Earliest age colt can cover mare?

[Box_Of_Frogs]

New rescue mare + 5 month old colt joined my yard 5 or 6 weeks ago. Both absolute poppets. Mum and colt Section As. The smell of colt's baby testosterone sent my tarty Shetland mare Molly into a raging season and she was (pardon my French) gagging for it morning noon and night. Wouldn't leave poor colt alone. His new rug soon absolutely stank of randy, rampant mare coz she peed on him constantly! I thought it was hilarious - innocent young lad being seduced by my Mrs Robinson of a shettie. I thought harmless and no possible chance of live sperm. He'd hoik himself up onto her back and sort of stand there uncertainly but my YO reckons he had his old boy out good and proper though unsure if penetration. Vets initially said chance of live sperm in a 5 month old colt, still suckling, pretty much zero. But they were out today as colt's surgery site after gelding a bit inflamed and when they realised he'd been getting quite passionate with my Molly, there was a lot of umming and aahing and furrowed brows.

Any experience of the youngest age a colt can successfully cover a mare?

 

[tweedette]

A yearling colt can get a mare in foal, infact two yearlings can produce a foal , not to be recommended, but is possible

 

[amysponies]

as soon a they are weaned the testostrone goes up and they can make foals.
i have know of a weanling getting a mare pregnant.

 

[Box_Of_Frogs]

Eep. Should I start knitting then? At 5 months he wasn't quite weaned and was gelded 3 weeks after arrival. 5 months seems awfully young.

 

[magic104]

Im sure Ive been told in the past that once they have dropped then they are capable of producing live sperm. The youngest I have known was a May colt who covered a mare Jan who then foaled Lucia 24 Dec. Owner was on holiday at the time in St Lucia (hence the name), YO did not think colts that young were a threat, so when they got in with the mare was not concerned.