Breeding horses is not inexpensive or for the faint of heart. It can be an incredibly rewarding experience, but sometimes it can be heartwrenching when things go wrong. If you're thinking of breeding your mare, but not sure if you should, here are some things to consider.
Responsible breeders are willing to care for any animal they produce for the rest of its life. Are you ready to keep any foals you produce for the rest of their lives? If they are sold but have a problem later, will you take back a (possibly sick or injured) horse for many years of further care?
Are you looking to make money? Most foals are worth less than the cost of the stud fee plus the feed, board, training and veterinary care required to produce them. Unless your foals are exceptionally valuable, you are unlikely to make any money by breeding your mare.
Are the mare and stallion worth breeding? There are already more horses than there are homes in this country. As a society we do not need to produce horses just because we can; we should produce them with a specific goal in mind -- improving the breed or sport. Your mare should be very accomplished with good genetics and you need a keen eye to know her flaws as well as her strengths. Likewise, you should choose a stallion who will improve upon your mare's traits. You should look not only at the mare and stallion themselves, but any offspring they have produced and the offspring of their relatives. A structurally sound, healthy foal with a great attitude is our goal.
The foal won't be a duplicate of your mare. Just like we are not an exact replica of our mothers or fathers, foals are not exactly like their dams or sires. If you want to find another horse that is very much like your mare or stallion, you a better off choosing one that is already the right breed, color, sex, age, size and temperament. Trying to breed a similar horse may take many, many breedings and you may end up with many foals you don't want to get the one you do. Even then, you'll have to wait years for the foal to grow up, costing a substantial amount of money and effort to raise, to see how it turns out.
Raising a foal can be an expensive and risky prospect. You start with the stud fee, which can range from free to tens of thousands of dollars, and the other costs associated with breeding. Then there is caring for your pregnant mare, including veterinary bills associated with proper prenatal care. Your foal should have an examination and testing within a day of birth to help ensure its health, and may need treatment to prevent disease right away. The foal will need several years of feed, board, and training before it can be ridden, and of course will need veterinary care to ensure its wellness and treat the usual coughs and cuts that foals get as they grow and play. And of course, things could always go wrong - your mare could have trouble getting pregnant, your mare could lose the foal, the foal could be born with a problem or the mare have trouble giving birth. The foal, as it grows, could have problems that make it lame or otherwise a poor candidate for the job you want. So you may not end up the foal you want, or the costs you expect.
It's not our goal to dissuade you from breeding your mare. We want to be sure you make a rational, educated decision about what is right for you and your mare, both now and in the future.
Call us if you have questions about the proper care of mares and foals or if you have any questions about the breeding, pregnancy and foaling process.
No comments:
Post a Comment