Whether you choose to let your mare give birth in a birthing stall or in an enclosed pasture, it’s important to keep her and her new foal safe and comfortable. Especially in their first days of life, foals are at risk from predators like dogs and mountain lions. For this reason most horse owners take advantage of the safety of a stable.
However, just keeping foals in a stable isn't quite enough to guarantee their safety. Newborn foals are very sensitive to temperature change, and even though they can already stand up just an hour after birth, they still require a lot care and monitoring so they don’t succumb to hypothermia as they adapt to their new environment. A newborn foal is considered hypothermic when its internal body temperature falls below 99°F, so hypothermia is a very real risk that can be easily prevented by using heat lamps and monitoring ambient temperature in your stable.
While keeping your foals warm enough is critical to their health, you don’t want to do so at the expense of your mare’s comfort. The average resting temperature of a full-grown adult horse is 99-101°F. High ambient temperatures, when coupled with physical exertion, can lead to heat stress and dehydration. Horses are generally better at keeping themselves warm than they are at keeping themselves cool, so it’s easy for a mare or a stallion to become heat stressed. In a barn or stable, heat stress can be prevented by providing sufficient ventilation and accurately monitoring ambient temperature and humidity.
You want to take the best care possible of your horses (or your boarders’ horses), so rather than guessing and wondering about the conditions in your barn or stable while you’re away, you should be absolutely certain. You CAN be with Smart Barn’s temperature and humidity sensors. With Smart Barn’s technology, you will be instantly notified via text, phone or email if the temperature or relative humidity in your barn or stable exceed or fall below your set parameters. Use the Smart Barn app on your smartphone or tablet to check on your horses from wherever you are. Don’t have a smartphone or tablet? Log into your account from any web browser to view the temperature, humidity, fluid levels, ventilation and more in your stable or barn while you’re on vacation or from the convenience of your living room!
Smart Barn is advanced monitoring technology made simple in a streamlined app/online dashboard that’s easy to read and operate from wherever you choose to be. Contact us today to see for yourself!
