The foal is born with a functioning, yet not fully developed, immune system, but no circulating antibodies. Without these antibodies from the mare's colostrum, the foal is very susceptible to all types of infection because he has no specific defenses against them. Complete failure of passive transfer is when foals do not absorb any detectable level of antibodies. There is a simple blood test that can be performed in the field at 24 hours of age to help determine if the foal has absorbed enough antibodies. With this efficient test, failure of passive transfer can be recognized and treated immediately with the hope of preventing infection.
Treatment often includes administration of intravenous immunoglobulins.
After about 24 hours of age, the foal's body no longer is able to absorb the immunoglobulins through the GI tract, and the intravenous route must be used. Clinical Signs And Diagnosis Foals with septic arthritis have several classic clinical signs. A sudden onset of lameness along with joint swelling are two of the most important and earliest signs. There also might be swelling or edema around the joint, and the foal might have a fever at the time you notice the joint swelling. Some umbilical infection symptoms are obvious swelling or drainage from the umbilicus.