Stallions together?

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longhorngal

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Hi all,

I have a new friend that had a mini mare, her 2 month old filly, and an unrelated yearling colt ungelded. They have all been together. To this she has just added a mini stallion I believe about 4 years old. I believe she needs to geld these guys and have told her so because neither is even registered much less show quality. She is not getting it and I guess wants to keep the mare pregnant every year.

Normally I wouldn't be so nosy but she has a young son and a baby coming soon. Maybe minis aren't as dangerous as regular size stallions, I don't know... but to me a stud and a small kid just don't mix.

Barring gelding them which she's not going to likely do what is the best situation for housing these horses? I will be bringing the little mare to my house in about 2 months for the filly to be weaned and to help her with some handling issues she has. Can't catch her, do her feet, things like that.....I can fix that no problem I just have never had studs and would like to give her some suggestions.

Thanks!

Cara
 
Unregistered or not your friend is playing with fire in my humble opinon. I would never put two stallions together period. That's an accident looking for a place to happen.

The colt and stallion can get in a fight over the mare easily.

The little 2 month old filly is at risk of being caught up in this.

Any number of bad things can happen.

Your new friend needs a lot of guidence. I see a lot of trouble going to happen here.
 
Only takes once seeing a true horse fight and you will never want to see it again.

The stallion needs to be separate from the colt as next year when the mare comes in heat only one of them is going to win.

Marty is right the innocent foal could get caught in the middle and hurt as well.
 
I'm wondering if you can convince your friend to make seperate padocks.

Another thing would be to encourage her to come to the forum for input on the situation first hand too. I'd really hate to think that someone is going to get hurt over this. There are lots of articles and good advice on the mini info pages she can read about too.

Also, I was wondering if you were adequately prepared for the mare too. When separated from the foal, she's going to probably be anxious and upset. It's possible that she is going to be a handful for you too. I don't have any answers really and I don't know much, but just thinking ahead here about the safety for all concerend.
 
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Am I reading this all correctly???? She has a mare with a foal in the same pen as a yearling colt AND a 4 yr old stallion?????????????

OMG. First she is asking for trouble in regard to the safety of the foal because of the competition that could result between the yearling and the mature stallion.

Secondly, both the yearling colt AND the stallion can breed the mare!!!! The mare could very possibley already be bred by one or both and how is the owner to know which is the sire to the future foal??????

(If I were a cat, I'd be hacking up a hairball over this!)

MA
 
Thanks you all for the advice. I'm glad to see that I am not alone in my concern for this situation. She is someone I've mainly just had email contact with though I have been to her place. Some people for some reason just want to breed animals and don't really understand about all that goes along with it. My husband is that way....he saw no reason at all why we should geld my Arabian when he had so many national champions in his bloodlines. I told him I didn't have the skill to handle him as a stud number #1 and #2 he isn't stallion quality. I won (there wasn't really much of a discussion you know
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) and we are much happier with him gelded.

I have written her an email tonight just really urging her to geld both of them and why and sent a link to an excellent article by Parelli on stallion owning and the dangers of it. I don't care if these little guys are short they still hurt someone esp. a child. I will also send her a link here so hopefully she will lurk at the very least.

Marty, thanks for the concern, I think I will be ok with the mare. I have Arabian and QH mares and have gone through weaning and it's distress before. I have a secure pen for her, nearby horsey companions and I have had good luck so far using clicker training and natural horsemanship methods on my own horses and others. I think this will be a really nice little mare when she gets the basics down.

Thanks all,

Cara
 
Firstly, Stallions are not mean. I have never had a mean stallion, I would never have a mean stallion, it is not being a stallion that makes them mean, it is their nature. If they are mean they should be gelded and set straight!! OK, getting off my soapbox now. Yes, you are absolutely right, she needs to geld both animals. Unfortunately Blind Luck takes very good care of these people- not only do they not get their animals hurt but they seem to sell the foals OK too, and, I have to say from experience, take every opportunity to rub your nose in it!! I would be very careful what you say to her. Give her the facts and stand back and let her get on with it. There is no point in getting hurt or upset about it. I have to say that, unless she were paying me, this is the only time I would be helping her out, though. She may listen, I doubt though (I am more than happy to be proven wrong) She bought the stallion to get the mare pregnant, she is not going to geld it!!! I know, I know, I'm cynical- I've just seen it happen too many times, and it will break your heart if you get involved. Just your story about the gelding incident tells me a lot about you, the fact this woman is even considering putting a yearling colt and a stallion in with a mare together tell me all I need to know about her.
 
One thing that you might mention is that if the stallion stays with the mare and filly, next year the stallion will breed the filly as well as the mare. This could absolutely be disastrous!
 
I know this TYPE of person!

I would start off slowly with her and explain that she doesn't want to make too much work for herself. Suggest she geld the colt and train him, she certainly does not need 2 stallions. Like Rabbitfizz said she bought this stallion to breed to her mare so she won't geld it. Then she could keep the mare and stallion and gelded colt together and sell the filly when weaned.

I think when offering advice you must take into consideration the other persons standpoint. CLearly, you and your friend have VERY diferent ideas. It is not unusual for mares to be bred every year or for poor quality horses to be bred. Is it a good idea???? We all have our opinions on that but this will continue to happen.

This woman probably will learn the hard way that there are good reasons for sound breeding practises and that just putting a couple of mini's together won't be that easy or a real money maker( as she probably thinks??).

The colt being in there is dangerous.

I have a stallion and 3 kids 5 and under and he is very gentle BUT they understand that NO animal is completely predictable. The only mini that has ever hurt my kids was one of the mares, she kicked my daughter.
 
A seperate paddock for girls and boys if she will not geld the boys, is my suggestion (tho i would opt for gelding!).

Our stallions, colts, and geldings are together most of the time. HOWEVER, when they are in a paddock next to the mares they do not get along the same way at all---dynamics totally change when mares get involved. My very sweet quiet stallion will chase away his "buddies" when he is next to mares and will not socialize with them (the guys). He goes into "herd" mode.

I hope she will geld them -- everyone else has mentioned the problems that can result so i will not get into that.

jennifer
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Hi,

I just wanted to thank everyone for their replies. Mainly I was interested in the best housing situation if she insisted on keeping both intact males. She has not replied to my email....which I thought I put pretty tactfully, maybe not though
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! Really, I am not usually a buttinsky at all. Yes, she was to pay me to work with the mare. I was just very concerned about the situation, she keeps the horses in her approx 1/4 acre yard and has a 6 y/o son with a learning delay and with the new baby......well, I won't rehash it all but frankly I feel better that I said something lost income or not.

For those of you that have stallions, no, I don't think they are "mean". When I was a teen I used to work for an Arabian trainer and groomed 2, 2 y/o stallions for her daily. This was at 14! Amazingly enough they were really good boys, (or I was really lucky) as I never had any mishaps.

Cara
 
Cara, what is going to happen when you get the mare and then she won't be able to defend the filly?

That filly is going to be all alone with these hormonal boys and that scarring me terribly.

Please can you insist that she pay attention to getting up some more paddocks?

Or selling some horses?
 
The whole scenario presented is a disaster. Regardless, if she wants to keep all intact, if there is anyway she can afford to divide them up in the pens/pastures that would be ideal.

Tommy
 
I think it's a disaster waiting to happen...however...that being said my friend kept her two mini stallions together (although one of which had never bred) as well as her PMU colt she rescued. There is a mare that lives right next door...as in they touch noses and share the same fence. There were never any problems with all that testosterone.
 
Living next door to.....that they can just about cope with as the mare is not "among" them. 1/4 acre is not enough for four animals anyway, except as a turnout. There is not enough room to get away if there is a squabble, let alone a fight!! I know some idiot who keeps two colts together, and they have now grown up and bred mares - in their field!!!- but they have a huge field- if there is a problem one of them can go and sulk in the corner- of course you never have any idea who the mare is is in foal to- miraculously, the owners are always able to tell- thought transference, I assume!!!
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