Foal Breeding For Beginners

The Ultimate Companion for the First-Time Foal Breeder Even for an experienced horse owner or caretaker, breeding your first foal can be an exciting yet nerve-racking experience. With more than thirty years of experience, horse owner, trainer, and caretaker Lainey Cullen-McConkey blends a bit of science, a bit of textbook, and a fair bit of personal experience to offer a good basic understanding of foal breeding for the first-time breeder. Foal Breeding for Beginners follows Lainey’s personal journey with her own foal, covering the entire gestation period from ultrasounds and vaccinations to care and training. Other helpful topics include: Choosing a stallion The breeding process Care of the pregnant mare Foaling What can go wrong Weaning Basic education of the foal And so much more! Foal Breeding for Beginners covers everything you need to know and do to make your own foal breeding journey just a little bit less stressful.

This practical manual provides a comprehensive guide on the subjects of breeding, feeding and husbandry of a mare and foal for the private horse owner.

A landmark breeding resource for new and seasoned horse owners alike With millions of recreational riders on the bridle paths today, breeding is becoming increasingly popular among horse owners at all experience levels. Whether you are already enjoying the rich rewards of equine breeding or need down-to-earth advice on whether breeding is right for you and your animal, the Veterinary Guide to Horse Breeding offers a thorough, up-to-date overview of the process. From selecting the best horses to mating, pregnancy, birthing, and caring for a newborn foal, this is the authoritative resource you'll want by your side at all stages of the breeding process to bring healthy, beautiful foals into your life. Features include: * Guidance on evaluating mares and stallions from bloodline and performance record to overall health and appearance * Key breeding techniques such as artificial insemination, pasture breeding, and hand breeding * Pregnancy essentials including testing, gestation, care of pregnant mares, and dealing with complications * Foaling fundamentals: signs of approaching labor, labor and delivery, care of the postpartum mare, and more * A complete immunization schedule, physiological evaluation tables and procedures, and a thorough glossary of terms * More than 100 photos and drawings illustrating anatomy, techniques, and procedures

A step-by-step guide to breeding your mare, caring for her during pregnancy, and looking after her and her foal during the first few months of the foal's life. As the cost of buying a horse goes up, and with increased interest in training a young horse, more and more people are considering breeding their own animals. Beginning with initial decisions, including whether your mare is suitable breeding stock, the authors address pre-breeding mare care, breeding methods (live cover versus artificial insemination or embryo transplant), stallion selection, and negotiating the breeding contract. Chapters on pregnancy cover broodmare care throughout the gestation period, with an emphasis on recognizing early trouble signs and ways to improve the chances of a healthy mare and foal. With regard to birth, the authors offer suggestions on creating a foal-friendly environment, learning the signs that indicate an impending birth, detailing both routine and problem deliveries, and the foal's crucial first twenty-four hours.

Foals imprint on their mothers and are guided by instinct. But over time, they get accustomed to humans and can be reared to become trusting, faithful playmates and companions. Therefore, establishing good behavior at the outset is fundamental to creating a well-adjusted adult horse. The authors of this book, using their extensive experience and personal stories, explain how to balance natural behavior with training methods to develop a well-behaved horse. The approach is knowledgeable and patient and is based on the mutual respect between horse and rider. Key exercises are explained in the text by a variety of photos, and these can also be used with older horses. The practical topics covered include vaccination, hoofcare, herd behavior, feeding, and housing. The reader is guided through the health, well-being, training, education, and attitude of the first three years of a horse's life, with a focus on building trust throughout. Foals and Young Horses is a useful guide for horse owners, riders, and breeders. It will also be of interest to equine science students and para-professionals