Our horses are raised on 15 acres and are allowed the outdoor freedom to play and exercise to their heart's delight.  I believe that horses develop a better, more healthy mind if they are allowed this freedom to be themselves.  All of our babies are kept in a 14X18 stall with their dam for at least the first few days of their lives.  They are handled as much as possible in the first 3 days.  This allows imprinting on their mother and humans.  They are petted all over and scratched and have their feet handled.  I restrain them by holding them from behind the rump and in front of their chests with my arms.  This prepares the for future lead training.  They learn to look forward to my twice daily visits and learn that people are pleasurable and interesting to be around but nothing to be scared of.  After the first day the foals are always eager to be handled and follow me around the stall while I clean it.  I love to watch their inquisitive reactions when they are introduced to something new - like a bag of shavings or a bucket left for a moment where they can inspect it.  They even sneak into the feed room and tromp around past the bales of shavings and hay to see what is new in there too.  After a few days they have learned what "Mom" looks like and are ready to join the herd for part of the day.  They are turned out 12 hours a day to run and play with the other foals while Mom grazes in the pasture.  At night they are stalled again to make sure that they stay warm, dry, and safe.  After several weeks of daily handling they learn their names, follow you around, and look forward to feeding time when they get lots of attention lavished on them. 

The foals are introduced to the trailer as we take them to the vet for check ups and also to the stud farm to be rebred.  When they are 1 to 2 months old we start halter training them.  Halter training progresses very fast.  They already have the basics from being restrained by hand and are used to following me around to be petted and scratched.   It is an easy transition from following with out a halter to following me with a lead rope.  I spend a lot of time from birth handling their ears and legs and gently guiding them around with my hands and body.  After 1 or 2 sessions they usually have the hang of being led with a rope.  They never do stupid things like flip over because they totally trust me and want to follow me around anyway to get more attention.  Their feet are handled daily for the first few months and then occasionally after that.  They learn that it is pleasant to be petted all over and not to jump when they are touched.

All of our horses are on an individualized feeding program with vitamin and mineral supplements, and  regular worming to be sure that they grow to their full potential.  We feed coastal hay (grass hay) and occasionally will supplement with alfalfa.  We carefully monitor their feed intake and nutrition to prevent damaging over-feeding which can result in drastic growth spurts and cause bone developmental problems - a.k.a. Growth and Developmental Orthopedic Disease (DOD).  During the year we make many grain formulation changes to adjust to the growth patterns and nutritional needs of our herd.  We strive to maintain healthy weights on our horses and keep up with the ever changing needs of the broodmares in their different stages of pregnancies.  During the 3rd trimester 60-65% of fetal growth occurs.   (A link to an article written by Purina Mills on foal growth http://cbc.homestead.com/GrowingHorses.html  )

Our foals are born large and usually out grow their mothers within the first year to year and half.  I believe that properly feeding the mare during her pregnancy leads to large, fully developed foals.   Foals are born at  Proper nutrition makes all the difference in allowing them to reach their maximum height at maturity.  A good feeding program through out the foal's entire growth phase is also essential.    At birth a foal is approx. 60% of it's mature height, at 6 months 83% of it's mature height,  at 12 months 90% of it's mature height, and at 18 months they are 95% of their mature height.  So, you can see just how important a good head start really is.

Exercise is important to us and well as for bone and mental development for foals.  I for one, do not enjoy shoveling out stalls every day.  Once the foals are a few weeks old and the weather is nice we let Mom and the babies stay outside all the time.  They are always able to come in out of the rain and during storms and bad weather we will stall them.  Fresh air and exercise are best for all.  It promotes healthy bones and an active mind.  Too much stall time leads to boredom and bad habits like weaving, cribbing, and wind sucking.  Stale air can also lead to a stable cough caused by dust and sawdust particles.  We try to have the mares foal close together so that the babies have someone their age to romp and play with as they grow up.  Our mare pasture is 5 acres with a 3 stall barn with large stalls.  See photo album below.  2 stalls are approx. 14 X 18 and the outside "shed" end of the barn is about 16' x 24' and is open on 2 sides to allow a cool breeze and a nice view of the outside so they can see what is going on. The foals enjoy all of the open space to run and play in.  The 2004 foals have managed to explore every inch of the property and have created little trails all over between the trees and bushes.

Mineral supplements, shade, quality hay, and fresh water are always available.