Im looking to breed my thoroughbred mare.. where do i start?

Question

i am hoping to breed my 15.2 thoroughbred mare next year. but i have no idea on where to start, i have been researching average costs but they all say different things! i have also been looking at studs, but all the ones which would be good to breed with are miles away! so what i am asking your help for is how much (on average) does it cost to breed a mare (in the uk) and where can i find the best stud for my bugdet of £400 that lives in Norfolk?

i would love to use the foal for a bit of everything so it doesnt really matter what the breed the stud is (well obviously i couldnt breed her with an 18hh shire horse but you get the idea!) i would however like the foal to be bigger than my mare (when its fully grown) as im only 15 and i have still got a lot of growing to do! (im already looking too big on my horse now!! :( )

Answer 1

Where do you start. Hmm lets see. PLEASE don't start at all. For $400 you aren't going to get a stud that is even worthy of breeding. You are only 15 so legally you can't go into a breeding contract without parental consent. And you obviously have no clue on breeding, what to look for in a stallion prospect, if your mare is sound for breeding or even if she is that she should be bred.

You are still pretty young. Keep and enjoy the horse you have right now. If you are still wanting a foal after you're 18 then consider it then. Do more research and don't backyard breed just because "you want a cute fuzzy wuzzy baby".

Answer 2

find a horse to breed your horse with

Answer 3

I bred my mare several years ago because I thought it would be great to have a horse out of such a sweet mare.  I didn't get a sweet horse.  That sweet mare threw a demon baby.  He bit me, kicked me and otherwise made my life h**l.  He is not what I was dreaming of when I wanted a baby.  Took me the better part of 6 years to decide if I even liked him.  He is now outgrowing a lot of the behavior that I couldn't stand.

My advice to you would be to research raising a foal.  They are not like puppies.  Just because your Gem is perfect doesn't mean her baby will be too.  It is worlds cheaper to buy one already on the ground where you can see what you've got.  Somebody else paid the stud fee, somebody else fed the pregnant mare for 11 months and somebody else footed the vet bills and paid to feed that baby for 6 months or a year or two.

Answer 4

I would talk to a breeder to see how to go about it.

Answer 5

I'm living the in the middle of that dream! My favorite mare that i've had since she was a baby is pregnant! I started by talking to my vet. She recommend studs and said she'd help me through everything. Research the daddy and his bloodlines. Even if you don't care about coloring personality and genetic details could make or break everything. Find a good, willing vet and they will take care of you and your gem.

Answer 6

This sounds exaclty like me two years ago, now i have a two year old filly, who is nothing like my mare. It was a long, expensive process. The booking fee, the stud fee, the mare care, or the shipping- the vet bills BEFORE the service to make sure she wasn't harboring any infections, the ultrasounds, the delivery, the first shots, then there's the stress with weaning, with leading, with all this...ugh. I could go on...Don't get me wrong, I love her, but this past weekend, I just went and picked out a yearling whose already through all that, spent A THIRD of what i spent on breeding, and I'm just as happy...just...consider it.