Happy Un-Hump Day

Since this is Wednesday I thought it might be appropriate (or at least a little funny) to designate this as "Un-hump day," in an effort to draw a little attention to the responsibilities involved in breeding horses.

Foals are cute. They come into this world on their wobbly long legs and within a few days they are chunky, fuzzy, doe-eyed creatures who are amazingly agile and quick on said wobbly long legs.

They are in the same catagory as kittens, puppies, and even human babies. They have a very high "Awwww" factor. We want to scoop them up in our arms and cuddle them (although with don't carry out that desire with foals, for obvious reasons).

Genetically we are programmed to love babies. The trouble is, babies grow up. And with foals, that means they eat a lot, need a lot of training (in which you mostly likely will get hurt in some form or fashion) and they tend to need to be wrapped in bubble wrap 24/7 (because they will definitely hurt themselves in some form or fashion). Cuteness gives way to responsiblity. A LOT of responsiblity.


At this point, most people want to sell the foal. Sometimes these are foals with great pedigrees and great conformations who were raised correctly, with the right training and nutrition. Sometimes they are not. The process begins the same--with a "for sale" posting, but the results tend to be quite different.


For this reason, I've put together a list of questions to ask yourself before you decide to breed that mare of yours. And in all fairness, I will answer each one myself. I am by no means exempt from these responsiblities, so let's begin.


1. Why are you breeding your mare?
I don't plan on breeding either one in the near future. I'm not breeding them because I'm not prepared for the responsiblity of properly raising a foal right now, and I don't think they've earned the right to reproduce yet. They have to have their careers before family....


2. Is your mare of high enough quality to contribute positively to the gene pool?
Right now, no--they aren't. Having reproductive organs does not automatically qualify a horse to be breeding stock. I believe they have potential, yes. But, they must show they can do something other than stand around, converting alfalfa into manure.


3. Are you willing to lose your mare and/or foal?
This one is tricky. Most people think it will never happen to them. They point fingers and say "Well, I've never lost a foal!" Just wait. It's not if, it's when. Right now I'm not willing to lose either one of my girls. I'm not ready to bury another foal.


4. What are your plans for the foal?
This is probably the number one reason my girls will remain foal-less for a while. I want to show any foals that they have, but first, they need to show. I have a full-time job and a farm to care for by myself. That leaves limited time to fit and show a horse. I will be lucky to be able to get two trained, fit, and shown. No time for foals right now....


5. If your plans include selling, are you willing/able to keep the foal if it does not sell? Or, are you willing to sell to just anyone, at any price?
I was told once "You care too much where they go." Well, that was news to me. I didn't know I wasn't supposed to care. I thought if I created a living, breathing creature that I had some responsiblity to it. Silly me.
The point is that I will not breed my mares until I'm able to have another permanent mouth to feed. Could I sell a horse? Sure! Moose almost left for France and I didn't even have him advertised. If the perfect home comes up then some of my horses could be sold. In this economy, though, I'm not pushing my luck.
And I am unwilling to advertise my horses on Craigslist for $300 like some backyard junk. It's tasteless and grossly irresponsible, as is continuing to breed horses when you can't even sell the foals you have. If no one wants what you already have, why make more?


I'm not saying that no one should breed horses right now. That's not only ridiculous, but it's unrealistic. If your foals are selling, in good homes, being productive in some way other than creating more unwanted foals, then you're obviously doing something right.

If this isn't the case, then please give yourself a big slap and wake up. Equine Overpopulation is a very REAL problem. If you're not part of the solution, then you're part of the problem. No one is exempt from responsiblity.