Breeding a pony that is toed out?

[Small_Stars]

Would you breed a mare that is toed out? We have a little mare that has a pretty neck, nice head though not exceptional, and fairly nice body, but is narrow in the chest and toed out on all four feet. Would you breed a mare like that or pass on her? What are the chances, if bred to a nice straight legged stallion of having a foal that is also toed out?

 

[muffntuf]

If you are asking the question - then I think you answered it for yourself. You take a chance at breeding a toe out offspring.

 

[minisch]

No.

 

[atotton]

I wouldn't , but do you have conformation pictures of her?

 

[JAX]

My opinion is that there are so many minis out there needing a forever home that I see no reason to breed it if you are not 100% sure. I used to breed several mares a year but now there are so many in need that I stopped. I have the best horses that I have ever had in 20 years... and they just sit here being my pets and lawn ornaments. I really want to breed them but just cant justify it right now with the way things are.

 

[disneyhorse]

Nope... Probably not..

 

[horsenut50]

Never. It's hereditary and if this mare is just average everywhere else, (even if she wasn't) I wouldn't chance it. A friend of mine had a mare that toed out slightly, bred her to a straight stallion and ended up having a very toed out colt. I bought him at a day old and then when of age gelded him. I broke him to drive but he was never completely sound due to the stress of his leg being turned out at the knee. There are way too many horses out there in need to chance breeding a mare that has hereditary problems that cause unsoundness in foal. I also think of the future of this foal. Even if this foal did come out correct, it still may throw if bred foals in the future to be toed out. Responsible breeders should always breed horses that are as correct as possible.

 

[FurstPlaceMiniatures]

It depends, is a bad hoof trim causing the toe out? How pronounced is it? Could it be from an injury?

If it's a "Oh, she's toed out" and it's the first thing you notice,NO, if you need to stare at her front legs to notice it and even then its super slight - eh, maybe if everything else was SUPER PERFECT. If she's narrow in the chest though, it sounds more conformational to me, and I personally wouldn't do it.

No leg no horse. I can get over an ugly face in a performance horse (my former big jumper ahd ears the size fo a mule's, but I'll be darned if her jump made up for it ten times over!), but bad feet/legs? Not my cup of tea at all, and I personally don't feel it should be passed on.

 

[targetsmom]

No.

 

[Small_Stars]

Thank you for the input.

She was originally gotten as a companion for the other one and not really a big deal whether she is bred or not, but I was curious as I didn't know if that was a strong hereditary factor.

Do they judge conformation in driving classes?

 

[fourluckyhorseshoes]

Yes conformation is part of performance classes. I remember it can be 35% of score ( at least in big horses).

 

[ruffian]

No, conformation is not part of performance. I had a roman nosed, big joined, big eared horse who toed out all 4 feet, and he drove like a freight train. He won very consistently at the local level, and even placed top ten at Nationals. But that being said - if it's close, say in a hunter class - the judges, who are still human - will probably take a well conformed horse over one not so correct if the scores are close.

 

[Small_Stars]

I asked as my daughter who is quite fond of this pony wants to compete with her in driving or trail or something. We had a breeder tell us that if she had poor conformation we couldn't show her, but they only show in halter, so I guess that's not a surprising statement considering their focus, but I think my daughter would really prefer the performance classes rather than halter which doesn't interest her much.

 

[disneyhorse]

Conformation doesn't necessarily "matter" in performance but it could affect their soundness over time.

 

[Small_Stars]

I used to show POA's for years growing up and the pony I had was cow hocked and wasn't any good in say like halter, but consistently placed near the top in all other classes and was a heck of a western pleasure horse. Conformation was not taken into consideration for those classes. I told my daughter she could show her at fun shows in showmanship, but that didn't particularly interest her either.