Dealing with the crushing guilt of weaning

[Sugarbrook]

Oh gosh…I have done this for so long now. Next week we will do , I think, 4 weanings.
I do as Randee does. I do it at 6 months. My mares are so done with their babies…i look all day and the foals are together and the mares are chit chatting in another group. To me that means they are ready!!

Our way is to remove the mares to another pasture. If they really try hard they can see or hear their babies. The way we do it I PROMISE that I rarely ever hear one baby cry for its mom. They have their friends with them. At feeding time that night no-one ever misses a meal. Quick and slick.

Don’t make such a big deal about it. Just do it at the right time and the right age and with other foals and its no biggie.

I did wean one without any friends, but put her into the group she was used to and it was no problem!! But hey, I was the one who was the most stressed about weaning. I finally got over it.

[amastrike]

Laurie, my baby is stalled for a few days too. Many years ago the barn owners had a newly weaned foal jump a fence, tear itself up, and then get kicked by its mother. My dad got to spend some quality time suturing the foal together… The thought of leaving my little baby out where she can get into trouble gives me the heebie-jeebies.

[Cloverbarley]

Laurie my fenceline is post and board and it’s about 5 and a half foot tall however my foals never try anything like that when I wean. I always put hay in piles either side of the fence to begin with so that baby and mum can share if they want to. Honestly though, the babies really don’t seem to have a clue that anything out of the ordinary is happening They still have all their little friends with them and the nanny mares who’ve lived in their herd since they were born. By the time I wean the foals they hardly ever spend any time with their dams anyway. Mine are all pretty independent foals and there’s lots going on in their field so they don’t tend to hang about the adjoining fence for much longer than 15/20 mins and it’s very rare to even hear any of them call out during weaning. I like it this way but realise it may not be practical for others.

[Laurierace]

That sounds lovely. My foal doesn’t have any friends or Nanny mares. It’s just the two of them out there. We wean with an old gelding as companion but my mare is protective so we don’t get a chance to actually put them together until after my mare is taken away. They get to meet over the fence beforehand but that is it. It is less than ideal but it is the best we have. It has worked ok so far. All the foal’s have grown up to be healthy and well adjusted. I do put them on gastrogard for a week or so depending upon how they seem to be handling it.