OK, so how long before the filly thinks she is a horse not a filly?

[brasstackminis]

I have this filly who has been weaned for at LEAST 12 months. I put her in a pen with her mom just to take a few pictures and she started nursing!!!

So the question is when will it be safe to put them together? I don't want her to start her mom's milk production up again! I have heard of that happening and mom apparently could care less if she is trying to nurse! I was looking at my camera and took a second look. I checked out mom's teat and sure enough, it was all wet! Little monster....

Ok so to tie it into driving, I want to keep them together eventually because this is my future driving pair!

 

[MiLo Minis]

I have this filly who has been weaned for at LEAST 12 months. I put her in a pen with her mom just to take a few pictures and she started nursing!!!

So the question is when will it be safe to put them together? I don't want her to start her mom's milk production up again! I have heard of that happening and mom apparently could care less if she is trying to nurse! I was looking at my camera and took a second look. I checked out mom's teat and sure enough, it was all wet! Little monster....

Ok so to tie it into driving, I want to keep them together eventually because this is my future driving pair!

Once a mare has foaled and produced milk it is always there and all you have to do is milk her to get it out. In wild horse herds the foals quite often nurse into their second and even third year even if the dam has a new foal the next spring. They usually wean themselves eventually but I have known a mare and filly that were kept together on a permanent basis and the younger mare nursed on her dam even at 9 years old when I met them - they were a draft horse pair. You may never be able to stop her from nursing. The good news is that your mare and her filly are well bonded and should work well together as a team.