British Breeder Magazine May 2020
Magazine for breeders of British bred sport horses. Includes breeding industry news, updates, interviews, profiles and reports.
Magazine for breeders of British bred sport horses. Includes breeding industry news, updates, interviews, profiles and reports.
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Feature - ARTICLE<br />
Je T’Aime Flamenco, one of many <strong>British</strong> based stallions standing at stud this year.<br />
Breeding in<br />
<strong>2020</strong> By Sacha Shaw<br />
As the foal crop of <strong>2020</strong> emerges into<br />
the world, breeders are left in a difficult<br />
position with many questions on their<br />
minds about the future. <strong>Breeder</strong>s are<br />
asking themselves ‘Can I afford to run on<br />
my animals that make up my breeding<br />
herd until demand picks up? How many<br />
mares should I put in foal while the future<br />
market is uncertain?’<br />
Regardless of whether your business<br />
plan is to sell all your stock as foals, or<br />
run them on till they are under saddle,<br />
the effects of an economic downturn will<br />
be felt across all sectors of the breeding<br />
industry. Of more immediate impact<br />
is the availability of semen, access<br />
to veterinary services and the ability<br />
to transport mares. At present semen<br />
coming in as freight from mainland<br />
Europe is unaffected, and many large<br />
studs and stallion centres in the UK are<br />
also able to have in place the protocols<br />
needed to continue to collect and<br />
ship. These centres may also able to<br />
take in mares for foaling, to scan and<br />
inseminate.<br />
The terrible situation the world finds itself<br />
in should also be a time for all breeders,<br />
large or small, to look at their reasons for<br />
breeding. It costs just as much money to<br />
breed a bad horse as a good one, and<br />
it is hoped we don’t see inexperienced<br />
breeders choosing to put a mare in foal<br />
as they have no other job for her, when<br />
the mare is not a good candidate.<br />
If you are wanting to breed for dress<br />
age, as a basis you are looking for<br />
an athlete with powerful yet elastic<br />
movement and sufficient correctness<br />
to ensure they can stay sound to do<br />
the job. Then limbs are the foundation<br />
of the horse so they are important too.<br />
The same can be said for the jumpers,<br />
replacing the elastic movement with<br />
scope and jumping technique. And<br />
eventers cannot lose the bravery and<br />
ability to cover the ground. For all these<br />
disciplines, soundness combined with<br />
ability and a trainable temperament are<br />
fundamental aims of any breeder.<br />
If the mare is a good enough candidate<br />
then the job of choosing the right stallion<br />
begins. Stallion grading is a benchmark<br />
for young unproven stallions to help<br />
mare owners make decisions over<br />
suitability. An older stallion that is proven<br />
in sport has shown he can cope with the<br />
stresses of travel, training and of course<br />
competing. Hopefully he will also stock<br />
on the ground so the mare owner can<br />
assess his merit as a producer.<br />
Clements Equine in Suffolk is one of many major<br />
centres able to offer breeding services this year.<br />
A mare or stallion with a bad<br />
temperament should never be used for<br />
breeding.<br />
There is little advantage to be gained<br />
by using a cheaper, ungraded stallion<br />
when the stud fee is only a small part of<br />
the cost of getting a healthy foal on the<br />
floor. Even if a breeder wishes to only<br />
produce a single foal for their own use<br />
and enjoyment, the future uncertainty we<br />
all face from the global pandemic means<br />
every breeding needs to be a measured<br />
and thoughtful decision. Every foal born<br />
must be bred with soundness, ridability<br />
and ability in mind, so there is a market<br />
for that foal in a worse case scenario.<br />
We wish all breeders the best and look<br />
forward to hearing about both this year’s<br />
and future foal crops.<br />
www.breedingbritish.co.uk<br />
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