Your foal - in or out?

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Lill

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I get the impression a LOT of people on here bring their foals in and keep them in for a while be it overnight or during the day or for a few hours... is this because of the type of livery you are on that you have to do this? Why not leave them out 24/7? Would you leave them out 24/7 if you could?
 
i left my Wb foal out once she was around 4-6weeks old(born in march) as livery yard let me.
now yearling and in at night (new yard) as grass too rich to risk leaving her out all the time!
and was in alot at yet other yard on full livery all winter(reason for moving was stuck in for 3months).
 
Mine is still at the stud where she was born on 26th April. The stud was bringing the mares and foals in at night until Monday of last week because the weather turned so wet and cold. They didn't want the foals getting chilled which I think was a reasonable decision. The mares and foals still come at night for a few nights after the foals are born but provided the weather is kind they stay out 24/7 after 2 or 3 days.
 
Mine's still in at night, basically at least until I get her a bit friendlier and handleable! She's also had bent legs so it's helped not to give her too much exercise. Probably in a few weeks they'll be out all the time.
 
Hi,

Mine is out at night, in for the day when the flies start biting which depends on the weather.
I would happily leave her out all the time otherwise, she goes in a smaller paddock at night-time with stock fencing not so much to keep the horses in but the dogs (not mine) and coyotes out!
 
Just a question but one of my foals had bent legs and vet said to keep in and farrier said to leave out, buy building up the muscles they would naturally straighten. Took farriers advice as they specialise in legs. Foal came right in 4 - 6 weeks and legs became beautifully straight.

All our mares foal outside and foals stay out with mum 24/7. They only come in to be weaned and handled. Although they are handled every day out in the field.
 
it depends on the mare and how big the box is too. I did it both ways. My first foal was born in December, she was a bit of an "accident", so went out only for an hour or so twice a day and the rest was in a large stable. And it worked out fine as the mare was experienced mother.
My other foal was born in May and was stabled only for first few days overnight. The mare (not an experienced mother) managed to tread on the foal and caused an injury to her leg, which luckily healed ok, but have known similar injuries to be fatal.
Generaly, if the weather is good, the mare and foal should be out, just like in nature, and on a good grass.
Same goes for youngstock. I don't believe in having them stabled unless the weather is awful, the ground too bed, etc.
Young, growing horses need to move about and grow the way they intended to and I was told by many experienced breeders and vets they would never consider having youngstock in unless there was a serious reason for it.
hope that helps.
 
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All our mares foal outside and foals stay out with mum 24/7. They only come in to be weaned and handled. Although they are handled every day out in the field.

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This is the same as our 2 mares that have just foaled both in the field, overnight, on their own and are kept out which to me is normal... i was just wondering what other people do and whether it is because of the yards they are on or by choice!

(Might be just me [and probably is] but i think video cameras in the stables and all that malarky ruins the surprise you get when you go out in the morning and are greeted by a baby foal! [Will now wait to get shot down for voicing my opinion])
 
Well I let nature take it's course, we do do an hourly check on the broodmare paddock through the night and if something looks like it's going to do something then we shorten it to 1/2 hourly checks, bonus is I live onsite so it's not too much hardship. And even then the buggers you were watching go and have them in the middle of the afternoon!
 
TBTH i'm not too sure what i'll be doing with mine yet. All of my horses are out 24/7 but it depends on the weather, flies and the building work we're doing (building a livery yard). Its most probable they'll have to come in for 12 hours a day (day or night) but they will have half a barn to go in, instead of a stable so it will be like they're outside really.
 
That's fine so long as there aren't any problems. I could have left my mare to foal at home in the field and be surprised to find a foal in the morning but I was far too paranoid to do that!!! She did foal without any real problems in the end although the stud said she was a little "tight" and they had to do some pulling but they also had to get the foal suckling well as she hadn't done so after a number of hours and was very weak - they thought at first they might have to call the vet. They are a very experienced stud and I was more than happy to pay a modest foaling fee for their experience and expertise - they have quite a few horror stories of things going badly wrong and I have heard similar stories from other breeders too.
 
[ QUOTE ]
(Might be just me [and probably is] but i think video cameras in the stables and all that malarky ruins the surprise you get when you go out in the morning and are greeted by a baby foal! [Will now wait to get shot down for voicing my opinion])

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I completely see where you're coming from, but im so petrified of something awful happening to the mares and foals that im determined to see the foals being born (although knowing my luck they'll have them when my backs turned, lol).

A friend of mine used to do exactly as you do and she doesn't have any problems at all, i think shes very very lucky, as shes bred no end of foals. I know the majority of the time nothing bad does happen but bad things do happen, if you get my drift, lol.
 
My little one who was born about a month ago was born outside and lives outside from the moment of birth. We have huge field shelters and her mother has been pretty good at taking her inside if we have inclement weather or during the very hot times throughout the day....however now at a month old, our little one just goes in when she wants to regardless of whether her mother goes in or not. She is a very self-assured little foal though.
 
Mine is only 4 days old and I'm building up the time he spends in the field, in another few weeks they'll go out during the night and in during the day as the flies are really bad in the summer. It also doesn't help that mum prefers to be in, she likes to get out for a few hours but then looks to came in, and she's always been like that, even before foal arrived.
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(Might be just me [and probably is] but i think video cameras in the stables and all that malarky ruins the surprise you get when you go out in the morning and are greeted by a baby foal! [Will now wait to get shot down for voicing my opinion])


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I do see where you're coming from, however last year my mare had a really difficult birth and lost the foal, if we hadn't been there to pull it out we would also have lost her. It's a great surprise to find a healthy baby, but not to find a dead mare and foal, and I know people who unfortunately have. I had the monitors on her this time aswell and even though I missed the actual birth I was able to be there 10 minutes after he was born and it was a good thing I was as she wasn't letting him suck and we needed to intervene and call the vet, thankfully she got the idea after she was mildly sedated and both doing well now!
 
Hannah and Troy are in at night, and will be all summer as I am on a livery yard that requires all horses to come in at night. To be honest, I don't mind so much because it is allowing us to work on leading, picking feet up etc. every day twice a day.
 
My foal was born in June (in the field) so weather was nice and so mare and foal stayed out, with the approval of the vet.

I suppose if I foal is born in the very early months of the year (which is quite unnatural for horses) then they will bring the foal in to protect it from the weather.
 
Oh, forgot to add, had Hannah not been foal alarmed up and a camera in her stable we could have lost Troy because she started foaling at 5am then stopped when people arrived. Had the vet not induced her, we would probably not have had a live foal!

I think comments like that are absolutely ridiculous in my opinion... Yes nature should take its course, but then I might not have had a mare and foal after a lot of expense and emotional strain. The 15 sleepless nights I had watching her were worth it for the healthy 11 weeks old foal I have now.
 
Mine foal inside (so far anyway!) and are stabled at night for the first 6 weeks or so. It depends on the weather really as I don't like them to get cold or wet for the first month at least. I have only started leaving mares and foals out 24/7 for the last 2 nights but their boxes are ready so that if the weather changes I can get them in in a hurry.
 
my mare foaled inside but due to YO being a complete and utter idiot I had to move my mare and foal (foal was 10 days old) and she went from living in on a night to living out 24/7. She had plenty of shaded areas to rest out of the sun and the field was very private so mum didnt get upset.
If I was to do it all again I still think id have her foaling inside and living in on a night for a little while or at least till I felt the foal was completely ok and nothing was going to go wrong.
 
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