How do you structure your heard?

[samantha]

Let me prefice this with a quick disclaimer! Before anyone jumps on me yes I did read the Q&A, but I am looking for oppinions and clarifications.

This is a very high realism game, which is great! It's part of the reason I joined. But, that is also the reason why I am taking my creation credits very seriously. With a limited number I want to create stock that will be the most succesful possible with in the game.

In HF, which is the only other game I play if you buy a 1992 mare she can start breeding in 1995. If she was not shown in 1995, and was not already bread for that year she can have a 95 baby that is bred and registered in 2008. She can have as many babies as she has years open.

Here it looks like you only breed horses in the current year. So for example I create a 2000 mare or stallion today then even though they are 8 they can only have 2009 offspring because they'd have to be bred now to produce a foal for next year correct?

So when I am looking at creating stock I am assuming age is less important as long as the horse is old enough to show in the dicipline/level that you want it too. In past games I've always created older horses to maximize my breeding options down the road, but since this doesn't appear to be an issue because you only breed for the current year I'm thinking about keeping my stock on the younger side. Before I register any of them I wanted to see what other people thought about this and what their experiences are? Because once I register my horses and use my creation credits I'm stuck with what I have.

I'm wondering how the more rl breeding market affects the economy and showing and that type of thing especially since this is a fairly young game?

Do people generally split their stock into breeding and showing? If a mare is proven through her offspring rather then her own show career is this seen as equally favorable?

My specific goal is to breed and show Stock horses in halter, and under saddle. Since I joined right near the start of the current breeding season I'm thinking about creating one stallion as my main stud, and a few mares. Breeding the mares and only showing them in halter until they foal out for 09, and showing the stallion. And, maybe buying a few geldings just to show. So for me I guess it doesn't matter as much. I'm not showing my horses in strenious sport horse events... unless I bend and start a string of TB eventers lol.

Anyways, that was long winded. I just want to get an idea of what others do.

[Rainbow]

You're correct about the breeding thing -- the only way you'd be able to get foals from previous years, per se, would be to create them along with the mare (i.e. I originally imported a mare who was born in '95. I also imported her son, who was born in '00, but I did not breed him in the game using "empty" years or whatever, if that makes sense).

And yes, age is less important, so long as they are old enough to compete at the level at which they're competing (i.e. no two year olds jumping, etc. etc.). I think my oldest horse was born in 1993, while the majority were born in the late nineties through the 2000s.

I think the more RL breeding market has only affected the game positively... there is no inundation of horses like there might be if we allowed breeding from "empty" years, and we have had quite a few foals born this year. We have horses of a great variety of ages, a great variety of levels (not everybody immediately imported 203598235 upper-level horses -- in fact, there were eventing, dressage, and showjumping promotional auctions to push up the number of higher-level horses!)... it's great, really.

I personally don't split my stock breeding and showing. WEC, my barn, is primarily a show barn, and my horses are all -- except for one broodmare/lesson mare who isn't even having an '08 baby lol -- competitors, first and foremost. Granted, I do have one mare in foal this year, but she will return to showing after her foal is weaned and won't be bred again for a while. Most people have a much larger breeding operation than I do, but I simply prefer the showing. In real life, I show horses, I don't breed them. I don't plan to, either lol -- as long as I am in the horse world, I will show to whatever extent I can. It's honestly up to you how you want to do it -- you could focus primarily on breeding, primarily on training and showing, or on a combination of the two as most people do. And yes, I would think it would be equally favourable for a mare to have a record of outstanding offspring as to have a record of outstanding placings at large competitions. We haven't really run into that yet, since the game is still young, but I think a proven broodmare would bring you as much money if you were to sell her as a proven show mare.

I'm excited to see your horses!

[Gwen]

It's really great that you are thinking about all of this :-D

I do separate SOME of my horses from breeding and showing. For example, I have about 6-7 strict broodmares and some strict ET broods for embryo transfer. I do breed some show mares, but most of them only show until October and then are left to "slow down". I do nothing more than I did with my mare when she was due. I tend to get my horses to foal out early so they can compete as soon as possible.

[candj]

I am switching to separate my broodmares from show mares. I am not showing those that are going to be in foal for 2009 babies. I have plenty of other show mares and if I did show them they would be lightly shown until fall. I think I counted 7-8 mares that are going to be used as broodmares this year and are taking this season off from showing.