Help me decide on a stallion to breed my mare to! Update #120

[georgialee]

I need help! I have a bay tobiano mare (Goldie) that is due to foal next month, so I have to decide pretty quickly on who I want to breed her to next. For those interested in genetics - EE Aa hetero for tobiano. When she throws bay it's beautiful - dark points, eyeliner, etc. The only buckskin she has thrown was very very light... not my favorite - BUT it might have been from the stallion who's a palomino.

Here she is:

All of these options could give her a solid colored foal.

Option 1: Sir Keith - Smoky Silver Black (I would have a chance of getting a silver buckskin if I chose him). This would be a line breeding. His grandsire is The Boss, who is also Goldies sire -- no other genes are shared. The breeder gives a color guarantee, so if Goldie's foal doesn't have either a silver or cream gene I could breed her back for free. She's also offering an economy discount - 40% off.

Option 2: Bullet - Silver Bay (foal has highest chance of being bay or silver bay) Seller offering economy discount.

Option 3: Silver Fox - Black silver dapple - he's Ee (foal has highest chance of being black, silver black, bay or silver bay) No info on website about stud fee

Option 4: Flash of Gold - palomino (foal has high chance of being bay or buckskin) Very expensive stud fee, no discount.

Any opinions??? I'm having a really hard time deciding and think I need some outside perspective.

 

[babymakes6]

Very easy! #3 all the way!

 

[babymakes6]

OT: who has a kangaroo?

 

[georgialee]

haha! The lady I bought her from back in October has an exotic animal farm ... I haven't had any professional pics taken of Goldie yet but she gave me permission to use hers. I

that pic.

 

[patandchickens]

My first reaction is that I had not previously realized what an advantage it is to own a hair-breed stallion, as it makes it possible to (beautifully) conceal almost every important aspect of his conformation!

(But, seriously too).

As far as answering your question, you would have to tell us what you are breeding FOR. For sale or for personal use; how important is color vs conformation vs intangibles (personality, athleticism, movement, etc), for what kind of work are you trying to produce horses, etc.

Also if you care at all about conformation, do you have any *conformation* shots you could show us of your mare and of the first and third studs?

Pat

 

[SpringChickens]

Quote:
X2

 

[Rusty Hills Farm]

At the risk of being a PITA, there is a whole lot more to consider than just the color. You want to correct faults (all bloodlines have them) that appear in your bloodline while avoiding introducing any new ones. After all, the purpose of responsible breeding is to improve the breed! It would take better photos, some videos, and a basic knowledge of the pedigrees of each stud AND your mare to even know where to start.

JMO

Rusty

 

[georgialee]

Here's a great site on conformation for the breed: http://www.gogypsy.com/gypsyvannerhorseconformation

sir keith: http://www.cielocelestefarm.com/sirkeith.html

bullet: http://www.villavanners.com/Stallion_Bullet_2.htm

silver fox: http://mistyvalleygypsycobs.com/SilverFox.html

flash of gold: http://www.djwwgypsyhorses.com/Flash.html


goldie: http://www.partnerup.net/goldie.htm

and another:

 

[georgialee]

Quote:
I have done a lot of research already. The sites I listed have plenty of pics, video, etc. that helped me to narrow it down. All of Goldie's bloodline isn't known since she was imported (she's considered foundation stock). The Boss (her sire) is one of the best foundation sires. Her back is a bit long, IMO so I need to a stallion with a shorter back and maybe a broad chest since I think she could use some improvement there, too. I know color is not the end all and be all

 

[SpringChickens]

I think it's also really important for you to go through your mare's conformation and tear it apart. Figure out ALL her conformation flaws (and every horse has them), then breed for improving those. A good horse is never a bad color.