Hi there, need help making a decision for a mare I have, her bloodlines are Laird (GP stallion by Lynx/Ferro) out of a Weltmeyer mare. (Would post a picture if I knew how to do that lol) Would be thrilled with a carbon copy of the mare but she is sensitive so my ideal is a either a proven GP stallion with high rideability or a younger and therefore less proven top quality Young stallion with a good brain. Goal is to create a dressage foal.
At this point my two top choices are For Romance or De Niro. Any input or suggestions? Any other ideas?
TIA!!
Here goes
-if you are looking at a potential grandprix horse De Niro would be my pick, I think it would be a good cross with Laird in the mare line due to him being predominantly jumping bred you would assume him to give a very good canter as well as good strength through the hindquarter and back and De Niro gives the talent for Grand Prix. He also seems to throw a good mind and trainability. However it will probably not be a horse to really star in you classes however on paper would look to be a potential GP horse. (so many GP horses are strongly jumping bred in the mare line!). It will also probably be more of an old fashioned build
If you want a horse for young horse classed For Romance would give you a far flashier more modern type (with probably aa nicer head) and i would imagine ‘flashier’ (not necessarily more correct) paces. I am not a fan of Sandro Hit as his give a not so good hind leg and For Romance although not as bad is still not particularly strong. For Romance has produced some beautiful foals and young horses however being such a young stallion whether he can produce grand prix is still a big gamble and For Romance himself is still unproven to as wether he has the quality for the grand prix movements. I would also still question the readability For Romance will pass on.
Having not seen the mare it does make it hard however she does have a nice pedigree so would imagine a nice foal.
I think a friend and client has an offspring from the mother of your mare, he is by Sir Sinclair. He is really a lovely mover with a lot of talent. Considering the mare’s bloodlines I would be careful about using something too old fashioned. DeNiro brings the ability to sit but not usually more expressive gaits or longer front legs. For Romance could work well, I have a mare due any day from him. I think he will improve type.
I would be tempted to try Dancier on your mare. A bit more refined and longer lines and always seems to work well on Weltmeyer mares and then you get your DeNiro blood too.
De Niro’s frozen semen isn’t very reliable. I bred a very fertile young mare with no foals at foot and she didn’t catch, had an important inflammation response to the extender. Very few sperm in a dose (2 straws) and not very motile. I selected my easiest breeder, a very good repro vet and no pregnancies. If you look on the SES database you will notice some breeders have used 4 straws but it does get costly.
Schroeder (Sandro Hit x Escudo I) just started into Grand Prix this year and his babies are really nice to work with. Goes good with the Ferro lines too.
If you email a photo, I’ll be glad to help out posting it. Would be helpful to see what fits her.
Kathy
I was going to suggest you look at Dante Weltino, but he has Weltmeyer in the 3rd generation, so not a good option for your mare (I don’t think I know anyone that would recommend linebreeding on Weltmeyer!)
What about Furstenball? I believe he is at GP now, and has been a success his entire life. He is elegant and elastic, has lovely gaits, super rideability, and his offspring are proving to be big hits.
Dante Weltino himself is linebred to Weltmeyer 3x3… so no, I wouldn’t breed a mare who already had that blood to him, but he’s not exactly a great argument against linebreeding it. 
Furstenball is, to my understanding, retired, though I think he was schooling most of the GP movements prior. Haven’t seen hide nor hair of him out and about for a couple of years now. He is lovely, however, and the ones we have had have been some of my all time top favorite horses to ride. I’m not sure I’d pick him if I was looking to dull down sensitivity.
To the OP, you might get a better response if you told us a little more about your mare, and/or included photos/video. It’s hard to make a suggestion just making guesses off the sire and damsire alone with no information about the damline, or movement/conformation. Does she have a strong topline? What is her strongest and weakest gait? How quick and strong is her hind leg? Without considering stuff like that it’s very hard to make suggestions.
My wife just got back from Germany where she was able to see a lot of For Romances’ foals. The foals were consistently good.
It is not surprising considering the genetics. Not only is For Romance a successful stallion, but his full sister was also the Oldenburg Champion Mare in 2012. For Romance also has a full brother that is now standing at Schockemohles.
For Romance is a very modern looking stallion. He is probably a good choice if you have an older type mare.
Dan
