[rtph]

I've been thinking about breeding my AQHA mare to a good reining sire, but would like to know how big the stallions are. Anyone have any suggestions, other than to call and ask or go look at them?

Thanks

[GoshenNY]

Most are in the 14 h range,,,,have a look at peptos I brow,,,,very nice horse, still giving high scores at such competitions as WEG,,,very sound

http://www.stonyfordreininghorses.com/

[qhwpmare]

Most reiners are on the smaller size. It would be tough for a big horse to be so agile.

[VaqueroToro]

Cutters I can see needing to be agile...reiners, not as much.

What kind of foal are you looking to produce, rtph?

[Bluey]

You should try to match breeding types or crosses that work.
If your mare is mostly an HUS type, breeding her to a reining stallion may give you a committee horse.
You may be lucky that the oddly matching parts work for whatever you want.

Most reiners are very small, because the larger bodies are generally harder to train for what they do and harder to keep sound doing it, with some exceptions, of course.

[Eggplant_Dressing]

Reiners are typically some of the shortest QH. Thin legs and feet - like a ballerina.

[Bluey]

Reiners are typically some of the shortest QH. Thin legs and feet - like a ballerina.

Reiners are some of the shortest, along with cutting horses, but it is the cutting horses that have what we call "chicken bone" legs.
Reiners, not so much, as most of them come from old squatty quarter horse lines, that had substantial bone.
Hollywood Gold and Bill Cody, that also produced a little more height, those lines a good example.

Cutters in the past decade have added more bone.
There are not so many of the very light boned first and second generation Doc Bars around any more, as so many Doc Olena ones tended to be.

Now, light boned in those horses didn't meant a tendency to unsoundness at all.
Those light bones were very dense and tought.
I would say there were not that many problems with well trained and conditioned performance horses, but between both types, relatively more problems with the heavier boned horses.
My impression of that is that the lighter boned ones suffered less direct impact, were a little more flexible than the heavier boned ones.

[rtph]

Has anyone else noticed this? It seems to me that when I'm looking at pedigrees of the best reining stallions, I always see Doc Bar at least three times, and these stallions are inevitably smaller. Maybe 14.2. Has anyone ever thought that we might be seeing too much Doc Bar? Could inbreeding be resulting in smaller horses? Just wondering here

[rtph]

my mare is a stout little cow bred that you could just about call "old fashioned"

[rtph]

Most are in the 14 h range,,,,have a look at peptos I brow,,,,very nice horse, still giving high scores at such competitions as WEG,,,very sound

http://www.stonyfordreininghorses.com/

Does "in the 14 hand range" mean that 13.2 or 13.3 is ok?

[gaitedincali]

Maybe 14.2. Has anyone ever thought that we might be seeing too much Doc Bar? Could inbreeding be resulting in smaller horses? Just wondering here

If they were stunted due to inbreeding you would see general unthriftiness and unhealthiness, not a healthy, fit performance horse that happens to be short.

(and if that degree of inbreeding made 'em short, there wouldn't be any TBs over 14hh )

They're short because they are still plenty tall enough to do the job required and there is no performance benefit to breeding for increased height.

[rtph]

Cutters I can see needing to be agile...reiners, not as much.

What kind of foal are you looking to produce, rtph?

A reiner. A reiner wtith some cow would be better.

The mare's reining/cutting bred; Peppy San Badger, Hollywood Dun It, and Shining Spark. But she's small; maybe 13.3. I am most interested in Bigger reining line if there is one.

thank you

[Bluey]

Jacs Electric Spark is producing some extremely talented foals with some size to them.

Guess he just died, sorry:

http://www.heikesquarterhorses.com/j...ctricspark.htm

The bigger ones generally make better working cowhorse than reiners.

[rtph]

thank you bluey. Any idea how tall he was?

[bugsynskeeter]

I would check out the stallions at Torpey Performance Horses: http://www.torpeyperformancehorses.com/stallions.htm

All inclusive stud fee of $850 (includes chute fee and first shipment of semen)...and you won't find someone better to work with!

[Bluey]

thank you bluey. Any idea how tall he was?

No, but I know several of his colts and they tend to be larger than average and still very talented and good minded.

The three Torpey stallions sound interesting, but of course no one can tell you without knowing how your mare is bred, what she has done and what she looks like what kind of stallion she would cross with best for a reiner.

All three stallions carry the bigger size popular genes back there, not the smaller ones.

[bcody]

Custome Chrome get are taller. I happened to know 3 direct offspring, 2 mares and a gelding all 15+ hands. Two have done well in reining, one unshown. I am not sure how tall Custome Chrome is.

[Bluey]

The Custom Chrome I have seen were not very large and you may get the biggest bald faces, blue eyes and some deafness that goes with that.

They are very talented and practically born broke and stopping and turning right, a dream to train.

[bugsynskeeter]

No, but I know several of his colts and they tend to be larger than average and still very talented and good minded.

The three Torpey stallions sound interesting, but of course no one can tell you without knowing how your mare is bred, what she has done and what she looks like what kind of stallion she would cross with best for a reiner.

All three stallions carry the bigger size popular genes back there, not the smaller ones.

I've dealt with offspring of all 3 stallions and they are 15hh+. They are 3 very different types that would compliment mares differently. If you have any questions, I'd definitely contact Jess. She would recommend which stallion would be best for your mare.

[appyreiners]

I have a daughter of Hickory Chic Olena who the Torpeys now have. My mare is an outstanding reiner and great cow horse. She is also a good rope horse. She's probably 14.3 or 15 hands and wears an 80 blanket. The other Hickory foals I know are stout and have done well in cow horse as well as reining.