When do colts' balls drop and how old to geld?

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_jetset_

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I am trying to think ahead at the moment as certain things need sorting for the winter to enable me to keep all three at the yard I am currently on. Therefore, although Troy is only one month old (can you believe how fast that has gone!) I am having to start to consider when to geld him.

I am hoping to wean him at 6-7 months depending on how he is doing etc. So it will be September or October. I don't really want to geld him at this time as I think it will be a big enough trauma being separated from Mum. I would also like him to have a bit of something about him as I am hoping he will be my dressage horse I have longed for! However, he has something about him now in my opinion as he is very cheeky
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Also, at what age do their balls drop? Due to Troy's 'willy issue' I am very observant of that area
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Well im getting my colt gelded at the end of this month and he will be ten months old. I think you can geld as early as six months.
 
Well Fin was weaned at 6 months - not out of choice as you know. Some recomended gelding while still on mum as they recovered better - but as we didn't have that choise we did it after weaning.
We had bought Merri as a colt too so we had them both cut at the same time - now i'm racking brains as to when it was probably when they were around 9 months old. i remember it should be before flies arrive but after frosts have gone it was around feb march i think - i will find out for sure and let you know....
Both recovered well vet did it standing in their stables, lots blood but interesting
 
We had planned to geld Beano at one year, but as we wanted to turn him out with Toffee he had to be done at nine months. One of his balls hadn't dropped, but when he was sedated it did come down, so the op went ahead. We had him done in the spring so he could go out in the field afterwards as it helped with the swelling etc.
 
I'm following you two around this morning!
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If I had the choice and everything had dropped properly (never happened with my lot
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) I would have them done while still on the mare, definitely; they hardly notice and run to mum for a consolation drink to kiss it better instead of feeling very alone and 'man-poorly' when done later IMO. At that age, it's not a big job providing the vet can bend down low enough which won't be a problem with Troy, he's going to be a big boy!
Also, as I said yesterday, if they have 'that' presence when they're born, again, as Troy has, then leaving them any longer won't improve it, but even if they don't have that presence then, it can't be got just by leaving them til later. You could leave something til it's five or six and all it would have to show for it would be a big neck, it won't have improved its overall frame or given it THE presence that you would be wanting, does that make sense?
 
I'm not sure the thing about presence holds true, Herbs was gelded at around 8 months after weaning and everyone comments on how much he has!
 
I dont think there is a set time really. It depends on the colt. Obviously you do want to wait until he has dropped but if he has a retained testicle(s) you could be waiting for ever! It really depends on how coltish he is and how easy he is to handle as a colt. I had a colt gelded at two but he was really easy and probably could have been left longer but he was going out with mares so it wasnt an option. However Ive also had one gelded a 6 months as he was very aggressive and tried to mount people!!!

I think you will know when he is ready.
 
I had 3 colts cut last year, 2 year old and 2x 3yo. The geldings that were cut as 3yo, still have somthing about them (look at me). the other is a typical gelding!!
Got another colt to cut which is coming 1yo. would like to wait till next year but we have a mare arround and he really likes her yet I want him to keep condition for showing so may have him cut soon................
 
There are lots of theories about this nowadays. In America I know that one of the practices now in place is to geld them as young as a week old!! Done internally of course, they say that in doing this the geldings tend to develop physically as though they were still colts, albeit without the behaviour probs, and thus have the well developed toplines, etc. The only problem with this as you can imagine is the incidences of retained testicles, etc. I definately wouldn't even consider having him gelded around the same time as weaning as this is a stressful enough time and he will need a good immune system in order to be able to fight off any infection from the operation, etc. I had my boy gelded at 12 months as it was only then that he started to display 'stalliony' behaviour...if he hadn't I intended to keep him entire as long as poss. Bear in mind though that some of the behaviour he may now be displaying is more than like just baby playfullness as he will not have any of his stallion hormones, etc. in his system. Any mounting, etc. would be just because he is a fit, healthy and energetic boy and he knows it!
 
Unless the horse is to be used as a stallion for a period of time, then I would always always geld whilst the colt is still on the mare.
 
Thanks everyone... Troy tries to mount me whenever I bend down which is sightly worrying
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The problem is the flies will all be out while he is still with Hannah because he was born quite early, so it might be a good idea to leave it unti his first spring when he will be 12 months old.

What do you think about this idea?

The handling is not too much of a problem as I fully intend for him to be wel handled by then. I am having Richard Maxwell up in a week or two to give us some 'foalie' pointers on handling which I am really looking forwards to.
 
I worked at a stud and stallion grading centre so had an opportunity to look at them closely
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Personally much prefered those that were gelded at about 2 years of age (or even later if they behave!). They had this presence about them which others (gelded younger) didn't have.
 
The vet advised me not to get my connemara done until he was at least 12 months so his growth wouldn't be affected but at 10 months the pony was well dropped and getting very boisterous and difficult to handle (even though he'd been well handled since he was 4 months)and annoying the older ponies and mares in the field so I called out the vet and when he saw the size of him he thought at first that he was an ID and then when I told him he was a connemara he couldn't believe he was only 10 months, he thought he looked twice that!! So he got done (in the spring otherwise I wouldn't have been til the autumn due to flies) but there hasn't been any problems with his growth or presence, he's now 20 months and already 14.2h and is starting to fill out and has a good step and presence, i.e he's quite eye catching. I did take a good few months though for all the testosterone to go and it's only really in the last 2 months that he's settled down and developed a sweeter temperment.
 
Well the trail of thought is when you geld young, the horse will grow bigger and better; when you geld late the colt puts most of its growing into producing "men's bits" and sperm rather than height and body mass.
 
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