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[RC] Over population of crappy horses - katswig@xxxxxxxxxxxxxJonni said: But if some of them were geldings, we would not have an over population of crappy horses, that have no sale value, and end up at the killers. And Heidi replied: That's a nice line, but it is the irresponsibility of the folks who OWN the stallions who make that happen. To which I respond: That?s a nice line too, but it is the irresponsibility of the folds who own the MARES who make that happen. Since it is the person responsible for the mare (whether owner or lessor) that makes any breeding decisions (and, BTW: is considered the ?breeder? by all registries) and since the number of foals born is entirely a function of the number of mares bred not the number of stallions bred, responsibility for the overpopulation of horses, crappy or not, can be laid entirely at the feet of mare owners. The crappiest stallion in the world doesn?t need to be a gelding to keep from siring foals; he just needs to not be selected as breeding stock by the people who own mares. I will admit that as a stallion owner, I am choosy about the mares I am willing to put him to and will not breed him to any mare that I don?t think will produce a foal that has an excellent chance of having a good home for its entire life, but I am also sick and tired of the fallacious argument that the over population of crappy horses has anything to do with the number of stallions available. The population of horses is ENTIRELY a function of the number of mares being BRED (not a function of the number of mares available) and just as mares do not need to be spayed to be removed from the gene pool, stallions don?t need to be either. The argument for gelding a stallion should have nothing to do with the general overpopulation of horses since it is a possible to not breed a stallion as it is to not breed a mare. You certainly don't hear people advocating the spaying of all mares that aren't considered breeding quality just so she can't be bred by an irresponsible person. The argument for neutering a stallion is that the operation is fairly cheap and easy and for most people in most situations stallions are much easier to house and handle as well as likely to have happier lives, and if you don't intend to breed the horse, there aren't very many reasons not to. The argument for not automatically neutering every non-breeding quality mare is that the operation is not cheap and easy, nor is there very much evidence that it has much of an effect on their handling. However, if I wanted good socialization for my stallion, I would keep him with a spayed mare so it is too bad that there aren't more of them out there. :) kat Orange County, Calif. -------------------------------------------------------------------- mail2web - Check your email from the web at http://mail2web.com/ . =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
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