To breed or not to breed..

[Aidey]

That is the question!
A few months back I bought a RP registered mare, approx 15hh, 5 years old and is basically a blank canvas ridden wise, she has good conformation, has the most beautiful floating paces, temperament wise she can be a bit hot headed but isn't nasty in any way. Plan was to start work this winter/spring but I would eventually like a foal from her.

Would you:
A: start ridden work and hopefully start competing over the next year or two and then put in foal?

Or
B: put in foal 2013 and then just start the ridden work after had foal? Instead of stopping and starting with the ridden work..

Also was considering putting her to an ID, for a bit more bone and chunkier foal, any suggestions? Would ideally like to breed something to mature to 15.2hh.

Nothing set in stone so suggestions on a postcard please ;D

[watchbank]

If it was me i would start her ridden career, get some rosettes and some results from her first x

[libbigail]

What would you do with the foal keep it for yourself or sell it? If it were me I would start her ridden career

[judyh]

I would start work, you could still work and show her next summer.
In racing if a mare was showing problems they were sometimes put in foal then raced.
I put a mare in foal,rode her quietly till Chrstmas. She foaled in April.
I had her back in steady work in August and the foal used to follow us (It was a long time ago and I had 1000 acres to ride on with no roads).
Once she was weaned I hunted mum that season.
Breeding one foal will not mean too long off. The only thing I would say is will the age gap be enough for you.
You would have 2 in work in a few years time.

[gillwales]

you have from now til next spring to decide, start her off with the idea of competing her and see how things go, having a foal can help to settle a mare. You can certainly carry on riding her and competing after she is in foal.

You do need to consider what judyhems has said about 2 to keep though.

Personally I would not consider a much bigger stallion with a lot more bone for a first foal, nor do you always get what you plan for when you use a stallion of different type to the mare, it is not a question of getting the mean between the 2 parents but a mixture of the different genes depending on which are dominant.

good luck

[Louise Dixon]

Oct 21, 2012 11:11:06 GMT judyh said:

I put a mare in foal,rode her quietly till Chrstmas. She foaled in April.
I had her back in steady work in August and the foal used to follow us (It was a long time ago and I had 1000 acres to ride on with no roads).
Once she was weaned I hunted mum that season.

I have also done this, and going for those hacks round the farm with foalie skipping along side has been one of my greatest joys. We are having a break from breeding, partly because we have two small children and partly because I would not want to keep a colt, but we may have another foal in 2014 or 15, and I am looking forward to that already.

[stormyskies]

One of my best ever moments as a breeder was riding my favourite mare who was the first horse I ever owned, round our fields with her first 3 month old filly at foot gambling beside us and keeping up merrily with mum, racing ahead to play with the spaniels and then shooting back to mum and a scratch of me!

[patchworklilly]

I personally would compete her first and get some rosette's under her belt then think about breeding from her..id go for a nice 15.2 thoroughbred stallion..not too heavy

[victoria264]

I have a sec D mare who will be 5 next year shes not long since started her ridden career im thinking of getting her out to shows next year and then put her in foal to a very big nice stallion and keep the foal