I bred a colt almost 3 years ago. I also heard all
the reasons not to breed, too many horses, look at what we send out to
slaughter, etc,. I am also the equine volunteer for our local SPCA and right now
I have a young mare that was returned because the owners could no longer keep
her. She is not registered, and needs a lot of work. In other words, she is a
hard to place horse.
However, I don't regret for one second breeding our
mare. She is so beautiful that no one ever mistakes her for anything other than
an Arabian. She has a wonderful pedigree, including racing bloodlines and is
easy to work with. All the traits I wanted to see passed on.
I LOVE looking at the "glossy ads" and that is
exactly how I picked the stallion. For many years he was in the top 10 leading
sires of champions in all disciplines and even sired some race horses that
didn't do so bad. I first saw the stallion when he was 7 or 8 years old and
followed his career. We flew out to California to see him in person and the
breeder is a highly respected horsewoman in her own right. She is one of the
most knowledgeable breeders I have ever had the pleasure to meet. She is Sheila
Varian.
I feel that I bred the best of what I had (my mare)
to the best that we could afford.
So what was the result? Juan's Corona Bey aka
Mucho Dinero. (cause that is what it cost to get him here!) The
process was expensive and raising a colt has been humbling, to say the
least. There is no doubt, Dinero is everything I bred for. Looks,
talent, athleticism, intelligence and a personality like I have never known. The
day he was born was an experience our family will never forget. My son Evan
exclaimed, "Finally, I have a brother!" Yes, he is a part of our family and will
never, ever leave.
If for some unforeseen reason I did have to sell
him, he is a quality bred horse, registered and could be placed in a show
or endurance home or as part of another family.
I couldn't breed horses as a job or hobby. As much
as I would love to see lots of babies playing and running, I just couldn't part
with them. I doubt I will ever breed again. If Dinero lives to be 35, I will be
75. That is a scary thought!
Lisa Salas, The Odd faRm
How can we be so broke, if we have Mucho
Dinero?
Are we the only ones who have more baby pictures of
our horse, than our kids??
