If Things Go Wrong
An orphan foal
Every breeder's nightmare: complications during foaling. If either mare or foal fail to make it through the foaling process, then check out the Facebook pages of orphan foal adoption centres, to try and arrange an adoption. If it is a nursing mare who has lost her foal, make sure you ask for the reason. If there is a suspicion of any diseases, it will be better to avoid placing your foal with her. Make proper agreements beforehand and put them down on paper. Some rescue centres will place several orphan foals together.
Give your foal a good start
If the mare does not give colostrum or dies, give your foal a syringe of Pavo KickStart within a few hours of birth. By giving two syringes of Pavo KickStart within the first 24 hours after birth, you will give your foal's immunity a quick and easy boost!
Another solution is to arrange a foster mare who has not had a foal herself but has been given a special treatment to produce milk. In this case, acceptance of an adopted foal usually goes more smoothly.
Tip!
If the foal dies, make sure you keep the placenta. This will be important for matching an orphan foal with your mare, by using the placenta to rub the foal with it, so the mare will think it is her own foal.
If your mare doesn't give colostrum
It may happen that your mare cannot pass colostrum for one reason or another. If possible, try and milk your mare and offer the colostrum to its foal in a feeding bottle. If you are unsuccessful, then contact the colostrum bank (see the contacts list for the telephone number).
As a last option, there is the Pavo S.O.S. Kit containing colostrum sachets that you can make up and give yourself using a feeding bottle.
In this case, it is important to always contact your veterinarian, who will be able to advise on the required quantity and frequency.
In addition, Pavo also has Pavo Colostrum, artificial colostrum. This is included in the S.O.S. Kit, but is also available separately.
