[shygirl]

Just hijacking this thread a little, I have a section A mare who was successfully shown when younger and is now about 13 is this too old to have a first ( and only) foal. Foal would not be for sale but I really enjoyed the handling and showing of Beth so would really like to do it again especially as I have resigned myself to remaining on the ground.

i sold a mare who was 16 and her new owner bred from her 18, and she had another 2 foals after that. she was a very healthy fit arab. i get a vet check first. things like melanomas under tail/teats etc can cause issues.

[lokismum]

I'm just buying my youngest daughter a 6 year old in foal Shetland for her 2ND birthday
the mare has had 4 foals already and is due to foal 2014
so shes been a brood mare from 2

[mowhaugh]

Agree with shygirl, absolutely no reason why a mare of that age shouldn't breed, I have had a first foal from a 16 year old mare, but a vet check first is a good idea - external, internal and a scan, to check for good reproductive conformation, and also any age related changes which might limit her chance of getting in foal.  Like humans, the age at which these begin vary greatly.

Not sure if I am reading right about the shetland, but she is 6 years old and about to have her 5th foal?  So she was covered as a yearling?  Really hoping I have read that wrong!

[Kasana]

My 16 year old maiden Sec B is in foal for 2014 - no issues with getting her to take :-)

I would not consider putting a Sec D in foal until at least 4 - Welsh ones are slow to mature!

[FoulaLass]

If you think about it like this...

Any horse/pony only stops developing at 5-6 years old, no matter what breed. (there are studies to prove that)
A human stops developing at 18-20 years old.

Putting a 2 year old filly in foal is no different to getting a 9 year old human pregnant. Yes some manage ok, but others die, purely because they were too young.
Your horse will live to 30 if you are lucky, why rush her now when there will be plenty of time yet to let her be a mother.

[EcoGypsy]

Horse don't have comparison in human, really. In wild, about 2-3 year old fillys are getting pregnant. Normally breeding starts from 3-4 years of age without any problems, because female is matured enough.

I knew an arab mare who had her first foal at the age of 5 (only because she was in racing) and last one at the age of 27, sixteen foals in total. She lived up to 35.

[roddycm]

Totally agree ecogypsy! No comparison to humans at all. My old neighbour breeds section B's and they all have their first foals at around 3 and a half or at the latest 4 (having got pregnant 11 mnths before of course). They go on to have foals into their late teens and sometimes 20's. He has fantastic stock which has been exported to mainland europe and even as fa a field as canada where they have gone on to win many prizes and have happy lives. Its all a matter of personal preferance at the end of the day. If in doubt about if your filly or mare is ready to breed just consult a vet.

Having said this, it is just my opinion and I respect others' ways of doing things. 

[Herdygirl]

Well in my opinion I just think it's great that the horsemeat market is going to be well supplied in the future. I think it's refreshing that people are starting to treat brood mares like sheep, pigs and cattle and breed for the dinner table.  Of course sheep and cattle don't have 16 to 20 pregnancies, they don't tend to live that long (I have no experience with pigs so i don't know how many they have before they are slaughtered).

[EcoGypsy]

Horse meat market is already very well supplied by overproduction of thoroughbred horses. My neighbour buys them from Newmarket and sells them on to the meat man. Probably he gets better money than if hes selling his cobs as riding and driving ponies.

[Herdygirl]

He probably does EcoGypsy, and the market is also well supplied with Welsh ponies off the hill, Dartmoor and Exmoor ponies, cobs, showjumpers, family ponies and all the horses and ponies that after a lifetime of good service become unwanted 'companion' animals and animals bred for the show ring that don't make the top 5%.  Sad i call it.

[Rosemary]

Again, I'd ask you to read this before you breed from your mare. I'm sure she's lovely but WHW takes in over 200 neglected horses each year. There are dozens more rescue centres and many, many horses being sold for meat.

Please don't think that your one foal won't make any difference. It will.

And if we are comfortable with "professional" breeders breeding dozens of foals, then we need to get over ourselves regarding horse meat and press for more horse abattoirs in the UK.

http://www.worldhorsewelfare.org/needtobreed

[Daisys Mum]

Again, I'd ask you to read this before you breed from your mare. I'm sure she's lovely but WHW takes in over 200 neglected horses each year. There are dozens more rescue centres and many, many horses being sold for meat.

Please don't think that your one foal won't make any difference. It will.

And if we are comfortable with "professional" breeders breeding dozens of foals, then we need to get over ourselves regarding horse meat and press for more horse abattoirs in the UK.

http://www.worldhorsewelfare.org/needtobreed

I agree, we have decided against breeding our sec A, on reflection my grandchildren were going to be too big for the foal by the time it was old enough to be ridden, I really don't need another mouth to feed and the market it swamped with welshies. I couldn't bear to sell something on and not know how it was doing, I am in touch with the owners of the only horses that I have bred and sold.

[lord flynn]

its been reported that at Beeston sales this week, horses and ponies were going for £5 each. They aren't even guaranteed a swift death at an abbatoir now Red Lion are closed down (not the only one but still) More than a few will end up on a lorry to Europe and others will end up at horrors like Spindles Farm until they can be offloaded. Everyone should be thinking very carefully before breeding right now-you can buy what you want but you can't always breed it and then what?

[EcoGypsy]

Theoretically, if you taking/sending a horse or pony abroad, the animal needs vet's papers via defra, cost almost 60 quid, and horse must be over 14.2hh or have a special valuation certificate, or being registered with breed association, before it will be allowed out from the country. And of course, passport signed "not for human consumption". How they're getting over these rules I have no idea.

[Rosemary]

How they're getting over these rules I have no idea.

For some folk, rules are just a challenge