Soo Olafsen of S.L.O. Acres is a third-generation horse breeder on her 70-acre boarding and breeding facility in Claremont, ON, which was established by her grandfather in 1919. She was recently elected national president of the Canadian Sport Horse Association (CSHA) and stands Flippin Hot Tobasco, a Bronze Premium CSHA stallion by Flipper, Jay Hayes’ former grand prix mount. Olafsen estimates that over the years she has helped usher nearly 500 foals into the world.
While handling foals during their early days may not seem like “training” in itself, in reality every interaction you have with a horse can be considered a training opportunity, no matter how minor. Olafsen employs simple and practical methods to handle the newborns, unlike more extreme “imprinting” practices that have fallen into question in recent years (see sidebar). Here she shares some tips for making the first few weeks of the foal’s life a positive experience.
1. First Contact
Regarding the actual birth, Olafsen says, “We don’t interfere with the mares, but we do have cameras on them.” Once the foal is born, contact is kept to a minimum. “We go in and give the mare a bran mash while she’s still down. Then we bring the foal around to the front. I don’t like the mares to get up right away; it’s better and safer for the foal to be brought around to the mare, then let her lie there until she’s ready to get up.”
2. Foal Check
Olafsen will quickly dry the face with a towel to make sure the nostrils are clear. “I just make sure they have enough air and they’re breathing properly. I do check for cleft palate right away – not that I’ve ever had one. I’m a freak about umbilical cords; as soon as they tear we start dipping them with iodine. I need to make sure there’s limited access for infection.”
3. Hands-on Help
“When the foal gets ready to get up, we often help it – just to steady it. We’re very careful not to get between the mare and the foal. She’s the one that has to bond with it. We don’t do any imprinting per se. We just steady the foal and make sure everything is safe. That’s my number one concern: safety.”
4. Sippy Cup Insurance
“We start the foal on the mare, but we always milk out a Tim Horton’s cup of colostrum and feed it so I know they get enough,” Olafsen says. “There is always a big worry about whether or not they get enough colostrum in the first 24 hours. By the time they’ve had a full cup, I know they’ve been covered for antibodies and have enough in their system to get them going. It also starts the gut process so that the meconium gets passed. As soon as they’re nursing, they get an enema and then we leave them alone.”
5. First 24 hours
Olafsen leaves them in the stall for the first day. “We go in the stall and do their bellybutton at least 6-8 times a day for the first 10 days, and check the mare’s udder. We keep a close eye on them to make sure everything is working fine.”
6. Arena Outing
“After 24 hours we put them in the arena for a quick little stretch of the legs. When we go out, the foal goes first. We put the leadshank around the top part of their bum. The mare follows behind, pushing.” Olafsen explains why this is better than leading the mare. “I like my foals independent; they never follow behind the mares. Also, you have better control of the mare when the foal’s in front of them. People don’t get hurt and the foals don’t get hurt, because she can see her foal.”
7. No ‘Fraidy Foals
Olafsen says that consistency and a quiet routine will go a long way to helping foals relax and take things in stride. “If you’re often in the stall checking the mare, the foals are not afraid because the mare is relaxed. They become curious; ‘Who are you? What are you doing in here?’ The foal has no reason to be afraid and they come over to visit us.
“If the mare is very possessive and protective, the foal will be at the back of the stall. If a mare is really possessive, she gets a couple of days before she goes out with the foal, because someone is going to get hurt – and it’s usually the foal. We’re not in a hurry to get them out or have a lot of people around them, as they might become afraid if the mare gets anxious about a stranger in the barn.”
8. Baby’s First Halter
A little foal halter goes on when the foal is about a week old. “They’re not afraid of us, so this thing on their face is no problem. They usually don’t mind the halter at all, because they’re in the routine of going out, being touched all the time – they’re pretty good with it, actually.”
9. Introduction to Scary Things
Olafsen advises not to make a big deal of anything that might be perceived as “scary” and the foal won’t, either. “In our arena, we store the jumps on one side and the ‘kids’ are always over there going ‘what’s that?’ There are flowers and pylons and they don’t care, because mom doesn’t care.”
10. Spoiled-rotten Orphans
Olafsen has experienced a couple of orphan foal situations where the youngsters required bottle feeding every hour for three weeks(!) This constant human presence can often lead to aggressive behaviour from the foal, who sees his handler as his peer. “One started to get so bad that we got him a goat,” says Olafsen. “She took care of disciplining him! That one is a three-year old now and he’s such a good boy. The other one still thinks he’s a goat and he’s going to be lovely.”
11. Handling the Hooves
“We pick up their feet when we put their halters on – we give them a good week until they’re ‘mauled,'” Olafsen laughs. “We want to make sure that mom and baby have had enough time to bond.” Each foot is picked up briefly and put down gently. “Make it like it’s no big deal; this is just what we do.”
12. Nipping Nipping in the Bud
Olafsen says that a foal who bites prior to weaning (often while being groomed) is also likely to be nipping at his or her dam “and she’s going to bite them back! I have a very strict rule that nobody hand-feeds the mares or foals – ever. They’re never allowed to suck your fingers, because that’s when they’re going to start nipping. At that age it’s a learned behaviour. The way I do it works and you don’t have to un-teach them later.”
Olafsen generally leans toward the “let foals be foals” school of thought. “The foal has to be with the mom, because she is the one who’s actually raising him. As long as they’re not afraid of people, that’s enough of an imprint. It’s when people start to pretend that they’re the mother, that’s not good. That’s the mare’s job – she is the one that has to take care of the kid. We just make sure that they’re not afraid of us.
BEWARE ‘EXTREME’ IMPRINTING
In the 1980s, U.S. veterinarian Dr. Robert E. Miller developed a method of handling foals immediately after they are born that purportedly encourages bonding with and submission to humans and permanently shapes a horse’s personality. His step-by-step system, which he called “imprint training,” became championed by scores of professional and lay horsemen the world over. It has also drawn its share of criticism, especially for practices such as restraining the foal from standing, prolonged holding, sticking fingers into its mouth and nostrils, etc. Among the detractors’ claims are that it stresses the foal and mare, can create hard-to-train horses, and can be a real detriment if done incorrectly.
There are many recorded and suspected incidents of unintended foal abuse, resulting in tragic consequences, that have occurred during attempts to ‘imprint’ the newborn:
- A reported incident of a woman who sat on the foal for so long to get it to submit that the foal became extremely weak, had to be transported to a vet clinic and eventually died.
- Reports of foals that were admitted to equine hospitals that hadn’t received enough colostrum. The attending vets believed the foals were not allowed to nurse because owners were attempting to ‘imprint’ them.
- Reports of foals becoming “super-bonded” to the human, becoming too friendly and very dangerous once they’re older and bigger.
The bottom line? Novice horse owners and those expecting their first foals are advised to leave the mare and foal alone and let nature do its job.
