Buying A Successful Broodmare

Congrats, Kathy - you should be OK with a LUCKY OWNERS colt! Sorry to hear MILES had a bit of a rough time but I am sure she'll be fine in a few days - if a bit bruised!

It always amazes me how those foals born with wonky legs steadily straighten and strengthen as the days pass. MILES was very sensible in picking her time if your weather is as nice as ours is here!
 
Isinglass the theory is, he is sold to race. I will keep you posted though.

The weather was gorgeous today and a perfect day to go and meet our day old foal. He was actually born at 4.44am on 2nd March! Miles will be checked in a couple of days to see if we can cover her on her foal heat.

Here they are guys, a very proud and truly lovable Mum with her 24 hour old cheeky little boy. They have bonded brilliantly. After a few initial problems getting him out, as he is a leggy colt - he is now drinking well and they are really pleased with his progress. I took a few photos in his stable but didn't want to distress him so not the best shots of his confirmation although Miles was more than happy we went in and cuddled them both. The colt is like a big piece of chocolate without a single white marking to be found. Debbi and I are now looking for a stable name for him so feel free to help out.

The National Stud have commenced their stable tours so it was quite a proud moment for us to see a coach load of "tourists" going to meet miles and her bouncing baby boy who was hopping about the stable like a kangeroo.

We were given a look around the internal workings of the foaling unit and as another mare had been brought in to probably give birth today there was alot of anticipation around.

Paul Coombes who foaled Miles met up with us today and didn't seem to mind how many stupid questions we asked.

Miles Junior already has his tiny headcollar hanging outside his stable ready to test.

I am hoping to go back later in the week so I hope to get a couple of shots of Miles and Junior out in the paddock if I time it right.

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No, when he saw us, I am sure he stuck his tongue out, Colin. :what: He decided at one point that Mum's milk was boring and gave him wind so had his eye on Mum's lunch.

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Adorable! I love his flicked-back pixie ears. I'd 'racing name' him Lucky Milo, or Pixie for short!

I'm only 20 miles from Newmarket - can I come and see him with you sometime?? Meanwhile, mega congrats, so glad it went well. Miles looks quite tired, I expect she's perked up a bit now! She looks a real sweetie.

Btw, do you have to get Miles pregnant on her foal heat? Is it a financial necessity? I don't know much about breeding, but both the studs used by Elite wait for the following one [Kingwood Stud, Oxon, and Maurice Camacho in Malton]; they both reckon it's less stressful on the mare and more likely to produce a trouble-free pregnancy. Any comments from those on here with breeding experience?
 
A charming little chappie, Kathy - Miles looks very caring about her dear wee boy! Best of luck to him and with getting Miles covered again. He really has a delightful little face. :luv:
 
The shortlist of names I have so far and the reason are as follows:

Basil - Just like the name :D
Whisper - cause he looks like a chocolate bar
Elvis - looks like him - from a distance - of about 12 miles.... :suspect:
Roman - Miles is a Roman word or evolved during the Roman era
Pixie - looks like one cause of his pointy ears?
or Muffin..... :suspect: - as someone thinks he looks like a chocolate muffin :D Not sure if he may get an early complex as we all know that Muffin was also a mule. :shy:

Does anyone think any of these suit him ?
 
I love Basil! Not Elvis, Kathy - he was a NH horse of Laurence Wells who got killed a year or two back, so not a well-starred name, even for just the stable. If he turns out to be a bit of a geezer, he can be 'Bazza' when he's naughty! :D
 
Basil would be a great name for him - well done MILES !

Foal heats- hmm, there are definitely two schools of thought on this. Mr Thorman is usually very anti covering on foal heat as he maintains if there is any minor irritation or infection brewing or still remaining after the foaling that hasn't been picked up with the usual swabs (and it is very common), then the act of covering can often kick off the infection and you then suffer quite a set back timewise (and cost wise). The uterus is still returning to normal size. The other risk is that the mare conceives, but the pregancy is fragile, she loses it at about 6 weeks and then you have a real hassle getting her back in foal at all that season. As MILES has foaled nice and early, if all went well, you'd look to be covering her at the beginning of April, so she would be foaling again at the same time

On the other hand, I've had two mares that were covered several years running on their foal heats and who conceived every time ! MILES' breeding record suggests they've covered her on foaling heats before and it's been successful, so in her case, as long as she swabs clean, I would guess she'd be fine.
 
Thanks for the info about covering in foal heat Songsheet. All makes sense.

I had a call yesterday from the Stud to say that Phoenix was covering Art Series at 7am this morning, so guess who jumped in her car, drove to Newmarket in the pouring rain last night, booked into a hotel and went over to watch Phoenix cover Art this morning...... :D

I have never seen a TB covering before so didn't really know what to expect as I know a few maiden mares can be a little feisty. I didn't have to worry as Art Series was beautifully behaved, and Phoenix, well, he is an absolute gentleman and I can see why the staff seem to love him so much. He is easy to handle and very, very kind and the whole business was over in a matter of what felt like seconds.

Hopefully, in approx 16 days I will know if Art is in foal. Fingers crossed.

I will check with Debbi what she thinks of the name "Basil" :)
 
Well, Kathy, that puts a whole new meaning to the word "se*-tourism" :P

anyway, great to hear all is well with your mares, and as I said before, all the best of luck for (and with) little Basil (guess this name will stuck here!)

bukett is all dressed up and ready to go, just that her journey over to england hings on the foaling of one mare in wiedingen stud (as they are bound to travel together to share the expenses) and that mare, a maiden, is 14 days over and very reluctant to deliver. in fact I saw her in the paddock yesterday, she was happy as larry & completely relaxed, she did not look as if thinking about foaling at all.
 
Is Bukett the one going to The National Stud, Crazyhorse?

Yes, if Debbi doesn't like the name Basil... he will end up with two stable names! :D
 
How long's a piece of string, Helen!

It's entirely up to the stud and/or mare owner - some studs, such as Cheveley Park, don't offer boarding for visiting mares, so the mares have to be boarded elsewhere and 'walked in', ie, they'll be boxed over at a pre-arranged time with the Stud Groom, once he's been informed the mare's in season and her vet has performed an internal exam to see if the follicle is at the right stage for optimum chance of a conception. Also, some breeders save costs by walking their mares in from home - I've a neighbour who walks in her mares to Tweenhills, which is two hours away. I'm not keen, as I think while you save on keep bills, you can lose pregancies this way too on long journeys - a mare's temparature only has to increase by more than 1.5 degrees to affect an embryo's viability dramatically.

Alternatively, studs like the National Stud and the like offer boarding facilities 'on site' and the mares are teased on a regular basis. As they come in season, they'll have their internals and, when the vet he say "Yes", then the stallion will cover the mare.

Mares are scanned to see if they're in foal at around 15 days - if they are, they're re-scanned at 26 days if they haven't 'returned' (ie, come back into season) to check the size of the foetus and its heartbeat. The mare will be re-scanned again at around 36 days and it's safe to ship her home any time after 42 days. Of course, mares do return and do have to be covered on successful heat cycles.

If you're breeding for the Flat, you tend to draw stumps by the middle/end of May, as late foals are not commercial at the sales. It's entirely different for NH horses of course.
 
Julie, if the vet detects a serious prob with the foal - bad heartbeat or something that makes him think there is little viability of the foal long-term, are abortions induced? If they are, do the mares come back on heat and can they be covered again right away?
 
Thought Kathy would like to see the progress of Fleeting Vision's Bertolini colt, half brother to Bay Hawk. This is him this time last year, and in the paddock just before Christmas.

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The next pic is 'the gang' from last year, Captain Rio colt hanging out on his own in the background, (which is a shame as he is very handsome) Bertie again, Rock of Gibralter filly and Deportivo filly.

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A closer look at the Deportivo filly, half sister to Kiama who we have in training with Brendan. We're keeping this one too. (Note her festive head decoration)

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Some better news this time after losing the Galileo foal. A Kings Best out of Harlem Dancer. This is her first foal and she would not let us near with the camera so only a shy pic. Hope to get some new ones now that he is bouncing around.

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Lastly, we take a lot of pics of horses with their own 4 legged friends, here our favouite neighbor Double Trigger tries to explain to his dog Sparky that he cannot throw the stick for him.

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:D Love the DOUBLE TRIGGER/Sparky photo and the 'best dressed' filly! Your horses look as if they're like REACH THE WIND, Isinglass - they love a good roll to mess up their coats as much as possible! I have VERY few where 'Doris' isn't covered in mud and/or straw - she seems to love making a mess of herself.
 
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