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Selecting
a stallion for your mare
For
the EquiGen educated horse owner
By
Dr. Meisenburg
It is once again the wonderful time of
year when mare owners, large and small have the joy of stallion shopping.
You may be thinking “So many stallions, so little time”.
In order to help all of you have a more pleasant breeding experience, I
have put together the following suggestions.
Take what you want, pass on the best and leave the rest!
- Pretend
that you are not going to sell the foal.
Now ask yourself, “Could I sell him/her to a good home easily?”
If not, strongly reconsider.
- Fully
understand your breed or discipline’s standard and breed with that in
mind.
- Know
what your mare’s faults are and breed to off-set those faults.
With that in mind…. Take the faults of your mare and combine them
with the faults of the stallion and imagine a foal with those faults, now
rate this possible foal.
{ Next to perfect – A nice horse
– a nice “horsey” – Could be worse –
ick – what have I done?! }
- Make
a game plan for how the breeding management is going to be handled.
Will it be by your vet, by the stallion’s vet, at a reproduction
clinic like EquiGen, live cover, shipped chilled semen, or frozen semen?
- Know
what the stallion’s fertility rate is.
“He has foals on the ground” means squat unless you ask for some
more details.
- How
many mares did he breed last year and how many of these mares got
pregnant? If he has two foals on the ground, but he bred 50 mares,
well…. He does have foals on the ground doesn’t he?
- How
many breedings on average did it take for those mares to get pregnant? He
has foals on the ground, but it took 3-5 breeding cycles to get them
pregnant. $$$$
- Were
the mares he bred fertile? How
were these mares managed? If the stallion has a sub-optimal breeding
record for last year it may not be all his fault.
No matter how fertile he is, poorly managed mares or older, sub
fertile mares are going to give him a tough time to fatherhood.
- When
was the stallion’s last breeding soundness exam and what were the results?
A serious stallion owner will want to have a yearly comprehensive
evaluation of his/her breeding stallion.
Waiting until your mare does not conceive to have him checked is
diagnosing a stallion problem on your dime.
- If
the stallion performs live cover, ask when he was last cultured by a
veterinarian for STD’s like the bacteria Klebsiella or Pseudomonas.
- When
is the stallion available?
- Sign
a contract and understand what it is you are signing.
If you do not understand, ask questions.
We at EquiGen are happy to answer our client’s questions and we are
certain your repro veterinarian will as well.
- Stallion
owners!
- Make
sure that the mare owner understands your management needs and protocols.
Get to know the different reproduction clinics and keep a list of
the ones you enjoy doing business with.
Pass those suggestions along to your mare owners.
It can make everything move along much more smoothly for everyone.
- Keep
score of your stallion’s fertility.
Keep separate records for maiden
mares, good breeders, older mares, sub fertile mares, live cover,
shipped semen, and frozen semen.
- If
you are shipping semen to clients, take pride in what you send. Send
your stallion’s semen in a professional manner.
Include your stallion’s information and what the semen quality
and concentration was at the time of shipment in a clean container
designed for cooled semen shipment.
 I have said this before, “knowledge is power”.
If you are new to this “horse breeding thing” get yourself an
advocate you can trust and get in the know NOW.
The breeders and the repro veterinarians are pretty well rested /
recovered right now and will be happy and readily available to answer any
questions you may have.
Happy stallion selecting!
Horsefully yours,
Dr.
Meisenburg
Veterinarian-in-charge
EquiGen
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