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Stallions need clear boundaries
Another highlight of my time in South Africa was being asked to play with a 5 year old Friesian stallion called Zander who had only recently been purchased by Carl Bronner.
Zander was quite a cruisy character but like most young horses in a new environment, he was fidgety and always wanted to move when being saddled, bridled or mounted. He was used to being tied in the stable for these things so when coming to a more natural home, he was asked to take more responsibility for keeping himself still when asked.

In the 10 weeks she’d owned him, Carl had ridden him a little and sensibly spent more time on the ground getting to know him. He was also being socialized to run with other horses in preparation for serving mares which he hadn’t experienced yet.
This was achieved by running him with a quiet old gelding he’d made friends with over the fence. Soon he will have his gelding friend swapped for an older, experienced mare when she is not in season so they can get to know each other before the hormone levels start rising.

But back to my session with Zander which was viewed by 20 or so keen students, many of them having colts or stallions themselves looking for insights into how best to handle them. Carl had found he was relaxed and comfortable in the small round yard so we decided to stay with this comfort zone to give him the best opportunity to take in new things.
It also enabled me to start at liberty with him which could illustrate how to provide comfort and discomfort without too much pressure and in a way he could understand from herd interaction.

I became the ‘alpha mare’ and with the aim of allowing him to only find the center of the arena as a comfortable place to stand still. It didn’t take many repetitions of sending him out to trot around before he realized he could ‘ask’ to come back in by focusing on me with his ear, lowering his head a little and then turning his head to me. At first he could only stand still for a few seconds but the more he got to move, the more he wanted his comfort back (Friesians are quite ‘short’ horses so only want to run a short distance) and it wasn’t long before he could stand for 30 or 60 seconds. He also got to where he would realize his mistake at having moved, run to the edge of the yard and turn to come straight back in. It was lovely to see him trying so hard to keep his feet still and while doing this, I left him alone a lot, just as horses do, and occasionally looked for his itchy spots to see if we could be friends.
Once he was really sure that the arena center and being with me was comfortable, we gave him a break, had a cuppa then came back to introduce the halter and saddle to the arena center.

He was quite happy to be haltered and stood quietly and still to be saddled, not needing to be sent out to move until after the saddle was in place. It was a big change from the past battles to keep him still where a lot of constant reminders and pressure could be seen by him as nagging, and stallions just don’t tolerate that.
After saddling, I moved him around and checked that he could cope with my stick moving around him, and that he could yield softly to the halter in preparation for riding him in the halter for the first time. It took him a while to realize he only would only get comfort when he stopped leaning on the halter as he had been used to pushing on it. Once I was happy that he could flex his neck and yield his hindquarter, I stood him to get on and he tried to move – once! After one high energy hindquarter yield he decided standing still was the better option and was no trouble to mount.
I finished his session when he was able to yield his head and hindquarters softly to a stop from the walk and trot as it had been a big morning for him and I wanted to finish before his concentration lapsed.

Zander, like most stallions, just needed clear communication as to where the boundaries were and he was the ideal subject to demonstrate how we need to be black and white (not grey) with comfort and discomfort, which is why handling a stallion is best done when you have a high level of savvy and experience.
Carl reports that Zander is such a gentlemen now that she has respect in all the right places and she has started to test that by taking him for walks past other horses with great success.

A Natural Breeding Experience

'IN LIKE FINN' – MY COLT’S FIRST MARE

Witnessing my arab colt’s first sexual encounter with a mare was a very special time for me.
It was an enthralling study in horse behaviour and really showed me how a stallion courts a mare….naturally.

Finn is almost two years old and he is my second chance to get it right as far as owning a stallion goes.
I had his sire, Mandala Royale, from the age of six months until he was 22 when he died in 2003 and although I had a successful time with him in terms of competition, breeding and relationship – it could have been better.
Of course I realised all this after I had some years of experience with natural horsemanship and understood stallions behaviour a whole lot better, then I would often find myself wishing I had known enough to do things differently with him.

Finn was in utero when his father died and I’m convinced he in a reincarnation of Roy’s spirit. He is the only colt I bred from close to 70 foals Roy produced that was the image of him. He also inherited all of Roy’s mannerisms and seems to have a wisdom way beyond his years.
Being Roy’s last foal (and his dam’s last - Belbowrie Serenata who has excellent bloodlines), I called him Royale Finale and decided his conformation and temperament warranted keeping him as a colt to see what he produced.

So, when the opportunity presented itself in the form of a very in season mare arriving for some float training, the owner decided Finn would be worth trying as a sire. She had been considering breeding her mare but wasn’t sure if she was capable of having another foal at 17 years of age.
I assured her many mares breed well into there 20’s so long as they are physically sound internally and externally and are cycling regularly as this mare was.

Sophie was showing off to all the horses she met so I thought it was best to introduce Finn as soon as possible. I led him away from his family herd (he was still running with his dam, another old mare, her daughter and a gelding who all kept him in his place – at the bottom of the pecking order) to meet Sophie who was led to a safe meeting place with no fence between them.

For the next 45 minutes my partner and I watched (and photographed) Finn courting Sophie who was very willing but wanted some respect and trust before she would allow this fellow she’d only just met, come so close.

We held their ropes loose as a safety net so if she kicked with malice or if he rushed too much, we could control things a little.
As it turned out, Finn knew enough about equine body language from running with the herd all this time, to read her intentions and her couple of half hearted kicks kept him polite.
After nibbling and touching her from her nose to her tail including her legs with many approaches and retreats, it looked like he’d need plenty of time to get to know her before any sexual activity would occur.

I decided to take them to the paddock along side his herd and turn him loose while keeping Sophie on line until I was sure she wasn’t going to hurt him.
The touching and licking increased to testing her with some gentle biting – more like taking hold of her on the hocks, legs – she even lifted a front leg for him, and the tail.

He did some approach and retreat by rubbing against her and lifting his front legs before trying a jump up and even stood right behind her with his chest pressing her rear end to gauge her reaction.
Within 30 more minutes, he had her wooed and the mating began. It was lovely to watch – he was so in-experienced but knew exactly what to do and completed the coupling like a pro. I’ve never seen a young colt so sure of what he was there for and take his time so lovingly with a mare so ready to be served who also appeared to enjoy the whole process.

When it was over, I removed her halter and they wandered off to eat grass together and meet the other horses over the fence.
He was fine with his own family sniffing her, but when the group of geldings on the other side wanted to chat to the new girl, he protectively placed himself in between and even showed aggression towards much older horses he’d shown very submissive signs to only an hour earlier.
He then decided to herd his new wife away and assumed the lowered head with ears back of a stallion, circling her then driving her from behind to go well away from the others.

All of a sudden my meek and mild baby colt was behaving like the stallion his father was – and he was still 10 days off his two year old birthday!
I sat and watched his antics for a couple of hours – he showed of his paces to Sophie, trotting away and turning tightly around various obstacles in the paddock as if to say “Look at me – aren’t I the best”.
They cantered around together, ate grass together and looked so happy I decided it was safe to leave them running together for future un-supervised matings.
I remove the geldings from over the fence so Finn didn’t need to tire himself with herding Sophie away and left them to enjoy each other’s company.

The next morning, I found them both lying down close to each other, soaking up the sun and resting from all the activity which no doubt happened during the night judging from the squeals I heard every now and then.

As I excitedly relay the story of Finn losing his virginity to my friends, I realise that it couldn’t have been any better for him or Sophie.
I’m happy knowing that my current knowledge has helped him learn about life with mares in a relaxed and gradual manner, unlike his sire who was always anxious and difficult to handle when serving mares due to the traditional approach of only hand serving and no herd to run with.

So I’ve made amends with Roy’s spirit who didn’t have that same opportunity all those years ago and we are all smiling.

Gelding a Colt By Cynthia Cooper ©

The decision to geld or keep a colt entire is one many owners will one day make when they breed or buy a young male horse. So why geld (otherwise known as castrate) your colt?

Here are some questions you need to ask yourself:

What is the future for the colt - will he be a riding horse for pleasure or performance?
You will need to be a highly skilled horseperson to ride a stallion amongst other horses for pleasure or performance and if your intention is not to breed, then a gelding will be much more pleasureable to keep.

What is his conformation and temperament like?
A colt is of no benefit to horse breeding if he doesn't have an amenable temperament or correct conformation ie: no physical faults. There's a saying that goes 'A good colt makes a great gelding'.

Does he have proven bloodlines that are worth preserving? I know you can't ride a pedigree but there are lines proven for certain types of perfomance, eg. endurance, jumping etc. so only keep him a colt if he has useful bloodlines that will be sought after, otherwise he will not attract breedings and it will be harder to sell his progeny.

Can you offer him quality of life if he's kept as a stallion? This is the most important consideration from the horse's point of view. A life of solitary confinement in his own paddock, yard or stable is akin to us being confined alone in our house, lounge room or toilet for the rest of our lives. If you can't offer a stallion constant equine company (including mating) and room to move then you will have to deal with all the behaviour problems that come as a result of un-used energy, hormones and equipment! Please consider the future life of a colt before you keep him that way.

Will injury keep him from being more than a companion gelding? Sometimes, if a colt is badly injured as a youngster, and the prognosis for performance is poor, then you may want to wait a couple of years before you geld him. That way you can see if youthful healing will help, and whether the injury will stand up to the work he gets as a riding horse. Even then, if he can't be a performance horse, all the other factors must be weighed up as life being a frustrated stallion would be much worse than a companion gelding lounging around the pasture.

Once you have taken into account all these factors and made your decision to geld (hopefully within the first two months of age) then you need to decide at what age it's best to operate?
Any colt can be gelded from as early as a week old, provided he has both testicles descended and if you can find a vet willing to geld that young. Many vets prefer to wait until the colt is several months old as they feel they will handle the anaesthetic better.
Some vets will perform a castration under sedation with just the scrotum anaesthetised and this would be preferable for very young colts.

In the past though, it was more common to leave a colt until at least two years old before he was gelded. This most likely became the accepted age because that's when a colt's behaviour can become a problem around other horses.
On the other had, a stallion can be gelded at almost any age, but the stress on the horse and risk of complications increases with age.

Now owners are gelding colts younger for many good reasons; most importantly, they realise that the smaller the testicles, the smaller the operation and the easier it is on the horse.
Another step in the right direction is to geld a colt before weaning. While he's still nursing he will not only have the comfort of his dam, but he will move around more and that reduces the risk of excessive swelling and therefore infection.

Another benefit of gelding young is that behaviour generally doesn't become a problem and if your colt is running in a herd of mixed sexes, then you don't risk an un-wanted foal. A colt can sire a foal as young as twelve months of age if he's healthy and has a willing partner!

Sometimes owners worry that gelding at a young age will slow development and growth. Yes, this can happen when a colt is gelded during a growth spurt, usually between one and two years old, but if gelded before a year old, they often grow taller than expected.

An early gelded colt will also have a finer neck and more uniform body muscling while a mature gelded colt or stallion (after the age of 4 to 6) will have a thicker, crestier neck and heavier muscling. They may also develop sexual or stallion behaviours which sometimes equate to vices such as biting, rearing, self mutilation (out of frustration) and excitable behaviour around other horses.

if your colt doesn't have two descended testicles, you may need to wait and geld after he is two, or if it looks like he will be a cryptorchid (only has one testicle) then a larger operation will need to be performed.

The time of year will also dictate when best to geld your colt. It's better done when the weather is cooler without being freezing, and the flies have gone. Mid to late autumn usually has the best weather and allows the colt to recover before winter sets in.

So now you've decided when, it's time to prepare well ahead of the operation date. Ideally you've been handling and touching your colt all over (including between the back legs) since birth.

If you haven't, then at least a month before gelding, the colt will need to be educated to being caught, accept a halter, to lead and have it's whole body touched. It's also helpful to get him used to being sponged with water and hosed gently, especially around and between the back legs in case major swelling or infection after operation needs to be treated.

It goes without saying that your colt will also need to accept strangers (such as the vet) close to them and you can even simulate giving an injection by pressing the neck with a hard object such as a hoof pick. Remember to do this for short sessions and your aim is to have him standing in a quiet relaxed manner. It's helpful to have a 'horsey' friend the colt hasn't met, to visit and test his reaction to strangers prior to the vet coming.
It's also wise to organise enough helpers for the big event - a handler for the mare and one for the colt is ideal.
Before you book the vet, check the long range weather forecast as it's better to keep him outside after the operation (for movement and to reduce the chance of infection) and a spell of wet weather will only reduce his desire to move.
Make sure your colt is healthy and well - it's not a good idea to geld a sickly or otherwise injured colt.

On the day of the operation, move the colt and his mum to a clean paddock so risk of infection is minimised when the colt lays down. The site of the operation should ideally be a clean, flat grassed area (shaded if it's warm) and free of objects the colt could stumble into when recovering from the anaesthetic.
Other horses from their herd should be kept nearby but out of the operating area.

Photo: The anaethatised colt has his scrotum cleaned before operating.

It's helpful to have them all relaxed and settled in their surroundings well before the vet arrives so get them in a few hours beforehand and provide a feed of hay, making sure water is also close by.

When the vet arrives, halter both mare and colt and keep the mare close but out of the way while the vet does the operation. He may ask for assitance to hold a leg or keep an eye on the breathing monitor so choose someone who isn't squeamish to handle the colt. The vet will generally give the colt a tetanus injection and an antibiotic after the castration.

After the operation, keep the mare and colt haltered until he is standing and walking well, and able to nurse again. If something frightens him while he's under the effect of the sedation, he may hurt himself accidently running into something. It would be kinder to have the mare and colt seperate from the other horses for a few hours to overnight providing they aren't stressed by this, so the colt has time to recover from the operation a little before having to get out of anyone's way or play with other youngsters.
Then it's important for him to have plenty of natural movement (not enforced fast exercise) to help the wounds stay open and drain.

Keep a close eye on him for the first twelve hours after the operation and call your vet right back if you notice continual bleeding (it should have slowed to the odd drip within the first hour), or anything protruding from the wounds - that could indicate a herniation of the gut.

For the next two weeks after the operation you will need to check the scrotum with scrubbed clean or gloved fingers for excessive swelling, bleeding or (hopefully not) infection every day. By running your finger along the wound gently, you can help keep the wound open a little so it continues to heal from the inside first.
If the area seems to be overly swollen then gentle sponging twice a day with luke warm lightly salty water will help remove scabs that could be stopping drainage of the wound. There should be clear to yellowy-red serum dripping from the wound if all is normal. If you notice creamy pus oozing then call the vet to check if it has become infected. If so, there will be injections to give and washing the wound daily.

If you are gelding a sexually mature colt or stallion, remember that it takes a couple of months for hormonal activity to stop and sexual behaviour to moderate so keep him seperate from cycling fillies or mares at this time. Semen is also be stored in a resovoir that is not removed during the operation so impregnation may occur for up to a month after gelding.

It's possible men may view a castration operation as the 'un-kindest' cut, but for a horse, gelding is the 'kindest cut' you can give him for a future of interaction with other horses and people.

For more information on gelding visit Cherry Hill's Horsekeeping web site here or myhorse.com and for info on cryptorchidism visit thehorse.com

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