Dummy Foal Neonatal Maladjustment Syndrome
We can help.
Dummy Foal Neonatal Maladjustment Syndrome
We can help.
Foal Life, Classic Air Vest.
WHAT IS DUMMY FOAL SYNDROME?
A "dummy foal" refers to a newborn foal that appears healthy but displays abnormal behavior due to neurological condition. It is often used to describe a foal that lacks the instinctive behaviors necessary for survival, such as standing, nursing, or bonding with its mother. The condition can be caused by a variety of factors, such as oxygen deprivation during birth, infection, or trauma.
Symptoms of a dummy foal may include:
- Lack of coordination or balance
- Disorientation or confusion, aimless wandering
- No affinity towards the mare
- Fails to nurse or latch onto the mother
- Weakness or lethargy
- Seizures
- No fear of people
Foaling
A typical healthy foal birth should take at least 20 minutes. During this period there are several hormonal changes that occur. Some of these hormonal changes trigger the nursing and bonding process with its mother post birth. For this hormonal change to fully occur the foal must be in a somnolent sleep stage while in the birth canal. If the birthing process happens too quickly the newborn foal may not have naturally experienced the hormonal changing process therefore causing what is technically known as Neonatal Maladjustment Syndrome (NMS). Also known as Dummy Foal Syndrome.
While a foal affected with dummy foal syndrome might seem normal for a few hours or even a couple of days after birth, progressive signs of nervous system dysfunction appear. Some symptoms include; aimless wandering, seizures, no affinity towards the mare, not being able to stand, lack of desire to nurse or breathe on their own. These foals are at risk of suffering from malnutrition, lack of antibodies from colostrum, infection or death if not treated quickly.
A foal born to a mare through cesarean section would not be subject to normal uterine contractions and pressure, is more at risk of developing dummy foal syndrome and retain elevated neurosteroid concentrations in the bloodstream because of a lack of signaling by pressure in the birth canal.
Dummy foal is a terrifying situation for a breeder, because it poses a risk of loss of the foal, along with intense treatment and expense. An affected foal requires 24 hours care and is often placed in equine hospital intensive care unit with bottle and tube feeding and medications around the clock. The process of recovering might take 5 to 10 days and comes with a huge expense that most small breeders can’t afford. Equine hospitals may not be available in most small communities and transportation will become another added cost.
Contact your local veterinarian if you see any signs of dummy foal.
If dummy foal is not detected and treated early enough there is a higher change of lost. We can help.
Foal Life Compression Vest
How It Works:
Foal Life Compression Vest revolutionizes and assists breeders, veterinarians and caregivers in easily applying what is scientifically known as the Madigan squeeze for Neonatal Maladjustment Syndrome (NMS). Developed by John Madigan DVM, MS, ACVIM of UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine.
Before Foal Life Compression Vest, the use of a novel physical compression procedure for a NMS foal had to be done in an equine hospital under veterinarian supervision. The procedure could be done in your barn but requires an easy sliding rope with specific lengths and thicknesses, as well as familiarity with tying specific knots and an understanding of the amount of pressure needed as to not obstruct an airway or crack a rib. Foal Life Compression Vest eliminates these concerns and gives the breeder confidence in using Foal Life Compression Vest themselves or by providing assistance to their veterinarian. Which alleviates stress on the horse breeder, mare and foal while eliminating the need for ropes, knots, insecurity and guesswork.
Compression Therapy: The vest applies gentle, consistent pressure around the foal's body, often focusing on areas like the chest and abdomen. This pressure mimics the sensations the foal would have experienced during birth, helping reset its neurological functions.
Activation of Reflexes: The pressure from the vest encourages the foal's nervous system to respond, promoting behaviors like standing, nursing, and interaction with the mare. It can also help improve muscle tone and coordination.
Benefits:
Non-invasive: Unlike other methods that may require more hands-on manipulation, the compression vest offers a less intrusive approach to stimulating the foal's nervous system.
Comfortable for the Foal: The vest is designed to be comfortable and making it easier to use without causing additional stress to the foal.
Support for Recovery: It can aid in recovery from dummy foal syndrome by encouraging more normal behavior, such as standing and nursing, which are vital for the foal's survival and development.
When It's Used:
Classic Hugs Air Vest
When It's Used:
Post-birth neurological issues: When a foal displays signs of dummy foal syndrome (e.g., lack of coordination, failure to nurse, or neurological dysfunction), the compression vest may be used to help stimulate recovery.
As an adjunct to other therapies: It is often used alongside other treatments like fluids, nutritional support, and sometimes medications.
Foal Life Compression Vest also assists with performance safety during plasma transfusions and eases the process of minor medical procedures to be done quickly and effectively during the first week of life by; inducing a sleep-like state with inhibition of voluntary activity along with a decrease in heart and respiratory rate, and rectal temperature. During this Foal Life Compression Vest, foals remain in a sleep-like state until pressure is released by allowing an increased tolerance to external stimuli as it mimics the passing of the foal through the birth canal.
Until Foal Life Compression Vest, the use of a novel physical compression procedure for a NMS foal had to be done in an equine hospital under veterinarian supervision. The procedure could be done in your barn but requires an easy sliding rope with specific lengths and thicknesses, as well as familiarity with tying specific knots and an understanding of the amount of pressure needed as to not obstruct an airway or crack a rib. Foal Life Compression Vest eliminates these concerns and gives the breeder confidence in using Foal Life Compression Vest themselves or by providing assistance to their veterinarian. Which alleviates stress on the horse breeder, mare and foal while eliminating the need for ropes, knots, insecurity and guesswork.
How do you use the vest:
Foal Life Compression Vest is a vest that you can easily wrap around a foal snuggly but loosely without any air obstruction. Once in place you softly start pumping the hand pump to allow air pressure to slowly build up until the foal lays down. (between 10-20 lbs. or 4.5-9 kg) Once the foal lays down you discontinue pumping but continue to maintain the same vest pressure for 20 minutes, which is comparable to the time of second-stage labor as a foal passes through the birth canal in a normal delivery. At the end of the twenty minutes, you slowly release the air from the air bladder in the Foal Life Compression Vest by turning the knob on the hand pump. You can then easily remove the Foal Life Compression Vest without having to worry about untying multiple knots with a long, bulky rope. Once Foal Life Compression Vest is removed the foal may get up immediately or continue to rest for a few minutes. When the foal gets up it is given a little pinch on its rear to mimic mare behavior.
Why do we need one today:
Overall, the Foal Life Compression Vest provides a modern, effective alternative to traditional manual techniques, offering a way to support foals as they recover from the neurological challenges associated with birth-related complications.
I want to stress that for NMS / Dummy foals, foal life classic air vest can be a lifesaving tool that is just as important as having a defibrillator on a wall for humans. Not only can this save breeders the cost of an expensive equine hospital stays for NMS it may save their life. Using Foal Life Compression Vest for plasma and minor medical procedures makes Foal Life Compression Vest a game changer for all breeders of all sizes and breeds.
Other animals that may use this vest:
cows - goats - sheep - llama- alpaca.
Classic Air Vest on foal
Classic Air Vest Patent Pending
This was our first dummy foal
He can run!!!!
