Putting mare in foal, yes or no?!?

Question

Hi, we have a 15.2hh 14yo TB mare and would love to put her in foal (she has already had 2 foals, unfortunately one died - this was all with the past owners) but we arent sure if we should or not. Could people give us advice on wether we should or not and we know its a HUGE responsibilty. what stallion would we put over her and how much would this cost? what food would she need to have? could any experienced horse breeders please give us all the info about breeding horses.

Thanks heaps :)

Answer 1

Why would you want to breed your mare when there are so many unwanted horses out there now.  ?????  Watch a horse slaughter video if you can and see what happens to a horse when no one is responsible for it.  Baby horses are cute but they soon grow up to be big horses.

Answer 2

You're in AU, and I have no idea what the horse market is like there.

Here in the US too many people are breeding too many horses and wondering why the market is c**p.  I guess they slept through the whole supply/demand part of econ class.

So...the basic question a responsible breeder asks in any market is...what are you trying to produce.  If the answer is "just a horse...blah...blah..blah" then they should probably buy one since there are already plenty of those every where.

But, if your mare has good bloodlines, is a great example of what a TB should look like, performs at a respectable level, then she meets what most consider to be a minimum standard for breeding stock.  (I think there should be more qualifications for breeding than cooperative genitals)

Pick a stallion who is a good compliment.  You don't have to go back 3 generations on the papers to find a champion, is conformationally sound, excells at your discipline...

Those are just the bare minimums to produce a nice foal.  It isn't cheap to do it right.  A person can go out now, in the US, and buy a well bred, nice foal for less than they will pay for a stud fee to a decent stallion, proper mare care during pregnancy and lactation, (both feed and vet) and new foal care.  And they KNOW what they're getting, filly or colt, color, body type...the advantages of buying vs. breeding are exponential.

Answer 3

I can give you some great info about ADOPTING a wonderful new foal:

http://www.pmufani.org/Adoption.orgfiles...

Some gorgeous babies here in need of new homes...You're so lucky to have the land and the horse...why make more when so many already die?  Save a life instead.

Answer 4

"you need to read a book not get a short course from kids on yahoo...."

Ooh I like this part of Garden By M's answer very much!

Anyway...

It sounds like you're breeding her because a) you love her and think she's a swell creature, and b) you can't do anything else with her (i.e., sell her).  Now why would you want to sell a horse that is spectacular enough to be bred, anyway?  I don't mean to offend you, of course, but if she were an outstanding mare, I would assume that you would have mentioned her show record, her supreme conformation and temperment, etc.

So, the two above-mentioned factors (a and b) might produce a foal that YOU like, but its resale value is probably going to suck.  I know lots of people who love their horse - but just because THEY love their horse (and therefore its potential offspring)  doesn't mean I or anyone else will.  There are SO many horses out there in the world, it just doesn't make sense to create any more with anything less than an awesome mare and an awesome stallion.  Why breed more mediocrity when we already have way more than we can handle?

Unless your mare is outstanding (which she should be, to be considered for breeding) then the answer is no.  Breeding her to even the most spectacular stallion the world has ever seen will only produce a foal with 50% spectacular genes...the rest come from mama (conformational faults, anxiety issues and all.)

I don't doubt that your mare is a sweetheart, but that sure as heck doesn't qualify her to reproduce.  Just because the organs particular to reproduction are present and functioning doesn't mean they ought to!

Answer 5

i would suggest that you go to two people that will be able to help you in the whole proccess.

1. a trainero-to help pick out a stallion, help check the horse, help find ways to bring her into foal, and know when for sure the vet needed called asap

2. a vet. for vet checks, for the breeding (or artifical) and to give you a better list of things you'll need.

a good stud can go for any amount and will have be sure to have a huge price tag, but if it was me i'd pay the money to make sure i had the best stud i could afford.

Answer 6

hi well you know it will be a big responsibility but for a stud i would go for a dash for cash  stud and his fee is usally 500 to 1,500 not to bad eh?

Answer 7

put her in foal

Answer 8

As the other poster stated, the horse industry here in the US is in the tank.  Check out what your's is like before you really start looking at a stallion to breed to.  I bred last year only because the stallion I'd known for 5 generations and because he's up there in years was afraid I wouldn't get the chance.  

I agree also with the suggestions of getting your trainer to help with the selection of the stud and having a vet do a thorough examination of your mare and culture.

Answer 9

you need to read a book not get a short course from kids on yahoo....you choose a stallion that has the color, personality and athleticism you want and you pay 500-1500 for that....you need a place for a foal because it is dangerous in certain types of fencing etc.