Neonatal Foal Care: When to Start and When to Stop

This article originally appeared in the Fall 2025 issue of EquiManagement. Sign up here for a FREE subscription to EquiManagement’s quarterly digital or print magazine and any special issues.

For dedicated equine practitioners, the first impulse is to do everything possible to save a horse’s life. In some situations, however, that is not always the wisest choice for the patient and its owners or caretakers. At a Gluck Equine Research seminar, internal medicine consultant Siobhan McAuliffe, MVB, DACVIM, CertRA, described situations that yield poor outcomes for sick foals. She began by noting conditions that generally have good outcomes with appropriate care: 

• Dummy foals.
• Septic foals.
• Most rib fractures.
• Tendon laxity or contracture.
• Some congenital abnormalities.

Conditions With Poor Outcomes

She then listed conditions that are notable for poor outcomes. In general, any foal that does not respond well to ­treatment is one that will cost a lot of money and emotional heartache for all involved. While there are exceptions to every rule, she said conditions in which it might be prudent to stop pursuing care include congenital conditions, prematurity, osteomyelitis, and ­septicemia.