Understanding that endurance is not relegated to Arabians, clearly Arabians
dominate the sport. It would seem that this statistic below just released from
AHA is pertinent:
Only five percent of our horses are under five years of age. The
charts showed that the regional shows and the U.S. Nationals continue to climb
upward, while local Class A shows are spiraling downward. Over 50 percent of the
Class A shows held have less than 125 horses; 30 percent have less than 75
horses. There was a slight drop in transfers of Half-Arabians, and a significant
drop in Purebred transfers. Membership has declined by 10,000 since 1990.
If we continue to do business as
usual, we will be "out of business" in the year 2014.
I read this and thought, well, since the
vast majority of endurance horses are OVER the age of 5, this fits the profile
of our sport suitably. What I also thought is that it is about time that 1. show
horses, regardless of quality, stopped driving the market and the breeding
patterns, since more and more of them are NOT bred for ability and true Arabian
quality, and 2. it is ALSO about time that everything with a uterus - or the
counterpart - is NOT bred just because it can be.
Several years ago the main competition for many
stallion owners - especially straight Egyptian was an import whose
name...."escapes me" :). He sired over 200 foals as a 4 year old according to
reports! OHG! Before he is proven to be of any usable value whatsoever, he has
propagated far beyond what the HUGE majority of stallions would, even in their
lifetimes! To date, he has done nothing - I believe he must be about 10 or 12
years old by now with hundreds and probably thousands of get on the ground
doing....what? Aside from the obvious supply and demand aspect (and of course by
the time the foals are a dime a dozen the stallion owner has made HIS fortune),
our choices for athletes becomes peopled by poor athletes who perhaps happened
to have a famous sire - in what, halter?
We don't breed many foals, and while we COULD
really promote the snot out of the bloodlines we have AND their records, it just
would not be right in our minds. So this in NOT an encouragement to breed MORE
Arabians, as is being promoted by the show industry. But it IS an opportunity
for those who have quality athletes who have done something with their lives (as
we ALL desire for our "kids") to offer the alternative to do-nothings. We have
quality-bred and trained Arabians who have the innate characteristics that they
were bred for over decades! Perhaps it is now time for us to be astute in our
breedings, our purchases and in general our choices for athletes. While a
stellar career in endurance does NOT guarantee the success of a foal (so very
much plays into the outcome), it certainly is an opportunity to demonstrate
through our actions in the breeding barn and on the sales floors, what it is we
value in our Arabians and half Arabians - what they were bred to do since Jesus
walked the earth.
Since it IS breeding season, and we are just
now getting nice weather - at least on the west coast - to be able to converse
on this interesting turn of events within AHA, I thought it would be interesting
to turn our conversation to what we are breeding, competing, buying,
selling....bloodlines, characters, etc. Perhaps we actually have a chance to
educate the Big Hairs! WOOHOO!
Well, then, it is time to get on the first horse
of the day! CYA! San
