Is it just me or does it seem as though there have been an astronomically high amount of foals offered for sale this year?

It made me wonder if, when the horse market prices shot up astronomically, more people saw the opportunity to make money off of horses even if the breeding stock wasn't quality or proven. A bunch of people bought a mare able to be bred and picked whichever stud was the best bargin price. It seems more often than not that more people are breeding to sell versus breeding for something they would ride. This is obviously excluding the big ranches that have been standing stallions and selling horses for a long time.

Thoughts? Opinions? 

No hate to those selling horses and foals, it just seems as though the foal market is extremely inflated this year but maybe that is just my feed.

I actually thought there was less. I do know there was a lot of open mares across the country for some reason. We have heard from  a lot of people who had AI'd mares, had them checked in foal only to have open mares this spring. Also many live cover mares open this spring. People seemed to have a higher than usually open cows too. 

I have seen quite a few people struggling to get their mare bred back this year but not have issues with foaling out this year. I wonder what could be affecting the mares so much. I know that over in the Pacific Northwest we had a super late winter and that really threw the mares off but you would think things would have leveled out by now.

Agree with previous posters- lots of trouble getting mares bred this year and last year in some areas.  I've also noticed folks forking out the $$ to breed to super nice stallions.  I figured it was because everything costs so much money now that folks only want to pay the breeding expenses and feed/misc costs on a super nice one; it isn't worth it otherwise. 

As for the less quality horses you've seen for sale, I wonder if some were being bred with big plans, but inflation never went back down.  I know we've gotten super skinny numbers wise for a reason; everything costs so much right now that every mouth on our place has to have a dang good reason for being here.

Personally, I only have one foal on the ground this year (keeper) and have no plans to breed another in the next five years, or more.  Everything has gotten so expensive that I am actually putting my broodie back to work once her foal is weaned.

Just my two cents!

I've got one that we've been working on since the first week of April. Thought she took but couldn't find anything except a big ole cl and now she won't cycle even with shots. If this is wide-ish spread then numbers will go down. My breeder friends are at average to below average for foals this year. Some by their choice, some by mother natures.

I cant believe how much crap is being bred.  If people have a mare, they are breeding it.

I am having my first foal this year in 30 years. It was cheaper to buy yearlings. I am only breeding to get ones for my granddaughter now. 

Got her AI'd last year and it took 3 times. This was at a reputable breeding barn in Iowa and they also commented on how much trouble they were having to get mares settled. 

My daughter tried to get her mare in foel to Triple Vodka and tried twice. They are trying again this year but now they have to use frozen seaman. 

I think there is going to be some higher prices for the next couple years because numbers will be lower. Keep track of AQHA registration numbers. 

Can you define what you see as crap? Serious question. Mares that have too many faults but their owner doesn't see? Stallions that have no genetics or statistics backing them up? Not all producers are arena winners, and not all arena winners are going to produce, so is it just those that have neither on either side?

Neither producers nor winners, and for generations.  

Same for studs. Wayyy too many studs who are own sons of so-and-so, yet never accomplished a thing on their own are producing dozens of foals each year. THAT'S the real problem. If your stud didn't hold up for training or is bad-minded why are you breeding it to every mare owner who has the $$? It's like if a stud can't make it in the arena, he goes straight to the stud barn. It's ridiculous. 

Personally, I think competing on a stud is a waste of time and effort. If someone really believes in a stud and made an EDUCATED decision when purchasing him---breed him, sooner the better. Let his Get prove his worth. We bred our one boy to two mares as a two year old, they were out competing and winning and he was only Seven----if someone waits till the stud has proven himself and 5-6 years old, shoot--the stud is 10-11 years old before he even has anything competing. You can have the nicest stud in the world, record and all, but till they produce winners---most will walk on by them and breed to something else. This is why I feel when starting with a young stud you need your own mares to put under him in order to get him proven. As usual---this is just my opinion, doesn't mean I am right.

I completely understand this concept. But I want to know that the stallion will help performance longevity, at least to a certain degree. Your stallions are direct get from long-lived and long performance years bloodlines. Can't get much more rugged than Sun Frost or the Driftwood lines. When I go to breed the lovely Love I am specifically looking for either a lineage known to add bone, or a stallion that performed well into their teens with few issues. I won't be caring one whit for popularity of lines, but instead will try to improve on what she is. Hopefully I can find one that fits all things -- improve her bone and have a marketable pedigree! (so missing your JJ, he was the perfect one, imo)

We sure miss him too---that was an awfully hard pill to swallow. Then we had our Moe daughters we had to go outside with, first time in years, I felt like I was cheating on JJ or something. It was a really weird feeling. Luckily we have quite a few daughters and we did save two sons that are yearlings.

Mighty Broke I agree with you 100%. I'm a lot more interested in what a stud can produce than what he can do. There are a lot of studs out there who have won a lot of money, but their offsprings are horrible. There's one stud that is in a lot of barrel racing horses pedigrees that I won't have in any of our breeding horses. His off spring is mean and the biggest part of them are buckers.    

As far as people just breeding a mare that they have because they have it and want a foal out of it. Not eveybody wants a performance horse for those people who just want a trail horse or a foal out of mare that is a old family pet breeding that horse is fine, it may have a better disposition than most performance horses and it is what they want. There is a lot of horses out there with winning pedigrees that end up at salebarns selling for very little. 

What's Gold for one person is Mud for another.  

My trainer and I have a 4 year old colt is as well bred as anything out there. He is by Sir Seth, a half brother to Dash Ta Fame, same speed index and ran out more money in the track. His mother is by Leaving Memories out if a daughter if Timeto Thinkrich. His two sisters are world champions in barrels and poles. We really wanted to leave him a stallion but he woke up one morning and discovered girls. He couldn't concentrate on barrel training. The next week he had brain surgery and his concentration level has definitely increased. We look at it as what is best for the horse not what is best for us. 
https://www.allbreedpedigree.com/index.php?query_type=horse&h=BROTHEROFANOTHRCOLOR&g=5&cellpadding=0&small_font=1&l=

I haven't been on here in awhile but I have friends (several) that couldn't get their mares bred this year.  They have spent thousands trying and some to big named studs that just said nope you're done.  No baby.  No refund.  After spending a fortune in AI fees and stud fees, I now have my own studs that I breed to my mares.  The oldest is 5.  He had one yearling on the ground.  I was stupid and for the first time ever I sent a horse off to be broke and it ended bad.  He is broke now by me but not running barrels yet.  He got hurt a couple months ago.  So his barrel career hasnt started.  He has to ride and tie right beside my mares.  His mom and his sisters are/were 1D horses.  Most people don't know he is a stud.  Theres a couple of things I like about him.  He is gentle to breed.  I can say you want a cookie when he's finished and he will walk up and walk out.  He is sweet and gentle and if I raise my voice he will immediately stop what he's doing and look for what I want him to do.  He is all old run and old cow and I haven't found anything bred like him.  He will cross on anything.  I also have his  3 year old Epic/cowbred (maternal brother) and an 3 year old Epic/Famous JR.  Both have the same temperment.  I have rode them bareback as two and three year olds all over my property.  BTW I'm bumping 60.  Someone asked me why I kept them studs well I have mares.  They arent in incentives blah blah blah.  I'm tired of the AI and multiple stud shipping fees and not getting a baby.  Plus they are all out of 1D mares that I ran.  It sure makes it easy to train when you've rode their siblings and mommas.  Guess what my mares are bred first try.  No AI fees. No stud fees. No problems.  No expense. 

My point is sometimes people think because you aren't breeding to a NAME BRAND stud with incentives every year you don't know what you're doing.  Some people just want an open horse.  Some people don't go to the incentive races.  Me I want a horse that has a good mind and will work.  So if you see a horse with a back ground that you don't know you might want to think before you say something.  All of those NAME brand horses came from horses that were NO name horses at some point.