Most people seem to tell me to wean the foal between 4 and 6 months. I bought a weanling last summer, she was weaned a week before she turned three months old. She died of colic two weeks after I brought her home. Was she just too young to be weaned?
Jos
Posted on Friday, December 08, 2000 - 04:34 pm:
Any time from three months onwards is the accepted time to wean a foal. Various factors should be weighed, such as mare and foal condition and degree of foal maturity.
It is unlikely that the colic was related to the age of your foal at weaning, but is more likely to have been related to something such as a complete change in diet (had she been receiving concentrates prior to weaning?) or even the stress of weaning and moving. If one of these factors brought about even a minor colic and she then rolled and caused a twist in her gut, that would have caused her death.
Kelly (63.172.47.222)
Posted on Tuesday, May 22, 2001 - 10:43 pm:
This is about the time of year that many foals are ready to be weaned. Depending on the maturity of the foal, I usually wean at about 4 months of age. Some are still very dependant on the mother and do best at 5 or 6 months of age. It really does depend on the individual.
There are a few things that can be done to prepare the foal for the eventual separation.
At about 2 months of age, the foal should be introduced to a creep feeder. This allows him to be fed a feed separate from his mother. Introduce any feed slowly and build up to the recommended amounts. This not only helps the foal, but will help the mare retain her weight.
It helps to have the foal halter broken and handled before weaning. If the foal is halter broken, he can be lead away from the mare at lengthening intervals to prepare him for future separation. This will help to ease the stress of a sudden weaning. I find that time spent hand grazing is enjoyable for us both!
Once the foal is content with brief separations, I will extend the time away and turn them in with a friend to play. Eventually, they just don't come back from play time.
I find that this method helps to make weaning an easier adjustment for all concerned. Foals can become very upset and hurt themselves if they are not prepared in advance.
I do make sure that the mother is not able to be seen or heard at weaning time. It can exacerbate the situation if they can see and call to each other. Usually, after a restless first day, all is well. They soon forget and depend upon their fellow weanlings for company and socialization.
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