Mare weaning foal herself at 3 mo?

[MuskokaLakesConnemaras]

I haven’t been breeding very long, but have worked with many broodies and foals… my one mares foal turned 3 months today and she has been weaning him hersel over the past week a a half. Let’s him nurse occasionally, but walks away or turns into him about 70% of the time.
Foal is a tank, eats grain, grass and hay. I am not going to separate them but let her continue doing the job for me

Anyways, I suspect within a week or so she won’t let him nurse at all… Is this fairly normal? Baby is VERY confident, big and happy, so… I am thinking that letting mama take care of it all and keep out the creep feeder is the best route to take?

Was hoping he would stay on her longer, but I thinking mama knows best

[rodawn]

Well, he should be eating a fair bit of “solids” by now, so creep feeding youngster/growth formula is a good plan and grazing and/or hay. What’s really important is her interaction with him, teaching him the facts of life and living real. Even if she doesn’t let him nurse and her bag goes dry, keep them together until he’s about 5+ months. This baby time with mom is even more important, really, than the nursing.

[MuskokaLakesConnemaras]

Mama must be a hippy then, not much disciplining going on lol!! The other mare disciplines him more

[goodpony]

Does the mare look happy under the hood–no heat, swelling or otherwise? Kinda odd in my experience—but I have had pony foals that decided his buddys mom was equally fair game. My little guy was allowed to nurse from his own mama–but if he got rough and didn’t stand just so–the fountain was closed, end of story.

We usually keep ours with mom 6-7m.

[MuskokaLakesConnemaras]

Nope, all good (and she is a milk cow!!). If he is getting kicked out of the bar, not much I can do about it anyways

[Dressage_Diva333]

I definitely wouldn’t want to take him away. If she chooses to eliminate (which I’ve never seen at 3mo), or reduce his nursing, that’s up to the mare. I got a foal that was weaned at three months and she had a really hard time for a few months nutritionally… Most likely she is letting him nurse, just not as much, which is perfectly normal at 3 months old I’d leave the colt with her for AT LEAST another month. I usually wean around 5 months, give or take a couple weeks. I’ve got two right now who could be weaned, but it’s been hot here and they aren’t doing any harm staying with the mares. I know one of the mares has limited the foal’s nursing (she’s 5mo) quite a bit, but the filly is looking GREAT, and I see no harm in waiting a bit longer even if the nursing is decreased.

[camohn]

after 12 years of breeding: most mothers are attentive mothers/not thrilled with weaning day , I have had a couple that were quite happy to have the kid leave her alone at a fairly early age (like the above poster/say around 4 months old) but were weaned at 6 mos old (the nice thing about those ones is that weaning was very non traumatic to either party…no yelling at all!) and one that was not a good mother and we could only get her to “barely tolerate” her kid long enough to nurse for the minimum needed/weaned early.

[EquusMagnificus]

If the mare is fine and baby is fine… I’d leave them together, even if he doesn’t nurse much anymore, just for the emotional side of things. He still too young to wean, if there isn’t any reason to do so!

The only reasons I’d wean that early are basically health related.

[Cloverbarley]

[QUOTE=Dressage_Diva333;6511323]
Most likely she is letting him nurse, just not as much, which is perfectly normal at 3 months old [/QUOTE]
This. Most of my broodmares do the same thing at around this stage.

[Spike]

Lol I have the same problem here at home - well, it’s not a “real problem” just… situation let’s say.

One of my mare has a foal who just turned 3 months old. He is a little monster with her, kicking her, biting her, trying to mount her. She is VERY sick of it lol… She tries to avoid him as much as she can, and as she is the alpha mare, she has at some degree, handed over her “mom” duties to the other mare with her, who is the best babysitter in the world, but starts to lack patiente too with the bugger. He is BIG, bold and very proud of himself with other horses, and when things does not turn to his advantage, do the chewing thing with his mouth. lol!!

Foal is sold and owner is not fond of early weaning, so I guess mom will either chase him for good once, or she’ll have to support him for another 2 months lol! I’ve seen his mom turned him down several time in the last week or so when he was coming to her for nursing. I don’t like to wean before 4 months old (preferably 5, sometimes 6, but with our winters here, and babies travelling to their new home… 6 months is sometimes too late), but if mom decides otherwise… Nothing I can do.