FOOD FOR THOUGHT

HANDLE WITH CARE

Written by Lois Schwartz
Burntwood Ranch

If you are breeding and raising your own potential racehorse, you may have some large weanlings about now. How do you prepare them for the rigors of racing?

Our foals are born and raised on a cattle ranch in Central Florida. From the time they are born, they live in a paddock next to an airstrip. Since the mares are accustomed to the paddock, the foals quickly learn not to fear the noise of airplanes. The airstrip doubles as a lane for the cattle. When the cowboys use the airstrip to work the cattle, they create general mayhem. Curiously, the foals seem to enjoy the show rather than be frightened by it. Exposure to movement and noise can be beneficial to a racehorse. It begins teaching him not to fear the noise he will hear as he comes around the clubhouse turn and down the stretch.

We halter our foals from the time that they are born. The sooner you teach them to lead and tolerate equipment, the better. A word about halters....Have several sizes on hand. Foals quickly outgrow them. If you are not watching , it can cut into the face or inhibit their ability to eat by hampering jaw movement. Another good idea is to take the halter off, rub the foal with it, and put it back on him.

From day One, foals should accept you and understand that you are not to be feared. You should never make frightening noises or movements. Initially, I crouch down so that I am more the size of the foal. Often I sit in the grass to allow the little ones to come up and nibble on my socks or hat. As your foal begins to accept you, you can then lean across him and put some weight on his back by standing on one side and reaching across his back to gently rub his other side and legs. Begin to groom him. Soft brushes are best. You do not want to scratch or irritate his tender skin.

Lift his feet. When the foot is lifted, he will relax. Begin holding the foot up for a few minutes. The farrier does not just lift the foot, he holds it up while he works on it. Speaking of farriers, our foals begin to have their feet filed at about six weeks. Be certain that you have a reliable farrier do this.

You also will want to prepare him for dental work. Put your hand in his mouth, gently hold his tongue. Sooner or later, he will have someone poking into every orifice of his body. Also let him know that you will not tolerate bad behavior. As you work with him, do not spoil him or let him get away with what may be cute now, but could become very dangerous when he is larger.

Remember, just do a little every day and work up incrementally. When they are older, I sit on the fence while they eat to accustom them to seeing me above them. Often, I gently prop my feet on their back. The goal is to teach discipline and trust... not fear or bad habits.

Weaning is a stressful time. One little trick I have used successfully is to leave the foal in his familiar paddock and to move the dam to a different pasture some distance away. This eliminates the stress of a new environment for the foal...and the disappearance of his mother. Often people will wean by separating the dam and foal for a few hours a day, eventually, building to total separation. The theory is that the mare's milk will dry gradually this way. This sounds quite logical, but time consuming... consequently, I have not tried it. You can help to dry the mare by reducing her feed. Some people milk the mare to dry her gradually. Your common sense must guide you as to how, when and where to wean. Observe how the animal tolerates the stress and act accordingly.

My experience has been that total acceptance of the new lifestyle is achieved in about three days. The mares usually dry out in a week or two. Of your mare looks stressed out with the foal at her side, you may decide to wean early and encounter a longer drying out time for the mare. We have found that with a dead foal, it was easier to allow the mare to see her deal baby. She quickly realizes that he is dead and leaves him. Otherwise, she would stress herself tremendously by pacing the fence in search of him.

Our weanlings go for walks. I lead them out of their paddock and little by little start taking them around the ranch. Eventually, they learn to walk by machinery, around people, past noisy tools, and through narrow areas. Be aware that this is done little by little, only increasing the length of the walk and the stress encountered as the weanling can handle them. Remember, this is not the time to frighten or teach bad habits. It is the time for gentle encouragement and trust.

Later, we will progress to free round-penning. Meanwhile, you will have some of the happiest and most rewarding times of your life as you teach your weanling about the real world. You will build bonds that will help you both to carry on during difficult training times and will prepare the animal to accept whatever is thrown at him. As always with foals...

HANDLE WITH CARE!

PS Our Quarter horse stud threw a beautiful filly out of a mare belonging to one of the cowboys. The filly was left out in a pasture and literally was forgotten for over two years, (no vaccinating, trimming, etc.) until someone decided that it was time to break her. They drove her into the hydraulic chute in the cowpens. She became hysterical, reared up and hit her head on the hydraulic motor. It killed her instantly. Just a little time and patience would have saved that filly. I still ache when I think of her.