Foal Weaning - Advice Needed

[diplomaticandtactful]

We are tentatively starting this with Fleurette, she is 7 months now and big and strapping, eats hard food and grass well, and has her haylage at night. She is growing well and is full of life and energy.

She is still suckling but not that often and is now introduced to the rest of the herd and is quite independent - she has made friends with Leo and bounces around with him. Her mum is out with her but they are not glued together and Suze is lessening the bonds considerably.

Have started putting her in the next door stable to her mum to feed her - there is a grill so they can see and touch and she has her mate Leo on the other side.

Last night we did a sleepover where the foal stayed in the next door stable all night - the foal was fine, has clearly been down and slept, ate up and was as right as rain.

Mum was fine mentally, hadn't box walked, had gorged herself on haylage (made a personal point of eating enough for two) and was very calm BUT this morning when i went down at 6 (couldn't sleep myself) she had milk running down her legs and udder very hard, so i put foal in with her immediately and she had a good suckle.

So what do i do now?

Mentally they are quite happy about it and Fleurette can have the stable next to her mum, which gives her more space to lie down and chill. They are out together all day, and if they do continue to share, they have a big double stable, so weaning isn't an issue, it doesn't have to happen.

The advantages is to dry Suze off, being able to work with them separately, and also at some point foal is going to get so big that really she does need to move - she isn't far off the height of her mum now, though not as bulky.

So mentally i think they are ready but obviously i cannot let Suze have a full throbbing udder which hurts and needs emptying!

Advice please.

 

[Sunshine-x]

I opted for the complete separation when I weaned Alfie this year. He was quite independant from his mum, so I left Alfie with his friend and took his mum a couple miles down the road to live out with some other mares.

 

[domane]

I suspect her milk production has been exacerbated by the fact that she knows Fleurette is still there, if inaccessible. I've also read about reducing mum's feed when weaning to help dry up her milk so possibly gorging on haylage all night AND standing still pretty much in the stable didn't help. Can you keep them separated during the day and just allow Fleurette to feed again this evening and keep her at just two feeds a day for a few days? And then maybe cut down to just a morning feed for a further few days before ceasing contact all together for a few weeks. Because you won't be taking them out of earshot from each other (I don't think) I suspect it will take a little longer for Suze's milk to dry up.

I didn't have this issue with Sweetpea, there was no engorgement, running milk or mastitis.

 

[KarinUS]

wouldn't it be like with people where gradual does the trick?
I think you are on the right way already.
Too bad horses don't wear bras or you could put on some cabbage leaves!
when she goes back in in the morning maybe encourage for just a little suckling (to take the pressure off) but not so much as to trigger an increase in milk supply.
Is there something Fleu likes to snack on even more than she likes to nurse?
I'd have that on hand. Let her suckle a little to help Suze out and then hand out the goodies to get her off.
(kind of like when you wake up engorged and you'd pump off just a bit to get more comfortable but you wouldn't pump a whole 4 ounces or else you'd be running the risk to signal your body to make more because obviously the demand is still there, etc.)

If it's anything like it is with humans (and since it's all based on demand and supply I assume it is) then going cold turkey would be way more likely to lead to engorgement and mastitis than the gradual way you are already doing it.
I think you are doing great!