Horse
Problem - Pregnant - Can my yearling colt get his mother pregnant?
QUESTION: Hi Sylvia, I want to know if you can answer this for me. Can my yearling colt get his mother pregnant? He is out with her 24/7 and I have a mini stallion that has brought my quarter horse mare into heat and I caught her son mounting her. He did penetrate. If she does get pregnant and I don't give her the shot to abort, what would the foal be like? Would it be deformed or have physical or mental problems? The colt is leaving to go back to the breeder where she will keep him as a stud. Any info would be appreciated.
REPLY: 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, because Bob is a bigger expert in this category than I am.
Bob's Reply:
This is one of those questions that it is difficult to say “always” or “never.” Horses, like humans, mature at different rates and ages, so what might be true in one case is not necessarily so in another. In general, however, it would be unusual for a “true” yearling colt to be able to impregnate a mare. Young foals are very playful and often mount one another or even adults like their mothers, but you did indicate penetration had occurred, so that may be an issue. I often let my yearling colts run with a herd just so that they will become socialized, but I am careful about the time of year when the mares are not in season and watch for any “studly” behavior. I check to see if their testicles have “dropped” and palpate to determine size, which is another indicator for me as to sexual maturity. Line breeding – even direct off spring breeding – has certainly been done in the past, especially if one were looking to preserve a particular bloodline. It is a chancy venture to breed as close to mother/son and I would discourage that. My recommendation is that you have your mare checked by a vet using an ultra sound to determine if in fact she has become pregnant. I check my mares at 16 days after ovulation for some specific technical reasons, but you could wait a few days more than that, which would make the potential pregnancy easier to detect. It is then a relatively easy procedure to give the abortion shot to terminate the pregnancy. Given that you are having an issue with the colt, I would probably put him in with other colts or geldings (or even pregnant mares should you have any) but remove him from being with his mother. Should you have a vet check, I would be interested to learn whether in fact the mare did become pregnant. Thanks for contacting us and I hope this helps a bit with your decision making. – Cheers, Bob Claymier
Complete Guide To Horse Breeding, Foaling and Foal Training
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