Do you examine a prospective stallion in Person?

[chestnutwithchrome]

Before breeding a mare to a stallion, do you make sure to see the stallion in person, or does the internet and word of mouth provide enough info and confidence for you to breed to a stallion?

[TrotTrotPumpkn]

How about "NO because I have no other valid option?"

Would love to go all over the country/world looking at stallions but it is really not reasonable financially or from a use-of-time (or time off) standpoint for me.

[Daventry]

While I am a Stallion Owner now....standing three to be exact...I used to be a warmblood Mare Owner. I live in Alberta, Canada, and could not find anything locally that I wanted to breed to or that I thought would suit each of my mares. As a result, I always shipped semen up from the U.S. I just didn't have the time or means to be flying all over the U.S. looking at stallions. I'm sure very few do!

I think a lot can be decided by viewing performance tests, show results...and by studying the offspring of each particular stallion. I was lucky enough see Rio Grande in person at Spruce Meadows befoe we bred to him...but had already decided to breed to him regardless. He was the only stallion we ever saw in person and all of our foals turned out wonderfully (had consistent premium foals, futurity winners, etc.).

And at the end of the day, I find most horse owners are "barn blind" and don't recognize the flaws in their own horses and also don't have the eye to point out the finer details of conformation in other horses. So, at the end of the day, the trip out for a Mare Owner is likely not worth the time and money when detailed photos and video can be viewed on the internet!

[not again]

I always look at a stallion in person before breeding to it. Even a trip to Europe is cheaper than feeding a mare for a year plus to get a live foal on the ground.

[TrotTrotPumpkn]

Even a trip to Europe is cheaper than feeding a mare for a year plus to get a live foal on the ground.

I think my horsekeeping/breeding costs must be much cheaper than yours!

[No, I'm kidding--I understand what you are saying]

[Tamara in TN]

Before breeding a mare to a stallion, do you make sure to see the stallion in person, or does the internet and word of mouth provide enough info and confidence for you to breed to a stallion?

humm well the one outcross stallion I would consider, I did think was nice when I saw him in person...does that count ??:)

Tamara in TN

[not again]

I want to meet the stallion for several reasons, probably the most important being my gut reaction. It has to do with his demeanor, his manner, magnetism and sense of self. Conformation while moving, how he balances himself, lightness in his way of going, kindness, grounded mental attitude, aptitude --- all things that matter to me that don't show on a video.

[Dressage_Diva333]

I agree that it would be lovely to see every stallion in person! But realistic? Not for me at least. I've seen most of the stallions I've bred to, with the exception of two (Desperados, who is in Germany... and Rubino Bellissimo, who I just haven't got down to see). I bred a mare to Fabuleux in '08, and had some frequesnt flyer miles in early 2009, so a couple friends and I took a trip to meet the grand stallion... that was a real treat :D Obviously that didn't influence my breeding decision, as whats done was done, but it made me a lot more confident. Same thing happened with Redwine (although he is close to me), I bought the breeding, then went and saw him... and liked him even more than in the photos. I became a lot more confident in the choice, and decided to buy another breeding to him as well.

I welcome, and encourage, people to come see the boys I have here.

It's really just not realistic to see the all the stallions I breed to, but it is nice. I enjoy seeing the boys, offspring, and chatting with the owners :) I find a lot of value in seeing several different offspring, as well as being able to see the dams. Unfortunately, I think I'm in the same boat as many people, and just have to rely on good photos, videos, and offspring. I think that's why it's so important for stallion owners to have lots of high quality photos and video.

[Cindy's Warmbloods]

I didn't answer because I have seen about 1/2 the stallions I have bred to in person the other 1/2 I have not since they are so far away or not even in this country. But if I can I do try.

[pintopiaffe]

we need c: If Possible...

I picked yes, because I've met all but two. Those two were seen in person by people whose opinions I trusted.

But I suck at photo critiques, and videos are 'eh for me... hit or miss whether I see what *I* want to see... so I *prefer* to get an in-person impression.

So much of it for me is impression... gut reaction as not again said.

[RyTimMick]

No, I do not see every stallion in person BEFORE, but eventually. I do however care more about how he breeds over how he is. I can gather much more information talking to breeders who have had or seen dozens of get, then just looking at a stallion. They can tell you what kind of mare does best, weaknesses he throws, what he seems to stamp, etc. I would much rather go see the mare of the stallion then the stallion himself.

Tim

[camohn]

I didn't say yes as I can't see many horses on the West Coast for example, being practical...but I can't really say I never see them or that I trust the internet either. I see horses that are close enough to reasonably see. Others I do depend on videos and the opinions of others...sometimes online, often not online. If folks have bad things to say about a stallion they are often not willing to put it in writing!!

[vtwmbld]

In the best of all possible worlds, I see them first. That's why the stallion parade in Vechta is so valuable for my mares that are good frozen candidates. Reality precludes this happening every year and some of our mares are not good frozen candidates, so those I either try to see in person here in North America or investigate them thoroughly, look at progeny and then definitely talk to people I trust. I totally agree with Camohn in that anything negative is rarely going to be found on the internet - unless it's something truly obvious.

[MagicRoseFarm]

I can list almost 100 people who bred specifically because they met the stallion in person. None who frequent COTH. lol

Literally EVERYONE who ever bred to our stallion Beste Gold, met him in person, and that is what INSTANTLY sealed the deal... For the last two years he has been "in limbo" because he is much more impressive in person, and he has not been in the limelight since his breeding injury 3 years ago. Now that he has babies old enough to compete under saddle in 2010, and some are with Olympic riders, FEI Dressage Judges/Trainers, and Hunter pros and ammies doing recognized shows, I am very optimistic that he will become high profile again.

I think it makes a world of difference to see the sire and while I HAVE bred to 2 stallions I have NOT seen in the 30 years I have been breeding,,,both of those were proven sires with considerable age on them.

I think an interesting follow up poll would be , if you DID breed sight unseen, did it( or could it have possibly) bite ( bitten) you in the butt?

[mbp]

No - but don't I wish. If possible I would, but logistics don't work that way.

I have done the opposite, which is (as the stallion owner above mentioned) seen a stallion that I wasn't "looking for" and been impressed enough to go that direction. There are usually so many things that are hard to get from videos and reports even.

Wouldn't it be nice to have some regional stallion shows here in the US?

[KBEquine]

Except for 1 stallion who stands in CA, we have always met the stallion in person.

The same for broodmares. I once sent my husband on a 9-hour one-way trip to look at a broodmare prospect & he returned home without her because in person, she wasn't anything like she'd appeared in her internet ad.

If we are looking at an in-foal mare, we still need to inspect her in person, but are a little less stringent about seeing the covering sire, although we at least need to have heard of him to evaluate whether we want the expense of raising one of his foals.

When we bought Canadian Kid, my husband drove about 14 - 16 hours each way (in better weather, it might have been less time) with no guarantee we'd be bringing him home because we're sticklers on conformation & temperament.

Having said that - if we breed to a horse in Europe, it will no doubt be on some combination of pictures, word-of-mouth, internet ads, and seeing their foals in person (and hopefully, the mares the foals are out of).

[YankeeLawyer]

I care more about meeting and, if possible, riding the offspring of a stallion than the stallion himself. It is unrealistic, with my breeding goals, to make meeting the stallion a prerequisite to breeding to him. I breed to stallions that stand in this country and abroad and there is no way I have time or the inclination to jet all over to see the many stallions that might interest me for a given mare. I do, however, research the stallions as thoroughly as I can and try to see the offspring in person before signing on.

[not again]

In these days of photoshop, I have been surprised at what I have found when visiting stallions in person that didn't exist in pictures. :eek:

[Jumper_girl221]

I did not go see the stallion that I booked for my mare, of course he is in Canada and I'm in North Carolina (US) so it would have been quite a hike. Since he was a young stallion (Banderas) I was happy with his inspection videos, the loose footage in his field, and the correspondence from his owner.

[AdAblurr02]

Very truthfully, I am more pleased with the foals we have gotten from stallions we have not seen "in person" than I am with foals we got from stallions we did inspect! Of course, there's a lot to be said for learning curve, in whose information and/or opinions you can trust, etc.

In breeding to TB stallions, we HAD to meet the stallions as we of course had to haul the (TB) mares to them for live cover inorder to register with Jockey Club. While those were all top notch horses, and we liked all of them - still, the "remote" breedings of later years have made babies we liked better.

[can't re-]

I prefer to see them in person if possible and have seen about 50% of the stallions I have bred to in person.
I have seen so many misleading and false comments posted online both praising and bashing stallions. So on top of my own research on a stallion, I also get my info from professionals (trainers and judges) who have seen the stallion &/or their offpsring and also from breeders I trust.