Foal leading

[Lindsay]

Our TB mare is due in April and I would like a little bit of advice on teaching the foal to lead, both when to start this exercise and how. I have read that the first leading experience should be done with a "buttrope", however I am unsure of how this is to be done??

[Horselover2]

Congratulations on your impending arrival Lindsay! There are some good books out there about raising foals that have advice about "imprinting" and such that you may find helpful.

I don't have any experience with babies of my own, so I don't really know when to begin training to lead, but I have been around lots of babies, and even got to teach one to lead. If I recall, the filly was about 4wks old at the time. My friend who owns the mare led her(the mare), and I employed the butt rope method on the filly. (Have mom right there with the tyke) All you do is attach the lead like normal to the baby's halter, and then loop it around the far side and around the butt (taking care not to hurt the little tail). Use your left hand on the lead near the halter, and with you right hand, simply encourage the baby to step forward with gentle pressure against the butt.

It will take time and patience, and be content with just a step or two at first!

[This message has been edited by Horselover2 (edited 31 January 2000).]

[intouch]

If you spend a couple of minutes every day from day one, just being near, talking quietly, stroking all over and picking up feet (when he/she can balance!) your foal will trust you quite quickly. To start leading it's best if you have two helpers, one for mum and one to encourage baby forward. Using a soft cotton rope, long enough to make a figure of eight round his neck and loosely round his quarters with the join over the back. When mum moves forward, use a "walk on" command and encourage him forward. Be happy with very gentle progress, half a dozen steps to begin with is great. Foals hate you to touch the front of their face, so don't be in too much of a hurry to put a foal slip on, unless you are going to show, when you have to take a few short-cuts. Very best wishes, you will have great fun!

[Clj369z]

Hi Lindsy,

I had my first foal last year and learned more than I though I would. The book on Imprint training I found more helpful than the video. From the first minute of her birth we handled both her daily. For the first couple of days, we would put the halter on and lead the mare, while the baby followed woth only a halter on. After maybe three or four days of this, we put a soft cotten lead on and allowed the baby to follow mom out to the paddock. Each time we did the same thing and took the halter off and showed her how to behave when being turned out.

After several days of doing this, we added the commands and whoever was leading mom would halt or walk on and whoever was leading baby would do the same. We also alterated sides.

At about three weeks, we would lead the baby out of the stall first with mom following and maybe go 1/2 way to the paddock being in front before we put mom in front and went back to following.

Thankfully I have a great mare who did really care what you did to the baby as long as she could see her.

We also had a barn rule that if you wanted to pat the baby, you had to at the very least, run your hand down her leg and pick it up or take a brush and brush some part of her. We did this mostly so she would get used to being handled. I also brought cotten lead ropes in and had them around her legs, under her tail, drapped all over her to get her used to basically anything.

One mistake we made was always unbuckling the halter - so that by her third halter, we had never put it over her ears. It took about a week to get her completely over the "that is not the way you do this" routine.

Another good thing we did and my mare allowed was to handle her while nursing. you can now do anything to her while eating and she just doesn't care.

Good luck and I hope you have as much fun as I did.

Cindi