"You are going to put what?     Where?  And for heavens sakes, WHY?"

"I don't think so!!"

If foals were given to anthropomorphic exclamations, this is likely to be their comments concerning the use of post-partum enemas. The enema itself is the answer to their questions of WHAT" and "WHERE".  An enema is a liquid that is injected into the rectum via the anal opening.

Enemas are most useful for the relief of simple fecal impactations. Historical, soapy water, salt water, mineral oil and vegetable oils have been used successfully to relieve this condition. Here are two recipes for some "tried and true" old reliable enemas that were used in human medicine and can be used for foals.

To make a flatus enema, combine one half oz of magnesium sulfate (Epsom salts) and one ounce of glycerin in four ounces of warm water.

To make a soap suds enema: Add two ounces of very mild soap (no detergents) with one pint of warm water.

Today enemas are commercially available which use phosphate salts as the activating agent. Any enema appropriate for a use on human children can be used on a newborn foal.

The bigger question is the WHY. Why do we give enemas to new born foals?

Full term foals are born with material in their GI tracts. This fetal fecal material is called meconium. Meconium is produced from the secretions of the intestinal glands and contains some amnionic fluid that is found in the fetal sack. It is dark green or black in appearance and rather thick and sticky. It can become dried out, making elimination from the body difficult. Of course, nature would not allow a faulty system like this to develop without providing some kind of antidote. The antidote, in this case, comes in the form of colostrum or first milk.

Colostrum is an important nutrient for the newborn. It provides many life-saving factors including immunological protection, twenty times the normal concentration of calcium, and has a high sugar content designed to be used as an instant energy boost.

Passage of the colostrum through the GI tract also acts as a natural laxative. The colostrum by-products help to soften the meconium allowing its passage out of the body with a minimum amount of discomfort. When these natural phenomenon do not work in a synergistic fashion an enema may be necessary. Foals experiencing difficulty in passing the meconium have specific symptoms. They stand or walk around with their hind legs spread apart, their backs arched and their tails raised - training to have bowel movement.

It is our opinion that, unless a foal has these symptoms for a period of an hour or so, an an enema is not necessary. However, we do watch newborns carefully to be sure that the mecomium passes sometime between four to eight hours after birth. Therefore, we do not routinely give enemas to all newborns. In fact, we think that giving enemas to foals that do not need them can create problems.

Prior to birth, the unborn horse is in a warm, hydrated environment. The birthing process moves the newborn into a dry, cool, airy place. Newly born foals, therefore, experience a certain amount of dehydration. The administration of an enema can serve to cause further dehydration by stimulating flow through the lower bowel - which is what it is designed to do. This can, in some cases, exacerbate foal diarrhea. Diarrhea in the newborn can quickly develop into serious dehydration - a condition to be avoided.

Surely the horse could not have been around for 23 million years with a defective system that has only been fixable during the last 50 years through the use of an enema. "We don't think so!"

copyright, 2000, Dr. Jim and Lynda McCall 2000