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Yowzer Heidi--what d'ya mean mares have "no physiological processes 
even close to menstruation"?  I've a great deal of respect for your 
opinion because you know lots about lots, but I gotta' seriously 
disagree in this case.  I've had both stallions and mares--and--perhaps 
I'm biased being a female and all--but the boys seem much less bothered 
by their hormones than many of the females....  My current mare is 
particularly bothered by her heat cycle, and I'd be willing to write 
her off as "pathological" if it weren't for the fact that many of my 
friends have mares just like her.

By the way, I didn't mean to imply that a mare should be allowed to 
cream someone for touching her--I just noted that it seemed cruel to 
bother her on purpose.  My mare screamed a little uncomfortable shriek 
ever single time her foal latched on for over a year.  She didn't kick 
the baby but nursing was obviously uncomfortable for her.  I didn't 
think she should be allowed to kick the baby, but I certainly didn't 
mind feeling sorry for her!  I also didn't assume she was pathological. 
 She's always been sensitive and ticklish in that area and really 
handled her discomfort quite responsibly.

As for the pasturing issue, I think all herds are dynamic.  One has to 
keep an eye  out.  That doesn't mean you don't put horses together in 
large groups; it just means you watch 'em and see that it's all going 
ok.  I happen to have a mare that would kill 10 geldings in a single 
blow for breakfast--we used her to teach young stallions breeding 
manners (because, despite their prevalent use, I find breeding hobbles 
really disturbing).  She is great at teaching a slow and careful and 
romantic approach by the boys--and I'm sure they're very grateful in 
the end.  :-)  In our "herd" it happens to be the geldings I feel sorry 
for. So sorry in fact that I'm moving the witch herself into her own 
paddock.  As the poem goes, "so much depends...."

Mary K.



On Saturday, March 4, 2006, at 10:10 PM, heidi@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx wrote:

> > For the most part large pastures allow almost any group of horses
> > enough space to get along, but in Ginny's defense, sometimes I do 
> > think
> > some of us horse-people occasionally overlook the uncomfortable
> > social/physical positions we create for our horses. .....Two cases 
> > come
> > to mind--beware, the stories are a little graphic....
>
> Certainly people make poor choices about horses' social settings--but
> your stories are a far cry from generalizations about mares and
> geldings living in pasture settings....
>
> > I feel the same way when "Natural Horsemanship" practitioners (whom I
> > try to emulate for the most part) insist that a mare in heat has to
> > "handle it" when they want the sacking out to include all sorts of
> > handling of their rear stomach area.  Just ask a woman what might
> > happen to a guy who tries to approach that part of the anatomy when
> > cramps are visiting....
> >
> > Enough said.
> >
> > Mary K. who really relates to PMS mares.....
>
> I'm with the Natural Horsemanship guys.  Mares have no physiological
> processes even close to menstruation or PMS.  And while there are
> certainly pathological situations that cause mares to be "over the
> edge" (such as ovarian tumors), mares with normal cyclic behavior
> should be just as able to "handle it" as stallions should be expected
> to "handle" testosterone.
>
> Heidi


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