Specialized Horse Neonatal Intensive Care in St. Michael, MN

Our most recent neonatal intensive care foal was a Thoroughbred filly out of the mare Gate Swinger, owned by Mary Malkerson, who was born prematurely. After spending nine days at Anoka Equine, the filly was brought to us. Her knees were underdeveloped, so she had splints on both front legs. In addition, she was too weak to get up on her own, so we had to help her up every hour to nurse. She was also fed through a stomach tube to supplement the milk she got while nursing. Periodically, x-rays were taken to review the growth progress. After the knees developed enough to hold her weight without the aid of splints, the hocks needed attention. The splints were removed from the front legs, and the hind legs were splinted. Unfortunately, with hind splints, she was unable to get up on her own to nurse. After two weeks of helping her up to nurse every hour, the hind splints were removed. At this point, plastic corrective shoes with heel extensions were glued on her back feet to support her pasterns. Although she couldn't be turned out, she was walked twice daily to help strengthen her joints and ligaments. In three weeks, the shoes were removed. She will continue to be evaluated weekly. Prognosis? Excellent, thanks to the Malkersons' patience and dedication, as well as the excellent care given by the outstanding veterinarians at Anoka Equine. And do not forget the hours of care provided by Wind N Wood Farm.  Update – This filly was doing extremely well. Unfortunately, she had to be euthanized due to complications related to a hip joint dislocation.