Amateur friendly stallion suggestions?

[RegentLion]

I’m strongly considering breeding our OTTB mare. DH and I really love her overall but she’s unusable due to a pasture injury a few years ago. She’s an older maiden mare that would need a full vet work up with regards to her reproductive tract but I still haven’t come across a stallion that I feel confident in picking for her.

Areas of improvement would be FEET. She’s got tiny little feet, and perhaps a bit of a flatter stride up front. Otherwise she’s a very pretty and well put together mare. She’s built uphill and 15.3 hh. Pretty head.

I would like primarily to improve on her temperament. She’s very calm and relaxed and pleasant to be around… But a super big chicken about being worked alone. I won’t know if that would change with consistency as she’s not in work.

Im im a mom of 3 kids and am a dressage/event rider so I prefer an amateur friendly stallion. Reasonable skills but we aren’t talking Rolex level here. I’m also very short (5’) and am comfortable with a pony or even that awkward 14.3 range.

What can you suggest?
please excuse typos. I’m writing this on my phone watching the horses graze and the sun is in my face.

[RegentLion]

Oh- I guess I’d like a kind, BRAVE stud. That’s where Toast lacks…bravery!

[RunningwaterWBs]

Freestyle.

[RegentLion]

Here’s her pedigree. The picture paired with it is her CANTER photo.

http://www.pedigreequery.com/trickys+gal

[Wordplay1832]

I would suggest Gatsby, who is an Oldenburg. I have a mare due with her first to him for similar reasons, hopefully we’ll have the baby on the ground sometime in July!
I’m riding one of his babies right now and she is having a lot of success in the event world. She is occasionally a bit of a challenge on the ground, but that is all her mom for sure, as her mom and he mom’s siblings are all a bit that way so I know exactly where that came from! She took a lot of great things from her mom too so I can’t complain about anything

However, she is so smart and such a quick learner, and very sweet.She moves great, has awesome feet and bone, and a wonderful jump.
All the things I’ve heard about Gatsby babies and what I love about her led me to breed my mare to him. It seems like a lot of adult amateurs have had great luck with their Gatsby youngsters fitting into their lifestyle and goals.

[RegentLion]

I actually have been drooling over Gatsby now for years!!! But I wasn’t sure how he fit the bill temperamentally.

[propspony]

I’ve heard nothing but great things about Sir Wanabi’s temperament. If I had discovered him two weeks earlier, my filly, despite how much I love her, would have had a different father.

Ridden by an 8 year old
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AwYYBUtqjFU&sns=em

Stallion video:
http://youtu.be/afeE05Qaht8

[soloudinhere]

Are you wanting to breed for a sport pony or wanting to keep the height?

I’m 5’ tall and am getting into the sport ponies and I LOVE my little sports cars. I would look at WH Topgun for an athletic Conn/TB cross.

My filly is by Smoke Tree Snapdragon and all his seem to be SUPER amateur friendly but not really proven for sport. For me temperament was ++ so I went with a foal on the ground from him. My filly’s full brother, SF Spirit, is standing now and he is very ammy friendly as well, but again, unproven.

[JB]

Another yes to Gatsby! He very reliably products ammy-friendly horses. Very reliably. He also crosses very well with TBs.

The only downside is he’s likely to increase the mare’s height - rarely does he not unless the mare is just huge. With her being 15.3 (and not knowing size of her pedigree) it wouldn’t be unreasonable to expect a foal to be in the 16-16.2 range. She’s got some good bone on her, so he wouldn’t likely add any.

He would nearly definitely add suspension to her flatter stride.

[monami]

Ridley

[camohn]

If you want to look at ponies
http://trevelyanfarm.com/wicked-courtjester/
And
http://trevelyanfarm.com/forrest-flame/
Or small ( 15.3h) warmbloods
http://www.flowerfarmhorses.com/vinca.php

[RegentLion]

I’m not too concerned about height. I guess I would stray away from huge stallions, though as I really don’t need or want that. I thought that by opening up the possibility of a pony I could find a nice stallion that fit my needs (brave, friendly, quiet, reasonable eventing ability) that was also a reasonable budget.

In my last breeding foray (different mare) I lost 2 years, 4 shipment fees and a stud fee. No foal; mare never stayed pregnant past a few months. So I’m a little gun shy…

[Kyzteke]

Personally I would stay away from WBs; you are liable to get 16h+ from any of the WB stallions mentioned.

Instead I would look at GRP, or even better, some Connemeras or some Welsh Cobs. Erin Go Bragh, the famous eventing pony (wasn’t that his name?) was a TB/Connamera cross.

[JB]

Glenhaven Welsh Ponies and Cobs has some really nice stallions, even a dilute or 2.

Then there’s the likes of Wedderlie Mardi Gras, and you should talk to Daventry here too

[VirginiaBred]

You seem to be suggesting you want to aim for dressage or eventing? Some stallions being suggested are not for that genre. You are comfortable in the resulting cross being a pony (If I’m reading your original post correctly)?

[Mozart]

How about a Connemara? You can’t get much braver than that

[Mozart]

http://www.chronofhorse.com/forum/showthread.php?356810-Connemara-stallions-in-North-America Maybe some useful suggestions on this thread?

[RegentLion]

@VirginiaBred;8165546

You seem to be suggesting you want to aim for dressage or eventing? Some stallions being suggested are not for that genre. You are comfortable in the resulting cross being a pony (If I’m reading your original post correctly)?

yes. I am an eventer at heart-- I want to continue to do that. But if for some reason I stop doing that I would do lower level dressage- which I also love.

I’m short so totally fine with a short horse or large pony.

whocj of the above mentioned stallions would not be suitable for eventing?

[vali]

Golden State is a gorgeous German riding pony, don’t know how he crosses with TBs. I have a Connemara/TB cross mare, and while they often make amazing eventers they aren’t all completely amateur friendly. They are wicked smart and sometimes when crossed with TBs you get a very athletic but hot horse. My mare is super athletic and makes Prelim look and feel easy, but she was a seriously challenging one person horse until she turned about 10 and started to mellow a bit. Her feet are incredible and she’s spent most of her eventing career barefoot unless I need to put studs on her, and didn’t wear shoes until she was nine. Incredibly bold and honest over fences even as a baby, but was pretty hot and spooky when she was young and could teleport across the arena in a flash. As far as amateur friendly I bred our sensitive Oldenburg mare to Devon Heir and got a gorgeous filly with a fantastic disposition, but she’s also looking like she will mature in the 16’2-16’3 range. She has great gaits and has been work with and trailers like a dream, but she’s only two so we haven’t started her under saddle yet. Good feet but not like my Connemara cross mare. We had very good luck fertility wise with both Devon Heir and Lagoheidor and our mare took on the first try with both. The Lagoheidor colt is also very nice but BIG.

[soloudinhere]

I would not call the two Wicked Courtjester offspring I know amateur friendly. Under saddle yes (well, maybe…debatable) but both are giant pills on the ground and very spooky.

My Connx can be a bit sensitive but I am as amateur as amateur gets and can deal with him fine. And man is he a cross country machine, he might be looking hard at something but NEVER stops going forward and NEVER quits.