Percy is ready to be weaned. He has come through his operation well and has barely even noticed that he no longer has bits! His attitude and behaviour haven't changed at all (he still let's me go near him!). I am very pleased with his progress.

Unfortunately it is now time to wean them. I will find it heart breaking as it is very distressing for both of them to be separated. Sadly I don't have the facilities to gradually wean them as I would like. Penny has been naturally weaning him off milk anyway, he rarely suckles now. I was watching them in the field today and Penny was moving away when he went to drink. This is good as this is the natural process. They will find it stressful to be separated whether it is now or next spring and it suits me, or rather my circumstances to do it now.

There are various schools of thought on weaning. The two main options are gradual separation and immediate separation. Gradual separation is considered to be kinder, by allowing the foal to become more independent slowly. Immediate separation is as the name suggests, very quick and instant with the mare and foal being separated and not allowed to see each other again (or for at least 3 months). This latter method was basically man made, with the 6 months of age being the time that foals went to bloodstock sales, so this is the accepted time for weaning. Some people wean earlier, for example Ruby was weaned at four months. This is the earliest that is generally accepted. Hence people have been traditionally weaning at 6 months for a long time.

Gradual separation is again man made, with people putting the mare and foak into stables next door to each other, fitting headcollars that make it uncomfortable for the mare when the foal drinks and turning the mare and foal out in adjoining fields. This method basically concentrates on weaning the foal off milk, before separating them.

In the wild horses will wean naturally, this will happen when the mare has another foal in the spring at which point she will chase her yearling away if he comes near.

As I don't have the facilities for gradual weaning or 'natural' I am going with the traditional method of immediate separation. This is the way I have done it at both studs I have worked at and this is the way I know. That said, I might still have a lump in my throat when I come to do it.

Mark has build a top door for Percy's stable so that he can't jump out when I take Penny away. Penny is going to spend the night in the barn and will then go out with her new friend Rio in the morning. She will then revert to living out, though she will have a rug on. Percy and Ruby will be together, just the two of them and will continue to come in at night until the warmer weather allows them to live out again -possibly back out with Penny.

Mark's top door is fantastic. I needed a custom made one as I want to be able to use the door manger whilst the top door is shut. This is because Percy always tips his feed over by sticking his foot in it when he eats. He then doesn't eat his food off the floor, which in turn encourages rats. A manger means that he can't tip it over and will eat every last bit, without the need for my supervision. This will save me time as I will then need to go and feed lady P in her field.

A door grill varies in price, one for a door as wide as mine would cost around £45. They also attach to the door, which would make using a manger impossible. Mark and I designed our top door with a 3inch gap between the top and bottom door, allowing the manger to be attached, but not leaving a big enough gap for Percy's hoof to get caught.

Mark and I went to B&Q where we purchased some pre treated 4x2 timber and some woven willow. Mark made the frame with the timber and strengthened it at all four corners with metal brackets. He then attached the willow screen, which will (hopefully) prevent Percy from thinking about jumping out, but still allows him to see his neighbours. This is tacked on with steel staples. There is another bar which runs horizontally across the middle of the frame, which gives the frame extra strength. Mark then attached the frame to the side of the stable on three large hinges, so that I can open and close the top door. He has fixed a latch to hold it in place when not in use. We are going to use the big bolts from our garden door (no longer in use) so that we can close the top door. All I need to do now is stain it, which I had intended to this morning but the weather defied me!

I'm a bit concerned that Percy will eat the willow frame, but I will put cribox (nasty tasting stuff) on it if it looks like he is eating it. The other alternative is to replace the willow with wire mesh.

Well we shall see how we get on. Next entry will be after the weaning, so fingers crossed...