Who should I breed my mare to??

Breeding my Appaloosa mare has been a dream of mine since I got her when she was 6 months old, she is now 8 and doesn't have a show career.. but is fantastic to ride, has amazing colouring and hall of fame bloodlines on both side. I was planning on breeding her last season but nothing was working out for me so I decided not to. I had the stallion and breeding contracts in my hand ready to sign too but I decided not to. Which Im glad I waited because I love riding her, she is a 2004 15hand appaloosa mare which I ride her English hunter/jumper. A few sires I have in mind are:

My little Secret:
2009
15.3hand bay with white blanket appaloosa stallion, standing at Char O lot ranch.
Stud fee:$1000
Saudi Arabia prince owns him
3X world champion already, his grandsire "The Secret" is also syndicated

Acore:
2005 16.1 hand
Bay canadian warmblood stallion
Jumper/Grand Prix

Westporte:
Westporte is an imported Hanoverian, standing 16.3 hands, dark bay, has competed hunters, jumpers and has produced some fancy hunters and champion offspring.

There are many others to choose from.. I definitely want to breed her to another appaloosa to see what I get, I have a few foals that I want from her also to continue her bloodlines. My search will continue....

-Meaghan S.

Find a Boarding barn....

Check you the barn yourself:

A visit lets you see the facility and level of care for the horses. You should have a list of questions to ask the owners or the manager running the farm. The facility need not be fancy but must be safe for horses to reside at. Things to check:

Fencing
All gates and fences should be in good repair and not broken and functional, Fencing doesn't have to be 4 boards or no climb mesh. Electric tape can be just as good as long as it works, barbed wire is not acceptable.

Stabling
Check stalls for dangers like holes in corners ,broken boards and protruding nails, look for fire hazards and exposed wires and any signs of a fire extinguishers and smoke alarms. There should be clean stalls, clean water buckets. Also take a deep breathe in... you shouldn't smell ammonia.. if you do.. that is a sign of poor ventilation.

Feeding
Ask how often horses are fed and how much, and if they have a custom feed plan for each horse that comes in for boarding. When peaking into the feed room you should see lots of grain and different kinds and supplements stored in a rodent proof containers. There should be a chart with each horses name and what it gets for AM/PM feeding time.  Check the hay.. it should be leafy and green and sweet smelling not dark brown, dusty, course or stemmy.

Turnout
Paddocks that are grazed down to no grass and muddy suggest over crowding of horses in them.  Paddocks should have a good source of water, space between paddocks will prevent aggression along fence lines.

Amenities
Make sure the farms arenas meet your needs and that footing is maintained and appropriate for your discipline.  Keep in mind that no barn is perfect , pick the amenities you want and ones that are just an added bonus.

Horses
Look at the condition of the horses.. they should be fat and look healthy, not sore. They should be relaxed and happy.

20 Questions to ask:

1) How long have you been in operation?
2) What id your turnover rate?
3) How often do you feed?
4) What do you feed?
5) How often and where are horses turned out?
6) Do you require the use of a specific vet and farrier?
7) When are horses de wormed?
8) Do you require boarded horses to have negative coggins?
9) Does someone live on the property? how often are horses checked on?
10) Are there days where i cant visit or ride my horse?
11) Do you require the use of a specific trainer?
12) Can someone blanket my horse if im not there?
13) What services are not included in the board price?
14) Where can i store my tack?
15) Do you have a boarding contract?
16) Can I see a copy of the barn rules and regulations?
17) Do you provide trailering?
18) Do you have liability insurance?
19) Can you provide names and numbers for references?
20) If there a waiting list?


Good luck and have fun choosing a place for your horse to live at.
:)

EHV-1 Virus outbreak

The horse community is on high alert due to an outbreak of a contagious and potentially deadly equine virus that has prompted regulatory and industry organizations to institute quarantines and travel restrictions in Arizona and other western states.

The Arizona Department of Agriculture confirmed the first case of Equine Herpes Virus (EHV-1) in an Arizona horse on May 17. The horse was exhibiting symptoms of severe neurological disease, adding to the numerous recent reports of EHV-1 among horse owners across the U.S. and Canada.

“In an outbreak of EHV-1 neurologic such as we are experiencing now, the disease can reach high morbidity and case fatality rates,” said William Moyer, president of the American Association of Equine Practitioners.

To date, one horse fatality and three confirmed cases of EHV-1 have been reported in Arizona.

EHV-1 is a highly contagious airborne virus that spreads quickly among horses, but is not dangerous to humans.

According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), the current outbreak can be traced to horses attending the National Cutting Horse Association (NCHA) Western National Championship event held April 29-May 8 in Ogden, Utah.

A report issued by USDA on May 19 indicated 21 Arizona horses were exposed at the Ogden event, with 67 Arizona horses secondarily exposed.

Dr. John Hunt, Arizona’s state veterinarian, said that all of the horses and premises in Arizona known to have been exposed through the Ogden event are under close observation, and as of press time, no new cases of neurological disease have been observed.

The incubation period after exposure to EHV-1 is one to two days, with fever then setting in. Neurologic symptoms typically manifest eight to 12 days after exposure.

Early symptoms of the virus can mimic many other illnesses, explained Dr. Abbie Reidhead, owner of Holbrook Veterinary Clinic. It’s when horses begin to exhibit neurologic symptoms, indicating that the horse has the more serious neurological form of the virus, that horses may begin a rapid decline.

Reidhead encourages horse owners to promptly seek medical advice if their animals show symptoms such as runny nose, lack of appetite and fever.

More serious symptoms include poor coordination, hind end weakness, lethargy and urine dribbling.

There is not a vaccine or a specific treatment for EHV-1, although antiviral drugs may be of some help prior to neurological symptoms setting in. Anti-inflammatory drugs are also widely recommended.

“Memorial Day weekend is one of the biggest horse event weekends of the year and kind of kicks off the rodeo season, but we’re encouraging people not to take their horses anywhere,” said Reidhead.

Her advice is echoed by regulatory and industry organizations across the country, with Hunt emphasizing that it’s at events where horses are brought together from different places that the virus is more likely to spread. In response to the outbreak, several horse-related events in Arizona have been cancelled and some horse parks have temporarily closed.

Locally, the Navajo County Fairgrounds is responding to biosecurity guidelines that call for a 21-day quarantine of all horses in boarding facilities, directing facility managers to not let boarded horses leave the premises until the quarantine, which is currently in effect until June 10, is lifted.

“We can’t let the horses that are already here leave the area, and we can’t receive overnight travelers unless owners have written clearance from a vet, dated no more than two days prior, that says their horses do not have the virus,” said Leia Barbea-Haro, secretary at the Navajo County Fairgrounds.

Reidhead said that the situation needs more monitoring before it can be said for sure when quarantines will be lifted and the danger declared over.

“The Department of Agriculture needs more time to determine where all the confirmed cases are and how the outbreak is spreading before it can say when the health alert will be lifted,” she noted.

Reidhead explained that owners aren’t likely to find the virus among their horses if they haven’t traveled recently or allowed other horses to visit their premises.

As of press time, she had not seen any cases among her patients, nor had she heard of any cases in the area.

“Keeping your horses home is the best bet until the outbreak passes,” Reidhead concluded. “It’s not worth losing your horse over one rodeo. ”

Updates on the status of the virus are posted weekly at http://www.aphis.usda.gov/vs/nahss/equine/ehv/.

http://www.azjournal.com/2011/06/01/horse-virus-has-owners-on-guard/

Indelible image appaloosa stallion

Indelible image appaloosa stallion, By "The Secret"

With every breeding share:

 $1,000 will be deposited to the Promotion, Incentive, and Futurity account. It will be fully funded at $20,000. That money will be available for the syndicate members to decide how much and where we spend it. We have it before we spend it! There are no unknown surprises in the mail for added expenses. There will be an Indelible Image Futurity each year. It will be held during the World Show (similar to NSBA). Every Indelible Image foal or get in the designated classes are entered automatically. We pay back to 3 places. The first year will be current year foals. The second year will be current year, yearling halter foals and yearling longe line and Hunter In Hand. The third year; the members decide. We anticipate the payback will be $1,000 to 1st, $750 to 2nd, $500 to 3rd. You do not have to win the World Show class, but be placed in the top ten.

$1,000 will be paid back to the horse by Indelible Image with the highest number of open points at the end of the year. A minimum of 10 points will be needed to qualify. Every horse by Indelible Image will receive $100 for the first open halter point earned every year the first 5 years of the syndicate. At that time it will be decided by the shareholders. All advertising and training fees will be taken from the promotion account owned by the syndicate. Each share will be fully insured. All benefits are transferable with the sale of your Indelible Image foal.   

We want people looking for Indelible Image foals first.

Our goal is to breed good mares and reward the owners for the hard work. We are competing with ourselves and the promoting our own breeding program. If each share holder earned one point on their foals, we would move Indelible Image to the top of the leading breeders list which would be one more star on the resume for your foal. We have a very limited number of mares. The way we plan to expand the broodmare band is to offer breeding shares to a few good mare owners that share our philosophy, and want to own a part of the stallion they are promoting. We want to share the success along the way. We would love to see a crowd in the win picture!  He was test bred in 2009. He settled a mare on the first cooled semen shipment. His first foal will arrive in January 2010.  Watch the website. Let us know what you think! We think he is pretty special.

Breeding shares available for the 2011 Breeding season!

Two breedings will be available to the share 

holder the for the “life of the horse”. Of course, there are all those legal things in the “what if” category. The first year we will offer each share for $5,000. The cost of owning will be based on 20 shares. It will be minimal. Projected at $50 a month or less. That includes, vet, farrier, insurance, and promotion. All monthly fees will be deposited to the promotional account that will include training, etc. You can’t even feed a horse for that. 

The Indeliblie Image Syndicate is going to be a little more than your average syndicate. We will be a “marketing group”. We are looking for a few good breeders that share our philosophy. We have a couple of great mares that are consistent producers. We want you to own a part of the bragging rights, right up to the stallion’s name. 

Website:

http://www.anawesomesecret.com/IndelibleImage.html

Pedigree:

http://www.allbreedpedigree.com/indelible+image3

Shares available