I have a 17.1 hand mare who had her last foal in 2011. I adore this mare and her filly who I am now riding. Filly is by Cunningham (who is a big’un I know) and is a solid 17.2 at 5 years old. Mare throws big. Mare is 24 and in great health. Her heats have been bad so I took her to my repro vet for a check up to make sure all was ok and his recommendation was to breed her. Because of her age, I hate to make her carry another monster foal so would breeding her to a small (12.2hh) pony be easier on big momma? She is the BEST mom and would love nothing more than to have another little one. Would my odds of having a medium or large pony be decent? Of course, things may not work out due to her age, etc. but I am now dreaming about adorable pony foals. 
[QUOTE=JenRose;8600665]
I have a 17.1 hand mare who had her last foal in 2011. I hate to make her carry another monster foal so would breeding her to a small (12.2hh) pony be easier on big momma? Would my odds of having a medium or large pony be decent? [/QUOTE]
As someone who stands pony stallions and regularly breeds our pony stallions to full sized Warmblood and Thoroughbred mares, unfortunately no, you will likely not get a pony foal out of a 17.1 HH mare.
For many years, we stood a pony hunter stallion (purebred Welsh) who was a mere 11.1 1/2 HH who never threw any height into his foals. Even with that small size and the backing of purebred breeding behind him, we always cautioned Mare Owners who had mares 16.1 HH and over. For many pony stallions, the odds work best when the mare is in the 15.2 HH maximum range…or even up to 16 HH for some pony stallions. But at 17.1 HH, the odds are going to be greatly against you even getting a large pony foal (to finish under 14.2 HH). Your chance for a medium (to finish under 13.2 HH) is zero. But that’s just my humble opinion. 
ET of a well bred pony mare, if you can.
But the studies done say the foal will grow to the size of the mare’s uterus. Somehow I doubt that would be the case since the full height of the pony may be close to the mare’s typical foal size aka 11 or 12h.
[QUOTE=stoicfish;8600887]
ET of a well bred pony mare, if you can.
But the studies done say the foal will grow to the size of the mare’s uterus. Somehow I doubt that would be the case since the full height of the pony may be close to the mare’s typical foal size aka 11 or 12h.[/QUOTE]
Not sure if you are suggesting she use her mare as an ET recipient or an ET donor?!? Neither would be suitable for this mare. As a recipient mare, the OP’s mare would not be a candidate for an embryo transfer, as at 24 years old and not having had a foal for 5 years, the chances of the mare taking a transferred embryo is going to be slim and likely cost the OP a lot of money to gamble on the ET being successful. And as a donor mare, ideally, she should be choosing a recipient mare that is much larger than a pony mare and closer to her size, even if breeding to a pony stallion. While studies have shown that the fetus will only grow to the size of the mares uterus, if putting a pony stallion x 17.1 HH mare embryo into a recipient pony mare, she would be taking the chance that the shoulders and/or hip are going to be too large to get through a small birth canal in the recipient mare.
Her only sure bet would be to purchase a pony foal already on the ground and go from there.
[QUOTE=JenRose;8600665]
I have a 17.1 hand mare who had her last foal in 2011. I adore this mare and her filly who I am now riding. Filly is by Cunningham (who is a big’un I know) and is a solid 17.2 at 5 years old. Mare throws big. Mare is 24 and in great health. Her heats have been bad so I took her to my repro vet for a check up to make sure all was ok and his recommendation was to breed her. Because of her age, I hate to make her carry another monster foal so would breeding her to a small (12.2hh) pony be easier on big momma? She is the BEST mom and would love nothing more than to have another little one. Would my odds of having a medium or large pony be decent? Of course, things may not work out due to her age, etc. but I am now dreaming about adorable pony foals. [/QUOTE]
Wait, a vet recommended breeding a 24 year old due to strong heat cycles? No offense but that is crazy. It would be one thing if you really wanted to milk one last foal out a nice mare but not to help her heat cycles. How about regumate or injectable progesterone etc?
Big mare to small pony stud will get you one of these options:
Small horse
Medium horse
Big horse
Genetics generally don’t give you an “average” (for example 12 hands + 17 hands does not usually result in 14 1/2 hands).
I’d be too afraid of getting a real-life Thelwell pony.
I can’t attach a picture but you get the idea.
There must be another way to manage an elderly mare’s hormones.
Exactly! :lol:
ET recipient but you are probably right about it not being a cost effective plan, I missed the age. I like Laurirace’s answer the best.
ET recipient but you are probably right about it not being a cost effective plan, I missed the age. I like Laurirace’s answer the best.
[QUOTE=stoicfish;8602352]
I like Laurirace’s answer the best.[/QUOTE]
I missed that part in regards to why she was considering breeding her older mare. I think I might consider getting a second opinion involving an easier solution or finding a new vet.
wouldn’t ovariectomy be an option here?
[QUOTE=hoopoe;8603257]
wouldn’t ovariectomy be an option here?[/QUOTE]
I am very interested in learning more. Price? Ease of recovery? I mentioned marbling but my vet wasn’t a fan.
One of the downsides of ovariectomizing is it can put them into persistent heat. Not a risk I would take with a mare known to have difficult cycles.
I have thought off and on about breeding my 16.2 Percheron/Andalusian mare to a Welsh or some other smallish, nice stallion (thanks, Daventry, for ignoring my inquiry a while ago) because I’m older now and would like something closer to the ground. So this answers that question.
[QUOTE=Draftygirl;8603618]
I have thought off and on about breeding my 16.2 Percheron/Andalusian mare to a Welsh or some other smallish, nice stallion (thanks, Daventry, for ignoring my inquiry a while ago) because I’m older now and would like something closer to the ground. So this answers that question.[/QUOTE]
?? So sorry. If I didn’t respond to your email, it is because I never received it or it may have ended up in my junk folder. We’ve always made sure to respond to every email or inquiry we receive and we have always been very diligent in regards to answering inquiries in a timely manner. That being said, I personally would not recommend a Welsh pony stallion for a Percheron/Andalusian cross mare. You would probably be better off going the route of a nice, refined Arabian or Thoroughbred stallion.
Sorry to derail the thread OP.
