a mini bred to a full sized appy stud =[

So 1st I want to say this isn't my mini.. the lady I'm buying my Appy from rescued this mini from this other person.. the org owner kept her in a pasture with the full sized stallion and apparently the mini has had 2 other foals by that same stud... this just kind of made me sad... the lady that owns her now said the mare had just weaned her last foal shortly before she bought her and it looks to me that the foal she's prego with now is going to drop any day now.. so she'd have to been bred while her last foal was still suckling... it's just so sad that some people can be such an irresponsible breeder! I feel bad for this mini I know she has to be tired and worn out from the last foal and not getting any breaks before being bred again.

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I guess this lady (the org owner) has been reported tons of times but nothing seems to ever happen. I told the lady that owns her now she needs to have a vet look at the mini at least to make sure everything is okay.. I've heard of minis dieing because the foals are to big for them and I'd feel really bad if anything bad happened to this mini it's the lady's little girls.

I didn't know what to tell her so I sent her a link about horse pregnancy and told her the vet should examine her is there anything else I could or should have told her?

Well first of all almost every breeder breeds their mare back while the foal is suckling if not the day after birth for foal heat because around 60% of mares might never come in foal again if you give them a year off, I've seen it happen many times and am having problems with one of my mares because of this very thing I thought I should give her a year of and then was told otherwise. And second of all horses have complete utarian power they can keep a baby at a certain size, it wont let it get too big. I am going to college for equine breeding and nutrition and we bred a clydesdale to a mini and she had a mini clydesdale it wasnt too big by any means. I do agree some horses have problems during birth and I have had a mare with a baby too big and she is a giant horse, it has nothing to do with the mare being a mini if she has problems believe me it is just genetical that she can't have big babies and no way of controlling it but very few hav this problem.

Ahhh I see I did not know that it just seemed wrong at the time but I guess I should read up on all that next time before I freak out like that.. but thanks for the info I'll pass it to the owner so she wont be so worried.. and hearing that I'm to worried now either thanks =]

I do not believe this for a second, and neither should you. Honestly, that was someone pulling the wool over your eyes. I would really like to see some proof....
And, no, I'm not attacking you, but it's myths like this that make horse owners breed more than they should.

Just DressageIt, do you think it's something the minis owner should be concerned with?

While it's true that many do breed back on foal heat, it is something I NEVER have done. The part about them not breeding back is a myth. The foal heat is "natures way" of them cleaning out the uterus after having the foal. I have bred back on the next heat or the following heat but I only let my mares have 2 foals then they got the year off. The only time I have ever had "difficulty" getting a mare to take after having a year off is if they are a bit older. I always let them come into heat naturally (no shots to bring them in) and if they are older and don't take, that's that is "natures way" of telling me that they don't need to have any more foals. My girls were never baby factories. I still own all of my retired mares (that are still alive) I also won't sell them after they get too old to have a foal. To me, they deserve retirement. To some, that my not seem to be very "good business" but it is the way I do business.

I can't honestly say with first hand experience that you can/should breed much larger stallions to smaller dams. I always did it the opposite. If anything, the stallion was smaller than the mare. I do have one QH/pony cross that I bred my stallion to, but she is aprox 13.3 to 14 hh and my stallion is 15.1h. Not that big of a difference. I personally would be very concerned with an appy/mini cross and I definitely would ask my vet.

BTW my daughter has a bachelors of Equine Science and is working on getting into vet school, and I am a nurse, so I do have some background to what I am saying.

ok thanks..

Just to add I talked to the owner of the mini now and the way it sounds to me is she's had 3 foals back to back, well that's not counting the one she's prego with right now... to me that seems a lil messed up.. that's just my opinion I beleive there should be some time off, that's just the way I think though... then again, idk much about horse breeding or anything... I could be wrong it's just something I need to read up on I guess...



[also let me add that's just 3 previous to the one she's prego with now that the owner now knows about; apperently the org owner always had her in the same pin as the stallion who knows though]

God...I just keep trying to picture the mechanics of a full-sized stud and a mini mare...

Yea idk I stilll fel bad for her she has to be pooped if I go out there before she has the foal I'll take pics.. the lady that has her now seen one of the foals she had she said full sized it was the size of her halflinger cross (some other pony breed)... hopefully the mini wont have any problems having it and the foal will be healthy

We are talking "mother nature" here " if there is a way they will find it"!!! Lol


I have never bred my mares on their foal heats I always waited a heat or two because I didn't want any early babies. We can and have had Snow Storms up until the first week in May Just too stressful for me to worry about.