Dr Kohnke's Latest Handy Hints

Handy Hint 1
Prepare a Mare for Foaling
A heavily pregnant 500kg mare carries up to 65-70kg of additional weight as she nears full term due to the combined weight of her unborn foal, membranes and fluids or ‘the waters’. This can make the mare uncomfortable during hoof trimming when standing on one hind limb.

Plan to have the mare’s hooves trimmed about one month before her due foaling date, worm her out to help reduce environmental contamination with Small Strongyles during the last month before foaling and administer a tetanus booster (toxoid injection) to help ensure she has optimum immunity at foaling against tetanus. Plan a follow-up hoof trim about a month after foaling once the mare becomes less ‘foal proud’ and anxious when handled.

It is also essential to remove Caslick’s seal on the vulva before foaling. Check any mares bred away from your property or stud and arrange for your vet to remove the Caslick’s seal at least 4-6 weeks before due foaling date, just in case the mare foals earlier than expected. If you don’t remove the Caslick it may result in severe damage to the vulva during foaling.

Handy Hint 2
Identify ‘Good Doers’ in a Foal Group
Some foals are simply born to be ‘good doers’, often inheriting the ‘thrifty gene’ and thereby tending to eat more and put on condition easily, especially when nursing on
a heavily producing mare or being supplemented with high energy “cow pastures” or hard feed co-shared with the mare, or a creep feed.

If you notice that one or more young foals are beginning to rise up on their front pasterns, (often referred to as ‘upright’ pasterns) or the foal appears to ‘rock’ forward on its knees when standing, then the affected foal(s) should ideally be separated out of the group and the feeding and exercise managed to reduce the rate of growth and development. However, if you are feeding a commercial foal feed and you cut back on the amount to reduce the energy intake, ensure that you maintain an adequate intake of calcium and trace-minerals, such as by adding a daily supplement of Kohnke’s Own Cell-Grow, to help make up the shortfalls in the reduced ration intake. This is important to help ensure cartilage and bone growth is maintained as the young horse reduces in condition to take the excess loading off its joints, or naturally exercises more and overloads its already devitalised cartilage and subchondral bone.

Handy Hint 3
Avoid Galloping Young Foals to Holding Yards
It is unwise to allow young foals with a mare group to gallop to a holding yard for routine worming or hoof trimming, over distances of more than 500-700 metres.

The sudden increase in cartilage and subchondral loading, especially in the heavier foals, can result in overloading of joint cartilage, as well as a risk of inhaling aerosol ‘rattles’ organisms in dust as foals gallop in behind mares up race-ways and in the holding yards during dry weather.

Observe a young foal after it gallops with its mother and watch for attempts to lay down immediately after it has galloped. It is likely that joint cartilage or subchondral pain is present and joint damage has been caused by the high loading of fast, extended exercise on the immature cartilage and bones.

Handy Hint 4
Avoid Excessive Liming of Pastures
Many horse owners believe that applying powdered limestone (Ag-lime) to ‘lime’ pastures helps to destroy L3 stage infective Strongyle larvae. There is no scientific basis for this practice as L3 stage larvae have a thick protective sheath to shield them against dehydration and chemical reactions.

Liming does help to neutralise “horse sick” pastures due to urine saturation. However, excessive liming to ‘sweeten’ the soil to make it more alkaline for growth of grass rather than weeds can significantly reduce the vailability of many trace-elements including copper, zinc, molybdenum and manganese as the alkaline micro-environment created limits plant uptake. As these are trace-elements which are already widely deficient in Australian soils, supplements of these in prepared feeds or additives are required to make up shortfalls for mares in late pregnancy, lactating mares and young foals.

Kohnke’s Own Cell- Grow®, containing a 3 Supplet® pellet blend, is formulated to top-up prepared feed where the full recommended feeding level is not provided, and it’s ideal for home-mixed hard feeds as it contains the latest recommended (NRC 2007) levels of cooper, zinc, iodine and all other nutrients in a mixed pellet form.

Handy Hint 5
Locate Pregnant Mares in a Well Drained Paddock
Pregnant mares require exercise to maintain some degree of natural fitness. This can be facilitated by locating feeds and the water source at the opposite ends of the paddock to encourage them to walk for food and water.

It is important to provide heavily pregnant mares with a well drained area such as a small rise or mound, with trees or a windbreak sheltered from the prevailing wind. It is important for them to seek dry areas to keep them away from wet muddy conditions.

Excess moisture uptake in their hooves can result in softening of their hind hooves and lameness as they carry an additional 12-15% of bodyweight over their lower back and hind limbs. Twice weekly applications of Kohnke’s Own Hoof-Seal® will help to maintain natural moisture control within the hoof walls and soles so as to keep the hooves strong and resilient for weight bearing.

Handy Hint 6
Beware of Uterine Distortion Syndrome on Hilly Country
Studies have observed that overweight mares confined to hilly country have a higher incidence of foals being born with deviated and bent legs. It is thought that Uterine
Distortion Syndrome (UDS) is caused by the abnormally high compression forces on the unborn foal in the womb during the last two months before foaling as fat mares graze on hilly country.

It is recommended that these mares be moved to an undulating or a flat, but well drained, paddock to minimise this physical compaction and restriction on the rapidly growing unborn foal.

Avoid allowing a mare to become too fat prior to foaling as it may increase the risk of limb deviations and complications during foaling, as well as reduce the volume and protein content of milk produced to feed her foal, resulting in a slower growth rate in her foal.