Stallion & Mare Owners
Speak Their Mind

We understand that breeding horses is a complicated business. We would like to help bridge the gap between stallion and mare owners. We sent an e-mail to all our horse breeding readers asking them to tell us what they wish mare owners and stallion owners knew about breeding. Here is what they said:

Lydia Cunningham/Mgr
Mountaintop Ranch Equine Center, Elkton, VA
Through the years, these are some area where I found mare owners lacking:
1. How to care of a pregnant mare - vaccinations and feeding regime.
2. Understanding the dangers of grazing fescue grass or hay in the last 3 months of pregnancy.
3. Mare owners need to be more diligent about understanding that owners and/or breeding facility where the stallion is managed is responsible and knowledgeable.
4. In most cases, if the stallion is managed properly, it is not the stallion’s fault if the mare does not get bred. Mares can have many, many breeding issues
5. Make sure the mare is ready for the breeding process by verifying she is breeding sound and ovulating on a fairly regular cycle.
6. If mare owners want to save time and money, they need to keep up with the mare’s cycle and bring her to the stallion at the appropriate time.
7. It is helpful if mare owners educate themselves on what to expect when having a foal on their property, and how to work properly with dam and foal so you don’t have a little “Big Monster” on their hands once the “cute” wears off. This in one of the reasons that I produced
my imprinting video “Creating Lasting Impressions”
8. Be responsible for what you are “creating” and putting on this earth. Carry through with training and have a plan.

Suzanne Moody, Glenhaven Welsh Ponies & Cobs
At Glenhaven we are on both sides of the fence in as much as we breed 15 - 20 of our own mares every year and also stand 9 stallions. Not every mare we own is an “easy breeder” and so we have also had our share of disappointments. I would never discourage a mare owner from breeding unless the mare had obvious problems as in age, conformation, difficult foaling - things of that nature. It is an incredible experience to breed your mare and have a foal. I could not imagine a year where there we no foals born at Glenhaven.
The mare owner has to understand that most stallions owners really want the mare to get pregnant and produce an offspring from their stallion. It is not always as simple or inexpensive as it may at first appear. We work diligently to help the mare conceive and if the mare is not in foal it would not be from lack of effort. I think mare owners have to understand that even the best of effort may end up fruitless and for no apparent reason. At the end of the day they may be left with an open mare and a vet bill. If they are not prepared to face that possibility then better not start at all.
Choose wisely when picking a mare to breed. Get a breeding exam, culture and uterinary biopsy done by a veterinarian prior to breeding. In the long run, the results of these tests can save you a lot of money and disappointment.

Marilyn R. Webster
IdleHour Stud
When outside mares arrive at the farm, I expect them to be up to date on all shots and I then ask that they fill out a data sheet on vet care, daily management, etc. Rear shoes need to be pulled as well. The stallions are stood up for them as many breeders have not completely made up their mind until they bring the mare to the farm. Once selected, we discuss how the mare will be covered--AI or live cover--or if this may be my decision. If the mare has not been cultured, I then need permission to do this and to clean her up if necessary. I also suggest that they leave their mare until she is US+ and can be returned home successfully in foal. A breeding contract is signed.
  AI mares to which we are shipping semen sign the breeding contract. I then request that the mares must have a clean culture and that I need to be informed 5 days before the targeted breeding date so that I can cycle a jump mare for collection. I need their vet’s name and numbers as I would rather work with their reproductive vet regardless if they are at a breeding facility or the vet is breeding the mare at the farm. The inseminating vet then sends me a report of the date and time of insemination to be included with the return of the Equitainer which there is a 5 day time allowance for its return. The client or vet then lets me know if the mare is safely in foal when ultrasound at 14-16 days post breeding. If not, we start the process over again.

Siegi Belz-Fry, Stall Europa
You asked for comments from mare or stallion owners on what the other party should know before breeding…. Having worn both shoes I think I can contribute a little bit to the subject.
As a mare owner – please make it easy for me to do business with you. Be responsive and return my phone calls/e-mails. Don’t limit me to certain days for collection of your boy – my mares never read the book!  Give me an incentive to go with your boy versus all the other ones. Please give me a good conformation shot of your boy and, if possible, put a video of him moving on Youtube. It would also be nice to see offspring and see what kind of mares produced them. Tell me how you’re going to help me market the foal my mare is going to have. I promise to provide pictures and status reports throughout.
As a stallion owner – please, please, please make sure your mare is breeding sound!  Use a veterinarian that specializes in equine reproduction, one that will do a uterine cytology and biopsy to make sure the mare is ready to carry a pregnancy. Give me a reasonable amount of time to collect the stallion and ship the semen to your vet – please don’t expect me to answer the phone at midnight!  Remember, I want you to be successful with your breeding efforts as much as you do.

Name Withheld
Oh where to start. The time to start looking for a breeding stallion is months PRIOR to breeding season. So many people wait and then get upset when a stallion owner wants a culture, shots and a clean bill of health prior to breeding. These things can take 30, 60 or more days.
Mare owners have all your paper work done: i.e. Registration papers, coggins, shot record and culture ready to go BEFORE loading your mare to go to the breeders. It is not a stallion owner’s job to chase down these necessary things for breeding reports and farm safety just so your mare can be bred.
Mare owners please know some simple things about your mare. When was her last cycle, has she ever been bred, how old is she. It is amazing what people tell you and then the mare arrives and it is quite a different story.
And finally please teach your mare simple handling techniques like how to lead and tie, no biting or kicking and yes how to have both the bag and vaginal areas wash without fuss. Breeding is dangerous enough without having to train a mare to simple tasks while you are in the process of breeding.
I used to breed but have gotten fed up with people over the years who found it so hard to comply with these simple requests.

Robert Seddon
Olde Towne Farm
When considering a mare to breed to ANY of our Jacks, the FIRST consideration would be that the mare be tested FULLY for any type of STD that might make its way into our herd. Also general testing for any disease that might be transmitted to any member of our herd. Then, would come the consideration of temperament, conformation and suitability of the mare to be bred. Then comes the consideration of the desires and needs of the mare’s owners, accounting for their desires for the offspring. (i.e. Will our sire produce what the owner expects?)
With a shrinking economy, one MUST be cognizant of the horses/mules/donkeys that are being mistreated and abused before agreeing to breed ANYTHING….the care of the offspring MUST be considered as PARAMOUNT in any decision to breed another animal. If there is ANY chance that the resulting foal will be thrown away and mistreated, WE WILL NOT BREED UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES.
In any sale contract from our farm, we demand a first right of refusal to purchase the animal back from the owner if they need to divest themselves for any reason. The care and kind treatment of these animals is our responsibility and our charge, as stewards of the life that God has given us, and as we have freely taken it. I wish only that others would consider this before creating a life that may be abused and mistreated in the interest only of making a name or a reputation.

Steuart Pittman, Dodon Farm
I find that most mare owners are great to work with once they know that we want their mare pregnant as much as they do, and that we’ll go out of our way to get them semen when they need it.
I would recommend that mare owners carefully read the stallion owner’s breeding contract. Knowing who charges collection fees on top of their stud fees, who has days when the breeding shed is closed, and who needs advance notice to schedule collection should be factors in choosing a stallion. I also wish all mare owners had calendars on which they would mark when their mare shows heat, when they foal, when they are given prostin, etc.

Emmett Turner, Ryland Knoll Farm, Rixeyville, VA
There are many things I could cover but will stick to three that I think are most important.
 1. Stallions are not miracle workers!  The most important element in getting a high quality foal is to start with a high quality mare. Don’t hesitate to get an opinion from someone that can be objective. If you are breeding in a registry that requires mare inspections, get that done before you breed and carefully weigh all comments and scores before you proceed. Many breeders are breeding fewer mares in these questionable economic times and there are opportunities to lease proven high quality brood mares.
 2. Many breeders look for stallions to fix their mares weaker points. That may or may not happen. A better strategy often is to look first for a stallion that complements your mare’s good points. If the stallion offers an opportunity to improve the mare in other respects, then so much the better. Do take into account the stallion’s pedigree and performance record in relation to the discipline that you expect the foal to perform. Movement for dressage and athletic ability for jumping are heritable characters and very few stallions excel in both.
3. It is great to work with knowledgeable and experienced breeders, but in no way essential. Find an expert in equine reproduction, not necessarily your every day vet, and let them handle the details. Costs of farm calls are often higher than daily board rates. Many equine reproduction specialists have facilities where they can board mares. Taking your mare to such a clinic can be cheaper than repeat visits to your farm and offers the very best chance to get the mare in foal on one breeding cycle.

Ray Yowell & Cheryl Richards, Painted Dreams Ranch
We cannot emphasis enough the need for the mare to have a great disposition. She is the one that raises the foal. We have turned down breedings when we learned that the mare had a nasty attitude, especially if it is directed to people. We need to handle the mare to find out if she’s ready to be bred, to breed her, and then for the vet to check if she is in foal. We expect the mare to be easily haltered, walk calmly when led, and standsquiet when tied.
As for how we breed, we make every attempt to get mares pregnant. We breed at least every other day to ensure when the mare does ovulate, that there is good semen in the mare. Our preference is that the mare stays at our ranch until she can be checked in foal and until the foal is attached (approximately at 28 days) before being transported, greatly reducing the chance of aborting the fetus. We use a breeding chute for our safety which also helps avoid the potential for injury to the mare and the stallion.
As for selecting a stallion, we advise mare owners to start looking early. Go see the stallion and pay attention to the stallion’s disposition, build, and movement. Look at his babies and also ask to see the mares that produced the foals. Ask for a copy of the breeding contract and pay close attention to the requirements for bringing in your mare, for any additional charges, and to the guarantees. Some breeding contract language will null and void a re-breed if the mare doesn’t produce a live foal, or in the paint world, charge extra for guaranteeing a marked foal.
We also suggest that the mare owner bring the mare to us a week or so prior to her coming back into heat, especially if the mare doesn’t travel well or gets nervous in new surroundings. Both of these things can affect the cycle of the mare and/or her chances for conceiving on the first heat cycle while at the breeding place.

Max Francis says, "You are never too young to learn about horses! Read the Virginia Horse Journal."