This message is from: Jean Ernest <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
My Gelding, Bjorken, was gelded at 11 months, as he was getting "studdy"
and I was afraid he would breed his mother. The vet had checked him a
couple months before and said his testicles were not completely down then.
When he gelded him, he removed one testicle OK, but then the second one
slipped back into the inguinal canal and it was a worrisome few minutes
before the vet could retrieve it. Time was running out for the short term
anesthesia and if he hadn't managed to get hold of it we would have had to
let him heal up then do it again later. Whew!
BTW, he still wasn't weaned at that age, and I didn't get around to
separating him from his mother until he was 14 months oldHe had been
born the end of June here in Fairbanks, so I let him nurse through the
winter as Stella was holding her weight just fine. Weaning was a breeze by
that time! I had an older gelding that taught him manners. Bjorken has
turned out the most well adjusted fjord I have, happily leaving the herd
with me on trail rides with no other horses along. (Perhaps he considers
me part of the herd? I was there when he was born.) He is also quite tall
and long legged,
15-2 hands and a lighter body type.
Did he turn out taller because he was gelded before a year of age? Maybe,
but he has a full brother who is also quite tall, so I think it is the
genes, not the hormones. Of course, maybe he reached his full genetic
potential in size because he was allowed to nurse so long as well as
getting grain, supplements and good hay.
It is true, tho, that if you neuter a kitten at a young age you will wind
up with a BIG cat. Also, why are capons so big compared to roosters of
the same breed (a capon is a "neutered" chicken)?
Jean in Fairbanks, ALaska, madly getting ready for winter..snow expected
next week. 40 degrees
>You are right. They either have them or they don't. Usually these colts
>that seem to drop late aren't true cryptorchids, just what we call high
>flankers. When you reach up there to feel, the natural reaction of the
>colt is to suck them up. That's why you don't feel them. Many times if
>you sedate the colt, they will relax and you can then feel them.
>
>Steve White
>Waterloo, Nebraska
>
>
>
Jean Ernest
Fairbanks, Alaska
mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
