For those who are interested in getting into breeding horses, they at least need to know the basics.
The Breeding Season
The breeding season can vary in different parts of the world. For example, in Australia, it starts on September 1.
Preparation
It is during this period that the mares are getting ready to be mated by the studs. The owners of the mares will usually ship the horse to the stud’s location, which is quite often on a breeding farm.
Thoroughbred Breeding
Different breeding rules can be applied to various breeds. In the case of the thoroughbreds, AI is not used so they will undertake the natural breeding process.
The Costs
Different costs come with having a horse bred. There may be the shipping costs for getting the horse to the stallion. Then there is the cost for the care of the animal while she is at the breeding location. Plus there is the service fee which is the actual breeding of the mare. This can range from just a few hundred dollars up to thousands depending on the popularity of the stud.
The Breeding Period
The stallions don’t just mate with one mare. The usual number of horses that can be served by one stud during the breeding season is thirty. However, stallions that have high credentials will sometimes serve up to 200 mares during the season. The season lasts from September 1 up to the end of November.
Once the mare has become impregnated, she will carry the foal on average eleven months. This means that horse owners will see a lot of foals arriving during the start of August.
Deciding to have a mare bred comes with a lot of decision making. It means knowing that the horse is healthy and capable of carrying a foal.