During the cold winter months it is not uncommon for horses to reduce their water intake.  This can sometimes lead to colic.  A simple thing to do which can help boost their water consumption is to add an ounce of  loose salt to their feed every day.  In very cold conditions having a heated water supply is also helpful.

Good nutrition is vital to your foal's development.  Make sure the mare is on a good vitamin and mineral supplement, especially during the last trimester.  Check out www.totalequine.com for a good supplement.

Don't forget booster vaccines for your mares about one month prior to foaling.  This will ensure maximal antibody levels in the mare's colostrum, and more protection for the foal.  This way you can avoid giving the foal a Tetanus Antitoxin at birth, and wait longer for the foal's vaccines.

Rainy day blues. 

Excessively wet weather such as is common on our west coast can lead to problems such as rainscald or mud fever. Rain scald typically affects the areas where the horse gets wettest, such as the back, over the shoulders, and on the hips and flank (especially where the hair points up allowing the water to run down to the root rather than away from the skin)  Mud fever,also known as scratches, cracked heels etc affect primarily the back part of the pastern, can be quite painful and often cause swelling of the legs above the fetlock, "stocking up", especially in stabled horses.  These are basically all a form of bacterial dermatitis.  They are easier to prevent than cure; though a cure in most instances is not very difficult either.  Giving the horses a chance to dry off properly is key.  Grooming to break up the 'clumped' hair is also very important to allow the coat to retain insulating properties, to dry out more quickly and to protect the skin from the next exposure to moisture.  In severe cases your veterinarian may choose to put your horse on antibiotics, either  topically or systemically by injection or orally.  Flax seed, flax seed oil or other sources of essential fatty acids can make the skin more resistant to bacterial dermatitis.  A balanced diet with adequate calories, protein and minerals is of course important too. 

Foals may be cute and fuzzy but also very fragile.  Those first 24 hours are critical.  Your foal should nurse within the first hour to start getting essential protective antibodies from its dam.  We recommend having the foal's blood tested at about 12 hours after birth to determine whether it has absorbed adequate levels of antibodies from the colostrum.  This knowledge could save doing expensive transfusions or worse having a foal with poor immunity and perhaps developing septicemia.