# Rearing a foal



## Filumena (Jun 1, 2009)

Hello interested fellow foal dads/mums!
I have a 7 week old filly and am having a great time teaching her and being with her and mum. Mum keeps a watchful eye over her and won't let her out of her sight. She's chestnut and white and looks as if she'll grow to her mum's height which is 15h3. She was a surprise as the stallion in the paddock next door visited her secretly and i didn't see any signs (thinking she was overweight) until about 2 months before the delivery! What a lovely surprise. The only small problem is that she sometimes rears in front of me. What can i do? Any advice?


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## Badger's Mum (Mar 23, 2009)

Filumena said:


> Hello interested fellow foal dads/mums!
> I have a 7 week old filly and am having a great time teaching her and being with her and mum. Mum keeps a watchful eye over her and won't let her out of her sight. She's chestnut and white and looks as if she'll grow to her mum's height which is 15h3. She was a surprise as the stallion in the paddock next door visited her secretly and i didn't see any signs (thinking she was overweight) until about 2 months before the delivery! What a lovely surprise. The only small problem is that she sometimes rears in front of me. What can i do? Any advice?


year's ago we helped to look after one. It is her way of playing, Sorry but i havn't got any help apart from wear a hat when your around her, some one will come along and help you so keep checking


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## toddy (Jan 24, 2009)

Although at the moment your foal looks very cute and at 7 weeks will not do much damage rearing at you(maybe a few bruises though)it is important that she does not see you as a friend to play with but as a leader.Your very small problem as you see it now could easil become a very large problem.
Trouble is when you handle foals from an early age and they have no fear of a human they very quickly get over cocky and start to roughplay with you like they would another foal.It happens a lot in handreared foals and can be very hard to get them out of.It is not always a good idea to handle foals too much from the very start as a slight wariness of you stops any behaviour like this and makes the foal much easier to work with.
You need to start teaching your foal that you are the boss and not a play mate. Many people will have different ideas on how to stop this playful behaviour escalating but personally at her age I would ignore the behaviour and walk away if she does it.If she continues I would use a firm voice and push her away from you using a firm command.
Have you had a foal slip on her at all?


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## Badger's Mum (Mar 23, 2009)

toddy said:


> Although at the moment your foal looks very cute and at 7 weeks will not do much damage rearing at you(maybe a few bruises though)it is important that she does not see you as a friend to play with but as a leader.Your very small problem as you see it now could easil become a very large problem.
> Trouble is when you handle foals from an early age and they have no fear of a human they very quickly get over cocky and start to roughplay with you like they would another foal.It happens a lot in handreared foals and can be very hard to get them out of.It is not always a good idea to handle foals too much from the very start as a slight wariness of you stops any behaviour like this and makes the foal much easier to work with.
> You need to start teaching your foal that you are the boss and not a play mate. Many people will have different ideas on how to stop this playful behaviour escalating but personally at her age I would ignore the behaviour and walk away if she does it.If she continues I would use a firm voice and push her away from you using a firm command.
> Have you had a foal slip on her at all?


Good advice


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## Filumena (Jun 1, 2009)

Dear Toddy,
Thanks for your good advice. I'm pushing her away firmly as she's getting rather confident and following me and coming up to me in the paddock even though she's with her mum all the time. Yes I have been successful putting a collar on her. I approached this through her playing with it at first. Now i've started her on a lead rein very gently and lead her to her paddock with her mum in a rather indirect route as she goes from side to side of her mum and stops occasionally. i'm being gentle with her and she's got a sweet temperament. I'm about to worm her and also check her hooves as she seems to be splaying her legs in the front.
It's good fun and i see them both every day for about an hour.
Do you have a horse/horses?
Cheers


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## toddy (Jan 24, 2009)

Hi hopefully if you are firm but fair she will realise that rearing is unacceptable behaviour.

Yes I have 7 horses altogether.I have also bred my own foal and my idx tb who is now 12 I bought as an unhandled weanling so lots of experience with dealing with foals.

Good luck with her and can we have some pictures please


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## apache (Jul 16, 2009)

i agree with all that has been said but although from experience you will feel that over handling will help,no it wont and under no circumstances does hitting do any good.it took me longer to get respect so to speak from a foal and yearling i had once but they turned out alot better than someone we had removed from the yard as her answer to everything was to hit out.no she never took the foal with her between us we kinda paid her off as she was awful.she turned out fine and is doing very well.poor thing was horrendously head shy but not no more.perserverance is a good thing.just look online and do the best you can


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