Two lavatorial questions??

[charliesarmy]

First one foal's eating momma's poop and seems to be enjoying it!!! is he lacking in something??should I be worried??
Second ? mare and foal are stabled overnight mare's pooping ability seems to have almost doubled wheras not seen any foal poop again is momma disposing of it or should I be worried

 

[JanetGeorge]

Don't worry - it's perfectly normal for foals to eat Mum's dung - helps them obtain the mirco-flora they need to develop their digestive system.

In the second case, how old is the foal? Quite common for mares to lick/clean foal's bottom while encouraging them to drink - and foal poo's are quite small and hard to spot in bedding. Mares do poo a hell of a lot after foaling!!

 

[charliesarmy]

Ok so no need to worry about foalie eating mommas poo!!

Foal is a week old today

saw the transition of poo from black to yellow he also had a massive poo when he was sedated for his plasma transfusion but not seen anything since then but he is out more...mare is very clean around him she cleans him off alot (mud on legs ect) he also wee's loads more often than not on the mares hay

 

[Magicmadge]

Apart from seeing the meconium i didn't find a Maisie poo for two weeks in the stable

 

[Fahrenheit]

First is perfectly normal.

Second keep an eye out for him to be straining, if you catch him straining as if he is trying to go to toilet then you should call the vet, also if you think he is off colour call the vet best to be safe rather than sorry with foals they can go down hill very quickly... if he isn't straining and he's acting normal then he is probably fine, I hardly ever see mine pooing now but its because they are doing it when you aren't watching

I did have a foal once that was concentrating so hard on doing his first poo he fell flat on his face with effort... he wasn't best amused when I gave him an enima either and looked very embarassed when liquid came shooting out his backside... just a silly story really but it did make me laugh at the time