Preparing your mare and foal for weaning can make the process less stressful for both. | Anne M. Eberhardt/The HorseWeaning a foal from his dam can be a stressful time as he learns independence, but there are steps you can take to ease the process for both broodmare and baby.Understanding the Weaning ProcessWeaning often comes with an environment change, such as a new pasture or stall, a change in herd status and hierarchy, and a change in diet, says Carly Turner-Garcia, DVM, Dipl. ACT, of Black Type Equine, in Coyle, Oklahoma. Any of these factors can result in an increase of cortisol, the stress hormone, and can decrease the bodys inflammatory and immune response. Basically, everything that theyve known is now different, kind of like dropping your kid off at the first day of kindergarten or preschool, she adds.Christine Skelly, PhD, equine extension specialist at Michigan State University (MSU), in East Lansing, says mares typically seem to cope with weaning relatively quickly. Foals, however, can experience greater challenges during the transition and might be at increased risk for developing mild upper respiratory infections or nutritional imbalances, weight changes, stress colitis, or even colic in severe cases. Easing the transition helps reduce those risks.From just a social aspect, the foal has an extremely strong bond with their dam, so when we break that bond during weaning, especially when we do it very abruptly, without anything to replace the nutrition and the comfort the mare provides, were putting a lot of stress on the foal, says Skelly. The mares seem to get over weaning sooner and with a little less trouble. As soon as their bag dries up, theyre pretty much on the road (to recovery).From a psychological standpoint, we want to ensure the foal continues to learn how to interact with other horses, she adds. The dams job was to teach their baby manners and help them learn how to communicate with other horses and even people, and those lessons need to continue as the weanling adjusts to their new group dynamics.Preparing Your Foal for WeaningHorse owners and farm managers commonly wean foals when theyre 4 to 6 months old. Garcia recommends starting a vaccination program before separation because vaccinating during weaning could trigger a strong immune response in an already stressed animal. Its also a good idea to deworm your foal before weaning to reduce the chance of gastrointestinal stress.Introduce concentrate feed (creep feed) while the foal is still nursing so he becomes accustomed to eating a balanced ration before weaning. The energy content of a mares milk starts to decrease after a few months of lactation, so adding feed to the foals diet supports immunity as well as healthy muscle and bone development.Start creep feeding around 2 to 3 months of age, providing the foal usually a pound of feed per month of age, says Skelly. They may not eat all of the feed because they still have access to the mares milk. Ensure the creep feed is formulated to match the foals stage of growth. Then, when we do separate the foal and dam, the foal is already well adjusted to the concentrate ration.Setting Your Mare and Foal Up for SuccessResearchers have shown a gradual transition away from the mare eases stress during the weaning process. If the mare and foal are turned out with other mares and foals, and you dont have a visual barrier at your farm, separating all the foals at once will help them cope better. Skelly has weaned foals several ways and, for larger herds of mares and foals, she prefers to put foals on one side of a fence and mares on the other. She recommends using 2-by-4-inch woven wire or diamond mesh fencing so the weanlings cannot nurse through the fence.??They still can see each other for several days, and stay in close quarters, she says. Then over time, the mares drift off, trying to find better pasture, and at some point, they lose interest in their foals. The foals are grouped with their fellow weanlings that they have grown up with, so they have companionship. They also have access to free exercise, which will help their bones and muscles grow healthy and strong.Skelly says at MSU, a few months prior to removing any broodmares from the pasture, she and her colleagues turn an older mare out with the mares and foals. As each foal reaches 6 months of age, they remove his or her dam from the pasture. In this situation, the group stays relatively stable since youre only removing one or two mares at a time, she explains. Its not as abrupt as all the mares leaving at once, and all the babies yelling. You may have one foal running around, but nobody else is running around with them, so the group stays a little calmer. The older mare provides some adult stability to the group while the weanlings adjust to their new situation.Garcia says theres no one-size-fits-all approach to weaning. The best method often depends on your farm and the resources available. Stall weaning involves putting the mare in a stall next to the foal for about a week, then taking the mare away. There might be a little bit of hollering, but for the most part, it goes pretty smoothly, she says. Theyre herd animals, so as long as they have a herd for moral support, they do a lot better.She also recommends avoiding any drastic changes to the environment, such as moving the foal to a new barn or introducing additional management changes during weaning.The technique of putting two foals in a stall together can sometimes cause more stress as they try to figure out their hierarchy, she adds. It might work for some people, but thats a very small space to have two stressed-out animals crammed in together, so its not my preference, Garcia notes.Take-Home MessageWeaning is one of the first major transitions in a horses life and, while it can be stressful, thoughtful preparation can ease the process. A gradual approach that minimizes disruption can reduce stress and health risks while helping the foal adjust successfully to independence.