Do you plan to blanket your horse this winter? Yes, my horse will wear a blanket this winter. Yes, my horse will wear a blanket, but only during inclement weather. No, I do not plan to blanket my horse. Featured Horse Listing. Color: Bay. Breed: Mustang. Sex: Gelding. This website uses cookies to improve your experience.
If you continue to use the site, we'll assume you're okay with this. Accept Read More. Close Privacy Overview This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Development of abnormal behaviors also may occur during weaning. These may include oral stereotypies such as cribbing. The stress of weaning combined to a shift to a high grain diet fed at infrequent intervals can result in increased acidity of the stomach.
Foals that demonstrate cribbing behavior have a higher degree of inflammation and ulceration of the stomach. It is therefore recommended to not only supply forage throughout the day for the weanling to allow continual eating patterns, but to try and divide the concentrate potion of the diet into more frequent feedings.
In addition, foals weaned in groups in a pasture were found to develop less stereotypes over time than foals weaned in stalls or barns, whether singly or in pairs. Despite the method chosen for weaning, it is important that the foal is already accustomed to its diet prior to weaning. Most mares calm down more quickly than their foal, especially mares who have foaled in past years. The time required for her to resume normal behavior may vary from a few hours to several days.
If the mare still has significant milk production, the manager should decrease grain intake and increase exercise. A small amount may periodically be milked out by hand if the udder becomes very tight, but this practice is discouraged unless absolutely necessary. Veterinarian assistance is recommended. Hoof care should include periodic trimmings and inspection for cracks, bruises and abscesses. The frequency of trimming will be influenced by the conformation of the foal, the normal wear of hooves, exercise and housing.
One advantage to pasturing weanlings is that continual access to exercise may benefit normal hoof growth and wear. Stalled weanlings prob-ably will need more intensive and frequent hoof care. Handling practices will vary with the use of weanlings. Weanlings that are shown in halter classes or fitted for sales will receive daily handling and training.
Brushing and other normal cleaning routines not only help the general health status of the weanling, they also serve to gentle and train the weanling to accept handlers. Those weanlings housed in pastures that do not receive the daily care of stalled wean-lings should be periodically handled, brushed and led. These handling sessions will better prepare weanlings for when they receive ground training and breaking to saddle in subsequent years.
Commonly recommended vaccinations include tetanus, sleeping sickness, rhinopneumonitis, influenza, rabies, West Nile and strangles. Deworming products are specific to types of worm infestation, and frequency of administration is influenced by product efficacy, reinfestation rates and environmental conditions. Vaccination and deworming schedules will be influenced by your locale and management practices, so consultation with a veterinarian is recommended.
The exact body condition and rate of gain needed to promote sound growth of muscle and bone is debatable and perhaps somewhat flexible. Individual differences in genetic makeup create so much variation that general recommendations are limited in scope and accuracy. Generally, weanlings should be fed individually at rates to maintain a moderate body condition.
Weanlings expected to mature at 1, to 1, pounds should gain between 1. Most weanlings will consume between 1. Extremes in body condition should be avoided. Rations should be reduced when large amounts of body fat are deposited, and increased if the ribs or other bony structures become apparent.
Also, weanlings fed to grow at consistent rates will have less structural problems, when compared to those restricted in growth for several months, then fed to gain rapidly.
There are numerous grain mixes available that have been formulated to contain the proper balance of protein, minerals and vitamins to energy for weanling horse needs. This balance ensures adequate amounts of these nutrients at different energy intakes and rate of growths.
Most weanling rations will have between 1. The concentration of nutrients in the grain mix will depend on the type and level of hay or pasture forage. The most common problems with nutrition of growing horses are from over- or under-feeding, making sharp increases in rates of gain by sudden changes in amounts of feed or by feeding unbalanced rations.
Unbalanced rations commonly occur when grains are added to commercially formulated mixes on-site, or feeding grains without vitamin or mineral supplementation. Many weanling horses are turned out in pastures with other similarly aged horses. There are several advantages to managing weanlings together in a pasture as compared to housing in stalls. Weanlings will interact with one another, and the behavior the weanling exhibits later in life may be more characteristic of expected behaviors in all horses as compared to weanlings housed separately.
Weaning Methods There are two methods of weaning — gradual and abrupt — and both have their pros and cons. Gradual weaning — this approach involves separating mare and foal at feeding time, increasing their time apart over several days. Abrupt weaning — as the name suggests, this approach sees mare and foal separated immediately, out of sight and sound.
Group pasture weaning — in this situation, your foal will remain in a paddock surrounded by other horses after their dam is removed. Stable weaning — in this situation, your foal is placed into a stall with their dam before she is led out, leaving the foal on their own.
All Rights Reserved. First Name. There are two types of weaning: gradual and abrupt. With a gradual method, you begin separating mare and foal at feeding time with a safe fence between them for short periods of time each day. You gradually increase the length of time over the course of several days, until you no longer put them back together. With an abrupt method, mare and foal are separated completely all at once.
For me, the abrupt method works much better because the stress is over within the first couple days. Safety comes first and this means all fencing and enclosures must be sturdy and foal-appropriate.
Barbed wire, electric wire or plain smooth wire fencing should never be considered acceptable fencing around foals, especially at weaning time when they are likely to act first, think later.
Studies have shown that group pasture weaning is typically the least stressful method on both mares and foals. This works best when the group has been together long enough that the horses have buddies, and there are multiple mares and foals to be weaned.
Her baby remains in the field with his pals and familiar surroundings. The rest of the mares are gradually removed over a period of weeks until all foals are weaned. This method ensures that both mares and foals remain with horses they know, which helps reduce stress.
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