1962-Voice Of The Tennessee Walking Horse 1962 May Voice | Page 21

19
Voice of the Tennessee Walking Horse
Inbreeding Given Credit For Great Progress In Walking Horse
(Note—The Voice Editor is indebted to
Professor J. B. Floyd of Campbell, Texas for
another illuminating and instructive article
on the breedi ng of Tennessee Walking
Morses.)
BY J. B. FLOYD
No other breed of horses has been
so closely inbred as the Tennessee
Walking Horse, and never in ihe his­
tory of the development ol any breed
of livestock has such close inbreeding
been carried on so successfully. Know­
ing that inbreeding may bring out any
existing weaknesses in a group of
animals, our early breeders must have
used some very rigid selection in order
to have developed such a beautiful
and useful breed.
First, it is necessary that we under­
stand the meaning of inbreeding. In-
breeding is evidenced when any ances­
tor appears more than one time in
any animal’s pedigree. There are two
kinds of inbreeding. Close breeding
and line-breeding. Crosses of son to
daughter, son to dam, and full broth­
ers and sisters is close breeding.
Where half-brothers and sisters are
crossed and animals of more distant
relations are crossed we have line­
breeding. There has been both line­
breeding and close breeding in the
Tennessee Walking Horse family,
To emphasize the above, let us ex­
amine the pedigree of several famous
sires and show horses of the breed.
Two of the most important sires, Wil­
son's Allen and Merry Boy were both
line-bred horses. Both have sired
World Champions and both in turn
have sons and daughters that have
in turn produced world Grand Cham­
pion horses. This should establish
their greatness as prepotent sires.
Merry Boy Cited
Merry Boy was sired by Roan Allen
F-38 and his dam Merry Legs F-4 was
by Allan F-l. Here we have half-broth­
er and sister matings. Wilson’s Al­
len was bred exactly like this with the
exception of the dam’s mother Nellie.
Like Merry Boy he was by Roan Allen
F-38 and his dam was by Allan F-l.
This makes them three-fourths blood
brothers. Although bred much alike
i hey did not resemble in color and
conformation, but show records over
the past twenty years indicate that the
continued crossing of these blood lines
has given some of the best results.
This cross was nothing more than the
concentration of the blood of Allan
F-l as we can see when their pedi­
grees are checked for the number of of the same mare as Go Boy's Shadow,
times Allan F-l appears in these is sired by a horse whose dam was by
Merry Boy.
crosses.
Two other inbred full brother stal­
All Inbred Except Two
lions that figure in the pedigree of
In
checking
the pedigree of the past
many good horses are Bud Allen and
Major Allen. Both are from Merry World Grand Champions I find all
Legs F-4 and sired by Mitch F-5 by are definitely inbred horses except
Roan Allen by Allan F-l.—a closer two. This is a fortunate thing for the
concentration of the blood of Allan breed as these inbred strains are more
F-l. Of the eight colts of Merry Legs likely to breed true to type.
No procedure has been developed
accounted for in this report most of
them were from sires closely related for record of performance testing in
to her. That these offspring from horse breeding, and it is not likely that
these related sires must have been her any could be developed. Knowing
best colts is evidenced by their later that inbreeding is powerless to create
good or bad, and can only take the
popularity as breeders.
Probably no other mare in the stal­ characters that are present and sort
lion records appears as many times as them out into a momozygous form,
does Merry Legs F-4, and probably our best method then would be to
no other breeder could claim the dis­ find out what is present in a strain
tinction of Lhat of her breeder, A. M. and sort out the undesireables.
With this in mind, we must give
Dement of Wartrace, Tenn. Although
Merry Legs F-4 had a Saddle Horse credit Lo the many other good sires
dam, her most successful Walking and the many good dams of unrelated
colLs came from crosses back on horses ancestry that came into the breed dur­
ing its formation. Without the Hals,
related to her sire, Allan F-l.
Hunter’s Allen F-10 by Allan F-l, Brooks, Grey Johns, George Wilkes,
not a line-bred horse from the stand­ Mountain Slasher, Roe’s Chief and
point of his dam, was used extensive­ many other famous foundation sires
ly in crosses on mares from Allan F-l the breed would never have achieved
its greatness.
and also Roan Allen F-38.
Curlee’s Spotted Allen that shows
May-June Virginia Shows
in many present day horses’ pedigree
Lawrence M. Beard, Rt. 1, Box 161,
was by Roan Allen and so was his
Appamattox, Va., rushes us a few
dam. This is close breeding.
May-June show dates not available
elsewhere in this issue. They are:
Sir Mail Gray A Leader
Sir Mau Gray, one-time high in Lhe 5—Lexington; 12—New London; 26—
stallion rating of show horses, was by Appamattox; 26—Norfolk; June 2-3—
Wilson's Allen and his dam was by Suffolk; 9—Altivista; 16—Bedford.
Roan Allen F-38, the sire of Wilson
Allen. Mating of half-brother and
sister in this case. This same cross
produced Frank Wilson’s Allen too.
Wartrace by Wilson Allen has a
"CHAMPION COLTS"
mother that was half-sister to Wilson's
Allen.
For Sale
Last Chance by Hunter's Allen F-10
and out of Merry Legs F-4 is the re­
TOP YEARLINGS
sult of a cross of half-brother and sis­
ter. He was a very prepotent sire and
PLEASURE HORSES
passed on the Hunter's Allen F-10
BROOD MARES
characteristics to his offspring.
In one instance I find full-brother
Charles Martin
and sister mated. Merry Boy was
Lascassas, Tenn.
crossed with his full-sister Grace De­
Ph. 893-0776
ment to produce the White stallion
King Merry Boy, a very attractive
horse.
Buddy Moore
Many of the present day champions
Murfreesboro, Tenn.
are inbred horses. Both the sire and
Ph. 893-1672
dam of Go Boy’s Shadow were from
Merry Boy. Rodger’s Perfection, out