layers upon a basal membrane) similar to the esophagus. Generally, foals will not show symptoms until the ulcer has ruptured which leads to severe peritonitis (inflamma- tion of the membrane that lines the stomach cavity) and subsequently, diarrhea. Early detection is imperative in this case as surgical intervention is most likely the only way to save your foal. Once the ulcer has ruptured, foals will show significant depression, a wide base stance and later an increased heart rate, abdominal distention, colic, prolonged capillary refill time and blue or purple mucus membranes. Without immediate treatment, a foal with a ruptured ulcer will die. Silent ulcers are the most common found in foals less
than four months old. These foals will not always show signs, however, and in some cases these ulcers will resolve on their own. They can be stress induced and produce clinical symptoms that are potentially fatal. Normally, these ulcers are discovered during necropsy and are secondary to cause of death. Pyloric or duodenal ulcers are rare. They can occur in
foals up to one year old but are most often seen in foals three to five months of age. The pylorus and the duode- num are the bottom parts of the stomach that connect it to the small intestine. When these ulcers heal, they can cause obstructions and narrowing of the esophagus. These foals may experience reflux, liver disease, inflamma- tion of the esophagus and aspiration pneumonia. Again, these foals may not show any clinical signs unless there is a gastric outflow obstruction. These signs would include teeth grinding, drooling of milk, bruxism, colic after nurs- ing or eating grain or hay, excessive salivation, limited feces and diarrhea.
they will lick, or ingest, anything from wood, sand, stones, cloth or leather to dirt or feces. If you see your foal doing this, you can be confident there is either a dietary imbal- ance or your foal is simply bored. You can try changing your feeding program, providing access to trace miner- als and salt blocks, providing more high quality hay and increasing the foal’s ability to roam on larger, quality grass pasture. If you notice your foal is eating everything in the stall, try smaller, more frequent feedings of hay or hang- ing a toy (i.e. a ball or empty milk jug) to help occupy them while they are in the barn. Sometimes, when foals have upset stomachs, they will
eat large amounts of sand. The sand helps to suppress the acid in their stomach and will provide pain relief for a short period of time. However, the sand will accumulate in the large intestine, causing an obstruction or impac- tion and potentially producing diarrhea, weight loss or colic. Sand impaction does not allow food contents to pass easily through the colon. In addition, because sand is so abrasive, it can cause a lot of damage to the colon, leading to inflammation. When this happens, the colon cannot function normally and will have trouble absorbing fluids, leading next to diarrhea. Some of the first signs of sand impaction your foal may
show are mild fevers, loose manure, bloating and exces- sive gas. Diagnosis can be made by assessing the foal’s environment, such as sandy pasture or regular access to sand; evaluating feces by dissolving them in water and looking for the presence of sand; and, if available, radio- graphs of the abdomen. Psyllium is the common treat- ment and the diarrhea can resolve within just a few days. Depending on the severity, foals may need two to three weeks of psyllium to remove all the sand from their intes- tines.
It is important to consult your veterinarian if you
believe your foal is experiencing diarrhea and/or colic related to sand. The longer it goes on, the more damage it can do and the more serious the problem will become..
OVEREATING Eating grain before their gastrointestinal (GI) tract is mature enough can cause an upset stomach and diarrhea in foals. Those who are hungry (not enough milk produc- tion) or just curious will sometimes start eating grain before they can handle this type of nutrition. Under three months of age, the foal’s diet should be limited to milk and the occasional nibble of something else. However you may notice that at a very early age, foals
PICA AND SAND Pica, or a tendency to consume materials other than food, can also be common in older foals and can easily cause upset tummies and diarrhea. Foals, and horses of all ages for that matter, may be lacking sufficient rough- age or necessary minerals in their diet. To compensate,
54 July/August 2015
are nibbling at the mare’s grain and may be spending more time in the feed bucket than they should. Over- eating can be a problem for foals of all ages but you will generally see it in the younger foal. An easy way to deter- mine if this is the cause of the foal’s diarrhea is to simply hang the mare’s grain bucket high enough so the foal cannot reach it.
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