{"id":8100,"date":"2018-06-06T11:27:42","date_gmt":"2018-06-06T10:27:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/?p=8100"},"modified":"2021-06-09T16:29:08","modified_gmt":"2021-06-09T15:29:08","slug":"foal-weaning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/en\/foal-weaning\/","title":{"rendered":"Foal weaning, a bogus good idea?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What if we were wrong to isolate the mare from her foal? Could we imagine for a moment leaving artificial weaning behind? Let\u2019s see how we could make this moment easier for both the mare and the foal.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<p><em>Huge thanks to S\u00e9verine Henry, animal ethology researcher at the Universit\u00e9 de Rennes 1 and author of a lot of publications on the subject for helping me write this article.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div id=\"toc_container\" class=\"no_bullets\"><p class=\"toc_title\">Table des mati&egrave;res<\/p><ul class=\"toc_list\"><li><a href=\"#Foal-weaning-a-huge-stress-inducing-moment-for-the-mother-and-the-foal-x1f627\">Foal weaning: a huge stress inducing moment for the mother and the foal &#x1f627;<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#What-happens-in-the-wild-x1f9d0\">What happens in the wild? &#x1f9d0;<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#The-age-the-foal-is-during-the-weaning-depends-on-several-factors\">The age the foal is during the weaning depends on several factors<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#Is-natural-weaning-a-viable-practice-for-domesticated-horses\">Is natural weaning a viable practice for \u201cdomesticated\u201d horses?<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#4-ways-to-make-weaning-less-brutal\">4 ways to make weaning less brutal<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#To-conclude\">To conclude<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n<h2><span id=\"Foal-weaning-a-huge-stress-inducing-moment-for-the-mother-and-the-foal-x1f627\"><b>Foal weaning: a huge stress inducing moment for the mother and the foal &#x1f627;<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In a lot of stud farms, <\/span><b>the foals are separated from their mothers when they are about &nbsp;6-months-old<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Sometimes even sooner. Oftentimes, this separation <\/span><b>isn\u2019t prepared<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It\u2019s also a moment in which <\/span><b>stereotypies (stable vices) appear<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. The numbers are striking:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>10%<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> of foals develop <\/span><b>oral stereotypies in the month following the weaning<\/b><\/li><li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>30%<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> of foals eat the wood in their stall <\/span><b>3 months after the weaning<\/b><\/li><li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b style=\"font-size: inherit;\">10%<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> of foals develop <\/span><b style=\"font-size: inherit;\">stereotypies like weaving in the 10 months following the weaning<\/b><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1037\" height=\"237\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/ste\u0301re\u0301otypies.png\" alt=\"foal weaning\" class=\"wp-image-8101\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/ste\u0301re\u0301otypies.png 1037w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/ste\u0301re\u0301otypies-300x69.png 300w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/ste\u0301re\u0301otypies-768x176.png 768w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/ste\u0301re\u0301otypies-1024x234.png 1024w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/ste\u0301re\u0301otypies-604x138.png 604w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/ste\u0301re\u0301otypies-850x194.png 850w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1037px) 100vw, 1037px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But the reasons why we usually wean the foal around 6 months are <\/span><b>based more on habits and tradition, maybe even fake beliefs<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Indeed, <\/span><b>in the horse\u2019s natural living conditions, the situation is different<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2><span id=\"What-happens-in-the-wild-x1f9d0\"><b>What happens in the wild? &#x1f9d0;<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When the horse lives in natural living conditions, <\/span><b>the weaning happens when the foal is 9 to 11-months-old<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. It often corresponds to the moment in which the mare is going to have her next foal. By the way, in natural living conditions, <\/span><b>the weaning isn\u2019t a clear \u201cbreak up\u201d between the mother and the foal. The foal will simply cease to suckle &#x1f37c;. It\u2019ll remain next to its mother for a few years.<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><b>This way, the foal\u2019s weaning only happens on the nutritional front, not the relational one!<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1037\" height=\"275\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/sevrage-spontane\u0301.png\" alt=\"foal weaning\" class=\"wp-image-8104\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/sevrage-spontane\u0301.png 1037w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/sevrage-spontane\u0301-300x80.png 300w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/sevrage-spontane\u0301-768x204.png 768w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/sevrage-spontane\u0301-1024x272.png 1024w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/sevrage-spontane\u0301-604x160.png 604w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/sevrage-spontane\u0301-850x225.png 850w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1037px) 100vw, 1037px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In fact, <\/span><b>the foal\u2019s dietary independence happens gradually<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. The foal suckles less and less (once every 2 hours from 8 months) and eats more and more solid food. The mare can show <\/span><b>rejection signs<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> when the foal tries to suckle, but some of them allow them to continue.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Relationship wise, <b>the foal stays away from its mother more and more<\/b> (60 to 80% of the time at more than 5m from its mother). Still, <b>before the foal leaves the family group when it gets to 2-3-years-old<\/b>, it will remain <b>close to its mother<\/b>. Indeed, the mare remains <b>its favorite social partner<\/b>, and<b> a safe element in the group<\/b>. At 1-year-old, the young horse spends more than <b>\u2154 of its time at less than 45m from its mother<\/b>, and she stays one of her favorite fellow horses in the group!<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img src=\"https:\/\/media.giphy.com\/media\/oHh6FEOl1fnK8\/giphy.gif\" alt=\"\"\/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2><span id=\"The-age-the-foal-is-during-the-weaning-depends-on-several-factors\"><b>The age the foal is during the weaning depends on several factors<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Despite the average weaning age in natural living conditions is of about 10 months old, there exists a lot of <\/span><b>variations<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">if the mare has <\/span><b>2 foals in a row<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, for the second one the weaning will happen around 8.5 months.<\/span><\/li><li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">if the mare <\/span><b>isn\u2019t expecting right away<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> or <\/span><b>loses her new foal<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><b>she\u2019ll let the foal suckle longer<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (until <\/span><b>18 months at least<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">) (#mamasboy)<\/span><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What\u2019s for sure is that <\/span><b>in natural living conditions, weaning (so when the foal stop suckling) at 6 months almost never happens<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (unless there are special circumstances).<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2><span id=\"Is-natural-weaning-a-viable-practice-for-domesticated-horses\"><b>Is natural weaning a viable practice for \u201cdomesticated\u201d horses?<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">So you\u2019re probably thinking \u201c<\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">YES BUT\u2026 with domesticated horses, for sport horses, it\u2019s not possible<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The reasons we wean the horse early<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Indeed, it seems like artificial weaning happens rather as a <\/span><b>\u201csafety measure\u201d<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> or because we\u2019re used to it.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We often artificially wean because of these reasons:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">making sure the mare <strong>doesn\u2019t lose too much weight<\/strong>, especially if she\u2019s covered quickly after<\/span><\/li><li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">making sure the foal <strong>eats enough solid food<\/strong> without the mother interfering<\/span><\/li><li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">so the foal is <strong>sold quickly<\/strong><\/span><\/li><li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">to <strong>get the mare back under saddle<\/strong> quickly<\/span><\/li><li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">to <strong>handle the foal in an easier way<\/strong><\/span><\/li><li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">to <strong>keep the foal from covering its mother or another mare<\/strong> if its sexually premature (yes, it can happen\u2026)&#x1f922;<\/span><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote\"><p>Read more: <a href=\"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/en\/mares-heat-cycle\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">All you need to know about the mare&#8217;s heat cycle<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Possible solutions to switch to natural weaning<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Switching to natural weaning <\/span><b>doesn\u2019t seem undoable<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, even for sport horses. It\u2019s true that you have to make certain changes, for instance installing <\/span><b>selective feeders<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, leaving <\/span><b>forage in big quantities<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> 24\/7 to make sure the mare isn\u2019t losing weight, <\/span><b>neuter the foal if necessary<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (depending on its behavior)&#8230;<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are a lot of things to switch around for the foal\u2019s education as well. It\u2019s important to <b>use the mare a lot more<\/b> to show the foals how to react. This way, some breeders start their mare back under saddle with the foal!<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Testimony from a breeder using a softer weaning method<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Sophie Bolze raises Connemara ponies in the stud farm \u201cL\u2019\u00e9levage Aluinn\u201d, a few kilometers south of Paris. Her ponies are renowned because, amongst others, Podeenagh Aluinn was twice medalled at the European Championships in eventing, and Twinkle Toe Aluinn was a gold medallist in show jumping during the Nation\u2019s Cup in Fontainebleau &#x1f947;&#x1f3c6;.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote\"><p><em>\u201cI\u2019ve been doing this type of gradual weaning with my horses for a while. I don\u2019t suddenly cut off the foal and the mare at 6 months. I think it\u2019s too stress inducing for everyone. What I do is that I progressively get the foal used to being away from its mother. For instance, I put them both in stalls next to each other for a few minutes everyday. The separation between the two stalls allows them to touch and smell each other. I also put the foals in the paddock for the entire day without their mothers. They are however accompanied by other mares or old horses who will become their companions until they are broken in.<\/em><\/p><p><em>The foal suckle until very late, even if the mares are expecting for the year. So yes, it costs more to feed them with concentrates and hay because the mare need a lot of food to handle both the suckling and the gestation. But it\u2019s great for me because when I proceed like this, my foals don\u2019t have any health issues!<\/em><\/p><p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">They learn with their mothers<\/span><\/p><p><em>For the first \u201clessons\u201d, I use the mother a lot. Like this, I teach the foals how to walk on the lunge, get showers, go into a lake, discover the arena, go over the liverpool\u2026 Everything is done with the mare. It\u2019s very efficient, and I gain a lot of time when I break them in.\u201d<\/em><\/p><cite>Sophie Bolze, breeder<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image wp-image-3036 size-full\"><figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"2338\" height=\"1575\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/aluinn_etang.jpg\" alt=\"foal weaning\" class=\"wp-image-3036\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/aluinn_etang.jpg 2338w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/aluinn_etang-300x202.jpg 300w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/aluinn_etang-768x517.jpg 768w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/aluinn_etang-1024x690.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/aluinn_etang-401x270.jpg 401w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2338px) 100vw, 2338px\" \/><figcaption>If mom goes, so will I! &#8211; Photo from Sophie Bolze, Elevage Aluinn<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You can find Sophie Bolze on the Facebook page of the stud farm \u2192&nbsp;<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/elevagealuinn\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Elevage Aluinn<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and also on her website \u2192 http:\/\/www.elevagealuinn.com<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">However, if you think natural weaning is impossible for you, there are other methods you can try to make weaning less brutal. Here they are.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2><span id=\"4-ways-to-make-weaning-less-brutal\"><strong>4 ways to make weaning less brutal<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image wp-image-3023 size-full\"><figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"435\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/nourrisseur_poulain-e1528202070908.jpg\" alt=\"foal weaning\" class=\"wp-image-3023\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/nourrisseur_poulain-e1528202070908.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/nourrisseur_poulain-e1528202070908-300x127.jpg 300w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/nourrisseur_poulain-e1528202070908-768x326.jpg 768w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/nourrisseur_poulain-e1528202070908-604x257.jpg 604w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption>the foal feeder, a good idea to let the foals access forages or concentrates without their mothers going in between &#8211; http:\/\/foalcreepsystem.com<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">#1 &#8211; Dietary transition &#x1f354; \/ &#x1f955;<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I was surprised when I read this but yes, <\/span><b>the foal\u2019s diet has an impact on the stress it goes through when weaning.<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote\"><p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cNicol et al. (2005) showed that foals fed with a lot of fat and fibers were calmer right after weaning than foals fed with a lot of sugars and starch.\u201d (Lansade et al., 2016)<\/span><\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">So make sure your foal has enough forage before weaning! One of the solutions for this consists in selective feeders. This way, the foals are independent and also have access to forage.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1037\" height=\"237\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/mangeoire-se\u0301lective.png\" alt=\"foal weaning\" class=\"wp-image-8107\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/mangeoire-se\u0301lective.png 1037w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/mangeoire-se\u0301lective-300x69.png 300w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/mangeoire-se\u0301lective-768x176.png 768w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/mangeoire-se\u0301lective-1024x234.png 1024w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/mangeoire-se\u0301lective-604x138.png 604w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/mangeoire-se\u0301lective-850x194.png 850w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1037px) 100vw, 1037px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">#2 &#8211; Group weaning<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you are lucky enough to have several foals at the same time, the best thing is to <\/span><b>wean them at the same time<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. If you can <\/span><b>leave them in a paddock instead of in stalls, it\u2019s even better<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Foals staying in an individual stall <\/span><b>have a lot more behavioral issues<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (kicking the walls, licking or biting the walls, rearing\u2026). But the foals staying together outside can have a <\/span><b>better activity repartition<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In fact, in the paddock, the environment is much more diverse, they can express a larger variety of behaviors and are less likely to fall into stable vices. That seems obvious, but it\u2019s important to mention<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1037\" height=\"237\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/sevrage-en-groupe.png\" alt=\"foal weaning\" class=\"wp-image-8110\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/sevrage-en-groupe.png 1037w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/sevrage-en-groupe-300x69.png 300w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/sevrage-en-groupe-768x176.png 768w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/sevrage-en-groupe-1024x234.png 1024w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/sevrage-en-groupe-604x138.png 604w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/sevrage-en-groupe-850x194.png 850w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1037px) 100vw, 1037px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4><b>Watch out for aggressive behavior! &#x1f94a;<\/b><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">By the way, in a stressful situation such as artificial weaning, <\/span><b>aggressiveness isn\u2019t unheard of between youngsters (at least temporarily)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. It\u2019s important to give them space so they can get away from their \u201cgrouchy\u201d friend and avoid injuries.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you have no choice but to leave them in stalls but you can pair them, keep watch of any aggressive behavior that might appear. It\u2019s better to let the foals get to know each other before weaning.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">#3 &#8211; Progressively removing the mothers<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the case of foal-mare herds, <\/span><b>removing the mares one by one (one per day)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is actually proven to be less stressful than removing everyone at once.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1037\" height=\"237\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/retrait-maman.png\" alt=\"foal weaning\" class=\"wp-image-8113\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/retrait-maman.png 1037w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/retrait-maman-300x69.png 300w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/retrait-maman-768x176.png 768w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/retrait-maman-1024x234.png 1024w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/retrait-maman-604x138.png 604w, https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/retrait-maman-850x194.png 850w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1037px) 100vw, 1037px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ok, I admit, when you only have one foal per year\u2026 it\u2019s complicated! By the way, in France for 2016-2017, for 30 785 breeders, 80% have one or two mares!<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">#4 &#8211; Introducing foals to new adults &#x1f468;&#x1f475;&#x1f476;<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You can also <\/span><b>introduce new adults to the foals<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">! These adults will allow the group of foals to mimic their more \u201cnormal\u201d behaviors &#x1f642;<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Indeed, the presence of adults <\/span><b>decreases the stress induced by weaning<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> compared to foals weaned in groups without adults. They neigh less and for a shorter period of time. Their salivary cortisol levels are lower after the stress of maternal separation. There are no attempts to suckle directed to other youngsters and no diminution of the time spent eating after weaning.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Also, it allows the <\/span><b>diminution of aberrant behavior patterns<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and maintain a good social cohesion between the young horses long term.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In fact, the presence of more experienced adults <\/span><b>channels the young horse\u2019s behavior.<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> The lack of adults in the foal\u2019s environment could be responsible from the high aggression levels observed four young domestic horses compared to foals living in more natural conditions, which means in heterogeneous groups with young and older horses.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A word on gradual weaning<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Several studies digged deeper on gradual weaning, which consists in separating slowly the mother and the foal (from several minutes to a few hours each day) until they reach a full separation. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">However, the results of these studies are inconsistent on several aspects, and we lack data to truly compare the studies.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-background\" style=\"background-color:#e9e9e9\">&#x1f50e; On the same topic: <a href=\"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/en\/how-to-break-in-your-horse-in-4-weeks\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"27426\"><strong>How to Break in Your Horse in 4 Weeks<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2><span id=\"To-conclude\"><strong>To conclude<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In natural living conditions, <\/span><b>weaning is a lot different from what happens in a stud farm<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Weaning isn\u2019t a sudden separation but when <\/span><b>the foal stops suckling while staying close to its mother<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. The foals gradually get further away from their mothers and <\/span><b>stop suckling when they are about 10-months-old<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Until 2-3-years-old, when they will start a new family group, <\/span><b>they stay close to their mothers<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> which are their favorite friend.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><b>Artificial weaning is very stress inducing<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> for both foals and mares. Softer solutions exist, like pair weaning or introduction of new adults in the group, and in any case with a dietary transition.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In this era in which we\u2019re trying our best to improve our horse\u2019s quality of life, natural weaning seems like the best solution!<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">See you soon for another article,<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Camille Saute<br>R&amp;D Leader at Equisense<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h6><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bibliography<\/span><\/h6>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">Bourjade, M., Moulinot, M., Henry, S., Richard, M. A., &amp; Hausberger, M. (2006). Effet de la pr\u00e9sence d\u2019adultes sur le d\u00e9veloppement du comportement des jeunes chevaux domestiques \u00e9lev\u00e9s en groupe. 32\u00e8me Journ\u00e9e de La Recherche Equine, 61\u201369. Paris, France.<br>Bourjade, M., Moulinot, M., Henry, S., Richard-Yris, M. A., &amp; Hausberger, M. (2008). Could adults be used to improve social skills of young horses, Equus caballus? Developmental Psychobiology, 50(4), 408\u2013417. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1002\/dev.20301<br>Foury, A., Lansade, L., Vidament, M., Reigner, F., &amp; Mach, N. (2017). Effets du stress induit par le sevrage sur les indicateurs biologiques et transcriptomiques du stress chez les \u00e9quins\u202f: Analyse comparative d\u2019un sevrage progressif et d\u2019un sevrage brutal. 43\u00e8me Journ\u00e9e de La Recherche Equine, 155\u2013158. Paris, France.<br>Fureix, C., Bourjade, M., Henry, S., Sankey, C., &amp; Hausberger, M. (2012). Exploring aggression regulation in managed groups of horses Equus caballus. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 138(3\u20134), 216\u2013228. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.applanim.2012.02.009<br>Henry, S., Briefer, S., Richard-Yris, M. A., &amp; Hausberger, M. (2006). Utilisation des influences sociales autour du sevrage. 32\u00e8me Journ\u00e9e d\u2019Etude de La Recherche Equine, 79\u201386.<br>Henry, S., Zanella, A. J., Sankey, C., Richard-Yris, M. A., Marko, A., &amp; Hausberger, M. (2012). Adults may be used to alleviate weaning stress in domestic foals (Equus caballus). Physiology and Behavior, 106(4), 428\u2013438. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.physbeh.2012.02.025<br>Lansade, L., L\u00e9vy, F., Yvon, J.-M., Guettier, E., Reigner, F., Bouvet, G., \u2026 Vidament, M. (2016). Le sevrage\u202f: quelles sont les recommandations issues de la recherche \u00e9quine\u202f? 42\u00e8me Journ\u00e9e de La Recherche Equine, 87\u201393. Paris, France.<br>Henry, S., Sigurj\u00f3nsd\u00f3ttir, H., Klapper, A., Joubert, J., Montier, G., &amp; Hausberger, M. (2018). Le sevrage spontan\u00e9 du poulain\u202f: facteurs de variation et impact sur le lien jument-poulain. 44\u00e8me Journ\u00e9e de La Recherche Equine, 4\u201313. Paris, France.<br>Lansade, L., &amp; Marnay, L. (2017). Le sevrage du poulain, comment faire\u202f? Retrieved May 21, 2018, from Equipaedia website: http:\/\/www.haras-nationaux.fr\/information\/accueil-equipaedia\/croissance-et-education\/education-du-poulain\/le-sevrage-du-poulain-comment-faire.html<br>Nicol, C. J., Badnell-Waters, A. J., Bice, R., Kelland, A., Wilson, A. D., &amp; Harris, P. A. (2005). The effects of diet and weaning method on the behaviour of young horses. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 95(3\u20134), 205\u2013221. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.applanim.2005.05.004<br>R\u00e9seau Economique de la Fili\u00e8re Equine. (2017). Annuaire ECUS &#8211; Tableau \u00e9conomique, statistique et graphique du cheval en France. Retrieved from http:\/\/www.ifce.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/OESC-Annuaire-ECUS-2017.pdf<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What if we were wrong to isolate the mare from her foal? Could we imagine&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/en\/foal-weaning\/\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":8116,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0},"categories":[6177],"tags":[7071,158,6528,7074],"yst_prominent_words":[753,7069,805,7058,7053,7049,7070,1052,7052,7055,7047,7050,815,7057,7067,6448,7051,7048,756,7068],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8100"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8100"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8100\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":29267,"href":"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8100\/revisions\/29267"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8116"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8100"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8100"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8100"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.equisense.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=8100"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}