Avoiding the Edge - by Eric Mitchell

re: Avoiding the Edge - by Eric Mitchell

mokee — Fri, 16 Aug 2013 12:47:02 GMT

Since AI began in the Arabian industry we have seen both the positive side of this (being able to breed to great stallions that stand outside the USA as well as all over our country (good for the small breeder) BUT and this is the big BUT... the downside is such that it hasn't been worth it, in my estimation. We can't limit the number of ET's in any one year and I've seen same year siblings running against each other in the same race. Worse than that we've opened the door to "cloning", I stated this would happen many years back. I'm disgusted that our US court system treats this in an anti-trust manner the same as if we were selling 'widgets'. These are animals and messing with mother nature who knows where this will end. I hope the JC never changes it's stand on AI as it is a very slippery slope.

re: Avoiding the Edge - by Eric Mitchell

AngelaInAbilene — Sat, 10 Aug 2013 14:19:42 GMT

As an AQHA owner, who married into a founding AQHA family, since the allowing of AI by the AQHA, I have been beyond disgusted with them. I am no longer a member and I no longer run, show or breed QH's.

Once upon a time, the AQHA was about preserving the qualities breed. For the last 20-25 years, they have been about generating money through registration. Pure GREED! It took YEARS for them to even acknowledge HYPP as a problem and court battles plus more YEARS before they done something about it. If you look at a recent Winter Sale catalogue, you'll see a mare with 23 ET foals! [Nevermind that the mare should have never even produced 1.]

I sincerely hope the proponents of AI and other breeding technologies NEVER prevail with the JC. It would most definately be a sad day to watch the JC slide to the depths the AQHA.

re: Avoiding the Edge - by Eric Mitchell

Bethany Loftis — Wed, 07 Aug 2013 23:33:31 GMT

As a Quarter Horse owner and competitor, the effects of allowing AI has had an over all negative impact on the breed. The registry boasts over 4 million registered worldwide. If thoroughbred owners are worried about the size of stallion books at 100-175 per season, they'd be appalled at the 250-400+ that a Quarter Horse stallion is allowed to cover in a single season with the help of shipped cooled and frozen semen. Embryo transfer also allows several mare owners to breed the same mare over and multiple times to different stallions getting any where from 3-12 foals from one mare. This flooding has had a negative impact on the Quarter Horse market. The horses hold no value, and there are so many, not all can properly be taken care of. I volunteer at my local equine clinic, we see far more neglected Quarter Horses than thoroughbreds. The Jockey Club has done the right thing by only allowing live cover breeding. They have not shot themselves in the foot by opening the door for cloned registration as the AQHA have done. I do hope the AQHA continues to fight this, but the argument to allow clones seems well thought out. My question is, can a breed registry that size readily change the rules involving natural breeding and AI? Or will the risk of general outcry be too great?

re: Avoiding the Edge - by Eric Mitchell

John from Baltimore — Wed, 07 Aug 2013 21:26:05 GMT

With stallions going to stud now with four, five and six starts and having foal crops of 75 to 150 foals the big breeders are destroying the durabilty of the bred fast enough. Just think what they could do with artificial insemination and foal crops of 200 to 300.

On the positve side if the breeders can get the average starts down to six from around twelve you would need twice as many horses to run the same number of races if anyone was around to buy them.

In conclusion it looks like the Jockey Club by not allowing A.I. is protecting the breed from the big breeders who sit on the board.

If anyone doesn't think the breed is getting worst, look at Arlinton's Saturday, August 10, program. Six out of ten races are for maidens.