REPLY: Hi. I'm going to run your questions here by a natural horsemanship trainer colleague, who is also a breeding/foal expert, and who is featured in our Whispering Way™ Foundation Training Series: Complete Guide to Horse Breeding, Foaling and Foal Training, Featuring Bob Claymier (more on that video is below).

Bob Claymier's response: Hi – Sylvia asked me to weigh in here and we’ll see where this leads us. You pose a really interesting question and one not usually asked in this day of locking the stallions up in a 12x12 stall and only letting them out for breeding – then wondering why they are basket cases!! You, on the other hand, are letting the stallions run together as nature intended with everyone (most particularly him) being a lot happier for it. While I like your idea of pasture breeding and letting the critters figure the whole thing out without human intervention, I am less comfortable with the natural foaling aspects of keeping them together during that time. I run my mares and foals together as a herd, but always separate out the mother and newborn for a few days right after the birth. The mother will be highly protective of anything or anyone for a few days at least and want to keep the baby safe during that time. This usually means the mother will be violently protecting her baby, running herself around which in turn will have the baby running around as well.

Here’s my rub – babies are very fragile until their tendons/ligaments have had a chance to strengthen. Excess running right after birth could cause permanent damage should an accident occur. Add to this a mix of a stallion and I think you may have a recipe for disaster. The mare will protect her baby as mothers have been doing for eons, but you may have a stallion – while loving life with his girls – who may also be less than thrilled to have a new intruder in the mix simply because that is one aspect of herd life that he may not have been acclimated to. There is the potential for him to go after the baby with perhaps murderous intentions.

I would think that a better idea would be to let each mare foal quietly and separately away from the entire herd and then reintroduce them back in say a week or so later when the baby is better able to protect itself and the mare is somewhat less hyper. This would mean that you would have to be experienced enough to know who is foaling first and that is a whole different topic. In this way, the stallion would still have some mares with him at all times to keep him happy, but each mare and newborn could be kept safe for that really critical time right after birth. As each birth occurs, the mares and babies will bond and my guess is be very protective as a group, keeping the stallion at bay. The mare will come back into foal heat in just a week or so after foaling and the stallion will want to get back into the mix – again – causing some high agitation if the mares and stallion haven’t naturally sorted this all out beforehand. This is a really difficult situation to predict and my suggestion is to err on the side of safety first and then see how they all get along after some period of time. I’m open to further dialog on this topic and look forward to hearing back from you on your results. Good luck. –Bob

Complete Guide To Horse Breeding, Foaling and Foal Training Featuring Bob Claymier Includes THREE DVDs with a total of over four hours of video instruction and live demonstration covering every aspect of a successful breeding program!     3 Set!   The Complete Guide To Horse Breeding, Foaling and Foal Training 3-DVD set includes a total of over four hours of video instruction featuring Natural Horsemanship trainer and expert horse breeder, Bob Claymier. Over one and a half years in the making, the Whispering Way™ Foundation Training Series Complete Guide To Horse Breeding, Foaling and Foal Training is the first video series to show you the entire horse breeding and early foal care process. Expert horse breeder Bob Claymier guides you through every step in a successful horse breeding program -- from selection of the mare and stallion, to mare care and exams, to actual live cover and artificial insemination breeding procedures, to foal birth and imprinting, and finally on to early foal handling and training. Each step is documented with live video examples and is accompanied by expert commentary from Bob and the highly experienced veterinarians, farriers and others that help make his breeding program so successful. Three DVD Set The Complete Guide To Horse Breeding, Foaling and Foal Training is presented over three included DVDs:     Volume 1: Mare and Stallion Selection, Collection, Exams and Breeding (1 hr, 21 min) Mare and Stallion Selection, Ultrasound Procedures, Stallion Collection and Live Cover Breeding, Artificial Insemination and Pregnancy Check     Volume 2: Late Stage Pregnancy, Foal Birth and Imprinting (1 hr, 22 min) Late Stage Pregnancy, Foaling Kit, Foal Birth, Foal Imprinting     Volume 3: Foal Care and Early Training (1 hr, 26 min) Veterinarian Visits After Foal Birth, Farrier’s First Visits With Foal, Halter Training the Foal, Weaning the Foal About Bob Claymier Bob Claymier is the owner and operator of Desert Rose Ranch Arabians (www.desert-rose-arabians.com), a breeding, training and field boarding horse facility located near the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in the heart of Virginia horse country. Bob provides on-site daily care of the horse facility and trains and shows their younger horses. He has studied and practices all training methods that can be described as Natural Horsemanship, where a calm bonding and loving relationship is developed between humans and horses. His breeding, foaling and foal care program ensures that all foals born at his facility receive the finest handling and training, and he participates in all births and imprints his foals immediately upon birth. Bob’s goal is to produce safe, loving, people-oriented horses that are stamped with his gentle training methods. NOTE: In addition to mare care and foal care/early training, this DVD set contains explicit live video of many important aspects of the overall horse breeding process, including: mare pre/post pregnancy ultrasound exams, “live cover” breeding with mare and stallion, stallion semen collection methods, artificial insemination, and actual foal birth.   Total Running Time (3 DVDs): 4 Hours 9 Minutes   Complete Guide to Horse Breeding, Foaling and Foal Training, Featuring Bob Claymier Video Set Testimonial Quotes Click Here:     To order the Complete Guide To Horse Breeding, Foaling and Foal Training, Click Here: