[RC] [Guest] Problem Colt-Please Help - Ridecamp Guest
Kim Johnson belesemo@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Lisa, can I make a recommend? Anytime you are weaning don't leave a foal in
any kind of wire.
Your chances of them injuring themselves even in a hot wire situation are
great if they can see or
hear their dam at all as they try to return to her. A foal that might have
respected a wire fence
previously when with his dam will lose all sense of sanity when he is
separated from his dam and she
is still within earshot. The only way foals can be left safely in wire is
if the dam is completely off
of your property or completely out of hearing and eyesight.
I recommend putting your foal in a box stall in the barn or a high board
fence corral if his dam is anywhere
within earshot. Mares will wean fairly easily. They quite whinnying within
48 hours even if they can
still hear the foal. However, foals will take up to a week sometimes to
quit calling for their dam if they
can still hear them. (Depending on the foal.)
When we are weaning we try to always do two at a time. This way they have a
buddy. If you have a
friend that might also have a foal that would work best if you don't have
one yourself. We do turn our
foals and mares out together in a flagged hot fence right after foaling that
the foals learn to respect.
After weaning, approximately a 3 week period, we find we can turn the
foals back out in the same
surroundings with a hot fence without them trying to return to their dams a
pasture away. They are
put back in familiar surroundings with other weanlings and they attach more
to the herd buddies and
not remember their dams.
Safety is the first consideration in any situation and I really recommend
against keeping a foal in any
type of wire enclosure whatsoever during the weaning process.
Kim
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net.
Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp
Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp
If you are an AERC member - PLEASE VOTE in the upcoming By-Laws
Election!!!! (it takes 2/3rds to tango!!)
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
|
|
