Stud Books, preferences & benefits

[minmax]

In the process of choosing studbooks.
Who do you think are the better ones, for breeders, buyers etc?
I'm talking, KWPN, Oldenburg, Hannovarian etc

 

[Lgd]

Is this to choose a stallion or for the foal registration?

Of the mainland european studbooks I prefer KWPN personally because they are very clear in their stallion grading criteria and if there are any faults they will openly declare it.
They also keep assessing the stallions throughout their breeding life by assessing offspring at different ages - a bad offspring report can mean loss of approval. A stallion does not get lifetime approval until he is around 14yo. They also do a lot of research into OCD, behavioural traits etc and use that to inform selection criteria.

UK based studbooks are fewer. Your main ones that are world breeding federation recognised are AES, SHB-GB, UK Hanoverian (affiliated to the main Hanoveraner verband), UK Trakehner (affiliated to the main Trakehner verband), WBS. SSH studbook has just been incorporated into SHB-GB very recently.
KWPN, oldenburg and ZfDP all do foal gradings in the UK. KWPN do mare gradings and the IBOP tests in the UK.

ETA of my three homebreds two are KWPN registered and the mare is overstamped with AES. The other one is AES registered as both of his parents are AES, although his dam is also mare graded with SHB-GB. The dam of the two KWPNs is also AES registered.

 

[minmax]

For Foal registration. Went with KWPN for one, as dam KWPN, will go Oldenburg for other.
I know some people won't look at KWPN youngsters as they think they are all sharp pro horses...