Congratulations on your new arrival!
Here a few tips on care of your foal from birth to weaning.

First 24 hours

• Iodine navel at least twice with tincture of iodine (7%). Do not get on foal's skin.
• Observe for passage of manure and urination.
• Foal should nurse colostrum within 3 hours of birth.
• Foal should be standing within 1 hour of birth.
• Veterinary exam - Mare and placenta, foal; blood tests and vaccinations.

Vaccinations

• All foals should be vaccinated beginning at six months of age.
• Potomac Horse Fever and Strangles are optional vaccines that can be given between 3 and 6 months of age in a 2 dose series.

Deworming

• Monthly deworming can be started at 2 months of age with Oxybendazole (Anthelcide®).
• At 4 months of age use Pyrantel (Strongid®).
• At 6 months of age use Ivermectin (Eqvalan®, Zimectrin®), then follow your regular deworming schedule.
• If you choose to use Strongid C® for daily deworming , it should not be started until your foal is at least 4 months old.
• We do not recommend the use of Quest® dewormer in foals.

Colts

Castration is usually done between 6 and 12 months of age.

Weaning

Complete separation, out of sight and hearing, is best. Mare and foal should be separated for 2 - 4 weeks. Most foals are weaned between 4 and 6 months of age.

Exercise

Pasture or daily turnout is best. Epiphysitis or joint problems can arise from too much stall rest or irregular exercise programs.

Nutrition

Your foal will start nibbling on hay at 1 - 3 weeks of age. When your foal is 2 - 3 weeks old, a creep feeder for grain should be set up so that the mare can't fit her head into it. A 16% protein foal grain mix should be used in the creep feeder. Always take out what is left in the feeder each day and put in fresh grain.

A guideline for grain feeding is 1 lb. per month of age, up to 6 months. ( i.e. a 3 month old foal can be fed 3 lbs. of grain daily.) This should be adjusted with your foal's condition. Don't feed this much if your foal is getting overweight. The ribs should be easily felt and visible when a foal is running and playing.

Coggin's Test

Needs to be done on a foal after weaning if the foal is being sold, shown or traveling to another state.