Lesson 1: Getting Started
Evaluating Your Mare
This can be a very difficult job because it is hard to distance ourselves from our emotions to honestly judge our horse’s weaknesses. No matter how wonderful we think she is, her physical characteristics will be passed on to her offspring. And no matter how wonderful the stallion is, he is only half of the equation. So if you want a foal to suit your needs or reach a dream, you cannot start with an inferior mare. Even if she wasn't cheap, she may not have the quality you want to perpetuate in her offspring. Since the mare gives an equal amount of interest in the foal as the stallion, you should select a mare that has the qualities that you desire.
The overall important factor in a good mare is her conformation. Conformation refers to the way she is put together, how her body is arranged. Avoid gross conformation faults such as crooked legs, improper headset, and steep shoulders and pasterns. Research has found that most gross undesirable characteristics are dominant. Therefore, a mare with a major problem has a great chance of passing it on to her foal. Do research so you are aware of what correct conformation is, and how deviations from the ideal affect the horse’s soundness and useful life. If your mare has a major problem, reconsider breeding her. Even if you find a marvelous stallion, his good qualities may not overcome her bad ones.
After you have judged your mare’s conformation, you may want to research her pedigree. Even though the old adage of what you see is what you get is primarily true, ancestors also play a role in heredity factors. If a pedigree is not available, then you must realize that you will have an unknown factor in your foal.
Some people down play the importance of personality in the mare. Her temperament will be passed on in some way to her foal, through heredity and through her attitude toward learning and affection to her owner. This is obviously true when observing racehorses. Beyond the conformation to run, a will to run is breed into them. No matter how good the horse is, if he has no desire to win, he will not be a successful racehorse. Consider if your mare has any unwanted personality traits. Is she mean to you or to other horses? Is she high spirited or stubborn? Is she intelligent in learning situations? Your foal may be like her in these traits.
Now after you have honestly evaluated your mare, take the same time in finding a stallion. If your mare is a strong candidate for breeding, you will not want to weaken her prospects with a lesser quality stallion.
