Weaning?

[chandab]

Since this is the mare stare forum, I thought it might be a good place to have a thread about weaning.

The... When? How? and Why for of it all.

So, when do you wean? And, what method do you use? Slow, cold turkey, etc...

Being my boys are only coming up on 4 months and 3 months old, I'm not in a big hurry to wean. When I weaned Dolly, it wasn't til she was 8-9 months, or older, just due to timing with winter coming on and no extra corrals and she wasn't pulling Caddy down, so no hurry; so we waited til early spring, then it was cold turkey, and I don't think she really even noticed.

 

[weerunner]

I've weaned mine from 3 months (for the mares that are having a hard time holding their weight) to 1 year. By far, I have found that the earlier (within reason) foals seem to mind less. The one I had left with her mom for a year went balistic when I tried to separate them and a one year old can do some serious damage to a stall door when she really wants to. So I try to do it around 4-5 months now and that seems to be a perfect age for me here. No matter when I do it though, I hate it. The yelling that goes on breaks my heart. I always do it cold turkey. By the third day there is more quiet in the yard, and by one week they both accept their fate. I'm on week one with 3 of my kids right now and it is finally peaceful here.

 

[AnnaC]

I'm afraid that we are hopelessly laid back over the whole weaning process! It is a bit different for us as we have plenty of land and grass and our foals and their dams are all back out in the fields with the rest of the girl herd from when the babies are a couple of months old. They live entirely on grass with just vit and mineral blocks. Babies are just played with when we visit the fields, wormed and foot trimmed without being caught/headcollared. Weaning time comes when the youngest is 6 months and always left until after Christmas - dont need the extra work over the Xmas holidays!! To wean we have a separate large 4 acre field that also has a 45' x 45' barn in it for a run in shelter. We simply catch up two or three mares plus their babies - this is the hard part as the babies are not that attached to their dams by this time and getting them to follow out of the gate, leavng all their friends behind, can be a bit awkward! Usually we get a foal out and then catch its dam, then another foal and that dam. Anyhow that accomplished, we make our way across the farm fields to the weaning field, pop in through the barn door, and as the foals scamper off to investigate their new surroundings, we just turn round wth the maes and walk back out. Mares then walk back across to their original field (I swear that without exception, they all breathe sighs of relief at the thought of freedom away from pesky babies at last! LOL!!) We then repeat the proceedure with however many foals we have until they are all in their new field and the mares are happily back with their friends. Never had a problem with either mares or foals!!