Caring For Foals, by Swindle

(Note: This is an excerpt from Billy Orson’s website on breeding and raising fluffies. This is not the complete article. For the full article, please visit Billy Orson’s website at orsonfluffiesunlimited.com, or whatyoushouldknowaboutfluffies.superblog.org. Billy Orson and Orson Fluffies™ are certified by Hasbio as ethical breeders of fluffy ponies, and certified by and affiliated with the following organizations: Fluffy Breeders of America, British Fluffy Breeders Association, Fluffy Fanciers of America, Fluffy Fanciers of Europe, Japanese Fluffy Breeding Association, Fluffies Unlimited, Gold Star Fluffies, and the Fluffy Showmanship Organization.)

FOALS

Foals develop at different rates depending on genetics, nutrition, the health of the mother, environment, and other factors, but generally you can follow a rough time line for their development. Please remember, this is only a general time line and your foal(s) may develop faster or slower, and a foal that develops a little slowly isn’t necessarily defective in any way.

Birth: Foals are small, about the size of mice, their eyes are closed, and they’re more or less immobile. Vocalizations consist of chirps, which are shorter and higher pitched at birth but get longer and more nuanced as they grow. Because of their small size and thin fluff, more like peach fuzz, they cannot regulate their body temperature and need their mother’s fluff and warmth to survive.

Two to three days: Eyes open. Foals can crawl and wiggle, but are still dependant on their mother to help them get to her teats or in her fluff. Mane and tail begin to grow in.

Four or five days: Foals can walk and run normally, but are likely still unsteady on their feet and tend to tumble and fall a lot. Typical size is that of a large hamster.Foals can survive away from their mother’s body heat for short periods while she forages for food, uses the litter box, etc. but still need her to keep them warm, especially at night or in colder weather.

Seven to ten days: Foals begin speaking. This usually consists of only one or two words at first, and their first word is likely to be “mummah”, “miwkies”, or “wuv”, depending on circumstances at the time. Foals are usually the size of a kitten. Foals will learn that pooping on their mother or in their bed/nest is bad and begin informing their mother they need to poop so she can take them to an appropriate place to do so, but they’re not ready for litter box training just yet.

Twelve to fifteen days: Foals can form simple sentences and begin to understand complex ideas. Litter box training can begin now, but don’t expect it to take for a while.* Foals are roughly the size of a small guinnea pig. Personalities are largely developed by this point and you can safely determine if your fluffy is energetic, lazy, cheerful, friendly, shy, or an entitled asshole who has been coddled by his mother and/or owner too much. It’s not to late to correct attitude problems with discipline. Foals can largely survive away from their mother for long periods of time (barring cold weather), but still need her warmth at night.

Thirty days: Foals can run, jump, and play much like adult fluffies, and their second, thicker coat of fluff is growing in over their foal’s fuzz, allowing them to survive without their mother’s warmth. Foals are roughly the size of a large guinnea pig. Most foals will have learned to use the litter box by this point (assuming they aren’t mentally challenged or their mother isn’t terrible at teaching them), but accidents when they can’t reach the litter box in time will be common.*

Sixty days: Foals have all their adult fluff and have begun teething. This is often when they develop an attitude, as they begin to assert their independence from their mother; many foals will push the line in order to learn their place in the pecking order. Amongst ferals, the smarty or another authority figure, such as the father (assuming he’s alive) will put the foal in its place by bopping it on the nose or, in extreme cases, spraying it with ‘sorry poopies’ or stomping it. With owners, this is when the ‘sorry spray’, sorry stick, and sorry box come into play. Most foals, even those who declare themselves to be smarties, can have their attitude corrected with a little discipline and will fall into line fairly easily. Only the absolute worst cases are irredeemable at this point. Foals are the size of a small cat.

Sixty-five to seventy days: Weaning. Over the course of a week or so, the mother, hurt by her foal’s teeth, will begin pushing her foals away from her teats when they try to nurse and insist they eat solid foods. Most mares will have begun showing their foals solid food before this point and let them try them out, but now they will insist they eat like an adult. In cases where foals refuse to be weaned, the mother may resort to bopping them on the nose or even defecating in their faces when they try to nurse. Foals are the size of an average housecat and are nearly full-grown. As soon as foals are weaned, they are old enough for adoption; foals should not be taken from their mothers until they are fully weaned, and while weaning special food, such as extra-soft kibble intended for foals or tender greens, should be given to them to encourage weaning and avoid hurting their mouths.

Seventy to seventy-five days: Sexual maturity. Fillies tend to mature first, but the only indication a human will have that they are old enough to breed is when a male fluffy attempts to breed with her. Although capable of breeding, it is strongly recommended that fillies not be allowed to breed until they are at least six months old, just to make sure they’re fully developed and are big enough to support a pregnancy, especially if the filly is small for her age. Fillies in estrus will smell “pretty” to sexually mature mares, but may retain the foal scent until they are four or five months old. Colts will develop more prominent testicles and bulk up slightly, though this may be hidden by their thick fluff. There are no adverse health effects to letting a colt breed as soon as it is sexually mature.

Eighty to ninety days: The fluffy is full-grown and will not grow any bigger. It is now an adult fluffy and fully developed, though since it is still young and inexperienced it will be more naive and lacking in common sense than an older fluffy. Typical lifespan for a feral is two years, most domestics live for five to seven years, though ten to twelve is not unheard of, dependent on nutrition, environment, and genetics.

*WARNING: Despite this being a common practice in many shelters, do NOT squeeze your foal in an attempt to make it poop. This is very easy to do incorrectly, and even if done ‘right’ can seriously injure your foal. Even adult fluffies shouldn’t be squeezed to make them poop; this only makes it MORE difficult for them to control their bowels, and can cause damage to the intestines, kidneys, and liver, as well as compressing the diaphragm. Even after letting go, the diaphragm can remain compressed and cause the fluffy to slowly suffocate. Foals are especially likely to be injured by squeezing, and you can even break the spine in the process. Do NOT squeeze your foal! If you need a fluffy to poop right then and there, most can do so on command if they’re old enough to speak; trust me, pooping is not something fluffies need help with. If they try to poop but can’t, don’t scare them in an attempt to make them poop; yes, it might work, but you’re only making the problem worse because they’ll develop ‘performance anxiety’ the next time in anticipation of you being ‘mean’ and scaring them. A foal who is still chirping and not yet old enough to speak will not poop when told, it has to be encouraged. Their mothers encourage them to poop and urinate by gently licking their bellies in a downward motion; you can do the same by gently stroking the foal’s belly with one or two fingertips. Trust me, it’ll relieve itself after ten or twenty seconds of that, unless it’s empty or has a health problem preventing it from pooping and peeing normally. You can still do this with older foals, but it’s not likely to work on adults, though it may help if your fluffy has performance anxiety (and you need it to poop right now so you can take it somewhere) or is constipated. Squeezing is traumatic to your fluffy and can result in serious injury.

But seriously, don’t squeeze your fluffy. How would you like it if someone gave you a Heimlich so hard you shit yourself?

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Love this. It was honestly one of my favorites.