It's that time of year again... the baby horses are not so little anymore and we are well into the weaning process. One of the ways that we seek to set up our horses for success at their new homes is to make sure that they have a solid set of basic skills when they leave us. Although we work with the youngsters on and off during the summer, their structured training plan comes after weaning as a part of our Baby Boot Camp.
For our foals, weaning generally takes place at around 4 months of age. It is an extended process, which starts by gathering a group of similarly-aged foals in a field along with their mothers and a designated babysitter horse. The group spends some time getting to know one another and adjust to the farm and the babies are given the chance to have their own buckets of grain while their mothers are eating. Once everyone is settled in and the babies are eating well, we start the weaning process. We gradually remove first one mare, then another, over the course of several days or weeks until the foals are left with just their friends and their babysitter. Although I am always sad to separate mares and foals, the reality is that while they often call out initially when they realize that they are separated, it generally takes less than a day for everyone to settle down and enjoy life with their own friends.
After the group of foals is weaned, we start to utilize feeding time for training. At first, this means putting halters on each one and tying them up while they are eating. This is a highly supervised process for the first few trials as some horses can fight against being tied up and it's important to be able to intervene if necessary. Most of them figure out quickly that it's nothing to worry about and it come with the benefit of good food too! After their meal, each foal has their feet handled to practice lifting and standing with their feet up.
Once the mealtime routine is established we progress to practicing on trailer loading. Instead of feeding in the barn, I will put the grain buckets on the trailer and each foal will be led onto the trailer and tied at their own bucket to eat. The first day of loading can sometimes be a long process, as each horse has to figure out what I'm asking and decide to cooperate. But after a day or two loading is a non-issue and they are ready to leap on the trailer to find their bucket! I did learn the importance of practicing with both step-up and ramp trailers, as it can throw them to encounter a different style than they are used to :)
In addition to leading, loading, tying, and handling feet there are any number of other little things that we can work on. If the weather is right, some foals have their first baths before they leave. I find that this is often one of the most eventful training sessions, as most don't enjoy the hose at first! We also practice some basic ground skills such as backing up or yielding the hindquarters. In the end, we find that the time spent with the youngsters pays off in producing cooperative and sensible horses for their new owners.
