FOUNDING A STUD
As this little book is intended for farmers more than for stud owners,
a better heading for this chapter would have been “Selecting the Dams,”
for without sound, useful mares no breeder can hope to achieve success
with the horses he breeds.
It has been possible to grade up one’s old stock of mares by using
registered stallions until they were eligible for the Stud Book; but
this is too tedious a course to recommend in these days; moreover, the
demand for draught mares is now so keen that the difference in the
price of a pedigree and a common non-pedigree mare is scarcely worth
considering. Therefore the beginner who wishes to breed pedigree Shires
should dispose of his unregistered mares to re-invest his money in
females which are worth mating with a really good sire, so that the
full benefits of the industry may be more quickly forthcoming.
Of course there is a wide range of choice in Shire mares; consequently
there is plenty of scope for the skill and judgment of the purchaser.
Those which are fashionably bred, perfectly sound and likely to make
prize winners usually realize high prices, while prizes already won add
considerably to the market value of any Shire, male or female.
One must decide according to his means whether he will launch out and
buy one or two of the most famous mares to be obtained, or whether he
will proceed cautiously, and with as little outlay as possible, by
picking up useful specimens as they come under his notice; but it may
be pointed out that the man who attends sales and gives sensational
prices advertises himself, thus getting a more favourable start than
the plodder.
The initial, or foundation, stock, whatever its cost, should be
free from hereditary unsoundness, otherwise disappointment will be
encountered in the offspring.
It is much more easy to find sound Shires now than it was in the early
years of the Shire Horse Society, when the rejections for unsoundness
were very numerous, as the following extract from a show report of the
past will prove:--“The judges selected ten horses to be sent out for
veterinary inspection in the hope, vain though it proved to be, that at
least half of them would be again found in the ring with a certificate
of soundness, so that no difficulty would be experienced in securing
sufficient sound animals to which they could award the three prizes and
the reserve number. Not so, however; and the stewards were compelled to
seek in the boxes for other horses to be sent out for examination in
order that the rosettes might be placed.”
Unsoundness on such a scale has long ceased to exist, largely through
the efforts of the Shire Horse Society in sticking to their rule of
giving prizes and commendations to sound animals only.
This does not imply that unsoundness cannot be found in the Shires of
to-day. Unfortunately it is still possible to buy a mare, or use a
stallion, with undesirable and readily inherited complaints; therefore
it is very necessary for farmers--who wish to make their Shires do a
share towards paying the rent--to discriminate between a sound and an
unsound horse, or mare, or to decide for himself whether to take or
refuse a blemished animal. There are many of the latter which often
prove a good investment, and as a veterinary surgeon cannot always
be found at a moment’s notice it is desirable for breeders to make
themselves acquainted with the conformation of a sound and perfectly
moulded animal, so as to be able to rely on one’s own judgment when
buying or selling.
Shire Horse history has proved that the purchase of one sound mare with
good back breeding has led to fame and fortune, a fact which should not
be forgotten when home breeding is being embarked upon or extended.