When to Watch - When to Act - Ask anyone who has bred horses, and they’ll tell you it’s no easy feat. However, when it is done properly (and everything goes right), having an energetic and healthy foal is an exciting and rewarding experience. Dr. Stephen Manning is a board-certified theriogenologist and an associate professor at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

Few things in nature are more inspiring than new foals frolicking around their mothers on a crisp spring morning. The fact that a foal can be up and running within a few short hours after birth is but one in a long series of miracles. Conception is miraculous in itself. Development in utero, or in the womb, begins with the formation of all of the organ systems and is followed by their maturation. During the entire process, the foal is completely dependent on the mother’s blood supply for eating, breathing, and eliminating metabolic waste products.

Winter snow may still blanket the ground, but foaling season will be here before we know it. If you have a pregnant mare in your barn, plan ahead to collect and freeze some of her colostrum — that all-important first milk — so you have it on hand if a foal is born without access to this essential liquid.