Treatments and Final Conclusions It is clear that there is not a unique recipe that will solve alignment problems in foals, since there are many different factors that intervene in different ways. There are specific treatments for each defect; for each degree and age of the foal in question. All the same, one same treatment applied to two different foals could work on one but not on the other. The reason for this is complex; it has something to do with the individual attitude; the combined dam / foal behavior; its growth“ history”; its body structure; its gene expression pattern; etc. It is key to: identify the defect; analyze the window of opportunity given to us by growth; apply treatment according to the situation and the moment; follow up on the effect that it goes having and be ready to make changes if improvement is slow or insufficient. On the whole, and as in all medical situations, treatments are beneficial if the diagnosis is correct and treatment is applied with adequate criterion according to each situation. There are defects that are resolved only through medical treatment, but it is also possible that this may solve one defect and be the cause of a new one. Rest could be sufficient treatment to achieve the correction of certain defects, but could backfire with others, which usually happens particularly when they return to the open field. Plaster and splints are an option in certain cases, as also bandaging. Regular and corrective paring is a basic tool for defects that occur only under the fetlock joint. If all these treatments known as“ conservative” fail, surgery is a valid option for situations in which there is only a short time left before the defect becomes fixed or when the angle is marked enough that there is a risk of fractures and / or disabling injuries.
To conclude, alignment defects diagnosed correctly and treated at the right time, can be resolved. I believe that the famous phrase:“ This dam always produces foals like that”, when referring to alignments and to justify a deviation, is a phrase that may and should be eradicated. To look out for this during the first months after the birth of a foal is a job to be carried out jointly among owners, vets, parers and staff involved in their raising. Observation is extremely important. Neither sport horses or their breeding systems or the activities they carry out are“ natural”. Quite the contrary, they are completely artificial, and therefore, the idea that foals must be left to“ follow their natural course” in the evolution of their alignments is a mistake which in the long rung influences the breeding system making it expensive and inefficient. Early and precise diagnosis is key, as is also growth control and follow up. One must remember that“ a foal is a horse” and that it has its own particular way of being assessed, and that which it defines( or we are allowing it to define) during its first months after birth will be what determines its potential.
279