Here's a hypothetical horse breeding question for mindless entertainment:

Question

So...if you were going to breed a horse, which stallion would you pick and why. What would you be trying to produce, and what about this particular pairing (your mare with this stallion) makes you think you'd have a good, logical chance to acheive your goal foal.

This is a strictly hypothetical question, of course. I'm not advocating breeding, just wanting a little discussion about how others think before being responsible for the creation of an animal that can live about 30 years.

Answer 1

It would depend entirely on which mare I was going to breed.  I would have to look at her weaknesses, and then pick a stallion that best complemented her shortcomings.  If he just so happened to be a big stout purdy blue roan, so much the better, but color is the last thing of importance on my list.  Given the nice foal that I got when I used Indigo Blue the last time, if I was going to breed that mare again, I'd use him again.  Kind of a deal of "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."

Answer 2

ya kno its funny, my friend whos a breeder had these ppl that wanted a compeltly black horse, so the got a black stallion and mare hand she had a brown colt

hehehe

Answer 3

I like good conformation in the stallion and the mare. But one can offset deficiencies in the other for example: This mare looks good in the heart girth area but a little weak in the hindquarters.

http://spotted.horsecity.com/pages/big_p...

I bred her to this Stallion who is strong in the hindquarters:

http://spotted.horsecity.com/pages/big_p...

and got this:

http://spotted.horsecity.com/pages/big_p...

What I hope to do is to pass on good genes in horses they have. I breed paints and color is important but a badly conformed paint isn't a good thing. I have a good Paint stallion and this filly will be bred to him when she is old enough.

Answer 4

I love this stallion.

Cooke County Etc.:

http://www.tntfarmsqtrhorses.com/stallio...

His offspring are SO quiet and SO trainable.  When you talk about breeding for temperament and mind, it doesn't get much better than him, in my opinion.  It helps that he has good bloodlines, but I don't get as caught up in bloodlines as much as I do having a horse that is quiet, trainable, and smart.  I mean, you can't ride bloodlines (you like that?  I just made that one up, ripping off the phrase "you can't ride color" LOL.  I never claimed I was creative).

As for what mare I'd use...I don't have one personally that is worth breeding.  I love my mares, and they are registered, but I don't know that they are worthy of reproduction.  Plus the one I like the best is closely related to Cooke County Etc. so that's no good for breeding!

Answer 5

Pedigree Predicts Performance.

The first thing I look at is pedigree, if I like what I see on paper, I take a look at the stallion.  Ideally, I would like to see the get (offspring) of the stallion as well.

We raise hunter ponies, so we look for overall confirmation, soundness, movement and way of going and temperament (crucial in a child's pony).  

I want a stallion that can deliver the whole package, focusing on improving just one area leaves room for a decline in quality in the other areas of focus.

Some of my favorite stallions to breed to are:

Farnley Bellshazzar

Triple Hill

Hidden Creeks Rainfox

Answer 6

I am totally in love with this stallion

http://www.rocusa.net/

He is so gorgeous, tons of chrome, great jumper, nice temperament. My mare is a beautiful TB/WB jumper, very talented, but with a bit of a bit**y personality. She only has a little bit of white one her. Here she is: http://crosspointfarm.com/tymer.html

So what I hope for in breeding this pair is a gorgeous 16.3 dark bay with lots of chrome. It will of course have talent cuz just look at its parents!!!! And hopefully get the nice temperament that the stallion has. I wouldn't mind a little bit of the attitude from the mare's side, cuz that's what makes her so bold and brave, but it would be nice to have a sweetie-pie :)

Answer 7

At this stage of the game, the only way I'd be involved in breeding anything would be if it would get me a Friesian...no color issues, since black seems to be easy to come by.  I'd look for the best conformation and disposition, with a record of performance....the stallion's own performance....in choosing the stallion.  If I were to even think of breeding this stallion with my own mare, it would be time to lock me up and feed me happy pills.  I would breed with a Friesian  broodmare with proven bloodlines, and that had been bred to this stallion before and I could see the results.  That is the only way I would breed anything.

Answer 8

Ok, being dreamy now, and not knowing anything about breeding (p.s. i would never breed if I didnt know what I was doing)..

But I would breed a friesian stallion to an arabian mare hoping to get a dishy profile with lots of action, and of course with feathery fetlocks!

And id love to see the results! Maybe something like this:

http://www.halffriesian.com/images/1.jpg

Oooooh nice!

Answer 9

ohhh so much fun. I've actually been doing this a lot lately. So this is my stallion...

http://www.lingh.nl/uk/fokkerij.htm

I fell in love with him after I saw his dressage freestyle...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E--hrkMyr...

I haven't found a mare yet although I've definately been looking. I guess I'm just really picky. I'm saving now for the unbelievable stud fee I'm sure this guy has. Maybe one of these days...

Answer 10

My friends mom has a beautiful stallion he's a QH and she bred a white pony mare with him and they had a tawny foal with a white rump and a black mane and tail. After that she bred him with a brown and white pinto mini horse and the foal looks like its mom. So I guess you never know what you'll get I would base it on temper because that stallion has a bad temper and both foals are bad tempered.

Answer 11

Cns, I love to stallion shop. Sure is good to dream.....  Here are 3 of my favorits!!!

Dun D

http://colormorgans.tripod.com/ragtimedu...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRMamhyDc...

Primavera Brio--  Brio was a solid third in '97 World Jr Horse Reining at the Morgan Grand National as a 3 year old at 7 months under saddle.

http://www.gabcreekfarm.com/briotrot708o...

http://www.gabcreekfarm.com/Briohead9yrs...

http://colormorgans.tripod.com/brioheads...

L J Morning Reveille

http://www.tindomorgans.com/reveille.htm...

Answer 12

I don't know much about breeding but I would focus on the temperament.

Answer 13

I have a pure bred, flea bitten grey Arab mare.

I chose to breed her to a Friesian stallion.  I choose an old style Friesian.  I love the rounded cobby bodies that have oodles of curves and muscles (vs. the sleek long modern look).

I found a Friesian stallion of body quality and temperment that was EXACTLY what I was looking for.  

Both the sire and the dam showed above average intelligence for horses.  I also wanted ultra sound, rock hard feet.

The filly which was created by this mating turned out exactly as I expected in body type.  She is bold as brass (not afraid of things, and ultra currious).  Her hooves are gorgeous.  Her temperment, and intelligence are wonderful.  

She just turned five a few days ago.  Her hooves are perfect in every way, and she's never even been trimmed, much less had shoes on (I like to keep my horses barefoot....good hooves are a big deal for me).  To make sure her bones, tendons and joints had a complete chance to mature, she's never been ridden.  I've been waiting for her 5th birthday (Friesians are a slow growing breed).

Her body radiates the explosive power of the Friesian, and the dancing grace of an Arab.  My only disapointment was her color.  I hoped for the coal black of the Friesian.  She was born a blood bay.  She is turning color as she matures, to a dapple grey, with four LONG black stockings, and a black mane and tail.  

She is one of the most striking horses I've ever seen.  

The Friesian stallion I bred the mare to has passed on, or I would be breeding to him again.  The pairing between these two was remarkable in every way.  

Soundness, health, longevity, good body structure, temperment, intelligence, hooves, teeth, were all things I concidered for both parents before I made this breeding.  

~Garnet

P.S. The outcome of this breeding is named Canace.  It's Greek...it means "child of the wind."