Urgent Foal Diarrhea Need help

[Vicky Texas]

Hi Gang

I need help please. This started several weeks ago. All seem great with our

little boy Gallant Lad. Then we got new hay in a Friday, I posted about the green

hay and foals. Well on the following Sunday Gallant Lad had diarrhea. We went to

the feed store and bought some old hay, Last year hay. But I made sure it was clean and good. Seemed a little better, then on the Following Wed. we had new foal (a filly) born. Well the mare was having some after birth problems. So we decided to take them all in. Also at the Vets, he did a test to see if worms were involved. And yes they tested postive. To my shock. I am worming the mare like we are suppose to. She was wormed with Zemtrim, then right after foaling the ivermetrin. (sp). He wormed the foal at the clinic.

The Vet put Gallant Lad on Drench and Lamisc, this was June 22. Then on the following Friday, he showed signs of an Ulcer. So we called the Vet back. He put him on Carafate and Cimetidine. Well we continued with the diarrhea. Not bad, more like runnie poop. Like Cow Poop.. Then last week I found little white worms in the poop of the mare and in foal diarrhea. So I re-wormed both of them. Which only made him worse. Then on Friday, he got worse. So I called

the Vet back, this was last Friday, he had me to come in. So he refilled his ulcer meds and said it could take up to a month to heal the ulcer. He put him on

EPIC Scour Formula, I mix with yogart. Also put him on Pedia Sorb. Well he said this would clear him up. Well Friday night he was better. Almost normal poop.

Then Sat. afternoon here we go again. Still today. Tomorrow I am calling him back. But I was wondering if anyone else is having foal diarrhea.

Any suggestions, anything to help us.

We are watching him closely. He is up nursing, & playing. I am watching him for dehyradation. I clean his stall, bleach the walls and all, trying to keep everything clean. He has a hay bed, of the older hay. I made sure he can not get any of the new hay through the fence of the next mare and baby. We tried putting him out, but he played to hard, and it made him worse. I do put them out for a while, with us there with them. During the heat they are in a stall, under a fan and under the camera.

Please helps us..

Thanks Vicky

 

[Ojai Minis]

I have been dealing with foal diarrhea also. Two things help, Bio Sponge and psyllium. The Bio Sponge is a pain because I have to give it myself and you have to syringe it. But it does help. I have also found the psyllium works also. So, I just give about a TBSP each night with a couple mushy pellets and he stays solid. I have tried changing feeds etc. but that doesn't seem to help. I'm hoping it will go away when I wean

Liz V.

 

[Vicky Texas]

I have been dealing with foal diarrhea also. Two things help, Bio Sponge and psyllium. The Bio Sponge is a pain because I have to give it myself and you have to syringe it. But it does help. I have also found the psyllium works also. So, I just give about a TBSP each night with a couple mushy pellets and he stays solid. I have tried changing feeds etc. but that doesn't seem to help. I'm hoping it will go away when I wean 

Liz V.

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I to have tried change in the feed. Thinking the Omelene is rich. His dam gets Omelene 200 with Horse man's edge. Like Stratgy. But this did not help.

What is the Bio Sponge, and Psyllium and where do I get it. We have tried even

Pepto. This helps some. But where do we get this other?

Vicky

 

[Cathy_H]

Bio Sponge (powder get from vet) has worked for us in the past. This year we had two foals with persistant diarrhea off & on for 3 weeks....... We used the Bio Sponge this year but it did not get rid of it. We then tried Pepto Bismol which did not help then had to go to Imodium AD for both of them (finally cleared up).

 

[wildoak]

Bio Sponge is great stuff - your vet may have it, otherwise you can order it through platinumperformance.com It does come now in a paste form, much easier to give esp to babies.

Jan

 

[Barbie]

Last year Sterling had chronic diarrhea as a baby - finally my vet told me to try Equate (Wal-Mart brand of Metamucil). I used it several times a day for a couple of days and gradually took him off it. Worked like a charm. I've used it from time to time since too - works great.

Good luck.

Barbie

 

[zacharyfarms]

Sounds like this could be coming from the mare. Are you cleaning her udder and around her vulva and down her legs...If she is in heat (and this does not have to be foal heat)...and has a discharge that runs down her legs and gets on her udder and he nurses than the bacteria from her could be causing his problem now that you have the worms under control...

 

[Kim~Crayonboxminiatures]

I give either Probios paste or FastTrack paste after deworming, it restores the healthy bacteria to the gut that the dewormer kills (along with the bad stuff).

Sounds like this little guy could use a 5 day treatment, give him some paste once a day for 5 days, it works like a charm!! You really need to restore his gut to healthly levels after all the deworming.

Yogurt helps some, but it does not have as much bacteria as the Probios or FastTrack does.

And cleaning the mare is also important, one of my mare is very messy when she is in heat and so I have to be sure to clean her and give the foal Probios paste, the combination works to get them over it.

 

[Vicky Texas]

Hey Gang

On the mare cleaning, I clean them as needed. But I will start watching and cleaning her everyday if this helps. I will do anything... Probios paste or FastTrack paste. I will get some Probios today, and start him on it.

We had a very long night of no sleep here with him. Was unable to reach his Vet to. I found some Darysal I had, and gave it to him. It help for about 4 hours. Then we were back to where we started. But at least that was an improvement. I scrub his stall down. We put him and his dam out in the early morning, and late evenings for time out of the stall. This is just so frustrating, I just want him well. We have 2 other babies and they are both fine, thank the Lord. I am waiting on the Vet now to call back.

I do appreciate any ideals, I do know we are not Vets, and will run the ideals by him, but any help is appreciated.

I just wish I knew what is causing this. Is it the Ulcer? Is it the mare? Is her Milk to rich?

Vicky

 

[Ojai Minis]

Vicky,

I know your worry and frustration. I would get some psyllium in him. I like to use the straight stuff from the health food store. Sometimes it takes a while for them to get used to the taste. So start with a tiny bit and work up. I had a filly one year who had diarrhea bad. All over the walls, all over her. I had tried EVERYTHING, pepto, antibiotics, bio sponge, . She ended up with a sand impaction. After she ended up in the hospital with IV's she finally unblocked and pooped straight sand for days. Once she was cleared of the sand, she was fine. This colt I have now, is not having uncontrolled diarrhea. Seems different. I'm going to assume that you when you clean your mare, you are just using some warm water? Soap residue could cause diarrhea also. Feel free to PM me if you want.

Liz V.

 

[Margaret]

When I wormed two mares at the same time this year, with a paste wormer, both babies got sick on me the days following.... (one was about a week old, and the other was around a month old) I do believe some of these pastes are hard on their tender intestional tracks. They both showed excessive signs of exhaustion, depression, dirreahea, and hard breathing and when I took temps they were high. I realized that the wormer caused this reaction as they were both fine before I wormed the mares... I had to go through "alot" to bring those babies back, but they did pull through... From now on I will be using a safter type of "daily wormer" durring pregnancy, and following the foaling, on the mares, to prevent this from happening again. It sounds like yours is not as bad as mine was, but I do suspect that it could be a similar reaction to the wormer...

 

[jwagner]

Just a quick note,

We had a filly that developed and ulcer and also had diarrhea and our vet prescribed Diarsanyl Oral Paste 60ml and it really worked. It Helps manage digestive upsets and diarrhea by combining with the mucus to form a protective layer on the intestinal mucosa to help reduce irritation and fluid loss. Contains a unique component, montmorillonite (smectite clay), which has substantial capacity to adsorb and absorb toxins, bacteria, viruses, enzymes and free radicals (15 times more capacity than kaolin). Also contains two energy sources, dextrose and glycerol. Also the probios is definately to consider espically when you are administering anitbiotics

Julie Wagner

www.smhc.com

 

[Vicky Texas]

Update on our baby, Gallant Lad.

Well, another trip to the Vets yesterday. He is on his ulcer med's still and will continue those. He is now also on the Diarsanyl Paste. This is helping him with

Diarrhea. Thanks Julie.

Our Vet does feel he has a bacteria also in his intestines. So he is now on Metronidazole as well. He is also low in protein, and Anemic. So he is on Lizotinic for this. Said it would take us about to 2 bottles for this. He is playful, and acts normal other then the diarrhea.

Julie, how long as your baby had it? Ours is going on 3 weeks of battling this. We

are also giving Pedilyte. He nurses, plays and acts fine. We have tried several med's for the diarrhea but only seem to make him worse. The Diarsanyl is only the thing that seems to help, and well we give some Pepto to. Only when needed.

While at the Vet's yesterday, we met another man who is raising big horse paints, he has 11 foals and only one with this.

Please keep me updated on your little one, what ulcer med's are yours getting?

Ours is Cinetidine and Carafate. Which do seem to help his ulcer. We have not seen any more signs of it. Yeah.. Now only to rid the Diarrhea.

Vicky

 

[jwagner]

Vicki,

We used Gastroguard for the ulcer and it took about 4 weeks and he was fine, he is now a yearling and doing great. Make sure which I am sure you are already doing that he has plenty of liquids. Metronidazole is used for bacterial infections like Giardia espically in puppies but it really makes them drink lots of water. Did you vet run a stool sample on the baby to check for an infection? How is he doing now?

Julie

 

[HGFarm]

I know someone who bought a mare that had CHRONIC non stop SEVERE diarhea all the time.... turns out she was allergic to alfalfa, which she had eaten at her previous owners and then the new one. Taken off and put on a grass mixture, etc.... and is just fine!!!

 

[Bluebell]

It sounds like you are getting it under control so i will offer my experience just for the sake of maybe helping another and my foal was newborn so probably has nothing to do with what would help you anyway but here goes.

Foal was i day old and developed diarrhea. Never dealt with this before. Gave pepto bismol and pedialyte. Stopped nursing and was getting listless. Vet gave him an IV, Smz Tmp suspension and VBG diarrhea control gel. I gave another dose of the VBG 12 hours later. Diarrhea stopped immediately. Now this wasn't the run down the leg diarrhea it was projectile. Just shot out of him. He is on Smz Tmp suspension once a day for the next 5 days. Sucking his mommys bag down nicely now and starting to perk up. Of course what works for one may not help another but thought i would just add this in case it might be a workable solution.