Horse breeding.

[petchickenlover]

I don't plan on "replicating" her... I'd be perfectly happy if the foal was to look like it's sire, who I think is quite breathtaking

 

[andalusn]

Quote:
Every market is different. This is a discussion you should be having with the Equine Veterinarian that also specializes in repro work you will be using. Hopefully this is the vet you already have and have a good working relationship established. Usually the first ultra sound costs more than any followup ones done for the same breeding season on the same mare. Its the incentive to follow a good breeding plan for the mare. Don't forget to check and see if they do these in house so you can haul in and have it done and save the farm call.

 

[alabamachick]

"Dont get involved... Dont get involved... Dont get involved..."

You sound young. I suggest searching for a horse that is already started. Just today I found THREE YOUNG (under 10) horses that were FREE to a good home.

If you want to train a horse get something you can train and ride NOW, not something you are going to have to put your mare under stress for, pay for the mare care, the stud fees, and then wait a MINIMUM of three years before you ever get to get in the saddle.

I'm an advocate for adoption, and NOT breeding.

 

[petchickenlover]

Thank you all for your input. We have talked about it thoroughly and have decided against breeding her.


Thanks

 

[laseterlass]

She loves you for it

Warning for you though. That beautiful gray arab in my post. She went thru what could be best described as "Marapause" at age 27. She went from a sweet lovely mare that was happy on the bottom of the mare order.....Into a beast that was boss mare and was being a total witch to everyone. She got a few good wacks with a broom for pinning her ears are barn hands before it was over !

 

[shadowpaints]

we breed, Train and Raise miniature horses. they tend to have ALOT more problems than the 'big' ones..

I helped my grampa, and grandma breed, foal out and raise their appys for a long time, i believe the first foaling i saw was when i was 9 years old.

when i aquired my own horses, i wanted to breed, and i did for a few years... had 15 mares. bred 5 a year... decided to switch to the miniatures when the Neurologist said NO MORE BIG HORSES after a surgery i had on my brain.. too risky.

so i started collecting. it started with a little gelding.. Mikey was our first, we still have him, he is awesome. then i slooooowly started buying mares. i looked at their pedigrees, their conformation, and their temperment. 3 years ago after a 3 year long search i found a stallion that i thought would be perfect. i shipped him in from california. i could have gotten a run of the mill dwarfy looking stallion many times but i wanted something nice. so i searched. now i have about 6 healthy, BEAUTIFUL Brood mares. all are shown every year except 2 ( one is my grey mare twitch who has a injury she got as a foal and tends to twitch involintary when stressed. The other is my mare casey, beautiful but previous owners never trimmed her feet. ever. she only gets bred 1 time every 2-3 years)

I am happy to say, to date, i have had some very exceptional foals born here. i only breed what i can afford to feed. last year, i retained ALL my foals LOL (4) for showing, training and maybe some breeding down the line. this year i am keeping 1 out of my 2 foals.

im lucky and so far havent had any serious issues foaling. but every year on marestare, i see minis giving birth that die, or the foal is breech, Hip and shoulder dystocias the list goes on and on.

the trick is, to think about every horse before i breed, i ask my self. if this breeding results in the mare(s) being pregnant, can i
1. afford to feed the mare EXTRA hay and grain ( i feed all my pregnant mares 2x the normal amount of hay and up to 3X the normal amount of grain while they are pregnant and nursing)
2. afford to feed the resulting foal(s) for an indefinate time?
3. afford to have the vet out if needed to preform any emergency (c-section Common in minis if bred to a stallion thats too big)
4. replace the mare if something goes wrong and we loose her.

So many things can go so wrong, so FAST. i am one of those animal owners where since i am the one responsable for making sure said mare (s) get pregnant, it is my responsibility to be there and make sure that the birth is timely, and that both mom and baby are healthy. one of the main things that causes death in miniatures is the foal not getting out of the birth sac, so they suffocate and die.
also if you're a overly emotional person, and cant think FAST under pressure, breeding isnt probally a good idea just because of the simple fact that many malpostions can be fixed if assisted immediately.

that said:
Breeding and raising your own foals (or goats, cats, dogs what ever) is Scary, exhilarating and rewarding all in the same breath.
another thing to remember, regaurdless on how careful you are, even if you do anything right, when breeding, eventually you will loose a mare or foal . it happens, and when it does, its devastating!
also im a strong believer in finding a horse mentor, a local breeder that is willing to allow you to participate in all the good and bad things that go with breeding and foaling. BEFORE you breed your horse. that way your not just 'winging it'

good luck! i hope that helps!

 

[Jasmine1998]

Breeding and raising your own foals (or goats, cats, dogs what ever) is Scary, exhilarating and rewarding all in the same breath.
another thing to remember, regaurdless on how careful you are, even if you do anything right, when breeding, eventually you will loose a mare or foal . it happens, and when it does, its devastating!

What Shadow Paints said....this is totally true. This will be our 5th foal on our farm & Jasmine's 2nd & I am get nervous that everything will go just right. Jas is due around August 8th so she is in the home stretch now & I won't relax untill that baby is out & nursing......then that just brings on a whole new set of worries, lol. Foal can & will try to get into everything. We had one foal that was laying down & stuck his head through the gate, he turned his head & thought that he was stuck & panicked & ended up breaking his elbow. After a few trips to New Bolton he is now 100% sound & has moved on to be a western pleasure show & also trail horse. (He is 4 years old now)​

 

[dreamcatcherarabians]

So far in the past month there have been or will be auctions from several major Arabian horse breeders. Within the last 30-45 days, these auctions have put over 500 horses on the market in a time when your average horse owner can't give away a good saddle broke horse. One owner died, left over 200 horses with no provision for their care. His heir had no interest, sold them all to a kill buyer before the owner was even cold in the ground. Another breeder's auction is this Saturday for 100 horses and he has plans to do 2 more auctions soon, each with 100 more horses. There are at least 5 more that I'm aware of with 20-50 head each going up for auction.

My point is, you can buy EXACTLY what you'd like to have very inexpensively, in some cases for less than the stud fee to get the mare in foal. I've been breeding for a long time and I'm discussing gelding my stallions so they can go out and be part of the herd and enjoy themselves. I have no plans to breed anyone in the near future (next 5 years) so see no reason to keep the males intact and separate.

I have 16 horses in my pasture right now that are victims of this economy, their owner lost his job and he lost his horses to the barn he owed money to. The new owner doesn't want them so now has me boarding them while they await buyers. There have been no inquiries. They may be here a very very long time. And these horses are not junk. They are pretty, well bred, all registered and most are fairly well trained. Even the ones under saddle have not had any interest.

At this point I'd advise anyone not to breed. The economy is just too uncertain.