1969 Voice Of The Tennessee Walking Horse 1969 January Voice RS | Page 36

ION colt in 1967. A dead foal in 1968, and here we are trying again in 1969.” "The market is being flooded with average and poor quality colts. Breeders should be more selective in their choice of a stallion.” "They are attempting to breed too many mares to one stallion thus getting a low percentage of mares in foal.” "I think there are too many low grade mares being bred to our top stallions. More emphasis should be put on the mares.” "At the big breeding farms I got only 10% in foal. With my own stud I get 100%. I have spent as much as S700 on one mare and didn’t get a colt. I can breed to a lesser stud, sell colts cheaper and still come out better.” "Return to natu­ ral breeding and geld more stallions. Other people’s, of course.” CARE OF MARES: "I think the breeding business is one big mess. Folks can’t take their mares to good studs and depend on them being well cared for or even get them in foal. We have had to take our good mares to lesser stallions as the results were so poor.” "I would like to see mares better cared for at many stallion stations, but have been pleased with the rate of conception we have had. Glad a survey is being made.” "I believe that 95% of stallion farms are poorly managed, breeding poor stock and are taking poor care of expensive mares.” ETHICS: "Something needs to be done as I am sure that many horses aren’t registered honestly. I bought a stud that was supposed to be a coming three-year- old. When we got home I discovered he was cutting his canine teeth.” "The Walking Horse business is on the move and is now beginning to open up for the small owner. Let’s hope this business continues this way.” "I favor any rule that will stop the practice of false registrations. You cannot expect to plan your breeding program and get the desired results if you have to contend with false papers.” "All registrations should be notarized.” "As a mare owner I wish there was a way to assure that our mares were bred to the stud we request so that people would not question this upon purchase of our colts.” "The T.W.H.B.A. should keep records of mares bred to each stud. A regular report by stud owners would stop many illegal regis­ trations at large farms.” LIMIT ON COLTS: "A stallion should be allowed all he can produce by natural breeding. Artificial breed­ ing is going to wreck the business.” "Few stallions have the outstanding characteristics that we need . . . that is why I would be opposed to a rule limiting the number of colts.” "It would be obvious that a stallion - ith but 100 colts would be of more value than a stal­ lion with 300.” "There is no substitute for good breeding. If a limit is set you eliminate a lot of little men with good mares. No limit plea se!” TATTOOING OF COLTS: "I favor tattooing colts; however, this is not the answer to honesty. It would help!” "I do not favor tattooing colts as it would be an added expense to the mare owners.” "Tattooing colts is something I favor very much. At least a year later you could tell what horse it was.” "Markings should identify a horse . . . anyone can buy a tattoo set.” I would favor tattooing of horses. I have seen many horses for sale that I believed to have false papers.” SI UD FEES: "I feel that a stud owner should collect !/2 of stud fee when mare is bred and remainder when mare^ is declared in foal, but if mare does not produce live foal I should be given a return privilege on the same or a different mare.” "Stud fees are just about high enough. I have known of many people going to cheaper horses because they cannot or will not pay a high fee or V 2 at time of service.” "I believe the only way to improve the breed as a whole is to keep the stud fees down so people can breed average mares to good World Champions.” "If mare is bred, stallion owner should receive half of service and balance when proven in foal. Too much may happen to mare, how­ ever, therefore no guarantee for LIVE foal should be given.” "If a man doesn’t get a foal, I feel that the stallion owner should re-breed the mare if he gets a full stud fee. But I also feel he should be paid for his trouble if the mare doesn’t get in foal.” GENERAL COMMENTS: "We have something great in the Walking Horse. The future lies in all owners’ and trainers’ hands. Your magazine is doing your share and more. Keep up the excellent coverage.” "I feel that there is too much weight put on breeding to a World Champion stallion and not enough on the natural walking ability of the stud. There are lots of little-known studs that produce better colts than 75% of our World Champions.” "I would like very much to see certified artificial breeding stations established so that people far away from Middle Tennessee could take advantage of top blood without hauling mares over a thousand miles. I emphasize 'certified breeding stations’.” STINGING COMMENT AWARD: "Item No. 16 is the only thing in your survey worth a —. (Limit the number of colts to a given stallion.) Until the Breed­ ers’ Association gets into the hands of people interest­ ed in horses we will continue as the slowest growing breed in the nation. The prices will have to continue to be fixed. If there were only 50 colts this season by a good stallion the prices of Walking Horses would be­ gin to get into the figures where it would become worthwhile. Our registrations would triple and the average horseman would start making some money. The VOICE has the capacity to get the job done but I know you won’t tackle the situation because of a certain amount of advertisers now supporting your magazine. So away we go with 500 colts registered to certain stallions with artificial breeding. "Run a survey on WHY people get out of the Walk­ ing Horse business. I do not think you will have the stomach to publish the facts. You are on the right road but do you have the backbone to continue?” SURVEY RESULTS The following tabulations were taken directly from the results of our "Breeders Survey.” We have ar­ ranged each category in the best form possible in order to make percentages readable and logical. We hope you will find the time to digest these results for yourself and to apply these findings to your own activ­ ity in an effort to better your own breeding operation. We fully realize that we have presented some rather disheartening problems for which we have no solutions but perhaps together we can improve conditions to to our mutual benefit. Percentage of mares bred as compared to mares in foal: 44% reported that they got all their mares in foal 10% reported that they got three out of four in foal 14.5% reported that they got one-half their mares in foal (Continued on page 70) 36 Voice of the Tennessee Walking Horse