How young can i wean my foal?

Question

When is the best time to wean?

What is the youngest age for a healthy foal to be weaned?

Answer 1

I just did my little guy at three months, i normally do it 4 or 5 months.  This mare is a rescue brought i with her baby and she is so thin, the vet and i discussed it and agreed separating was the best option and mama and baby are doing great.  They are right next door to each other and tomorrow mom gets moved one more corral down, we are easing both away from each other.  Plus the baby is the size of a 6 month old, he is huge eating fine and all is well..

Answer 2

Take your cue from the dam & check the Farmers Almanac.

Weaning by the moon sign really does work. If you don't know how to read the almanac, ask around for an acquaintance who plants by the moon.

Answer 3

3 months.

Answer 4

3 months is when the people that are showing the dam or plan on showing the foal in lounge line or halter wean them i have weaned several foals at 3 months of age and they did fine but if you dont plan in showing the mare or foal then i would leave the foal untill 4-4 1/2 months of age and when you wean them younger they usually get bigger as if you leave them on there mother for a longer period of time they tend to be smaller but any where from 3- 6 months is a healthy weaning age for a foal any thing longer than 6 months  and they really start pulling weight off the mare and it is really not good for her

Answer 5

Usually I wean at 6 months. You should not start  the weaning unless your foal is already comfortable with eating grass, grain and hay.  It has been shown in studies that foals who suffer too much stress when being weaned can lose their appetites and lose weight... then when they recover have a growth spurt. This can cause developmental orthopedic disease (DOD), in which bones and joints begin to grow abnormally. Possible causes are:

Gastric ulcers

Delayed reproductive function

Influenza

Increased levels of cortisol (a hormone secreted by the adrenal cortex) which can weaken the immune system.

Poor sleep

Become panicky increasing the chance of injury

Contracted tendons

Physitis

Bone cysts in the joints

Foals which have little stress during weaning grow evenly with height and weight increasing in steady increments. This smoother growth pattern makes them less susceptible to DOD.

****edit*****

At 3mos the foal can have problems. That is way tooo young to wean for a healthly foal.

Answer 6

3 mounths

Answer 7

I would say about 3 months but i dont know so dont take my word.

Answer 8

Some people wean at 3 months but I prefer to wait until the foal is fairly independent. 4-6 months is ideal. If your mare is obviously not doing well and is rapidly losing weight, wean the foal as soon as you can, but no earlier than 3 months.

Answer 9

The above answer is worth a shot. I weaned both of my babies from the bottle using this method. But if you do not have access to an almanac, usually about 4 or 5 months old they should be weaned. The first couple of days is awful. I sat under a shade tree for two days crying because they wanted their Mama. Of course, Mama was glad to be separated from them.