Riders, you often hear about the origin of the horses you ride and sometimes you hear about breeding. Yes, but you wonder what breeding is, or at least what it covers. To be able to fully participate in the conversations the next time you hear about the subject, here are the basics you need to know to understand a little about the vast field of breeding, the job of horse breeder, competitions, the current state of breeding in France as well as its new alternative modes.
What is horse breeding?
Very simply and theoretically, horse breeding is all the techniques and processes that lead to the birth of so-called “domestic” equines for the benefit of human activity, in the agricultural sector in France. This concerns horses intended for sport, as well as those affiliated with horse racing, leisure, or work (Republican Guard, draught horses…). But horse breeding is also used for activities that we don’t like to think about such as the production of meat and by-products (mare’s milk, leather, fertilizer…).
Breeding has notably contributed to the creation and evolution of the breeds of horses known today, thanks to the work of crossbreeding that breeders have carried out over the years. This activity continues today for the creation of the best possible production in each breed.
France is a country known for the quality of its horse breeding, especially its sport horses such as the French-Saddle or the Anglo-Arabian and its trotting horses with the French Trotter. Thanks to the National Studs, which are represented by 20 sites in mainland France, French breeding has been able to preserve, enhance and transmit its knowledge and excellence over the years.
What is the job of a horse breeder?
A breeder manages a group of mares, whether he owns them, and may also have one or more stallions at his disposal. The breeder’s role is to take care of the broodmares during the breeding cycle, to make crossbreeding choices (which stallion for which mare, which type of mating…) and to take care of the mating process of the mares. The breeder will take care of the foals and make them grow up in the best conditions to valorize them or even market them. Breeding is first a job of passion, which requires a great deal of versatility: not only does one need to have knowledge of reproduction and genetics, but also a great deal of knowledge of horses, in terms of health, care, feeding, handling and education.
Often self-employed, the breeder must master the management of an agricultural structure (administrative and economic management), but the job also requires sales and communication skills to successfully promote and market the horses bred. Most of the time, breeders specialize in offering their customers a type of horse (racehorse, sport horse, leisure horse…) or even a particular breed. Their goal is to produce quality horses that best meet the standards of each breed and the expectations of buyers, in the hope of creating a renowned breeding operation.
There are training courses for those who wish to start breeding: Vocational Baccalaureate Driving et Farm Management, BTS Agricultural Animal Production or BTS Analysis, Driving et Farm Business Strategy ideally with an equine option. However, school training is not enough to become a breeder. A professional experience in the horse world, as a rider, groom or caretaker in a breeding farm is more than advised, even necessary for the future breeders. It is very important to realize that becoming a breeder requires considerable financial means, if not the prior ownership of land to set up a structure, as well as a real investment.
In the short or medium term, the breeding activity is not easily profitable, it is therefore advisable to associate it with a complementary activity such as boarding, breaking-in or valorization so that it is at least viable.
Attention, we have considered breeding as a profession. However, in France, the owner of a mare bred the previous year is considered as a breeder. A private individual who chooses to have his mare covered on a personal, exceptional, and non-commercial basis will still be considered as a breeder in the eyes of the IFCE (French Horse and Riding Institute).
Current state of horse breeding in France
In 2016, there were 30,785 horse farms in France. Most of them are “small” breeders (in the sense of mare owner) because 80% of them do not own more than two mares. In the same year, the most represented breeds in terms of number of breeders were the French Trotter (racehorse) and the Selle Français (French saddle breed) and 30% of the breeders produced “outside the stud book”.
These horses “outside the studbook” are, since 2010, known as “Origin”. They represent horses born from an approved stallion sire, whose mating has been declared, but whose crossbreeding is not recognized by any breed association (stud book), or foals declared from free riding, from a non-approved stallion sire or whose mating has not been declared. The appellation of Recorded Origin (OC) allows the origins to appear on the papers of the horse which is then registered in any Studbook. You will find on the site of the IFCE all the necessary steps to the declaration of a foal OC at the birth. For the equids, whose origins are unknown or incomplete and which do not belong neither to a studbook, nor to the categories of Constated Origin, they will be registered as ONC: (Non Constated Origin). This allows them to be registered and identified as required by law.
We notice in 2016 a decrease in the number of breeders in general but when we look at the type of production, this downward trend does not concern everyone. In 10 years, the number of owners of covered racing mares has stabilized, the production of draft horses has clearly decreased while other productions (French and foreign saddle breeds, ponies, donkeys) have slightly increased.
It is important to differentiate the breeder, defined above, from the breeder. The breeder is represented by any owner of a minimum of one foal born during the year. In France, the number of breeders experienced a decline in 2016, out of 31,370 breeders in 2015, 21,480 declared- a birth the following year.
The disparity in the geographical dynamics of French breeding is particularly marked. Indeed, some regions are much more active in terms of number of farms but also in terms of production quality. Basse-Normandie is notably the most proactive region concerning horses. Indeed, more than 20% of the French horses come from this region and 85% of the farms produce racehorses (especially trotting horses) or sport horses; draft horses and leisure horse’s breeders are rarer there. Well representative of the French model, Basse-Normandie has a large number of small breeders who do not consider themselves as professionals. The Pays de la Loire is also a very dynamic region in terms of horse breeding.
Horse breeding competitions
To promote their products, breeders need circuits that allow them to showcase young horses, broodmares and stallions.
For this, there are competitions dedicated to breeding, simply called “breeding competitions”, which allow the best foals and the best dams to be judged. Often separated by breed so that the horses are judged against competitors of the same style (it is difficult to judge an Arabian thoroughbred with the same criteria as a French Saddlebred), these competitions are divided into various age categories: foals, yearlings, 2-year-olds, 3-year-olds, and broodmares. Males and females compete in different classes. The young horses and ponies are judged on different tests according to their age, among them the model, the free gaits (up to 2 years old), the mounted gaits (for 3 years old) and the free jumping (from 2 years old). This allows breeders to obtain scores and rankings for their products, which can help them to promote them. Most studbooks or associations regrouping several breeds will organize French Championships to elect each year the champions of each breed.
There are also circuits dedicated to young horses between 4 and 7 years old. The Société Hippique Française has set up the Classical Cycles (reserved for professionals) and the Cycles Libres (for amateurs) which are circuits for the development of young horses in several disciplines. These circuits aim to highlight and distinguish the most suitable young horses and ponies in each discipline and thus create a selection of future elite horses for the top level. These competitions allow breeders to reveal and highlight the potential of their products. The SHF competitions go up to the 6 years old of the horse but there is a federal championship reserved for the 7 years old horses. The finals of these circuits, organized during the Long Weeks, are major events in the breeding world.
As for the stallions, they are valued by their results in competition and the quality of their offspring, but to help breeders put them forward, there are many stallion presentations, during shows or Stallion Shows, of which there are 4 in 2018 and take place in February. This is an opportunity for breeders and stallion owners to show their best stallions in the flesh and to give envy to all those who are looking for the ideal father for their future foal.
Collaborative horse breeding, a new way of breeding
In view of the excessive costs involved in breeding, a new way of doing so is now emerging collaborative breeding. Currently, while the Sharing Economy, launched by start-ups such as BlablaCar or Airbnb, is in full swing, some breeders have understood that it was also possible to give access to the art of breeding to the greatest number of people. It works in the same way as a Crowd-funding campaign, i.e., to collect amounts not necessarily high but from a larger number of people. The people who choose to participate then take the status of “co-breeder” and then “co-nester” when the foal is born. If you have always dreamed of having a foal without having the necessary knowledge, this solution is for you.
My Horse Family is an innovative start-up that has launched the first collaborative breeding platform online with the aim of creating real support for breeders who wish to embark on the project, while at the same time attracting the interest of individuals to join them in the adventure. Mare owners who wish to share their project will only have to propose it online, by determining the budget that will be generated by the birth of the foal (covering, insurance, boarding, breaking-in…) and by indicating the percentage they wish to keep, the maximum number of co-breeders, the date of the covering and under how long they wish to sell the horse. With this information, the website will calculate the price of a share, their number as well as the percentage of ownership that can be acquired.
People who wish to support a breeder will first select a project among all those proposed on the platform: racehorses, sport or leisure horses and ponies, then choose the project in which you find yourself the most. Obviously, becoming a co-breeder confers advantages to the person who wishes to become one. These advantages depend on the project, but you will have the opportunity to participate in the choice of the foal’s name, to visit him, to receive regular news about him and to receive a percentage on the sale.
Collaborative breeding will revolutionize classical breeding and make it accessible to all. So, why not you?
To know more about it: equine breeding
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