Jet and the Mannequin

It is funny how horses get so set in what they are doing that they forget how to be a horse. We recently retired a mare we had bred years ago. My sister has been showing her for the past 10 years. Jet (New York's Best M&N) started showing at the age of three in 3 year old fine harness. She also showed in 4 year old fine harness and my sister began showing her at the age of 5. Jet turned 13 last year and we decided she had done enough and would take over for her mother, who passed away years ago, to keep that line going.

We moved Jet to a barn closer to where I live and to the clinic where we do all our breeding. The first day Jet was turned out into the pasture she didn't know what to do. Every time she couldn't see a person, she would have a fit. She was so used to being around people and had never been turned out since she came in for training at the age of 2. The people taking care of her thought she would adjust. After a week, they still couldn't leave her outside alone. So, the person who takes care of her came up with an idea. Kristin just didn't have all day to stay outside with Jet. Kristin got Jet a mannequin. She borrowed it from someone just to see what would happen. She put her jeans and another girl's sweatshirt on the mannequin and placed it under a tree. She then let Jet out into the field. read more

Considerations of Breeding Part VI

What Breed is It?

After having the now 3 year old in training for over a year, you take a look at it and ask yourself, "What breed is it?" This happens many times. A baby doesn't meet our expectations of what we wanted or is not talented enough to compete. What do you do now? We've all read about these breeders who just leave the horses to starve or abandon them. That is not an option. No matter what the baby turns out to be, it is still your responsibility as the breeder to take care of it or find a home for it. There are others who choose to sell these horses at horse auctions. The problem with these auctions is you really don't know where your baby will end up. There are other choices. continue

Considerations of Breeding Part IV

Other Considerations

When the foal reaches about 6 months old, the baby is going to have to be weaned from it's mother. Do you have enough room? How are you going to separate them? They will yell for each other. It is easier if you have had the mare and foal out with another mare and foal. This way you can turn the babies out with each other and the mares out together in a separate field. You are going to have to learn to ignore the noise. If it bothers you,get some ear plugs. read more

Considerations of Breeding Part III

The Baby


The filly pictured is 2 months old. She is Shilo. She is now changing colors. She began as a bright chestnut and is now turning liver like her mother. The only reason I was able to see her is because she ended up with Pneumonia and had to be shipped to the veterinary clinic. This clinic happens to be 2 miles from the barn that my horse's are at. As discussed in an earlier blog, the babies are kept at another farm. Another thing to think about when deciding whether or not to breed is what if the baby gets sick? Shilo has had to spend almost a month at the clinic. By the time she got there, she was so sick they didn't know if she was going to make it.

When you are a breeder, there are things you have no control over. Read More

The Thrill of Breeding

When we first started riding horses, we never realized what an important part of our lives they would become. We started when my sister was 12 and I was 4. We started spending more time at the barn. We learned to groom horses, clean stalls (not a fun job) and tack the horses. Eventually, we learned to exercise horses, give lessons and take out trail rides. The trail rides were fun to do because we would always have guys come out trying to impress their girlfriends. We asked who were experienced riders so we new which people to put on which horses. Invariably, the young guys would say they were very experienced and there were two horses we knew very well. Each of these horses had their own tricks. One would always stop at the creek and duck his head. Experienced riders would catch him and there wouldn't be a problem. Inexperienced riders would end up in the creek. I can't tell you how many of these "experienced" young men ended up in the creek. It was a hoot. The other horse would turn and go back to the barn. Again, experienced riders had no problem just turning him back and he would continue to follow the group. Most of the girls of these "experienced" guys ended up finishing the trail rides by themselves as their boyfriends were back at the barn.

As time went on, my mother bought us each a horse. Our first horses were killed in a barn fire which destroyed most of the horses. A man started the barn on fire. That is my worst memory of our beginnings. Once the barn was rebuilt, mom again got us horses. Through the years we have had the good, the bad, and the really ugly. But, we have learned from each and every one of them. One horse my mother got my sister was a mare who got hurt at a very young age and was never able to trot sound after that. We didn't know what to do with her. The trainer we were with suggested we breed her as she was a mare out of Status Lovely who was a daughter of Status Symbol. That was the beginning of the rest of our lives.

read more