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  Discussion on Foal Navel Infection
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New Member:
georgia

Posted on Saturday, Apr 23, 2011 - 2:33 pm:

We have a twelve day old filly. At seven days she was running in small paddock but slipped and had a very bad fall. Her navel cracked at the belly line and opened up between the belly and the base of the navel. Over the next couple days it appeared to get some yellowish mucus discharge. We started Gentamycin and procaine penicillin for three days. It looks better. There was a minor amount of swelling underneath that went away (no swelling now); however the crack is still there. The stump of the umbilical cord is pointing directly backwards and where the crack is there is still a little yellowish color but not weeping right now. We have taken her temperature daily and it has been normal. She is a very fast and active foal who has gone for several bad tumbles - which we can't do much about. She has been in a large stall the last three days. We have been using chlorahexadine daily but not sure if it is helping or not. Overall it does look better than when we started. Should be continue with the antibiotics we are using? Can you help us in how to proceed from here? Thank you.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Sunday, Apr 24, 2011 - 8:26 am:

Welcome Georgette,
You don't really have a typical navel infection that ascends the inside of the umbilical vessels and urachus. Instead you have a skin wound adjacent to the navel. Not being able to examine the foal I cannot give you specific advice on care. Best would be a veterinary exam if that has not been done yet. The chief question unanswered here is how deep does the defect go? This may effect proper treatment.

I think the lack of fever, the foal's good attitude, and lack of a bulge from the defect are good signs. The key to all wound treatment is not the antibiotic choice, and probably should be on until the wound is well on its way to healing, but good wound care. For more on good wound care as I see it check out, HorseAdvice.com » Diseases of Horses » Skin Diseases, Wounds, and Swellings » Wounds / Burns » Long Term Deep Wound Care.
DrO
New Member:
georgia

Posted on Sunday, Apr 24, 2011 - 11:02 pm:

Thank you Dr. Oglesby for your thoughts on this. The update today (Sunday) is that her dried up navel stump has come off and you can now see a little yellowish mucus in the center of the stump. It does not look that bad and there is still no swelling but low-grade infection seems to be there. As to having a vet check her out, we have always relied on three very good equine vets in our area. Unfortunately, one had a heart attack helping a mare to foal and passed away. A second recently passed away from pancreatic cancer. Our third vet is away for the holidays and won't be back until Tuesday; therefore, you can see our predicament. It seems equine medical problems most often happen at the worst possible times! I do thank you for your help and suggestions.
Georgette
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