MOTHERING ORPHAN FOALS.

Otago Witness, Issue 3380, 25 December 1918, Page 8

MOTHERING ORPHAN FOALS.

Although, foals are not worth anything like the money in New Zealand that they would realise to-day in the Homeland—not, perhaps, within some scores of sovereigns,—yet they are worth (saving, as prices must level up when things are back to normal. The motherless foal may to-day be deemed not worth saving, but we wish to combat this view deepite the fact thatinfinite tireless patience alone spells' success in rearing the orphan. If it becomes necessary to rear a foal whose mother has died, some few necessary points must be borne in mind. The milk of the mare

has more sugar and less fat in it than the milk of the cow, but there is not a vast difference. .It is best to use the milk of a cow as newly-calved as possible, and the closer the milk comes to having, say, 3 per cent, of butter-fat in it the better. Avoid a rich milk. For the first feed to a young orphan foal take a heaped dessertspoonful of granulated sugar, and just enough water to dissolve it. Then add three tablespoonfuls of lime water and enough new milk to make a Eint. Heat this to just blood eat, and let the- foal suck half a teaspoonful from some sort of container fitted with a nipple. Feed about this quantity every hour for the first few days in the case of a foal which has lost its dam at foaling, or soon afterwards. ,As the foal grows older day by day the quantity of milk may be increased, and whole milk used later, and the number of feeds de-' creased till, according to his thrift, he is doing well with six feeds a day, and then with four. If he has done well and is coming along satisfactorily, at the end of three weeks he should be drinking his milk and lime water out of a bucket, the sugar being eliminated at that age, but continuing the use of lime water with the milk. It is as well not to let him have all the milk he wants. If at first he starts scouring, stop the milk and give him 2oz of castor oil. and let him drink the sugar and lime water in plain water instead of milk. If, later, after he has become accustomed to the milk, he begins to scour, always stop the milk, substitute warm water and give castor. oil in doses determined by the size and age. of the foal. Keep fresh water so that he may dr*ink at will, and watch closely for signs of scouring. It is a sure sign of indigestion, and castor oil is the best remedy. As soon as possible encourage the foal to eat such solid food as oatmeal, crushed oats, bran, a little oil meal, and clover hay. When he is a month old he will begin to nibble at grain, sometimes earlier. At first give him oatmeal—a mere trifle to comence on, and gradually increase the quantity as his appetite grows, and when six weeks old add a trifle of bran to the ration. At two months old some sweet skim-milk may be substituted for the new milk, and at three months the new milk may be discontinued, and the youngster given about all the sweet separator milk he will drink three times a day. By that time he will be eating quite a bit of oats and bran, and he should have all the bruised grain and bran —proportion of onefifth bran by weight—he will clean up. Let him have grass as soon as he will nibble it. Never offer him sour milk, nor milk from uncleanly utensils. Pet and coddle him all you can.- Let him run in a safe, enclosure with some company—even a friendly calf will answer the purpose well enough. Let him run free, and bear with him in his mischievous fun. He is only larking, and intends no harm. It is no miracle-working wonder that is required to rear a motherless foal successfully ; just—as we said before—infinite patience.