A colt named Scooby– colic and weaning

Fran writes (Nov. 25):
Scooby and Jackie are doing well. We had a tough time last weekend. Scooby came down with a case of colic and I was very stressed. I was told by several that it might have been the weather change. I’ve not changed any of his feed…

Well, my plans were to start with weaning on Thanksgiving Day as I would be home for several days to watch he and Mom… But when he got sick over the weekend, he was disinterested in nursing and we were working with him making sure he walked plenty and taking care of him. We went ahead and separated them. Jackie (Mom) seemed relieved and this morning would be the third day she has not nursed him. She is already drying up and seems very relaxed and happy.

Scooby on the other hand is a bit irritated at times but overall is adjusting pretty well. I sat down with the Vet and asked a lot of questions about his colic and the timing with the weaning because I was unsure if that would be a good idea because of stress. He said that since Scooby is a good size and is eating and drinking water well that he was plenty independent enough for the separation but to just watch him and make sure he is doing ok. So far so good. He has a good appetite and is drinking plenty. He doesn’t appear to be losing any weight and the colic issue has not come back up. I am very thankful for that!

Connie’s Reply:
Sorry to hear Scooby was ill and I hope he’s fine now. Colic is one of those things it’s often hard to pinpoint, and I’m happy to say has never been an issue for our boys (knock on wood!) It’s my belief that plenty of exercise and fiber and NOT getting rich feed is helpful in warding off colic. By plenty of exercise, I mean 24-hour turnout, which is what our horses have. We are lucky we can give them that; they are able to be munching most of time, so their guts are always active. Even though they are getting hardly any grass now and we feed them hay twice daily, still they are munching on the stubble and eating acorns and are moving around almost continually– As horses are designed to do.

During weaning is a good time to form a closer bond with the young horse– at least our boys were very receptive to human attention and company when they were separated from mom. It would be nice to perhaps begin new training, especially reward-based training such as clicker training. Any kind of training will occupy his mind and build a stronger relationship with people. I hope he is leading well now, and moving away from pressure and respecting your space.

How old is he now? As he matures and gets closer to gelding age, it is possible he may become feisty and less tractable. One of our guys I just didn’t do much with around 8-10 months old (I THINK that was the age) because he was such a smart ass. When he was gelded he turned very quickly into a pussycat and was fun to work with again. THe second brother never went thru that smartass stage, he was such a gentleman and so sweet I briefly considered not even gelding him, but then I came to my senses. I think he was just about a year old before his gelding. His personality got even nicer then.

Keep on with all the time you can give him!! Awaiting your pix…

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