First timer here. My mare is at the vet for foaling out and the foal should arrive any day now. I decided to take the “safe” route since neither my mare nor I have ever done this before. I live 5 minutes from the vet so hope to make it there when the foal arrives.
In anticipation of the foal’s arrival, I have been reading and learning as much as possible, but I thought I would also ask the many experienced folks here (and apologies if this thread has been done before) - for those of you with the bandwidth to devote a fair amount of time and attention to a particular foal in its first year- can you describe your ideal routine, what training/desensitization would you introduce when, what would you hope to have accomplished in this first year and by when - first few months/ months 3-6/ 6-9/ 9-12? What are the biggest mistakes made by inexperienced “first foal” owners?
I realize this is a very broad inquiry… thanks for any advice you may feel inclined to share with me. I am really looking forward to this experience, despite being warned by the many scary and sad stories I have read here.
In case you’re interested, my holsteiner mare Quintini is Quinar x Tuya (Cassini II) and she is bred to a stallion recently imported from the Netherlands named Candola D.
I am by NO means an expert, but my #1 advice would be not to let the foal get away with rudeness or bad behavior because "ohhhhhhh he/she’s so cuteeee!!
^^^ that will get someone (probably you) hurt real fast.
others will chime in with sage advice, I’m sure, and good luck. enjoy your baby, they really do grow up fast
The biggest thing is just handling them a lot and expecting (reasonable) manners. They soak up everything you teach them, good and bad. They can have their tummy groomed without kicking at you, you can handle their feet without them chewing on your pants, etc. Foals have somewhat delicate necks, so be cautious when teaching to lead and tie.
Health wise, it is important to know that foals are not as resilient as adult horses. A lot of things that are wait-and-see with adults are much more critical in foals, because they tend to take a downturn much faster.
Within first 48 hours, wearing a halter and turnout for a few hours daily. Touch/handle foal all over body.
First week: increase turnout to all day (about 6 hrs). Foal will follow its dam to turnout, but I like to get a lead strap on them to “lead” while they follow. No pulling on the neck! Spend 5 minutes a day rubbing, scratching, running hands down legs and feet. If weather is hot, introduce the hose by spraying dam first and letting it trickle onto the foal.
First month: leading properly, use a butt rope in the beginning if necessary. Graduate to night turnout, or 24/7 turnout if weather is nice (come in for a few hours each day to rest in stall at feeding time). First farrier appointment, handling feet should be pretty easy if you’ve been working daily on it (part of 5-min routine).
Months 3-6: continue regular care, lots of turnout. Worm/vaccinate as your vet recommends for your area. Farrier visits every 4 weeks, keep feet balanced and legs growing straight. Extend daily handling to 10-15 minutes as time allows, introduce grooming and “tying” by looping lead rope around stall bar. Don’t actually tie, avoid pulling back. Wean near the end of 4-6 months depending on individual preferences. Make sure weanling gets adequate nutrition, I prefer ration balancer and excellent hay as opposed to commercial grain, but depends on the individual.
6-9 months: probably an ugly growthy stage with lots of winter hair, hide them behind the barn with others of same age group! Continue regular care, perhaps back off the 15-min handling to every other day or 3x a week. Let them be a horse. Watch for any signs of developmental disorders, physitis etc, monitor weight and feed closely.
9-12 months: hopefully starting to grow out of the uglies. Groom thoroughly in the spring when shedding, great time to maximize attention. Expect yearling to stand still when groomed, demonstrating “adult manners” for short periods of time. May start to tie or cross-tie if it comes naturally to them, but with caution during quiet times of day and for brief periods under close supervision.
Other things like bathing, clippers and trailer loading may be introduced whenever it’s convenient; sometimes that’s before weaning, sometimes after, but don’t wait until “It must be done TODAY” before working on it. You never know when your foal/weanling may need an emergency trip to the vet, and spending 2hrs fighting with a sick yearling to get on their first trailer is not pleasant (BTDT).
The most common mistake I see by first-foal owners is TOO MUCH attention. Your foal is not a puppy or a kitten. Don’t cuddle and snuggle extensively. Scritches and rubs are fine, even a little hug now and then, but do not encourage it to grow into a 1200lb lap dog. It must learn to grow up as a HORSE, with respect for people. Do not be afraid to be firm in your boundaries; trust me, the mare bites him and makes her displeasure known when he misbehaves, and he still loves her. If you smack his rear for attempting to kick, or discipline him for nipping/crowding, he will not hate you forever or grow up to distrust people. He might get his feelings hurt and pout, but it’s far better for him to learn that people are in charge when he’s 200lbs than when he’s 900lbs.
It seems rule #1 is to always be firm and consistent (as for training any animal).
Through posting here I have realized just how delicate foal’s necks are and also the incredible importance of hoof care during the foal’s first year, as it will influence limb and foot conformation in the horse’s adult life, and should be attended to more frequently than an adult horse.
EventerAJ - thanks so much for the detailed breakdown of the first year! That is a great reference to have. I appreciate the time you put into your reply.
I have also frequently heard the advice to beware of creating an over familiar horse who doesn’t respect personal space - a “1200 lb lap dog” in your words.
In addition to the above excellent advice I would feed foal according to your vet recommendations to prevent weight and growth problems; Keeping pasture and turnout safe to avoid injury. Personally, I have found that by putting hay in a hay rack helped build neck and top line as they grew.
This is such a fun and rewarding time. Wishing you the best!
The only thing I would add to the above recommendations is walking with your foal. If weather allows, this is good in the period from weaning to a year. I can definitely tell the difference later with the foals I have taken all over the place when young. There was one really bad winter, and by spring the foal resisted going out the front door of the barn where there’s a slope! If you instill the expectation that they go wherever you go – up hills, down hills, over curbs, through narrow openings – you will reap the benefits in trailer loading, as well as in every strange place you take him or her. And speaking of trailer loading, in your case the foal will most likely pop onto a trailer with the mare when they come home. If the mare is great about trailering, I would repeat that exercise pre-weaning, as long as it can be done safely. And in that period between weaning and a year old, I at least try to walk the baby on and off the trailer a few times, with lots of praise. If the mare can be a pain about trailering, or is excessively nervous to do so with a foal at side, I would wait till the foal is weaned and skip the stress.
Know what you don’t know. Before this foal is born, have a professional with foal experience in your area ready to be an advisor and come and gauge your success not only in things you’re unsure of, but also in “general”. There is no substitute for professional guidance and taking advice from the internet can get you hurt in areas in which you have no significant “real life” experience. Every 1st for this foal that you’ve never done before (or have minimal experience) should be done by someone else while you watch. Book knowledge is no substitute for hands on experience and there is just no way to learn this stuff by reading. Ideally, you would have spent a good bit of time at a breeding operation getting experience handling foals (maybe you did?).
When weaned, consider sending the foal to a reputable breeder/farm that offers foal raising services. Foals/young horses do best when raised with their peers in terms of socialization and physical development. 24/7 turnout (w/run in) is best for mind and body.
Be willing to be very humble and put the foal’s interests first. Horses with bad starts in life can have very bad futures. You don’t want your foal to turn into a problem either for you or future owners.
Thanks Dressagelvr, good advice. I have been around horses my entire life and have spent some time around breeding programs, though I am definitely lacking in “hands on” experience with foals, since this is my first experience with a foal at home.
I am not entirely on my own. I have several knowledgeable mentors, including trainers, veterinarians and a few professional breeders. The man who rents the guest house on our farm and helps us care for the horses is very experienced with foals. I plan to work with a professional on some of the ground training. Unfortunately I am just getting started and don’t have many other horses or foals on my property, so I may consider sending them away for a bit.
I’ve got to start somewhere, and I’m sure I will make mistakes, but I’ll do my best to do right by this foal.
First of all, congratulations on the expected foal. Take the time to enjoy every step of this journey. I was a first timer too when I bred my mare and I did my best not to cut corners for this foal. I took my mare to an experienced facility to foal out and I was fortunate to be there for the birth. From there, I boarded my mare and foal at a local breeding farm so that she could be raised with other babies – it was perfect for us.
As others have said, handle the baby as much as you can and get them used to everything. When my filly was born, I sat on a bucket in the stall a lot, just to be around her and letting her know me. She was always curious and she was never shy about being handled. I would rub all over her with a lead rope, loop it around her face like a halter, around her butt, around her belly. She was always very accepting. She would have been very easy to allow cute antics, but they get too big, too fast. At a week old, she kicked me. I smacked her butt with my open hand and shooed her away from me, not letting her approach me for a while. It made an impression (maybe), but she has never lifted a leg at me again and she is 9 y.o. now.
Handling your foal will also make you accustomed to what is normal and abnormal. Never hesitate to contact the vet with a foal. Whenever you introduce something new, be cautious, but act as if it isn’t a big deal. Make whatever you do enjoyable. One thing that I did and my vet is very appreciative, from the time she was little, I made sure I handled, cleaned her udder and her behind. To this day, she is very good about her “privates” and stands quietly.
Enjoy every moment. I would not take a million bucks for the experience and I have a dream baby from the mare I adored. And, I still sit on my bucket in her stall or in her pasture just to “be” with her.
My foal arrived last Sunday - a beautiful, healthy filly. Her name is “Genuine LCR”, barn name “Gennie”. LCR = Lucky C Ranch Gennie is gorgeous - bay with a huge star on her forehead and 2 socks. We transported from the vet to our farm on Monday.
My mare (who was a maiden) has been extremely protective, won’t let baby out of her sight for even an instant, but she is fine so long as baby is in sight.
With help holding my mare, I have been handling Gennie twice a day in short sessions, having her stand still briefly, touching her all over, ears, mouth, hooves, putting a foal slip on, etc. She wears the foal slip from her stall to the pasture and is “led” with a lead rope attached as she follows her mom (but no tension). So far so good. Both mare and foal seem to relax more each time we do this little routine. This weekend I’ll see about spraying off mom so Gennie can be exposed to the hose/water. It is very hot in TX.
Continue regular care, perhaps back off the 15-min handling to every other day or 3x a week. Let them be a horse. Watch for any signs of developmental disorders, physitis etc, monitor weight and feed closely.