  We investigate the mechanisms of control and suppression of
pre-thermalization in $N$-component alkaline earth gases. To this end, we
compute the short-time dynamics of the instantaneous momentum distribution and
the relative population for different initial conditions after an interaction
quench, accounting for the 11 peffect of initial interactions. We find that
switching on an interaction that breaks the SU$(N)$ symmetry of the initial
Hamiltonian, thus allowing for the occurrence of spin-changing collisions, does
not necessarily lead to a suppression of pre-thermalization. However, the
suppression will be most effective in the presence of SU$(N)$-breaking
interactions provided the number of components $N \ge 4$ and the initial state
contains a population imbalance that breaks the SU$(N)$ symmetry. We also find
the conditions on the imbalance initial state that allow for a pre-thermal
state to be stabilized for a certain time. Our study highlights the important
role played by the initial state in the pre-thermalization dynamics of
multicomponent Fermi gases. It also demonstrates that alkaline-earth Fermi
gases provide an interesting playground for the study and control of
pre-thermalization.
