This article first appeared in the October 2020 digital edition of Equestrian Life. To see what’s in the current issue, click here. 

Most foals will endure at least one bout of diarrhoea during their early lives.

Foal Diarrhoea: (Don’t Panic!)

By Dr Maxine Brain

With the foaling season well underway, first-time breeders will discover that, along with the bundle of fun that is a newborn foal comes an almost ritualistic bout of diarrhoea. Don’t panic, it is usually normal. In Part 1 of this series, we look at non-infectious causes of foal diarrhoea.

Springtime is here with us again, and with it comes the arrival of new life on the farm. Foals are born from August right through spring to summer and in some cases even in autumn.

Most foals will endure at least one bout of diarrhoea during their early lives, and for many the diarrhoea will be restricted to a period approximately a week after birth, colloquially know as ‘foal heat scours’. For a few, the diarrhoea will be severe and require intensive treatment, and unfortunately for some, it will be fatal.

The causes of foal diarrhoea can be divided into two major categories: infectious and non-infectious. This article deals with the non-infectious causes, while in the next issue we will deal with the infectious causes. In this article, when we refer to foals, we are talking about horses aged from 1 day old to 6 months of age.

Read the full article in the October 2020 issue of Equestrian Life magazine here.