What would your next move be?

[Rocklone Miniature Horses]

Firstly i will state that my yard can only tolerate at MOST 3 minis, because i also in the future plan to have a large horse and one of my minis is a loan so will leave (if i want a large horse i can only have two minis)

So, my 16yo mare has again not bred. So i have a choice to make -

1. Try again next year. Get her on regumate, scans, washed out etc.

2. Lease a mare with a hope to breed this year

3. Buy a foal from a breeding this year

I really can't decide what i want. Im not light, never will be, so my main priortiy for a foal is one that can pull a good load but still show. So the fine arabian types are not good for me, i want a midweight.

 

[lkblazin]

To me there are lots of pros to each.

If you can leasing a made to breed seems like a nice option. That way you can choose who she is bred to and create your dream foal. I don't know how money friendly it would be.

Waiting to breed your made may leave you with again a no baby.and buying a foal is nice cause you know what your getting. Also there are many foals to choose from. In the end I think it will depend mostly on your patience.

Almost forgot: I would choose to buy a foal.

I'm not patient

I would not spend the money to lease then breed a mare

And I would only be persistent with the 16year old mare if she were very nice. Otherwise I would let her enjoy the new foal that I would buy.

 

[TerriMueller]

My answer to this would first ask a question, why do you want to breed her? is it to gain another horse or to retain bloodlines? If it's to retain bloodlines have any of her siblings produced foals? If not this is natures way of ending this line. There are plenty of quality breeders out there to purchase foals from. I would opt to purchase from reputable breeder. Hope this helps

 

[Rocklone Miniature Horses]

I've asked a few people about foals in the area. It's not a huge selection tbh as many tend to have gone into Arabian types and oversized or micro. A lot are retained and the ones getting sold are either out of my immediate price range or not what I'm after. But then I'm also struggling to decide what I'm really after lol

Terri yes a daughter of hers is mother to a very successful horse if my family tree skills are right.

I love my mares temperament and ability to pull the cart but I was putting her to a refined stallion to get something just s bit more showable and flashy. Of course it could be the opposite and i get a horrible one lol

 

[Debby - LB]

Firstly i will state that my yard can only tolerate at MOST 3 minis, because i also in the future plan to have a large horse and one of my minis is a loan so will leave (if i want a large horse i can only have two minis)

So, my 16yo mare has again not bred. So i have a choice to make -

1. Try again next year. Get her on regumate, scans, washed out etc.

2. Lease a mare with a hope to breed this year

3. Buy a foal from a breeding this year

I really can't decide what i want. Im not light, never will be, so my main priortiy for a foal is one that can pull a good load but still show. So the fine arabian types are not good for me, i want a midweight.

What would your next move be?

LOL next move would be a bigger yard! seriously my first thought was that if your "yard will only tolerate at MOST 3 minis" then your option would not be a big horse and 2 minis, it would be a big horse only.... or three minis.

 

[Rocklone Miniature Horses]

lol yeah I need to move!

Nah I'm not interested in a large horse at the moment so I can realistically have 4-6 minis but I would only want to keep 2 long term if I had a large horse but it will be a long time before I think about a large horse

It's more a stabling issue not land

I like each to have its own stable. By at most three minis I mean with a large horse too due to stables. I have kept a large horse and two minis for years and still have to fight to get rid of grass and hire two horses from the neighbour!

 

[supaspot]

I wouldn't breed the mare , she may not take at all and you will have lost another year , if she does take the chances of breeding the perfect mini are slim , you say a granddaughter is very successful but you can't be sure the good qualities came from your mare as she only carries 25% of that blood line , at least if you buy in you know exactly what you're getting , leasing can be very complicated , its not easy to find someone to lease a good mare, birth is a dangerous occupation , what happens if she died during birth ? what if she has a serious dystocia and can't breed again ? you need to cover every possibility and get a contract drawn up , Id buy in

 

[Rocklone Miniature Horses]

That's looking like my only option really. ill have to just keep searching for that perfect one!