Breeding age

What age do you think a mare should be bred?

I see alot of minis for sale and the add are like '2 yr old in foal' Do people just wait till they hit two and then bang get them in foal?
My filly is two,I do want to breed from her yes but at the same time she is still young and I am having fun showing her so why put her in foal?

at what age do you think a Stallion should be bred?
Im not sure on this one,Warrior knows what girls are for but I would not breed him just yet as I am showing him and want him to focus I dont wanna breed with him then have him turn funny and only wanna breed all the time

I think 3 is as early as I would start breeding a mini mare. I don't think it's far to put a still growing horse through a pregnancy! But that is just my opinion.

I agree, if they are a "mature" 3yo, then I would consider it, but even some 3yo's are still too immature. 2yrs is way too young in my opinion. I did have a 2yo accidentally get served and she conceived, but slipped the foal at about 2-3 months gestation. Their bodies are just too young to cope so they generally reject it anyway.


With colts and stallions, I wouldn't start them before they are 4/5yrs old. And even then they need to learn proper manners and respect before they learn about breeding.

I wouldnt breed my girls at 2yrs.
I have bred a mare at 3yrs but it was based on her maturity etc not just because she turned 3yrs.

Sorry cant comment on colts as I dont own one

Mares can be bred from 2 years onwards without any difficulties however I personally think its a little too young. 3 would be the ideal age for the first foals.

Colts can be bred from 2 years onwards aswell. I have a stock horse stallion which I have bred from the age of 2 and have never had a drama with him, he is now 6. If you know what you are doing and can manage stallions then go for it.

Sharleen

I have bred with a couple of 2yo fillies, though i base that on how mature they look in build.
The fillies i've used are taller than the stallions in these cases too, the girls must have a good hip/backend & the depth thru the body.

I adjust their diet ever soo slightly & make sure all nutrition is spot on, i feed a quality & suitable processed feed for this.


My stallions, well i have generally they've been over 3 when i've bought them, or if they became of breeding age, i've sold them on.
However, i bought a foal from Vic few yr's back, had him arrive to WA & once he turned 2, we used him over a couple of my mares. He had always ran with other horses so well socialised. He was hand serving the mares only then once confirmed preg, would run with them. I sold him as a 4yo & he left here a complete gentleman, respectful of his mares & having 3 lovely foals on the ground. He's now a 5yo.

We bred our mares & stallions from 4 years of age.

I don't think I could do it that young. My Sparkle is 3 and she still seems like a baby herself, to me!

Yeah I had 3yo's that still felt like babies, but I had a couple of other 3yo's that felt like old mares. The day when it dawned on me that they were the same age, I thought it was funny that I was still calling some of them 'fillies' and the others 'mares' even though they were all the same age.

I have a yearling that thinks she is ready to breed...you should see her teasing the stallion...lucky they are in separate yards!