Has anyone here used Bio Sponge on their newborn foals?
i have a mare due in a few weeks, her first foal died at 2 days, the autopsy showed clostridium .
The Bio Sponge claims to help with this specific issue, of course she has been vaccinated this time for clostridium, but that vaccine has mixed results, so I am looking into other things, so please share your experiences.
We have used Bio Sponge for ordinary diarrhea with very good results but wouldn’t rely on only Bio Sponge if there is a real risk of clostridium.
We had a clostridium outbreak years ago. Devastating. After that we vaccinated the mares, I think it was actually a sheep vaccine? Then we doused the foals with a nasty smelling anti toxin as soon as they were up and nursing, and at any sign of diarrhea we treated with antibiotic. We’ve not had another outbreak after that. It seems like conditions have to be “just right” for clostridium to flare up in the environment. That year I had “super cleaned” the foaling sheds and paddocks and then it was a very wet year, which “percolated” the clostridium up out of the ground.
We give it to pretty much any horse with diarrhea, along with any antibiotic or other medication the vet recommends. I agree that I wouldn’t rely on it alone-- and I also wouldn’t give it as a preventative, only if the foal actually has diarrhea.
Have any of you used equine coli-endotox? I used it on 4 foals and none of them had scours, so would it help with your concern?
https://www.jefferspet.com/products/equine-coli-endotox-10ml
NoDQ, thanks for your post, my mare has been vaccinated, but I would love to know what you doused the foal with ,that is something I would love to bring up with my vet.
Pony Grandma thanks for the suggestion ,but the makers of Bio Sponge claim if you give it to the foal 6 hours after nursing it can somehow bind to the clostridium and help protect the foal…or something like that.
i was trying to find out if anyone has any experience with this.
I lost a foal to Clostidium a few years ago. Since that I know foal them out in a different area (on my lawn actually if weather permits) and leave them on the lawn for the first week (must move panels around). After that they go back into our hayfield and I have not had any problems with the last few foals.
Bumping this up
My one experience with BioSponge was a 3 mo old foal…was being treated for diarrhea by the vet for a few days (probably some roto virus or clostridium…no others were sick, and it was more than mare heat diarrhea). Vet gave BioSponge…in less than 12 hrs, foal had bloated and was looking uncomfortable. Rushed to vet hospital…exploratory surgery…foal had a twist in the small intestine. Luckily no necrosis, so no damage to the intestine. To this day I am convinced the BioSponge had something to do with the twist…but maybe I’m wrong and it was just coincidence.
