Very independant foal /weaning

[Marty]

Knight Star (2 months old) does not hang around with mommy.

She is not protective at all. I feel she thinks of him as excess baggage that she can do without. She's not a hateful mother, just seems to have her own agenda and she can take him or leave him.

He stays with everyone else except her. During the course of the day, he will go seek her out for a quick nursing, but not often at all and it doesn't last long. Just a minute or so. It's getting less and less. He only nursed once this morning between 8:00 and 12:00. Then he leaves. She goes way out to the back field over the hill where she doesn't have him in view, doesn't care where he is, and he prefers to stay in another field out of her sight with the others and play. Then he shows up in the barn wanting to get some grain so I do feed him during the day also.

In the stall at night, she has little use for him. I have to tie her up so he can eat his grain in peace without her taking it. She doesn't share very well at all and hogs the hay too sometimes knocking him out of the way and shoving him to a corner so she can pig out.

I'm thinking of weaning him at 3 months old under these circumstances.

I've weaned quarter horses that young, but only because they were pulling their mother down way too much. Don't know about trying to wean this soon with a mini.

What do you think?

Anyone wean at 3 months?

 

[Jill]

I weaned a filly at 3mos, but it was because she was pulling the dam down so.

Realizing I do not have a great deal of experience with this yet, having only raised two "from scratch" foals, however, my opinion is you shouldn't wean at 3mos unless the dam's physical condition is being pulled down. Independent minded or not, 3mos seems so young to me...

Not sure what your reasons for wanting to push it forward at 3mos are, so good chance I'm not getting the whole picture.

 

[lvponies]

I normally wean at 3 months if the foal is eating well and spending the majority of their time away from mom. I do like to wean at least a couple of foals together so they have company. Mine have all done fine doing this.

 

[MeadowRidge Farm]

Marty, cant help you with the 3 months weaning, I wait till there are 6 months. But I sure have 2 of those little independant little beggers, both are my fillies and born May 2, so mine are only 3 weeks old now-- they could care less where there Mommy is when they are busy playing, and it seems llike Moms could care less too..both the Moms take off to the back part of my pasture which I just opened up, and Lacey and Savanna ---hmmm, there not going to follow along like a good little baby should, ohhh noooo, they think there are just to grown up for that kind of stuff, the only times they run to find Mom is when they need to hit the milk bar. At night when there in there stalls, all is nice and peaceful, and my little dickens return to good little foals content with there Mommy. Quit entertaining..who needs TV! Corinne

 

[Irish Hills Farm]

I will be weaning Flirt at 3 months of age. She is very independent, doesn't hang out with her mom much anymore, doesn't nurse much anymore, etc. Her and her mother also have issues over breakfast and evening feedings to the point I had to put each feed bucket at opposite ends of the stalls (thank God for large stalls). Plus B is being grained heavily to maintain the weight she is carrying with having Flirt on her side.

So beginning at 3 months Flirt will spend the night in her own stall and be reunited with her mother during the day. I will base how long I do this on how well Flirt handles it. Than I will completely seperate them. Flirt does have 2 buddies that she will eventually be in a pasture with so she won't be alone.

 

[Sandy S.]

HEY MARTY, I HAVE ONE OF THESE, HE WAS BORN MAY 10, SO HE IS ONLY 2 WEEKS OLD AND WON'T STAY WITH MOM ONLY TO NURSE. HIS NAME WE ARE PLANNING ON IS HOT ROD. ACTUALLY SANJIS HOT ROAD ROADSTER SUPREME, IF IT IS NOT TO LONG. HAVE TO GET PICTURES OF THIS LITTLE CHUNK THAT DOES NOTHING BUT SPEED AROUND.

 

[Marty]

Yes Jill that is the whole picture in a nutshell.

Mother is very fat, she's in very good condition so that part is ok too.

This is very different from Holly. She was a very attentive mother and stood over Timmy constantly not ever letting him out of her sight for a moment.

 

[Karin - NaKar Miniatures]

I have always weaned my babies at 3 months of age if they are coming along normally. I wean at least two together. Sometimes I may have to wait for a second foal to be 3 months old to put with the first foal. My weaning process takes about 10 days. I do it gradually and then complete separation. I try to put the least amount of stress on both mom and baby. I have had mares that were ultrasounded in foal come up open when they got stressed from weaning.

 

[Voodoo]

I don't really know what to tell you Marty except that I don't see any real reason to completely wean him. I like Sheryl's idea of splitting up at night to be sure that he gets plenty of his own grain and hay, but I see no reason that he can't just stay out in the pasture with everyone including mom until he's 6 months or so. The little amount of milk he's getting would still help him out and then he wouldn't have to be separated.

 

[Marty]

The little amount of milk he's getting would still help him out

Well Voodoo that's just it: Is the little amount of milk he is getting even necessary once he's already where he is on his foal food.

Or is it just a physiological thing ??? Or not?????

Either way it doesn't bother me to wean early or not to wean early and I do have an extra stall available. It's easy enough to work with him separately as it is seeing as how mama doesn't care about his whereabouts when I take him out for his training sessions.

 

[Voodoo]

I guess what is should have said was that it wouldn't hurt him to still be getting the milk. I guess he's pretty well already weaned himself, but I'd just hate to see him have to be separated from his friends this early. He may seem like he really doesn't care where mom is at all, but I just don't see where it would hurt him to stay out that's all. However I'm kind of different when it comes to that because I don't stall unless absolutely necessary. Everyone runs together all the time and if someone needs grain or supplements they get it in a bucket while I'm saddling to ride. I guess I'm just really a fan of letting them be horses as much as you possibly can rather than having them separated

:

 

[Frankie]

Marty,

His mom does not NEED to stay with him. She is aware of who is out there with him, and what they will or will not do to him, so she must trust them, and him. She has learned that in time. No stress at your house, she knows it, so no need for her to stress over where he is.

It is very normal for him to go out and about by himself.

But, I have to say, 3 months is too early to wean, unless done for reason beyond your control. JMO The longer they nurse, the stronger they become, making weaning that much easier.

That milk he is getting is doing him a lot of good. Don't under estimate it. That milk is something you would have to replace and that almost can not be done. Nutrient wise.

Let him continue to nurse and seperate at night if need be.

Unless he is off with Timmy hot wiring cars, let him go learn!

 

[ChrystalPaths]

For me, 3 mos is young but Missy was just like this. What I would do is put her in her own stall for feedings then put her in w/ mom for the nite or if it's morning out with the rest if they're out. Worked great! She got the food she needed and the nursing too. They say after 4 mos the milk loses it's best nutritional value anyways. He is a great colt Marty, I like him alot.