It’s foaling time again and breeding horses represents a considerable financial and emotional investment. Performing an IgG (Immunoglobulin G) test on your newborn foal will help identify whether they are at increased risk of disease due to poor immunity and treatment can start early.

Foals are born with a naive immune system meaning they possess no antibodies at birth. Antibodies are crucial for protecting the body against infection and disease.

Prior to foaling, mares produce antibody rich milk called colostrum. This colostrum is ready to be consumed by the foal soon after birth. The foal's digestive system only allows the antibodies to be absorbed for the first 12-18 hours of life.

Foals must stand and nurse within an hour after birth, and continue nursing regularly. This ensures they consume adequate colostrum, maintain their strength and stay hydrated. A simple blood test performed at 24-72 hours will allow us to determine whether the foal has received adequate immunity from its mother. 

Foals that do not receive adequate immunity are at greatly increased risk of septicaemia and joint infections, both of which are difficult and expensive to treat, and can result in foal death.

Supplementing foals with good quality colostrum can reduce the risk of returning an insufficient IgG level and should be considered in newborn foals if:

1. The mare has run milk prior to foaling, losing their colostrum.
2. The mare has a history of producing poor quality colostrum or sick foals.
3. The foal is slow to nurse, or nurses infrequently in the first six hours of life.

Foals identified as having not received sufficient antibodies with an IgG test can be given a plasma transfusion. Plasma, rich in antibodies, will provide the protection normally afforded by natural colostrum intake, giving them the best chance of fighting infection and disease in early life.

If you have any questions about your newborn foal or pregnant mare give us a call 63618388. Remember acting early is critical.

Foaling need not be a stressful event for horse or owner. Knowing the normal stages of foaling, if and when to intervene will ensure you are prepared. Mares foal quickly and should be watched closely leading up to foaling.

The usual length of a mare's pregnancy is 335-342 days, but varies greatly between mares.

This timeline provides an approximate guide for the events leading up to foaling.

2-4 weeks - The udder will enlarge

7 days - The vulva will swell and tail head area will relax

24-48 hours - Wax plugs will appear on the end of the teats

Stage 1 of foaling will often appear as mild colic and usually occurs at night, or in the early morning. The mare will seem restless and may get up and down. This stage may last up to an hour as the foal becomes positioned in the birth canal. Stage 1 ends when the mare’s ‘water breaks’. This occurs when the sac the foal is in breaks open. If the sac fails to break and a red bag is visible it must be ruptured immediately and the birth assisted.

Stage 2 - Powerful abdominal contractions act to expel the foal and the mare usually lies down. The foal's front legs should appear, followed by its nose and head. If Stage 2 of labour is taking more than 20 minutes, call us immediately.

Stage 3 - In the final stage of birth the feotal membranes are expelled by the mare, often as they stand following birth. Call us if your mare fails to pass the afterbirth within 6 hours of foaling.

The most common reason mares have trouble foaling is incorrect positioning of the foal. Care must be taken to ensure the foal is in the correct position prior to applying gentle traction to the front legs.

Foals should stand and nurse within two hours after birth. Occasionally mares can have problems after foaling including bleeding, colic and infections. Both mare and foal should be monitored closely for the first few weeks after foaling.

It is a good idea to let us know when your mare is close to foaling. We can ensure we have the required equipment and medication on board to help should the need arise.

Sheep producers with autumn lambing systems should be well into preparation for joining. This involves increasing ewe feed intake so that they are on a rising plain of nutrition prior to joining. The focus of ram nutrition should also be for a rising plain of nutrition. Rams should be checked before mating each season. This is ideally performed early enough to allow rejected rams to be replaced. 

A good checklist for rams is easily remembered as the 5Ttest:

• Teeth – broken mouthed rams are culled as they end up in poor condition
• Tossle – the sheath should be checked for any signs of infection or swelling. Abnormalities may require treatment or, in many, cases culling
• Toes – are a good sign of conformation and lameness. Most lameness will originate in the foot and overgrown toes can be a sign of lameness in the associated limb
• Testicles – should be palpated to check for abnormalities including lumps, size and symmetry. Lumps in the testicles should raise suspicion of Brucellosis.
• Torso – Check body condition score – 3/5 is ideal. Fat rams tire quickly, and skinny rams often don't get the job done.

Rams should be included at joining at one ram per fifty ewes, or 2%, as this is the current recommendation for maximum profitability. A higher percentage may be required in maiden ewe mobs as young ewes have a shorter standing heat period and it is easier for the ram to miss a mating.

Many farms are underway joining heifers, and many are still to be joined in the coming months. Whether you run beef or dairy, there are some common management ideas which are paramount to a successful joining:

1. Target mating weights – this is probably not a new concept to most of you, however many herds still experience poor heifer performance due to poorly grown heifers. Getting heifers to 55-60% of their mature body weight (360-390kg for 650kg mature weight cows) for joining will ensure they have reached sexual maturity. This will result in higher pregnancy rates at joining, reduced calving difficulty, better production, fertility and longevity compared to heifers which calve lighter.

2. Bovine Viral Diarrhoea Virus (BVDV or Pestivirus) – Behind cattle tick (which southerners don’t experience), BVDV is the disease most costly to the red meat industry. Similar goes for the dairy industry. Heifers are a critical control point of the disease, and it is crucial to detect and remove persistently infected animals before the joining period.

3. Manage parasites – nearly all losses due to internal parasites occur in animals up to 2 years of age. To prevent production losses, heifers generally require 2-4 drenches between weaning and adulthood. Internal parasites have a knock on effect to fertility as heifer growth rates slow with parasite burdens.

For specific advice on parasite control and getting the best from your heifers, please ask us.