Mare Nuzzling Her Foal coloring page

About this coloring page

A mare nuzzling her foal shows one of the strongest bonds in the animal world. That bond begins before birth. A mare carries her foal for about eleven months, and she almost always has just one, since twins are very rare in horses.

From the first minutes, mother and baby learn each other by smell and sound. The mare licks and sniffs her newborn, memorizing its scent so she can pick it out from every other foal. The foal quickly learns its mother’s nicker and runs to her side whenever it is scared or hungry.

For the first months, the mare is the foal’s safe place, food source and teacher. By watching her, it learns to graze, drink and get along with other horses. If another animal comes too close, the mare steps between them to protect her baby.

Around four to six months of age, most foals are weaned and stop nursing. On many farms, weaning is done gradually so neither mother nor foal gets too stressed. Even later, mares and their grown offspring that live in the same herd often seek each other out and share a special closeness.

• mare
• foal
• horses
• mother and baby
• love