Could a 5 month foal be fertile?
PE Schmid
two poneys, a Friesian, and Arab and there are Warmbloods in the
adjacent parks. Jos is very interested in mares. The
barn manager is concerned that the poney mare might have been
impregnated. Isn't it a bit early?
The most precociously fertile colt I have heard of is
a nine month old trotter.
I plan to leave Jos under his dam until he is 6 month old.
Am I taking chances?
Thanks for your thoughts!
Phil Schmid
Lausanne Switzerland
Kelly Lynch
breed mares..he was too short..otherwise it looked like it would have
worked.....he even jumped a 4 ft fence to try to get at a mare...he was
gelded soon after
Jane Kilberg
writes:
>I have a mare and her 5 month old foal Jos sharing their park with
>two poneys, a Friesian, and Arab and there are Warmbloods in the
>adjacent parks. Jos is very interested in mares. The
>barn manager is concerned that the poney mare might have been
>impregnated. Isn't it a bit early?
Yup...although it's not real common. More than likely he's just
developing. Many times colts and fillies will begin to jump on their
mamas or check out the gals. In order to know for sure if he's got the
stuff, it would need to be checked out.
OK, here's a story for ya.
Had this colt foaled in February 1995. He didn't act like a foal, he
acted like a stallion for 5 months. He would tease, extend his penis and
get very erect. By the time he was 3 weeks old, he was attempting to
breed a 3 year old mare as well as another mare. I separated him
immediately. He did drip liquid from his penis but fortunately, he did
not penetrate the mares as he was a bit small and try as he did couldn't
get it high enough.
I was definitely embarrassed by this foal who showed none of the typical
signs of foal-like behavior. He was weaned at 5 months, but it wasn't
until he was 8 months old that he began to exhibit foal-like behavior. Me
thinks he just got it all backwards. I had his semen tested when he was 6
months old and got a shock. . . he was fertile, but not abundantly. He
could impregnate a mare. Since junior was being considered as a stud
prospect, decided to keep him in tact. Now he is a yearling, my
circumstances have changed and on Monday, April 1 he's becoming a great
gelding.
Teka: And he even tried to get me..that little twirp. I'm 16.2 hands and
if he thought I was gonna get into a ditch for him...well... although I
did enjoy his sweet nothin's.
down the sunny trails . . .
jane kilberg and her gang of spotted 4 legged critters at the
rocking double j ranch in the great nation of Tejas
member of ApHC, Sundance '500' International (Appaloosa appreciation
society)
Montgomery County Adult Horse Committee
vet
pregnant at 5 months of age. This may be uncommon but could easily happen
John Hasler
impregnate a mare. Check his testicles. If I remember right, they must
be at least a couple of centimeters in size for fertility. At 5 months
you will be hard put to find them at all.
--
John Hasler This posting is in the public domain.
jgha...@win.bright.net Do with it what you will.
Dancing Horse Hill Make money from it if you can; I don't mind.
Elmwood, Wisconsin
jaz
seems he was in the mood to buy his grandchildren a pony to drive (this
family drives, drives, drives so he is very experienced). They find
this little 10 hand pony mare who is the cutest thing, but kind of
round. So they put her on a diet, she is getting more rotund by the day
so they give her very little hay and no grain. She gets rounder, and
you guessed it.............one morning they find her and "him" the new
born lying in the stall.
The foal is huge! They are surprised beyond belief that this little
pony delivered all by her lonesome this big foal. They go back to
where the pony was bought and ask them about the stallion. Who was it?
What's the deal here? The first pony owners look at him and say "What
Stud?" News to them! Turns out the stallion was a SEVEN MONTH OLD
CLYDESDALE!!! Seems he was put in the field with the pony when he was
weaned and she was suppose to babysit the big baby. Some babysittin'!
Either that pony is a hussy or that little stud was the most precocious
little brat. Now that's hard to do with that size difference. He wanted,
she wanted........it's an old story and it's true.
The foal is creamy light tan, feathers and pulling a cart now at 15.3
hands. Mom is retired from breeding and pulling a cart along side him
at 10 hands.
Ain't love grand?
jaz
Jane Kilberg
Never say never, John..The only way anyone knows for sure if a young
stallion is fertile is to test the seminal fluid for fertility and
motility.
A 6 month old colt of mine was evaluated as being fertile with a motility
score of 2 with 85 mil concentration at 61%. Yup, he could impregnate a
mare although he may not be successful. With that type of evaluation, he
was prably fertile to some degree at 5 months.
It's not exactly common, but it can happen.
John Hasler
> Horses reach puberty at the same age as cattle which frequently get
> pregnant at 5 months of age. This may be uncommon but could easily happen
Cattle (at least dairy cattle) have been intensively bred for early calving:
the local standard is first calf at 24 months. I've never seen a filly show
heat much before 12 months. It usually comes much later. It is harder to
tell with colts, as mounting behavior occurs as early as a few weeks, but
the testicles usually don't show much growth until about 12 months, and they
usually stay pretty small through the yearling summer.
Corey Lee Bishop
: vet writes:
: > Horses reach puberty at the same age as cattle which frequently get
: > pregnant at 5 months of age. This may be uncommon but could easily happen
: Cattle (at least dairy cattle) have been intensively bred for early calving:
: the local standard is first calf at 24 months. I've never seen a filly show
: heat much before 12 months. It usually comes much later. It is harder to
: tell with colts, as mounting behavior occurs as early as a few weeks, but
: the testicles usually don't show much growth until about 12 months, and they
: usually stay pretty small through the yearling summer.
Interestingly enough, Al-Marah Arabians routinely gelds their colts at
two weeks! Mrs. T. says that testicles are almost ALWAYS down at birth,
if one is retracted then it will always stay retracted, that gelding early
has very few problems, the recovery time is much shorter and the foals do
quite well at it.
Since she's been breeding for about fifty years now, she knows at birth by
looks and pedigree which colts she wants to keep for potential stallions,
and they are few and far between!
If I have any stud colts next year (only breeding two mares) then I will
quite likely geld very early. No fussing with stud colt attitudes!
: --
: John Hasler This posting is in the public domain.
: jgha...@win.bright.net Do with it what you will.
: Dancing Horse Hill Make money from it if you can; I don't mind.
: Elmwood, Wisconsin
Sue
--
"Inconceivable!"
"You keep using that word. I don' think it means
what you think it means." _The Princess Bride_
"Never underestimate the power of stupidity." Robert Heinlein
Travis Yates
>Ain't love grand?
>jaz
>
>
>
Yes its possible! We had a 10 hand shetland stud coax a huge belgin
into a ditch where he could stand on the bank and successfully breed
her. They were both adults, but the point is size is not important!
travis
John T. Klausner
>at 10 hands.
>
>Ain't love grand?
>jaz
A friend of mine had some 16 hand TWHs. Put a small donkey in with them
thinking NOO problem. Next spring everyone of the mares came up with a
Tennesee Walking Mule foal. He figured the mares must of laid down for
him!
SueK
Jim & Laura Behning
>A friend of mine had some 16 hand TWHs. Put a small donkey in with them
>thinking NOO problem. Next spring everyone of the mares came up with a
>Tennesee Walking Mule foal.
Hey, I think those are worth lots of money, actually!
Laura Behning
mor...@mindspring.com
Cynthia Kinsland
> Yes its possible! We had a 10 hand shetland stud coax a huge belgin
> into a ditch where he could stand on the bank and successfully breed
> her. They were both adults, but the point is size is not important!
>
> travis
My S.O. used to own a Quarter Horse stud farm in Louisiana. They used to
allow a shetland pony stallion into paddocks with mares as a teaser.
Then, much to everybody's surprise one mare was sooooo ready to be
serviced that she lay down for him to mount. Needless to say, after the
vet visit, they no longer allowed the shetland out with the mares.
Personally, I would have liked to have seen it...
Cynthia
John T. Klausner
Sad to say this occurred nearly 40 years ago - somehow I don't think he
could get a whole lot for them today!!
SueK
I hadn't really intended to admit to that part!
Jane Kilberg
writes:
>Not very likely. Colts will often make attempts to mount and breed but
>usually aren't successful. Chances are at 5 months, the testicles
>haven't even fully descended into the scrotum. In all the years I've
>been breeding, haven't EVER heard of a colt that young successfully
>covering a mare.
Had a new vet out yesterday to geld a yearling. I asked him if he knew of
the youngest possible age a colt can impregnate a mare. He said in vet
school (Oklahoma) he was informed that it can occurr as young as 3-4
months of age, but that was extremely rare. The case sited was one of a
colt who was very matured at birth which was something like 11 and a half
month gestation. He developed rapidly and his testicles were always
descended. Greg (the vet) told me that the colt was probably equivalent
to a 5-6 month older. He did tell me that it isn't uncommon to have a 5-6
month old colt impregnate a mare, but the norm is more like 8-9 months
old and older.
Just thought I'd share what I found out.
Stethmir
Sylvia Glover
Stethmir Arabians
PE Schmid
>
> Just noting the passage of time.
possibly fertile 5 monther)
We've decided, naughty as he is, to give him a two-year
sentence. He'll go to jail the day he is six months old.
There is a program at a jail nearby for prisoners to take
care of foals. They hold and clean the feet, tie the foals
for feeding, brush them and perhaps teach them some good manners.
The place has a good reputation with breeders.
I just wonder if I'll have to say I'm my foal's lawyer to get in
and say hello.
Phil Schmid
Lausanne Switzerland
Stethmir
writes:
>We've decided, naughty as he is, to give him a two-year
>sentence. He'll go to jail the day he is six months old.
>
>There is a program at a jail nearby for prisoners to take
>care of foals. They hold and clean the feet, tie the foals
>for feeding, brush them and perhaps teach them some good manners.
>The place has a good reputation with breeders.
>I just wonder if I'll have to say I'm my foal's lawyer to get in
>and say hello.
>
>Phil Schmid
>Lausanne Switzerland
>
>
Luckily, the foal's in Switzerland. In U.S., god knows what
unmentionables would happen to him in prison. (Okay, I'm cynical because
of the field in which I work.) Just tell the colt to watch his back. <G>
Sylvia Glover
Stethmir Arabians
Pat & Larry Smith
som...@ix.netcom.com(John T. Klausner ) wrote:
> In <4jjoej$3...@cocoa.brown.edu> jaz <Jaz...@aol.com> writes:
> >
> >Jane's story reminds me of a story the local trailer sellers tells.
> It
> >seems he was in the mood to buy his grandchildren a pony to drive
> (this
> >family drives, drives, drives so he is very experienced). They find
> >this little 10 hand pony mare who is the cutest thing, but kind of
> >round. So they put her on a diet, she is getting more rotund by the
> day
> >so they give her very little hay and no grain. She gets rounder, and
> >you guessed it.............one morning they find her and "him" the new
>
> >born lying in the stall.
We had a similar thing happen when I was a kid. Some friends were leaving
the area and gave us one of their mares. She was a big QH type mare, and
since we weren't expecting a foal, we didn't notice bagging up etc.
One morning Dad came in and said Trixie had a foal. I was elated, but we
were amazed cuz you know how kids ride horses. Just the day before I had
been jumping her in and out of the dry canal.
When Dad talked to our friends, she had been running with a less than
yearling, not sure how old, stud colt.
Pat S