the average cost of breeding a foal?

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Jadey

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Seriously considering putting my mare in foal :) I know that there can be a massively varying range of costs involved in breeding a foal. What about the average cost of vet visits/ultrasounds etc??
 
Yes this will vary tremendously, depending on whether you use AI/natural covering, whether you use teasing to test for seasons or scanning etc, whether your mare requires any drugs to ovulate etc, whether your mare catches on the first cycle, second cycle or more etc!! Also on your stud fee, whether there's a collection fee.

But to give you an idea!! I can't give you a full breakdown but I did tot up how much my colt last year cost me to get on the ground, and I believe it was about £1800 And my mare caught on the first AI cycle, she did require an ovuplant to help release the egg as she was transitional for ages! (The stud fee was £750)
 
I spent £1200 on semen (think collection was £80 on top and £30-50 shipping), £210 for one AI cycle with chilled semen (which is incredibly good!! - previously I'd been on double that for one cycle), plus £60 for visit and scan at 40 days.
 
Stud fees were six hundred, the swab from our vet before she went was one hundred and fifty, the stud did a package for vets fees for two hundred and fifty with an additional thirty pounds per AI attempt. The livery at the stud was five pounds a day at grass. My mare has been there all summer, so the total is well over a thousand and she's not in foal. She can return for free (ie no stud fee, but I would still have to pay vets package again and have her swabbed again, so another 400!). I'm now wishing I'd not bothered! Could have had a new saddle and evented all season! Be very sure!!

Sorry if that sounds bitter! I'm laughing really (kind of!). Not sure if my job will be around next year, so may be a blessing not to have a youngster afterall... Good luck to you!
 
From conception, my current foal has cost me $300 Vet fees (scanning, foal check and needles) $60 for trimming and ...that's it.

If I wanted to AI and I did work it out once because there was a particular stallion I wanted to use, upwards of $2500 for imported semen (and associated paperwork) transport costs to and from the Vet University, board, handling, AI etc, etc, etc....forget it.

Even for live cover I would be looking at $800 minimum stud fee, plus board, handling fees, vet fees, transport, call it $1200 before the foal hit the ground and that's if all went well.

I bought my own stallion.
 
Too Much!!

One cost me around £1200 (£400 stud fee) and I lost both mare and foal
Second one this year cost around £1500 (£450 stud fee) Had a very sick foal so another £1400 vets bills for a foal now worth around £1000.00 (due to an offset knee)
Third one £2200.00 (£750 + vat stud fee) colt worth around £4.5k

Oh and that doesn't include my time or keep for mare and/or foal or chipping/passports/jabs etc
 
Well, I have bred my mare this year and so far it has cost me £50 for swabs etc, £400 stud fee, (natural cover and stallion on same yard so no keep fees involved except her normal livery) £100 vets fees for 2 scans.

However, I am positive that I have many more bills to look forward too!
 
It cost me around £2k to get my mare in foal - with an abortion at several months.

That coupled with money in the bank to cover costs at birth should they arise meant that it could have cost several thousands to have a healthy foal.

See the post above about the poorly foal........
 
cost me 4k 3 cycles of ai with transport costs to vets £1100 stud fee £863 shipping of semen £150 still not in foal so the following year sent her to stud for ai. paid another £450 stud fee then £550 transport and £11.50 a day grass keep for 13 weeks. then £200 vet fees. but got a foal in the end who needed a plastic shoe another £320 but it did work, Phew dont know why we do it, but its worth it.
 
Expensive!! First time was around £2000 as she took first time and was very easy.

Second time (due April 18th 2011):

Frozen Semen (including shipping): £850
AI/Stabling/Scans/PG injection: £600
''infoal'' scan at yard: £90 (not in foal)
Second lot of semen from a different stallion: £500
AI/Stabling at vets: £450 as only in for 3days and no other drugs used
''infoal'' scan at yard: £90 (in foal this time)
42 day scan at yard: £90
And she will have a final internal around the beginning of October which will also be about £90

So thats nearly £3000 probably including trips in the lorry to the vets etc so fuel costs on top of that.
 
Fools breed horses for wise men to buy!

I have spent around 2k so far, has scanned in foal and waiting for heartbeat scan.

But I don't want just any foal, I want a foal from this exceptional mare!
 
im fairly lucky, cost around £200 to swab 8 mares, 7 covered by my stallion no stud fees, and all in foal 7X£20 =£140 scanning. one mare ai scans and ai'ing££170 2 cycles and ai'd at home but not in foal plus stud fee £450. will start early next year and also offerd a freebie to another stallion, various other hicups this year, my total vet bill for all horses is around £1200 so i do feel lucky, but i had one foal die at birth and another foal broke his leg in the field last week, so im on a loss, but at least i have sold one filly, so i can feed them all this winter!!!! i have spent wildly this year too!!!! land, new yard and two new stallions, now im skint and my vet is payed standing order each month!!!!!!
 
I bought my mare already in foal so i got a fairly good deal £1500 for the mare who was in foal to a stallion whos stud fee was £500 and shed already had all her scans..
Though you have to think about vets fees when you worry that the mare is empty, vet fees when you worry because you cant see it moving anymore, vets fees when you worry a bit more..
Extra feed costs when shes in her 3rd trimester and you have to buy a stud feed of some sort.
Make sure you remember to buy everything you need for your foaling kit.
Then account for energy drinks and plenty of chocolate and various munchies when mare keeps you up for 2 weeks on the trot for foal watch
More vet fees when shes foaled..

THEN, maybe a few more vet fees when your foal throws himself through electric fencing *shakes fist at her signature*

All in all its a pricey hobby, but so so worth it. Good luck :)
 
Zero. Buy a lovely horse in March have it broken to ride through april/may/june.

Take it out for a leisurely hack in July find a foal in the field next day.
Berate vets who 2 weeks before told you that said mare was to fat and swollen udders caused by allergy to flybites, so horse is put in bare paddock.

Foal is very healthy seems to have been text book perfect so far.
 
janeprince said:
Zero. Buy a lovely horse in March have it broken to ride through april/may/june.

Take it out for a leisurely hack in July find a foal in the field next day.
Berate vets who 2 weeks before told you that said mare was to fat and swollen udders caused by allergy to flybites, so horse is put in bare paddock.

Foal is very healthy seems to have been text book perfect so far.
Click to expand...

This made me chuckle! Why cant it be that simple for everyone!! :-)
 
I always say mine only cost £6 (that was the cost to the stud to jab her to bring in season).

The stallion cover fee I earnt by working for the stud (looking after the horses left behind whilst they were away showing for a week).

I've had a couple of minor vets fees but even they have been tied in with vet already visiting yard/nearby yard or with jabs.

So really so far its cost very little besides the usual keep of mare etc which i would have had anyway even if she wasn't in foal.

COST TO HEALTH however is priceless - i'm nearly bald and have nibbled my finger nails down to my elbows :D

Good luck whatever you decide.
 
in the issue of horse and hound with the big feature on the irish somewhere in it it estiamets that the average cost is about £1200

my mare was very cheap to get in foal but at the time i was working at the stud where the stallion stood so got cheap livery and also didnt pay any AI costs, she caught in the first cycle anyway so all i paid was a vets package at £185 and a stud fee of £575 and then i think about £30 livery
 
Stud fee €250 no drugs needed for her cycle. I got the week she was at the stud for free. €35 to scan in foal, €35 to scan still in foal, €80 vets bill at 8 months when she got severe placentitis and nearly aborted, €50 vet bill for check up at 9.5 months, €200 vet bills in the week she foaled due to retained placenta and needing washouts/anti-biotics for 5 days. Feed for the winter was prob about €250 so in total I got my cracking colt for under €1000
 
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