here's the first part - actually a little different, maybe better -
Carly & Rocklone –
On breeding – you have to make the decision to breed when and how often based on what you want, what you can afford to maintain when coming and when mature if not sold, and what kind of shape your mare is in.
Before the market crash – I was like Dianne. Our mares were our riding & lesson ponies and horses BUT they were bred every year. For me, it was much harder to get them back in foal if we missed a year – and cost money to figure out why, possibly clean them up via the vet, use drugs to help them cycle/ovulate. Usually put them in foal either on their foal heats or the cycle directly after. And I, too, had one that was much happier when she had a foal at her side (she “pined” for a foal of her own while helping to “nanny foals” for other mares – often losing condition, too, when she didn’t have one of her own. She did get sold at the age of 26 to an owner who had no foals/broodmares and became their daughter’s trusted riding pony for years into her 30s).
Now, it’s different. Since I got back into the purebred Shetlands – I’ve raised more foals but they’ve been harder for me to sell. I’ve often sold for less money rather than coming close to what we once sold them for! Now, I’m breeding more to replace older bloodlines that I don’t want to see completely lost and bringing in a couple of new combinations of similar bloodlines.
When I had a series of issues with what I considered a conformational defect (for a performance pony & not dwarfism) which affected the cost of their individual care AND being able to sell or even to rehome them, I ended up euthanizing a whole line including one of my stallions in 2014 – trust me – it was not easy to do!! I DO still have some fillies (mares, now) by him (my silver line
), but they will be bred in the future with lots of thought, IF they are bred at all. That line may end up “dying out” and I maintain/care for them for their own color attributes & personalities/current performance ability rather than bringing more into the world from them – and if they present with similar issues as their other ½ and full siblings – they may also be euthanized rather than rehomed/sold or even maintained. Will be on a case by individual case issue per pony!
I commend both you and Rocklone in your breeding decisions ahead of time. Trust me, it’s lots easier to wait to breed them then to be “over ponied” when you have to move on with your life (as you may experience when you are ready to go to college?...). I know that I sold the horses that I bred/raised with first both my parents and then just with my mom after the divorce, when I joined the army at the age of 21 and went overseas. I spent 10 years out of the horse industry as far as owning and breeding – but spent that in doing research and occasionally getting to see how other countries took care of their horses. I was in Korea for 13 months and went to the track a few times AND also visited a couple of farms that had horses; then in 3 distinct areas of Germany – with different horse breeds and uses. I didn’t make it to Wales or any other country that I wanted to – just too busy at the time (Army hours/duty of course came first. Then had a new baby to deal with and those kind of trips were out as to time AND $$ for a bit).
When I returned to the states, I had a non-horsey hubby, 2 VERY young daughters and was pregnant with the 3rd and knew that I wanted/needed to get them involved with horses that were “easy” and sized for them – which led to learning about the Shetland ponies… And now we’ve been breeding them for 21 years.
And Carly – I’m still learning about them!
