Purchasing in utero and the steps afterwards

[MsJump21]

Hello, I’ve been debating over the past year or so whether or not to breed my mare and decided that I would prefer to buy in utero or a foal already on the ground. Buying in utero is appealing since it is my understanding that they are “discounted” since you don’t know exactly what you’re going to get. This works for me since ideally I would like a jumper but if it wants to be a hunter/eq horse that’s totally fine. It doesn’t matter to me whether it is a mare/gelding and neither does height since this horse would be for me and not a resale.

I have a few questions regarding purchasing in utero as opposed to buying a foal already on the ground.

 1.) What does a typical contract look like between buyer and seller when purchasing in utero? Would someone mind PMing me their contracts just to get an idea?

 2.) What are the risks typically involved with buying in utero?

 3.) If you have purchased or sold a horse in utero, what was your experience?

 4.) What happens after the foal is born? Do you keep it with the breeder to be weaned?

Edit to add: What would an appropriate budget be for a jumper prospect (1.20m+) for one in utero and one already on the ground?

[Hawkridge]

I will be buying an in utero foal (2023) but I am also friends with the breeder so there is less risk for me, seeing that she’s not a stranger.

As for risks, that depends on what’s in the contract. For me, I will be sure to have foal insurance in place just incase. I am fine with either a colt or filly and color/size doesn’t really matter to me so much. Typically the breeder will keep the foal, free of charge, until weaning.

Mine will be dressage bred, but my friend mostly breeds for jumpers (Hanoverian) and already has 2 of her 3 in utero foals sold. I think the prices are in the 13K US ish range (she’s in Canada).

This will be a first for me so I’m pumped!

[sigrid.sijtsma]

Look at www.majesticgaits.com Kathy Hickerson can tell you about it, and on her website there are in utero foals available with prices and excellent quality KWPN NAWPN bred horses, imported from the netherlands

[Montanas_Girl]

I purchased a 2018 filly in utero, and I was so happy with how she turned out that I purchased her dam and had her bred back to my filly’s sire in 2020 before shipping her to me.

The breeder I purchased from was all the way across the country. I never met her or saw any of the horses involved in person prior to the day my filly arrived at my place as a weanling. There are about a million ways that situation could have gone sideways, but it all worked out for me. However, the process wasn’t without some serious bumps in the road:

1. My filly’s dam seriously injured her leg at 9 months gestation and spent the remainder of her pregnancy on stall rest, NSAIDs, and antibiotics. Initially, the local vet gave her a 50/50 chance of living long enough to deliver a full-term foal (the injury involved a joint capsule), but she’s one tough little red mare and is actually 100% sound and rideable now. Go figure!

2. My filly spiked a scary high fever two weeks after being weaned, and her paddock mate dropped dead overnight at the same time. Navigating that from 1,700 miles away and trying to work with a vet I didn’t know or necessarily trust very much was not fun, to say the least. There’s a thread about that whole episode somewhere in the Horse Care forum. My filly ended up never showing any signs of illness other than her fever and was perfectly healthy to ship to me the next month.

You definitely need to be dealing with a breeder/seller who is ethical and trustworthy for one of these sales to work. But I’d do it again in the same situation (couldn’t find anything I liked in my price range any other way!).

[TheJenners]

@Montanas_Girl

My filly spiked a scary high fever two weeks after being weaned, and her paddock mate dropped dead overnight at the same time.

Well that’s utterly terrifying!

[fordtraktor]

I second the recommendation for Kathy Hickerson, she’s fantastic. I have an in utero coming this year, it’ll be my third horse from Kathy’s program (!!!). She’s also extremely knowledgeable about all things breeding-related.

[Montanas_Girl]

@TheJenners

Well that’s utterly terrifying!

It was awful! We never did get a definitive diagnosis (the seller’s vet was convinced something “scared” the colt to death ). I’m still suspicious that it was rhodococcus, myself, and that my filly just had a very mild case. Had the colt not died - and therefore the vet not come out - no one would have even suspected my girl was sick. She’s a tough cookie, this one, thank goodness!