Endurance.Net Ridecamp Archives

Dave,

 

Good luck with your rescued guy.  A couple suggestions from me as I rescue horses regularly:

 

1-    Quarantine for no less than 30 days - even then he could be harboring bacteria or viruses that can rear their ugly heads beyond the 30 days.  Care for the other horses first, then this guy to avoid transference of contaminants.  Wash or change clothes between handling.  Trust me, I learned this one the hard way and ended up with 12 ill horses from an apparently healthy horse who was a strangles shedder.

2-    Have your Vet do a thorough exam - especially related to malnutrition

3-    DO NOT be tempted to give him a ton of feed.  Malnourished horses must be brought back to weight slowly.  The best thing is free choice good quality hay or pasture (Good pasture with various grasses and forbs) and access to fresh, clean water plus free exercise.  DON'T STALL a baby.  You can do significant damage when they cannot fully develop their muscles and tendons AND brains.

4-    Keep him away from the others until he is no less than 6 months old.  Then start very slow introductions.  One kick from a full-sized horse, even a smaller Mustang, can damage him beyond repair.

5-    Begin your worming protocol with Pancur or Safeguard.  They are less toxic.  Use them monthly until he is 12 months old, and if he is well, then use Ivermectin.  Be certain to get an accurate weight, especially if he has a wormy belly.  Get your Vet to tell you what weight he/she would estimate.

6-    DO NOT start any vaccinations until 6 months of age.  This is the new AAEP recommendation.  It is found that foals do not develop adequate immunity from vaccinations if done before they are 6 months.  Also, ALWAYS give the recommended booster for each vaccination.  I do not give my horses the combo vaccinations except for the EWV Enceph/Tetanus.  I also wait at least a week between vaccinations.  This is time consuming and requires record keeping but I don't have the  horror stories some folk experience.

 

There is a ton more about rescues AND babies but this should give you a start!! 

 

 

Karen Everhart MEd.
President- Rainbow Meadows Equine Rescue and Retirement, Inc.
email: President@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
www.rainbowmeadowsranch.com

 

Owner/Operator Horse Calls LLC
Training, Centered Riding Lessons
CTR and Endurance Conditioning and Training
email: HorseCalls@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
www.horsecalls.com

 

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