The Minorcan foals at stud farm “Het Soerhuis” enjoy a relaxed, (horse) social and natural life from a horse’s point of view. De first or second day of their life they are already enjoying in the meadow land together with their mothers, where they can go on razzle. After one day to get used to the new outside “environment”, they join the herd mares with foals. As soon as all mares have foaled, we reunion the whole herd again, mares with and without foals. Foals enjoy then, until they are approximately 4-5 months old, a really healthy and horsy life, where they are not only being “educated” by their own mother, but by the whole herd if necessary. The play and socialization with other foals is also very important. When generally all foals are 4-5 months old, they are weaned; this traumatic experience is being in someway compensated for keeping the foals group together. At this point, a new phase in their lives is started, where we (the humans) are going to play a roll in it. Our aim is the foals to get used to us in a playful way, based on mutual trust. They are then introduced in the most common handlings within horse and human: to stay tied, to be brushed and cared of, to lift feet and getting these cleaned, to get in the trailer an to walk shoulder to shoulder with us.

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