# Should I breed my mare?



## ShutUpJoe (Nov 10, 2009)

I wouldn't breed that old of a mare for the first time. She may have problems getting in foal and having it. Seems like a waist of money.....


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## Brighteyes (Mar 8, 2009)

First, we must answer these questions:

_Why do you want to breed her? _

_What are you going to do with the foal?_

_Why do you think she's worthy of being bred?_

_Could you stand to loose her?_

And we can go from there.


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## Janasse (Nov 22, 2008)

Brighteyes said:


> First, we must answer these questions:
> 
> _Why do you want to breed her? _
> 
> ...


Because she's an awesome mare and very successful in the showring. Stallion has matching reputation.

Raise and show

Same as answer #1

No, she's my baby and we've been through a lot together.


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## ShutUpJoe (Nov 10, 2009)

At that age you have a very high risk of losing her. On top of that you aren't sure how she would foal being a maiden mare. 

On one hand you could breed her and everything turn out fine. But you have a chance of it going very wrong or her not taking at all.


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## Brighteyes (Mar 8, 2009)

She does sound wonderful, but just because she's a good horse doesn't make her worthy of breeding. We must take into account a lot of things before breeding a horse. Good bloodlines? Almost perfect conformation? (An if not, is the stallion strong in the areas where she is weak?) Personality? You say that she has a good show record, so I won't ask again. 

Do you think you're qualified to raise and train a foal? I know nothing about you or your skills, so this is up to you. Remember to be honest with yourself. 

I am a little concerned when you said you couldn't stand to loose her... Breeding is dangerous, especially for a maiden mare that old. Something could go wrong, and if you feel you couldn't live without, you shouldn't breed her. 

Sorry for being so uptight. It's just a big decision and requires a lot of thought, honestly, and planning.


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## skittle1120 (Oct 24, 2009)

Regardless of how "young" she acts, she's still 21, and she's a maiden mare? I wouldn't risk her life for a foal if she were mine, I'd go buy a 2 year old...

I'm worried about my 15 year old mare who's in foal for the first time being to old... (she was bred when I got her, it wasn't my choice, I'm just doing my best to get her though it alive) While everything has gone fine for her so far, the foals not on the ground yet, I could still lose one or both of them....


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## Janasse (Nov 22, 2008)

Brighteyes said:


> She does sound wonderful, but just because she's a good horse doesn't make her worthy of breeding. We must take into account a lot of things before breeding a horse. Good bloodlines? Almost perfect conformation? (An if not, is the stallion strong in the areas where she is weak?) Personality? You say that she has a good show record, so I won't ask again.
> 
> Do you think you're qualified to raise and train a foal? I know nothing about you or your skills, so this is up to you. Remember to be honest with yourself.
> 
> ...


She's not 100% perfect but yes the stallion compliments her very well. They are both registered and again compliment each other. I have been around and worked with foals plenty and am comfortable in my abilities. I am scared of losing her but then again you technically have the risk of losing a mare at any age. You're not uptight, I'm just on the fence and not sure if it's worth it no matter how much I'd Love to have a baby out of her. I think I will go ahead and have her checked, just didn't want to spend the money if I'd chicken out. Maybe after the visit I'll make up my mind.


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## FeatheredFeet (Jan 27, 2010)

I suspect the first question to ask yourself, is why you want to breed. If it's to get something like her, chances are you won't, because the baby will be half of some other horse and might not look or act like she does.
If the baby is to be for sale, then know you will be competing with thousands of others also trying to sell their foals. 
If you plan to keep the baby, make sure you know you can reasonably afford another mouth to feed and have the time to train a youngster. Also remember our lives change and at some point you might have to put the baby or youngster for sale, even if you'd planned to keep it.
What about your mare? She could live another 10 or even 20 years, so if it's a replacement your are after, she could quite well outlive her offspring. 
While she's not elderly, she's not young either. Are you willing to put her life in jeapardy just to get a foal, when there are thousands of lovely horses being shipped off to slaughter every day now?
We take a risk when breeding any of our mares. 
If you are willing to take the risk, then you'll need to evaluate her very carefully. What are her strong and weak points? What can she offer the breed?
What does her pedigree look like? Will you be linebreeding to a horse you like or outcrossing?
Are you very well aquainted with the horses in her pedigree. You should be if you wish to become a breeder. And if you breed just one foal in your life, it does make you a breeder.
You'll need to do tons of homework to pick a stud horse who is excellent where she is faulty. Would you be willing to send her to be bred or purchase frozen semen? Are you aware of stud fees and/or AI costs to the vet? You might also have a problem getting or keeping her in foal and the costs add up.
Breeding to the nearest Arab stallion down the road, won't be good enough and besides he's probably already got many offspring locally, up for sale.
Since your mare hasn't been bred before, you'll need to have a look at the offspring your chosen stud has sired and from mares hopefully much like yours or with a pedigree close to your mare's.
Lots to think about. If I only had one horse now and an older mare at that, I'd probably not breed but purchase one of the thousands of good horses out there for sale at very reasonable prices.
Certainly many older mares are bred. I know of one mare who has had over 20 offspring. She's old now and no longer gets in foal at all.
On the other hand, an old Saddlebred friend of mine, bred her mare for the first time when she was also 21 and everything went well. But the older they are and especially as a maiden, the more problems which might arise.
I'm not telling to breed or not to breed. The decision will be up to you as her owner. There's just lots to consider.


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## kassierae (Jan 1, 2010)

FeatheredFeet makes some very valid points. I wanted to breed my mare, but I was scared that she was too old and she was only 14. There is a risk with any mare, but the older they get the higher the risk. I personally would not even risk it, given her age and maiden mare status. If she had had a few foals before, it woul dbe less of a risk. She also might not even take, at that age. I also wouldn't breed just to have a baby from your mare. That's a very poor reason to breed, chances are the baby will be nothing like the mare. Please, if you want a baby so bad, buy one.


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## MacabreMikolaj (May 9, 2009)

I see no purpose for it. Losing the average mare for breeding is extremely rare - issues during birth almost exclusively target the foal in comparison to the percentage of mare loss. However, breeding a 21 year old maiden mare drastically increases that risk.

In my honest opinion, it's a waste of time. If the mare was that good, she'd have been bred by now. There's nothing you're going to get from this breeding that you can't probably purchase for less due to issues with her fertility and additional vet exams to ensure her continued health. You are taking a huge chance that will still cost you several hundred dollars when it is very possible she is already infertile or have great difficulty conceiving. If you do get her in foal, the budget will increase to several thousand, and for the risk you're running on both her life and the foals life?

If you're deadset, ensure you discuss it with a vet, but I can't think any vet would condone breeding an aged maiden mare. Do not treat her like a young mare - yes, we ALWAYS risk loss but a 5% risk differs hugely from a 50% risk.


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## Curly_Horse_CMT (Jun 8, 2008)

What my friend did (she has a gelding with a specific bloodline and personality along with gait that she wanted in a younger foal) so she reserached online and made phone calls and specifically found a young horse that matched her descriptions. 

I wouldnt, personally, breed a older mare like that. Yes, the chances of loosing any mare is there when you breed them, but at twenty one I think that the odds could be against her. Good luck on your decision!


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## thekat555 (Jan 31, 2010)

I had a 25 year old mare we bred. (commanche's mom) finished cutting horse, roping, and barrel horse, Did great in the arena. The probelm was after she had her foal she lost alot of weight, and she didn't gain it back...even after bein on a weight gain diet, our vet made. but that wasnt her first foal..


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## crimson88 (Aug 29, 2009)

She's likely not fertile anymore at that age if she's maidan.


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## thunderhooves (Aug 9, 2009)

did you take her and see? If you want to sspend more $$ you can have another mare AI with her and the studs...stuff....... I think that may be a good option for an older mare....kinda weird though, because the babies real mom would be your mare, but the one she came out of as the other mare...hmm.....
anyway, see if she still can even hae a baby. Good Luck!


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## tealamutt (Aug 21, 2009)

embryo transfer is always an option, but it is very expensive so I would only consider it for a valuable mare.


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## Jessabel (Mar 19, 2009)

I wouldn't do it if I was you. You really seem to love your horse and it just isn't worth the risk. If you REALLY want a baby, you would be better off purchasing one already on the ground. Either that or I suppose you could find a mare and get a breeding lease on her. Or purchase a broodmare.


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## freedomfighter93 (Apr 15, 2009)

I haven't noticed anyone else say this, so I want to note to think about the possibility of losing the foal as well, or both the mother _and_ foal.


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