Recent content by sporthorsefrance

You are so right!! Equine Facebook is a very good description.

I expect most of you who have watched your horses enter a new field have noticed how they always go round & sniff all the droppings from previous occupants before settling to eat. It's a recognition thing. And I believe very important to the herd, however small. Today I sent a 3 yr old off to...

And was the first filly foal the same?

, she will run back at speed kicking out both barrels. Glad someone else has seen that! I never knew horses could canter backwards and kick out at the same time, until they rang me from the stud to say that my young mare (who was there with her mother, both hopefully to be put in foal) was...

Thank you. How many years between the 2 fillies? The second filly - did she show no signs of alpha? That's my experience, second one doesn't. But first colt foal & first filly foal do. But if a first filly is born to a relatively young mare, in the wild she would be cast out by her mother to...

Thank you for sending this info. Was the gelding grandson her first foal? Please respond, so many people don't! My gelding grandson exactly the same and went international, first born from alpha mare.

I originally said 'warmblood type'!!! Don't get me on to my pet subject of why aren't we breeding true British warmbloods from the Shire, who were originally warhorses not agricultural dumbos. ShirexTBs are fantastic, 2nd generation even better. Very intelligent too!

And mentally?

Yes I agree with that also. I just feel that maybe too much is attributed to the stallion & mares are for the most part ignored. I know so many people who put their very ordinary mares in foal on a whim to a good stallion & wonder why the offspring is not as good as they'd hoped. Yet a true...

Totally agree, which is why I am asking for genuine information & observations in order to be able to delve a bit deeper & accumulate some facts as opposed to fancies. As to TBs maturing, it's my experience that a warmblood type is much slower to mature but everyone has their own opinion. Mature...

Thank you, our post is very interesting, so rather than take my bat home at the lack of response, I would like to know a bit more please. 2 is very young to take over but that may be because she's a quick to mature TB. Who is her sire? TBs are easy to trace & I would like to look at her...

Thanks equi, Irish gal & Doormouse. At least you have responded. Having supplied my definition of an Alpha mare as requested, the subject has completely dried up. I won't be using this forum again. But many thanks for your input you three.

It's always a bit of a lottery. You need a lot of luck, believe in your gut instinct & do your homework. It's never a cert. I had a really orange chestnut from a mare who had previously born only dark brown foals. Threw back 6 generations! There are no hard & fast rules to breeding I'm afraid...