# Colt foal - when to separate from mares



## Hogleg (Oct 6, 2007)

We have a colt foal that was born on August 31, 2009. He is in with his mother and 2 other open mares as well as a bred donkey now. They all get a long really well. When will I have to separate him so that he does not get hurt attempting to breed either the mares or his mother? This is our first foal and he was born late in the year. He is growing very well and I am not sure how soon he will start to act like a stallion instead of a foal/yearling. He has some pretty good cutting horse blood so we don't want to geld him just yet.

John


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## 2horses (Jul 19, 2004)

Now. Seriously. And your main objective should be for him not to breed anyone - at all.


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## 2horses (Jul 19, 2004)

ooops - double post.


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## Hogleg (Oct 6, 2007)

Exactly, when do I separate a young colt from the herd so that he can not accomplish what comes naturally for him. 

John


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## wr (Aug 10, 2003)

Do you not plan on weaning him or you're thinking you'll just pull him when he gets to breeding age? He should be weaned at about 6 months and I've heard of the odd young guy breeding by 9 months.

You mention leaving him intact because he has some decent cutting genetics. Are you planning on campaigning him or proving him in some way before breeding and if you bred are you intending live cover or shipping semen? In either case, setting yourself up to be viable is expensive and without a name and reputation, not much in the way of financial return.


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## Stonybrook (Sep 22, 2007)

The previous poster was right he should have been pulled off of her when he was six months old. 

I would go ahead ad geld him too unless you have a horse that is spectacular and you plan to keep whatever he produces. Just read Craigslist. Horses are dirt cheap right now. You can even find some with shw experience. There is a glut. People are not making money in it. I saw some purebred arab horses the other day on another site that were free and they very nice from a very nice stable. Free. They were having to downsize. There is just note enough homes for all the horses. That is just my opinion.


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## Hogleg (Oct 6, 2007)

Yes, I understand those business dynamics. Did not know I had to disclose my business plans to get a simple answer. 

He is 5 months old now. We will wean in 1 month. It has been pretty cold here and the vet suggested we give him a full 6 months of time with his mother. My other pasture for him is not yet ready (either too muddy or too frozen to finish posts) and a few more months with the rest of the herd would be better from the logistics perspective, as long as he does not start the stallion behavior. 

The stallion owner thinks we have a very good prospect here and recommended we hold of on the geld till summer or longer to see how he develops. If it goes well, I will have a way to get him into the right hands to be developed. 

Thanks for the replies,

John


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## Stonybrook (Sep 22, 2007)

Sorry, I was not trying to insult you. I just keep seeing ads on Craigslist and other places where people are trying to sell average horses for more money than they will bring because they have good bloodlines. Sometimes the "good", recognizable bloodlines are 5 generations back. You must know the ads I am talking about. 

I am glad you have plans to possibly campaign your horse. It will surely make him more valuable.


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## Hogleg (Oct 6, 2007)

Stonybrook,

Yes, I know the ads. If you are careful, now is the time to find some excellent broodmare prospects, in the hope that this will turn around someday. If not, I still end up with some pretty good horses that will have a very nice home for a long time.

Thank you again for the replies,
Joh


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## RideBarefoot (Jun 29, 2008)

we like pics.....


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## Stonybrook (Sep 22, 2007)

You are right, the are some really great deals out there right now. I just feel bad for the sad, half fed, poorly built horses. Some of them are so pathetic and they are likely to end up on the meat truck. There are a lot of times I think to myself "just euth the horse and do it a favor."


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## wr (Aug 10, 2003)

I didn't mean to hurt your feelings, I was merely offering you the benefit of the few years experience I've had in the industry.


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## Mare Owner (Feb 20, 2008)

My advice is to separate him when you are ready to wean, and put him in a sturdy paddock, not into another pasture. He will try and get back to his dam and she will want to get to him, you need to have him in a secure pen where he can't hurt himself and he can't get out until he's over the weaning thing, which would be several weeks. If you don't have such a pen, start finding someone/somewhere now that you can take him when the time comes to wean.

And when you turn him out in his own pasture, he will want to be with the other horses, do the pastures share a fence? If he doesn't have a buddy of his own he will likely spend all his time along the fence wanting to be with the others.


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