Is the best horse you own also the most expensive?

[backwoodsnanny]

To follow up on what Best to Best means to everyone I have one more question. Is the Best breeding horse you own the most expensive or is it even a breeding horse at all. Tell me about your best horse mare gelding or stallion and what makes him/her the Best. Everyone has one Best horse. And should your Best horse be in a breeding program or is he/she best for another reason? I am still trying to figure out who my Best horse is.

I know Karla Jazz is your best for many reasons but would love to hear about others Best horses. Not that you cant tell me all about Jazz if you want lol.

 

[Jill]

Every single horse I have as part of my breeding program, or growing up to be in my breeding program, is there because I chose them for that purpose. I don't want to get into which is my best because I'm really happy with all the current ones I have (that is why I have them). I will say that the 3 horses of mine that I think are the most valuable are not actually the ones I spent the most to purchase...

 

[JourneysEnd]

My best horse is an over-weight gelding that I paid $500 for. (We're working on the weight issue)

He does whatever the kids ( 10 & 16 year old) ask.

He's calm, patient, & loving.

That makes him far more valuable then what I paid for him.

 

[SHANA]

Well my best mini would have to be my first mini, the gelding Sanka. His pedigree is unknown and he is only WCMHR but if I had to sell all my minis and only keep one he would be the one I would keep.

 

[SweetOpal]

Wow, now this is a tough one...I have so many that I would consider my best. If we were talking what has done the best in the show ring, I would say Geshan my stallion. But if I were saying my ultimate best horse, it would be my mare Mahalah. She is one of the best horses I have ever met, she is loveable, obedient, a princess who knows it, loves to work and please, awesome show horse, drinks pepsi, great mom, she has produced a Congress Futurity Champion, she will let anyone ride her becuase she knows she should, she will walk herself to her stall and put herself away at night, if she would just put the harness on and hook herself to the cart, she would just be darn perfect! She really is the best horse I have ever owned! I do have a gelding that I have only had a few months who I think in the long run will give her a run for her money on the best horse ever

edited to say: Mahalah and Pow Wow in the middle of my usual price range, they were definately not my most expensive, but I have paid less on occasion for a horse. As far as I feel, they were free

 

[Leeana]

The highest quality horse IMO in my barn currently is my classic shetland show filly, Alpha Farms Magical Melody and no she is not the most expensive one but she is 101% what i wanted and more and i am very confident in that filly and that is with barn blind goggles turned off

.

 

[Magic]

I don't know if I could pick just one "best" horse. My first thought is of course my mare Mountain Highs AMayZing, who has won so much, including Performance Horse of the Year, yada yada yada, (and her first two foals were shown to Halter Hall of Fames) but I also have a mare that hates to show but I've taken two of her many foals to Nationals, and both have won National Championships, in different classes. Two different mares, with very different attributes, but both very "best" to me in different ways.

And then my stallions are a totally different catagory, in my mind, and the geldings yet another (in the non-breeding category of course!). But I can say that no, my personal "best" horses aren't necessarily the ones I've paid the most money for.

 

[Warpony]

don't breed, so not sure if I count... and both of my horses are really not even close to breeding quality.

but my best horse is my gelding. Conformation wise he blows my mare right out of the water. They both have fantastic temperaments, are smart and easily trainable, very personable, love attention, not spooky. The mare is long backed, thick built, short legged. her legs are nice and straight, just hard to see because they are so stubby... and her bite is good. But her neck is low set and thick. She looks like a Thelwell cartoon. The gelding is long legged and athletic and more up headed.

I actually paid more for the mare, but I bought her as a 7 year old so I could start training her right away, where as I bought the gelding at 4 weeks old as a future driving horse.

Though to put it into perspective, I paid $300 for the gelding and $350 for the mare, hahaha! I paid more for her but at those prices I hardly think it makes much difference. I didn't go LOOKING for bargain basement horses, it just so happens that the ones I fell for hard were El Cheapos.

 

[backwoodsnanny]

Thank you for the responses so far. The point is that for some Best is the Best personality for others its the Best show horse for others the Best driving horse and for still others the Best is something totally different so when we say breed Best to the Best perhaps we are even when someone seeing our horses doesnt think so perhaps we are breeding our best horse who is best for other reasons and those reasons are important to us not to the world. NOt every breeder sells horses believe it or not. We have bred several minis and all but one of the minis we have bred are still right here why because I didnt want to sell them. Never even tried to sell them at least not yet and maybe never. lol.

 

[lilnickers]

Hmmmm.....I feel as Jill does, that the horses in my barn are all ones I have chosen to have and to keep. But I must add that the one mare that I actually paid the least for is probably my best mare. I almost didn't purchase her, but the owner kept after me and kept lowering her price as he was getting ready to move. I had already bought 4 of his horses and was pretty much broke! Boy, am I glad I got her, I just LOVE her

(she is my silver buckskin pinto) Everybody likes her as she's so gentle and kind.I took her to a local Open Show and she was good as gold and enjoyed the whole experience. I sometimes sneak her an extra treat when the others aren't looking

My other best horse is my stallion. No one could ask for a better boy. He minds me very well and he is soooo patient, like he is the last out the barn every day, and last one in. I am starting him ground driving, and he just stands there while I fumble with the harness trying to get it on right and adjusted. (I am green also) He wasn't my most expensive or least expensive, but he's worth every penny I paid and then some and his foals are just the sweetest, just like him.

BTW, great thread

 

[outlawridge]

For my two cents worth....the best absolutley does NOT equal national champion regarding breeding. You would need the best PRODUCERS. There are national champions in many different species that have produced nothing at all like the level expected for their breeding, pedigree, amount of wins etc. If breeding strictly the best, it definetely must go to the best producers, dam and sire alike, IMHO.

In answer to do I have the best? YOU BET!!

the best long awaited mini (10 years before I was able to have one), the best greeter, the best smoocher, the best hugger, the best playmate, the best down right cutie bug adorable teeny weeny wee dwarf, the best jokester............

 

[Miniv]

Nita,

I think you sized it up very well..........There is NO ONE BEST, for us. We have bests for breeding, showing, and for loving. Each one has a value in our heart, but for different reasons.

In a way, it's sort of like having lots of kids. And having someone ask which one do you love the "best"? I don't think I can answer that.

MA

 

[RedWagon]

This is Mark not Julie.

We did just go through our horses this year to pick our breeding horses. Each was picked for the qualities and conformation that we strive for.

But IMO our best horse is not our most expensive nor was she the cheapest. She is the one when I am having a bad day I can just go sit with. Don't get me wrong they all bring a smile to my face but there is just something about Ten Ls Spirits Sierra Dancer "Dani". I would not get rid of her for nothing. She is gentle and kind to all of the horses and to people alike.

Mark

 

[countrycharm]

Hmm yeah hard one all my mares now are really similar as that is the "type" i like they are all similar in build height etc and have all done well in the show ring. I couldnt pick my best horse i supose as far as showing Cinnamax would be as he brought me home my first supreme, as far as who i would never sell... i have narrowed that down to 3 with my stallion Blue at the top who means so much to me sentamentily so thats another best

best natured my mare moony can throw a bomb under her, also a great halter show horse and will jump anything and is sooo acepting to new things . Dez my black colt runner up supreme would be my other best up coming horse lol oh this is to hard they each have there own strengths as no one is perfect but for me to keep them on as breeders they have to have proportanate cnformation straight legs and big movement pretty heads colour doesnt matter and thats what my horses have

and a really big thing for me is for them to have done consitently well in the show ring because if the judges dont like the horses im showing what chance do the foals have that will come out of these mares and stallions but so far i seem to be heading in the right direction

 

[KAYO]

My best broodmare is my most expensive horse and she was AMHR National Champion senior mare as a 5 year old, Ten L's Copper Locket, my best stallion is Shiloh's Alf's Legacy who was given to us by our good friends Bob and Jane Parton and was top 3 in the nation. We bred the two and the result was our 2007 National Champion OFM's Legacy's Copper Son!!! We have both-the best expensive, and best least expensive!!

 

[Fred]

All the horses at our house are the best at multiple things. Some for halter and performance, some for conformation and movement and ALL of them for temperment and personality. Each horse [like a person] has individual skillls that are unique to that animal. As for which one is the most expensive it doesn't matter to me they are all worth a million.

 

[h2t99]

Our best one is our stallion Little King's Blaze My Dream, no he was not our most expensive, no he is not a National Champion. He is the one that got my son over his fear of horses!! Dustyn has learned so much from Beamer and my kids love him so much

, then again so do I!!!

He is the first mini we ever bought and he is the one that has brought us so much joy. So in my opinion he is the best of the best, and we owe him only the best that we can offer!!

 

[Sandee]

If we were just talking about $ and cents, the cheapest horse I own has the most ribbons on the wall! My most expen$ive one has yet to prove it's worth and may even go over "A" - ouch!

 

[Cathy_H]

Is the Best breeding horse you own the most expensive

- No, quite the opposite - the one that cost us the most was not the best. He is now a gelding being shown by another family.. Actually almost all of the ones that cost us the most ($5,000 plus ) did not turn out to be our best horses ( guess we were a bit gullible - OH! ya think).

 

[Marty]

Is the best horse you own also the most expensive?,

NOPE.

I traded 4 halters and 4 lead ropes for the best horse I had.

Actually I paid 25 cents for one pony and 75 for the other and they were wonderful