This section is on foal specific topics. These are all questions that have been submitted or that I have been inspired to talk about because of a question submitted. If you have any topics that you would like to have discussed please feel free to email me with the topic or question.

My vet recently told me that I am doing harm to my foals by vaccinating them often starting at a very early age. How can that be? Don't vaccines help the foal? I don't want to be hurting the health of my foals, what should I do?

Traditonal thought would support your vaccination program. Very powerful recent studies, however, are changing this traditional thought. (And I glad to see it being accepted and passed along to the owner). These studies indicate that vaccinating horses (particulrly against influenza) while they still have high levels of maternal antibodies actually prevent the foal from developing immunity to the disease for up to ONE YEAR after the vaccine was given. Thus, vaccinating a foal prior to five or six months will actually stop the foal's immune system from making its own antibodies against the disease for up to one year. Once mom's antibodies are degraded, the foal is left unprotected. Thus, you were doing the right thing based on the information that you had, but now we are beginning to understand that with vaccinations more is usually not better. And earlier is often not better. I would discuss the optimum vaccination schedule with you veterinarian based on the local risk of certain diseases, the activities that your foals engage in (ie showing, travelling, etc), and when you wean your foals.

I have researched and answered these questions to the best of my ability. But I am human and make mistakes. If there is any part of my answer that you feel is incorrect, please let me know. The last thing I want is to disseminate false or incorrect information.