Posted 2015-01-10 1:45 PM Subject: in need of opinions
Member
Posts: 11
I have been thinking long and hard and am at a loss as to which way to go. I have two mares. They are 10 and 11. I have owned them their entire lives. I did all the ground work, they have had saddles on them but I have never broke them to ride. They have spent the last years in my pasture with the others as I have been busy with my business. Would it be a better idea to try and go ahead and get them broke to ride and go on with barrel training on them or just breed them and sell prospects out of them. They are jet of honor, firewater flit, bugs alive in 75, and breeze bar bred.
Posted 2015-01-10 2:13 PM Subject: RE: in need of opinions
Expert
Posts: 1446 Location: California
Bring them to a professional who can bring them far in 90 days, and then take them over to finish them out and pattern them. They do learn bad habits sitting so long, but the good thing is the mental maturity and how many good using years they have left from not being used hard. Mares with a record/video of being a solid barrel horse can bring more for their foals resale than bloodlines alone. I would take a proven dams foal with no real big names on her pedigree over just bloodlines alone. JMO.
Posted 2015-01-10 3:38 PM Subject: RE: in need of opinions
Northern Chocolate Queen
Posts: 16576 Location: ND
Just my opinion & I know others will view it differently that I do. But if they are well bred, nicely built & seem to have good minds I'd breed them. But only if you have the time to dedicate to raising, working with & selling the foals. I would not try to break them at this point. My persepective is from that of someone who's been training for a long time. I will not take the risk of working with an older horse regardless of how nicely bred they are or how much potential they may have had. Horses that have spent that many years standing around being pets typically have poor attitudes when they are suddenly put to work. Then by the time you have them broke, started on the pattern & seasoned they're going to be pushing 15 years old.....so they'll have roughly a 5 year career if they're lucky.
in need of opinions
