"Great" British Breeding cont...

Once you have your foals what is your "normal" plan for them?

Firstly the most important factor is that they are born fit and healthy. Next is that their first time outdoors is without any incidents. We have our mares in small groups, as it is normally just me and my husband that do the majority of the handling. We do not “over handle” them, but they learn the use of a headcollar, are learned to lead and have their feet done. We have the farrier regularly and are fortunate to have a very good farrier that is good with young horses. Besides this they are given the opportunity to grow and develop in a peaceful environment.

Over the years we have graded several of our foals, whether that is with Breed Societies or more recently the British Equestrian Federation Futurity Evaluations.

About 99% of all our foals are for sale, and over the years many have been sold within days of being born. We will occasionally retain a filly for breeding as we are keen to keep the mare lines we have chosen, so look at what fillies we breed each year and make any selections to keep some for future breeding.

We will then sell them when they are weaned around 5-6 months and then look forward to hearing of their developments with their new owners over the years.

What would be the break even cost for a foal? How do the prices for foals compare with those paid in Germany?

A lot of this depends on the cost of semen, and how easy it is to breed to a mare each year. We are definitely much more expensive in the UK than abroad on the vet fees. I have kept mares in Holland and Germany to breed to stallions there, and the costs are much less than in the UK. This is what led to me training to be an AI Technician, as the costs were becoming more and more prohibitive for us to send our mares to other places.

In 2009 we have definitely seen a rise in people looking to use stallions based in the UK, and this was one of the main reasons for acquiring Don Aqui from Germany, not just for our own use, but to make available a very good breeding stallion to mare owners in the UK.

If we are using a stallion with a semen cost of around 1,000 euros, and then for instance we manage to get the mare in foal on her first season then the cost would be around £1,500 upwards, on top of this fee you need to add your mare keep and any other associated costs until the foal is born. If the mare does not take first time then the costs go up, this includes vet fees, transport fees if requiring further semen and any other associated costs to help the mare conceive. The other problems you can encounter is poor semen quality, problems with the vet, timing of the semen, or worse case scenario semen going missing or not arriving. So sometimes to get a living foal on the ground from a good mare and stallion could cost a breeder in the UK a minimum of £2,500 upwards if you take all associated costs in the equation. If you use the higher end of the stallion market then you can add another £3,000 to that for semen fees.

There are many foals being born abroad, much more than in the UK. This “mass production” for want of a better word is what keeps the costs down for breeders. I have seen this year that the amount of foals being born is driving down the costs on some foals because there are so many of them. Equally though we have seen some very high prices being paid for foals, but these are by top stallions, which perhaps are not so easy to come by. One example of high priced stock is the KWPN stallion “Mr Blue”, who is now deceased and whose stock is commanding high prices at auction. Or another example of higher priced foals, are if they are out of dams that are full sisters to Approved stallions, or come from a very commercial mare line – these will always find buyers who are willing to pay that little bit more for them.

For some very strange reason people will always pay much more for foals abroad than in the UK, although we do see a shift in this mind set, but very slowly. It seems that no matter how many times we say to people that horses can be found in the UK of very good breeding, that they will still go abroad. Often I look at the results of auctions and see just how many of these horses find their way back to British soil.

There are several successful British Bred horses abroad (the British Bred stallion “Boston” by Jazz, who is now in Germany with a top German dressage rider and Zubin R of Riverstud who is doing well in Germany showjumping…to name only three examples). So we are proving that we are producing just as good horses in the UK.

I also put this down to the fact that we see so many places advertising horses that have just arrived from Holland, Germany or Belgium. So many people assume that these horses are better than what can be found in the UK, although I know the arguments of some buyers is that they can see several horses at one location (this is also another reason people go abroad to buy). However, many of these horses are being sold to the UK for a reason, and one of these reasons is that some may have been deemed by our European breeders as not good enough for the continent.

People need to look at the long term goals they wish to achieve with their horses. We know of several people who have purchased from us but sometimes say the horse is too good for them. However, a good horse gives that individual a chance to set their goals higher, whether that is for sport or breeding. Yes we also hear that good horses have been ruined by inexperienced riders, but the lack of experienced riders and trainers does show up time and again in the UK, and this is also a contributing factor.

To purchase a good three year old abroad, from good breeding lines can set you back £25,000+, and this is one of the main reasons we see many people purchasing foals, because the price tag is within their reach, and if they purchase a good quality foal from a reputable breeder then they have a good chance of having a horse that is worth more in the long term, as long as that horse is given the best of care and chances.

How do you plan to sell your foals?

We sell our foals mainly via our website (www.morayfirthstud.co.uk) and through word of mouth. We have a very good reputation which also gives us return customers. We also advertise on a select few websites. We also offer in-utero foal sales where people can purchase a foal before it is born.

Success stories?

2001 – Our Dutch bred stallion “Royal Geneve” was awarded “Licensed” Status by KWPN judges at the annual Scottish Sports Horse Stallion Grading

2002 – Our first homebred foals by Royal Geneve (Vinnie Jones MF and Versace MF) were awarded 1st Premiums by the KWPN judges and another foal by Geneve “Riviera L” was placed 3rd at the Scottish Sportshorse Foal Show.

2003 – Our homebred foal “Woody Allen MF” by Royal Geneve was awarded a 1st Premium and his dam “Osprey B” was awarded a “Ster” award by KWPN judges.

2004 – Our homebred foal “Zandor MF” (Krack C x Gribaldi) was awarded a 1st Premium by the KWPN and exported to Canada where he is successfully competing in dressage. “Woody Allen MF” with his new owner is Reserve Champion at Kirriemuir Show.

Our new stallion “MFS Vision” is awarded a 1st Premium by the KWPN judges with the comment made by top International judge “Mr Toine Hoefs” – “This stallion is an International dressage prospect”.

2005 – Royal Geneve is winning several dressage competitions over the last couple of years and was competing with young rider, Katy Simcox at the Under 21 UK Dressage Championships.

MFS Vision is awarded “Licensed” by the KWPN judges at the annual Scottish Sports Horse Grading. Our homebred foals “MFS Anastacia”, “MFS Aaliyah” and “MFS Ashanti” all by Royal Geneve are awarded 1st Premiums by the KWPN judges, with “MFS Ashanti” one of the highest marked foals of the year.

2006 – “Lady Geneve” by Royal Geneve is awarded the “Ster” predicate from the KWPN judges.

2007 – MFS Vision’s first crop of foals are received very well by the NRPS Dutch judges, with several awarded 1st Premiums both homebred and bred by clients – “MFS Caliana”, “MFS Cassandra”, “Coloured Vision” and “Perfect Vision”. With “MFS Cassandra” the highest awarded foal with marks of 9 out of 10 for movement.

“MFS Casino Royal” homebred by Royal Geneve goes on to be awarded a 1st Premium but is also the overall Champion of the gradings out of 145 horses forward.

“MFS B’Royal” a homebred yearling is also awarded a 1st Premium, along with “MFS Corina Bella” another homebred by Heartbreaker. Lastly our mare “Octavia B” by Jurius is awarded the “Model” predicate for producing three 1st Premium offspring.

Our homebred “Versace MF” competes in dressage and wins 5 out of 7 classes and qualifies for the Amateur Championships at Addington Manor.

2008 – “Coloured Vision” by MFS Vision wins several Championships and Reserve Championships during the summer. “Lady Geneve” by Royal Geneve wins in dressage. “Riviera L” by Royal Geneve wins his first dressage outings at Frys Dressage and qualifies for the National BD Championships at Novice level with International dressage rider Laura Fry.

At the 2008 BEF Young Horse Futurity we receive the following awards:

MFS B’Royal our homebred by Royal Geneve is Reserve Champion for 2 year old Showjumping horses at the Elite Show at Addington Manor, and is Champion of the Evaluations for 2 year old showjumping horses in the UK, and Reserve Champion for 2 year old dressage horses. He is winner of the Scottish Futurity for dressage and showjumping horses and is awarded a 1st Premium for both.

“MFS Diva Rosa” our homebred by Wallenberg is the winner of the Scottish Futurity for showjumping filly foals and is the third highest scoring showjumping filly foal in the UK, and qualified for the Futurity Elite Show. She is also awarded a 1st Premium.

“MFS Fancyman” our homebred by Fidertanz is the second highest placed dressage colt foal at the Scottish Futurity and is awarded a 1st Premium.