Foal - Weaning and Maturity

Weaning and Maturity

It is typical for foals under human management to be weaned between four and six months of age, though under natural conditions, they may nurse for longer, occasionally until the following year when the mare foals again. A foal that has been weaned but is less than one year old is called a weanling.

Mare's milk is not a significant source of nutrients for the foal after about four months, though it does no harm to a healthy mare for a foal to nurse a month or two longer and may be of some psychological benefit to the foal. A mare that is both nursing and pregnant will have increased nutritional demands made upon her in the last months of pregnancy, and therefore most domesticated foals are weaned sometime in the autumn in the Northern Hemisphere.

Weanlings are not capable of reproduction. Puberty occurs in most horses during their yearling year. Therefore, some young horses are capable of reproduction prior to full physical maturity, though it is not common. Two year olds sometimes are deliberately bred, though doing so, particularly with fillies, may put undesirable stress on their still-growing bodies. As a general rule, breeding young horses prior to the age of three is considered undesirable.