CritterCountry
Well-Known Member
Just thinking that Storm & Sable will be sharing a pen until -and after Sable's foal comes. Is it safe to keep them out together? Otherwise I will have to alternate turn out time.
Geldings & Foals?
- Thread starter CritterCountry
- Start date
Help Support Miniature Horse Talk Forums:
chandab
Well-Known Member
Just make sure mom and baby are well bonded before turning them all out together; mom will need some alone time with her foal for awhile after its born.
Aunt_SunQuest
Active Member
- Joined
- Sep 6, 2003
- Messages
- 34
- Reaction score
- 0
We use our older diving gelding as a weaning buddy. Old Bullet is jusst great with the babies. he will let them do about anything to him. We usually put him in with mommy at about 2-4 months and when it is time to wean we take mommy away and the baby still has uncle bullet with him.
Jill
Aspiring Cowgirl
I've never had geldings with real new foals only because I've not had many newborn foals yet. I do think I'll be giving it a shot this summer.
My geldings have been very good with weanling foals and I have one that has baby sat many of them for me.
What I'd be most concerned about really is the mare and that she not be too agressive "protecting" her baby from the gelding. As long as she lets things be, my hunch is it will work fine. If she's really militant about keeping the gelding away from her baby, you may want to try again periodically (figuring she will eventually chill out).
My geldings have been very good with weanling foals and I have one that has baby sat many of them for me.
What I'd be most concerned about really is the mare and that she not be too agressive "protecting" her baby from the gelding. As long as she lets things be, my hunch is it will work fine. If she's really militant about keeping the gelding away from her baby, you may want to try again periodically (figuring she will eventually chill out).
LC Farm
Well-Known Member
i put my gelding with the babies after they are weaned. I think my mares would pick on him if i put him in with moms and babies. Just my thought knowing my mares as one is a very protective mother. She keeps her baby in line and close to her.
_minihorses4ever_
Well-Known Member
From a different point of view.. My gelding does not like young horses. He wasn't gelded late or anything, but he just doesn't like them I guess.. He has never hurt a foal, but he will chase one off if it gets to close to him.. Every horse is different I guess.
susanne
dB
Don't assume anything. It may be fine or it may not be, and things can happen so quickly.
As several have mentioned, every horse is different. I know of a number of stallions who are excellent babysitters, but I would NEVER trust either of my geldings with a foal, a weanling, or any horse that is less than completely self-confident. We waited until Scarlet was big enough and "mare enough" to stand up to Mingus and Thelonius before putting them together. They are sweet, gentle lovekins around their humans, but they believe strongly in the pecking order around horses and other animals.
Just to show how much you cannot predict, I thought gentle Thelonius would be a great companion when Flash was a weanling, since he was always so meek. Evidently he saw this as his chance to be dominant for once and tried to run the little guy. Once Flash was a bit older they became great buds, but nor unril he could stick up for himself.
As several have mentioned, every horse is different. I know of a number of stallions who are excellent babysitters, but I would NEVER trust either of my geldings with a foal, a weanling, or any horse that is less than completely self-confident. We waited until Scarlet was big enough and "mare enough" to stand up to Mingus and Thelonius before putting them together. They are sweet, gentle lovekins around their humans, but they believe strongly in the pecking order around horses and other animals.
Just to show how much you cannot predict, I thought gentle Thelonius would be a great companion when Flash was a weanling, since he was always so meek. Evidently he saw this as his chance to be dominant for once and tried to run the little guy. Once Flash was a bit older they became great buds, but nor unril he could stick up for himself.
hhpminis
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Dec 5, 2003
- Messages
- 1,733
- Reaction score
- 2
Suzanne, you took the words right out of my fingers.
Some docile, submissive geldings do look at it as a chance to finally be dominant and try to exert that.
In my experience, I have found that geldings and mares that usually get along just fine, do not once you add a foal. The mare will kick the you know what out of a gelding that comes near her foal. Once this is established they are usually fine but I am always in fear that the foal will get in the way of a kick.
If I do this, I will do it across a fence line. The mares are pretty good about staying between their foal and the other horse, but accidents do and can happen.
Also, after a foal is a bit older, the mare seems to let down her guard a bit too. I dont even let brand new foals out with other mares until the mare and foal have had some time to themselves. Usually the mare tells me when she wants back out with the mare band.
Some docile, submissive geldings do look at it as a chance to finally be dominant and try to exert that.
In my experience, I have found that geldings and mares that usually get along just fine, do not once you add a foal. The mare will kick the you know what out of a gelding that comes near her foal. Once this is established they are usually fine but I am always in fear that the foal will get in the way of a kick.
If I do this, I will do it across a fence line. The mares are pretty good about staying between their foal and the other horse, but accidents do and can happen.
Also, after a foal is a bit older, the mare seems to let down her guard a bit too. I dont even let brand new foals out with other mares until the mare and foal have had some time to themselves. Usually the mare tells me when she wants back out with the mare band.
nootka
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Dec 1, 2002
- Messages
- 7,547
- Reaction score
- 0
Whatever you do, the mare will need that bonding time. Once you re-introduce the gelding to them, you will need to watch vigilantly, especially when baby is small.
It's so easy for a newborn to get run over and have a life-changing and disfiguring injury, or worse.
My gelding is a good boy, but he is second from the bottom in pecking order among the adults, anyway. He pays attention to the body language of the mares, and really only goes to watch and get to know the baby at first. Later, though, he can be found "schooling" the growing babies when they push the limits with him.
Liz M.
It's so easy for a newborn to get run over and have a life-changing and disfiguring injury, or worse.
My gelding is a good boy, but he is second from the bottom in pecking order among the adults, anyway. He pays attention to the body language of the mares, and really only goes to watch and get to know the baby at first. Later, though, he can be found "schooling" the growing babies when they push the limits with him.
Liz M.
outlawridge
Well-Known Member
You've received some excellent advice already. Here is my two cents worth...
It completely depends on the horse but I personally would not put geldings and foals or weanlings together. Yes, it is a chance to become dominant. But there are also good babysitters out there. A tragic experience a friend of mine had was with full sized horses and a small group of geldings. They "played" with the newborn while mom was still down and the foal could not be saved, even with blood transfusions. One gelding might be different but more than one, I would especially never chance. When I managed a guest ranch a few years ago, I refered to the group of geldings as the "thugs". They were sweet and gentle but a couple of them got that pack attitude when one was in distress (caught in a fence, not feeling well, injured etc). One in particular would use situations like that to assert his "new" dominance.
It completely depends on the horse but I personally would not put geldings and foals or weanlings together. Yes, it is a chance to become dominant. But there are also good babysitters out there. A tragic experience a friend of mine had was with full sized horses and a small group of geldings. They "played" with the newborn while mom was still down and the foal could not be saved, even with blood transfusions. One gelding might be different but more than one, I would especially never chance. When I managed a guest ranch a few years ago, I refered to the group of geldings as the "thugs". They were sweet and gentle but a couple of them got that pack attitude when one was in distress (caught in a fence, not feeling well, injured etc). One in particular would use situations like that to assert his "new" dominance.
Similar threads
