. With early intervention we can help develop a plan to correct limb deformity and help your foal grow into a horse with correct conformation.