This is what I do every now and then just for grins and giggles, me being the cool kid that I am and all.
So, if I ever were to breed Greta, which wouldn't happen for a good long time if ever, for financial reasons and whether or not it would really be a good idea and such, I had always imagined it to be to another warmblood. Until I found this guy. Well, really I saw one of his babies and heard the sire was a Clydesdale and thought, "DADDY WAS A WHAT?!" Because all of his babies look like big-boned warmbloods. He produces some lovely babies. They're all athletic, big boned, tidy jumpers, and on the more mild side as far as temperament goes, although I am all for a go-getter personality personally. I love the way these guys look. They just appear to be so sturdy and classy!
His name is Spring Water Black Powder Joe, and he is a registered Clydesdale and registered as a approved stallion for the American Warmblood Society. He is by Strong Line Smokin Joe and out of Spring Water Catherine by Donegal King. He won his breeders/owners, Fisher Ranch Warmbloods, the AWS Breeder of the Year Award in 2008 for the lovely foals he produced, mostly out of TB and TB/NSH mares. Examples:
SW Bella Donna, out of a TB mare Derby Bell by Light Of The Stars. Love the build of this gal!
SW Big Rock, also out of a TB mare. He and his owner Rebecca Meyers took the championship at the Evergreen Classic "AA" show in all of the pre-adult hunters and pre-adult equitation classes. Lovely dude, right?
SW Majestic. You can check out his class hunter rounds on YT.
SW Thor, out of TB mare Majarose. I love this guy!
Anyway, these guys look like they would be fabulous all-around horses: eventers, foxhunters, hunters, dressage. Those are the prime examples of his get that I have found, but all of them are quality kiddos.
Currently, Spring Water Joe is in Indonesia right now being bred to TB, TB crosses, and WB mares to improve the breeds on the SE Asian circuit.
I understand there are so many risks with breeding. Even if all goes well in the pregnancy, you're stuck with what you get. I would love, love, love a filly. I don't think I can ever go back to geldings at this point. Stallions, yes, so long as I take the time to school them in proper manners. But mares seem to have the brains haha! If the baby ends up a bit wonky or not quite suitable for the purpose you wanted them for, you're stuck with them. Not to mention the 4-5 year waiting period before serious training can begin, which I would rather have a trusted professional do or at least shadow and assist me. If an accident happens and he/she is deemed unrideable or not able to do the big things you wanted... once again, too bad! I could never give him/her up unless I absolutely had to for unforeseen circumstances.
All in all, it's probably a big ploy to still have a piece of my Greta even when she is gone, which hopefully won't be until a very long time from now. And frankly, I think even looking at her subjectively, she is not a poorly-built girl! She is a bit thin below the knees and has less angle than what would be desired in her hind legs, but she has her fair share of redeemable qualities, and an excellent pleasing personality and level-headed-but-protective intelligence that she could hopefully pass on or teach to her foal.
But I don't think I could ever forgive myself if the pregnancy took a turn for the worse, or if the foal ended up being far less than desirable. It may just be a risk I am too paranoid to take.
But I can dream, right? It would be quite an adventure and probably would have a lovely result!
But I can dream, right? It would be quite an adventure and probably would have a lovely result!
Any dream stallions y'all like?
LOVE the heavier built horses. His youngsters look gorgeous! They are more fine then I would have picked, but I love them anyway.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, I have a gelding- so I've never actually gone daddy shopping. But I LOVE any heavier built horses. And I ADORE my work's Lippi stallion.
www.maestrofavorynaussica.com << that's his website.
Love watching people go daddy shopping. ::drool::
ReplyDeleteIf you like draft personalities, he's probably great. If you're me and you hate that big-stupid thing, then it only looks good on paper.
ReplyDeleteHowever, since you're just prospective Daddy shopping, have a blast!
Funny story... I tried to find out about Thor's dam to possibly buy her or see if she was in use in a breeding program. She and my gelding have the same sire, and he had some awfully nice babies!
ReplyDeleteI like TB and TB-type horses, because I'm short and they're easier to get my legs around! But I definitely think if you're looking draft crosses, those are the nicest ones I've seen.
I am with Net, too short for drafts. I have ridden a couple biggies and used to compete horses over 16 hands, but I much prefer my 15.1 lean-built Quarter horse gelding. I am the opposite of you, I used to ride mares and now own and love a gelding. He is wickedly smart, as smart as any mare I have encountered, and complete with opinions. I still love mares, and would ride one again, but don't knock geldings. They seem to have a goofy, dumb reputation, which I have not observed myself (horses besides my own included) and try not to perpetuate.
ReplyDeleteI would love to breed Sofie to an Andalusian, or perhaps a nice sport pony. I would probably never do this, but sometimes I think that it would be really awesome to have a baby from her. She has such a great personality, and really nice movement considering her breeding, conformation and soundness issues. It would be neat to have something out of her, by a really nicely put together stallion. It would be nice to have a baby that I could train from the beginning and keep sound - a non-screwed up mini Sofa! I bet it would be awesome. Not to mention, it would be damn cute!
ReplyDeleteHave to be careful with the draft being the baby daddy too. Makes for a bigger foal for the light mare to have to deal with at birth. Most times Mom is the draft.
ReplyDeleteNot to burst your bubble but be careful with Clydes too because honestly, after working with 28 drafts at the barn I drove at, Clydes are hands down the dumbest. Belgians and Perches are hands down the smartest. There were several Clydes at that barn and they were not even remotely related but you would have thought they all shared one brain with a cinder block. That and they have so much feather that they are a scratches MAGNET.
That's another reason I would be careful to breed Greta, if ever. I wouldn't mind a slightly taller, bigger horse so my legs would have more to wrap around, but that would certainly be unfair to Greta if the baby was significantly bigger than what she could handle. It could be potentially dangerous. All of these babies came out of tall TB mares, so baby size was less of an issue. But Greta, even though she is 15.3, is still built a little petite.
ReplyDeleteAnd I totally agree about the feathers! They would meet clippers at least monthly haha! Unless I was showing the guy in a draft class, those feathers would be gone! They get so messy and it adds visual weight to a horse that's supposed to look more sporty.
@Net: that's so cool your horse has the same sire! Glad to hear first-person that he makes some lovely babies! Thor's dam is Majarose, by the way.