Feeding the foal

Question 1

Neonatal period

Answer 1

0-12 hours, high gut permeability to facilitate the absorption of immunoglobulins in colostrum but other large compounds can be absorbed too (possibly pathogens), after 12 hrs gut closure begins (can be earlier in some cases, but normal foals complete by at least 24 hrs)

Question 2

immunoglobulins (Ig)

Answer 2

antibodies produced the the mare are concentrated in the colostrum, the antibodies are absorbed intact by the foal when the gut is open to provide passive transfer of immunity, poor passive transfer increases the risk of disease

Question 3

other nutrients in colostrum

Answer 3

vitamins and minerals, other components of the immune system like white blood cells, growth factors and hormones

Question 4

nursing behavior

Answer 4

early nursing is important, generally want the foal to nurse within the first 3 hours. Neonatal foals have many short nursing bouts (3-7 times/hr, 0.5-1.5 mins/bout). bouts become less frequent as foal gets older

Question 5

why is milk consumption important?

Answer 5

milk provides nutrients and fluid, foals have minimal fat reserves (low energy stores, in cold weather energy needs are high), foals can be come dehydrated without milk (esp in warmer weather or if the foal has diarrhea)

Question 6

How much mild does a foal consume?

Answer 6

daily milk consumption is 15% of bw in day 1 (about 18-20 lbs). if the foal nurses 4-5 times/hr that equates to about 100 times/day. each bout is about 3.2 oz. the foal consumes about 25% of bw in week 2 (about 35-45 lbs), in week 2 each bout is about 6 oz

Question 7

foals 0-2 months old

Answer 7

transition period for GI tract, foals nibble solids soon after birth, born with a sterile gut but microbe colonization of GI tract starts right away. bacteria appears in foal feces by one day of age, fiber digesting bacteria is present by day 14. foals perform coprophagy

Question 8

coprophagy

Answer 8

foal consumes the maternal feces, occurs about 1x on day 2, about 5x on day 3 and about 11x on day 4. role of this is currently unknown, it is not necessary for microbes to appear in feces

Question 9

0-2 months growth

Answer 9

birth height is 50-55% or more of mature height (a lot of skeletal development occurs in late gestation), birth weight is about 10% of mature weight, slight under/over feeding a mare does not increase or decrease the foal birth weight

Question 10

0-2 month foal average daily gain

Answer 10

0-1 month=3.3-4.4 lb/day
1-2 month=2.6-3.7 lb/day
this is primarily determined by the milk production of the mare (maiden mares often have less milk)

Question 11

affect of increasing/decreasing feed on milk production

Answer 11

underfeeding or overfeeding of mares during early lactation does not affect nutrients secreted into the milk, but overfeeding may result in more lbs of more dilute milk

Question 12

foals 2 months to weaning

Answer 12

transition from mostly milk to mostly solid food, nutrients provided by milk start to lag behind nutrients needed by the foal

Question 13

nutrient sources for foals

Answer 13

milk, concentrate, forage (pasture, hay)

Question 14

foal growth on a tb farm related to pasture growth

Answer 14

in early growth, milk is most important and growth is even, later growth (after 3 months of age) is very dependent on pasture, all of the years with low growth had below average rainfall

Question 15

when do foals need more than milk?

Answer 15

after 2 months of age, variation in feed availability will result in variable growth, foals should have access to enough high quality forage and concentrate to maintain even, moderate growth

Question 16

weaning

Answer 16

usually 4-6 months (can wean earlier or later), transition period from milk and solid food to only solid food, at 4 months milk may be providing more than 50% of nutrients depending on pre-weaning management, sudden removal results in decreased nutrient intake

Question 17

how to minimize post weaning slump

Answer 17

adapt foals to eating solid food, forage and concentrate at least 1 month prior to weaning, concentrate separation from mare if possible, use high quality forage, use concentrate formulated for growing horses-rule of thumb=1/2-1 1/2 lb per month of age, adjust relative to forage quality and body condition

Question 18

weaning methods to reduce post-weaning slump

Answer 18

use weaning methods that reduce stress (higher stress=higher stress, high activity/less eating), common weaning methods are sudden separation of mare and foal, pair weaning, take away one or 2 mares at a time, fence line weaning, gradual separation

Question 19

orphan foals and nurse mare

Answer 19

provide colostrum, foster on nurse mare (easier with young foals), select nurse mare of similar breed if possible (milk production will be more likely matched to foals’ needs, possible to use other nurse animals but milk composition is different)

Question 20

orphan foals bottle/bucket feed

Answer 20

may need to start with bottle, transition to bucket, older foals may be able to use bucket/pan only, foals can be weaned onto solid food at 6-8 weeks, when bottle feeding you should mimic normal nursing behavior, large infrequent meals increases diarrhea risk

Question 21

milk replacer selection for orphan foals

Answer 21

calf/lamb milk replacers have different composition than mare milk, may use mare milk replacer (commercially available), after 4 weeks may be able to transition to milk replacer pellets, emergency milk replacer is 2% low fat milk plus sugar 10-20 grams/liter