Physical Exam – How to perform

Here’s a video on how to perform a physical exam:

Normals:
1. Temperature (at rest):
– Adult: 99.5 – 100.5 F
– Foal: 99.5 – 101.5 F
2. Heart rate:
– Adult: 32-40 bpm
– Foal: 80-120 bpm (transitions to adult ranges as they age)
3. Respiratory rate:
– Adult: 8-16 brpm
– Foal: 60-80 brpm at birth, reducing to around 30 brpm within an hour

After you have reviewed the video, ask your veterinarian or their veterinary nurses to go over how to palpate for pulses and listening to gut and heart sounds.

One of the most common mistakes when performing a physical exam is to double count the heart rate (and giving us veterinarians a heart attack when reporting it!). Here is a video that allows you to hear different heart sounds. The first one is closest to normal, but a murmur is present. These are best listened to with headphones. Note the “lub-dub” – two heart sounds to one beat. By Dr. Karie Vander Werf