Gestation in the broodmare
Did you know that the average gestation period in a broodmare is 11months (340 days)? This however, can vary significantly, ranging from 320 days to 370 days. Factors which influence
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Foals
Antibiotic use in foals: long-term effects on health and athletic performance
What happens in a foal’s gut during the first few weeks of life may matter for much longer than we once thought. The gut microbiota (the community of bacteria, fungi,
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The influence of a mare’s microbiome
By guest author Dr Marcus J Head It seems almost impossible to read news reports and social media posts these days without coming across someone telling you how important it
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Broodmare Body Condition & Developmental Orthopaedic Disease (DOD) Risk in Foals, Weanlings and Yearlings
Most breeders focus on broodmare nutrition in late pregnancy or once the foal is at foot. However, how you feed and manage your broodmare year-round has a direct and lasting
Foal Delivery Method: A Key to Gut and Immune Development
The way a foal enters the world can have a lasting impact on its gut health, immune function, and even its risk for developing inflammatory conditions later in life. In
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Relocating/travelling mares prior to foaling
How does travelling/relocating a broodmare prior to foaling influence a foal’s immune system? In the lead up to and during breeding season, many pregnant mares are relocated to different properties
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The importance of trace minerals in late pregnancy
During late pregnancy, a mare’s nutritional requirements increase to meet the demands of her rapidly growing foetus. When feeding heavily pregnant mares, many focus primarily on providing increased calories to
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Broodmare nutrient requirements, foetal growth rate and the influence of nutrition on the skeletal health of a mare’s offspring
A mare’s nutritional requirements vary throughout different stages of her pregnancy, with the last three to four months placing the most significant nutritional demands on the mare. This is a
Foal feeding habits and growth
Did you know that when a foal is born, it weighs approximately 10% of its mature body weight? This can vary however from about 7% of mature weight in draft
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Help! Why is my horse eating manure?
Eating manure (also known as coprophagy), is a common, yet transient phenomenon in foals. Coprophagy is thought to potentially offer multiple health benefits in foals. It is far less common
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Diarrhoea in Foals
Up to 40% of diarrhoea cases in foals are due to Rotavirus infection. Other common causes of diarrhoea in foals include Foal Heat Scours. In addition to compromising the health,
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Congenital Flexural Limb Deformities: Why both feed and body condition in the broodmare matter
There are many possible factors believed to contribute to foals being born with contracted or lax tendons (congenital flexural limb deformities). These include intrauterine positioning, ingestion of certain toxins by
Coco Pops, Feeding Broodmares and Skeletal Development…What’s the Link?
When it comes to feeding our broodmares, we are inundated with choices in terms of commercial feed mixes and concentrates. It’s common for our feed selections to be largely influenced
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Timing Vaccinations in Young Horses
As we move into weaning season in the Southern Hemisphere, it’s an opportune time to give thought to the timing of routine vaccinations we give to our horses. Vaccinations for
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Selenium- Is your horse actually using the amount on the feed or supplement label?
Selenium is a crucial trace-mineral in the diets of our horses and ponies. It plays many key roles in the body and is particularly important in reproductive health (both mares
Selenium- Is your horse actually using the amount on the feed or supplement label? Read More »
Iodine & Horses
Iodine is an essential trace mineral in the diets of our horses and ponies and plays many crucial roles. It is vital as a constituent of the thyroid hormones thyroxine
Foals & Colostrum
With foaling season now upon us in the Southern Hemisphere, it’s worth taking a moment to appreciate the importance of good quality colostrum. Colostrum provides antibodies (immunoglobulins), which are concentrated
Foal Heat Scours and Diarrhoea
‘Foal Heat Scours’ is one of the most common types of diarrhoea to affect foals. Yet the name is a bit of a misnomer, and often leads to confusion as
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Osteochondrosis and Osteochondritis Dissecans: Reducing the Risk
Osteochondrosis (OC) and osteochondritis dissecans (OCD) are two of the most common juvenile osteochondral conditions (JOCC). OC is a disease that causes lesions in the cartilage and bone of growing
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