QUESTION: Sylvia, Great website! We just had our first foal tonight. We have a large gelding and a welsh pony mare. The pony foaled tonight. We have mama and baby separated from the gelding in their own paddock. The gelding has been sniffing and obviously wanting to get close to the foal (filly) through the paddock panels. I am wondering 2 things: First, when shall I allow mare and foal to go to the pasture with the gelding? Secondly, how shall I do it? Is there a certain way to introduce them to each other without a fence for the first time? I'm scared my gelding might hurt the foal. Thanks in advance for your response.

REPLY: Thanks for writing. Congratulations on the new foal! How exciting for you! :-) I'm going to run your questions here by our resident breeding/foaling expert, Bob Claymier, who is featured in our Whispering Way™ Foundation Training Series: Complete Guide to Horse Breeding, Foaling and Foal Training, Featuring Bob Claymier DVD set.

Bob Claymier's Response:

How exciting for you to have a new foal, and I thank Sylvia for including me in your experience. I would first like to say that I am a firm believer in allowing horses to be horses as they would perhaps be in the wild, and allow them to interact in as natural of a herd environment as possible. I am fortunate in that I generally have two or three foals per year, which allows me to have the mares run together before the babies are born, with all of them then together after the foals arrive. I can then wean one foal at a time while leaving the babies and remaining mares together for support until the final mare is removed. You can do this on a smaller scale which will ultimately benefit your foal's normal herd instincts and development.

One thing that I am always careful about, however, is the conformational development of the foal before turning them out into an unrestricted paddock area. I always have a vet visit the day after foaling to analyze the placenta, condition of the mare and perform a complete evaluation of the foal which would include a colostrum check and overall physical exam. Even in an otherwise completely healthy foal, it is not unusual for them to be somewhat unsteady on their feet for a few days after foaling or to be (as an example) down on their pasterns as well. The foal will, however, be full of energy and wanting to run at full speed when initially turned out of the stall or large area. While all foals are genetically programmed to be ready to run with the herd on the day after foaling, permanent injury can result from too much initial exuberance.

The first thing then for your foal is to determine its condition which will dictate when it can be safely turned out in an environment where it may run and play and to be able to safely flee from other pasture mates, which in this case is your gelding. I would then ask if your mare and gelding were pasture mates before she foaled? This will help her accept the gelding more readily even though she will be highly protective of the foal when they are initially put together.

Introducing them together first with a fence between them will help, but the mare will generally usher the foal away to safety, so that is not a complete indicator of how they will react when together. If you have any concerns about initial exposure, I would halter the gelding and place all in a small enclosure, such as a round pen. The mare again will want to put herself between the baby and the gelding, but the foal will likely be the curious one and want to introduce itself.

I would initially keep the lead line short with the gelding, in tight control (keeping yourself safe should the gelding strike out), with perhaps another person in the area to shoo away the baby if necessary for its own protection. You could then gradually lengthen the line to allow all three to begin to be more comfortable with each other and you might also add some piles of hay in the area as a distracter. How all interact under these more controlled conditions will give you an indication of what will happen when they are finally turned out together. If the foal is sound physically and you are comfortable with the previous introduction, then is the time to do a turn out.

I would start in a relatively small paddock to limit how far the mare and foal will run, but not the round pen, because you would not want them to be trapped in tight spaces. You could perhaps have another person or two to assist in ensuring no damage is done. I often use my 4-wheeler as faster transportation so that I can keep up with the "herd" should it be necessary for me to intercede.

What you will normally find is that the mare will be extremely wary and protective initially, which might even last for a day to several days. I generally limit the initial turnout together to, say, only an hour or two and then bring the mare & foal back in to a safe area, such as a stall - not the least of which is to allow the foal to safely rest after its exhausting ordeal.

You can gradually increase the herd time together as you become more comfortable with their interaction. I also generally put the mare and foal safely up at night because that is often the time that the unexpected happens.

There will no doubt be those who say the above is overkill and "just put them together and let them sort it out" as horses have been doing for eons, and they would probably be right 99.9% of the time. However, I find that being careful with the foal's turn out for the first few days of its life pays dividends in the long run.

Sylvia was kind enough to mention my DVD, which addresses these issues, and much more, such as first vet and farrier visits, teaching the foal to lead and tie, on up through ultimately weaning the foal, to name a few of the topics covered. You are right to be careful, but the mare herself will likely be able to protect the foal regardless of her size, and you can assist this process as well. Please let us know how the turn out goes and stay in touch should you have any other questions. Good luck! - Bob Claymier

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: