Hi everybody, I was wondering what your thoughts are on the best way to get a breeding program started. Currently I am a poor student just starting a 3 year vet med residency program, and my ultimate horsey goal is to have a WB breeding program. I do have some money tucked away that could potentially go towards buying a mare or a filly now, and I don’t have any significant debts or loans.
My initial thought was to buy a well-bred weanling or yearling that I could raise up over the next 3 years, show a little bit after I finish my residency, and then eventually breed. But I definitely have champagne tastes on a beer budget, so I don’t know if I can realistically get a horse that will be “flashy” enough in the pedigree department to really be a foundation for a future breeding program if that makes sense.
I’m also considering the idea of buying an older broodmare that I’m not worried about having a potential riding career with, and breeding her to produce the young filly I ultimately want. This also comes with the option to sell colts or continue breeding the mare after I get the one that I “want” or whatever. Only catch would be that the broodmare would likely be very “domestic” bloodlines, i.e. not a glowing pedigree with lots of performance history, but I could potentially breed her to something a bit more exciting with frozen semen.
My other option is to wait until I get a real job, lol, but my current show horse is 16 already and the rest of my horses have now been retired for various ailments so I am keen to get something started so I will have a horse to ride/show in a few years time. I also much prefer bringing up my own riding horses from a young age, so the idea of buying a 4+ year old to ride after my residency isn’t super appealing to me.
Totally open to any opinions, just wanted to throw it out there and see if anyone had any thoughts!