HORSE BREEDING.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1354, 10 February 1898, Page 24

HORSE BREEDING.

The desirableness of utilising l!i8 services of young sires in breeding * establishments is a theme upon which a great deal has been written in late years. Some studm&sters favour the idea, but others oppose it altogether. A Lonfioh writer, in dealing with the question, recently said that he believed that for the stud fresh young horses and fresh young mares are the best, not perhaps those that have never been trained and raced, but those who have not had their vitality sapped by a long racing career. In other words, the well-known views of the late Lord Falmouth in regard to retiring- mares early apply with equal force to horses. There are no rules, of course, without exceptions. “We find an Alice Hawthorn and a Beeswing after very loiig turf careers producing a Thormanby and a NeWminster. We also find old Herald doing quite well at the stud after mOst ardolis raoing; but, taken all round* We find that much training and racing does impair animals for breeding purposes, at any rate for a time. Thus La Fleche produced little La Veiue her first year, and then having fortunately been barren for a year, follow s on with a colt foal, brother to La Yeine, which is already pretty nearly the size of that filly. A young horse may want time to get really fit for the stud, just as an old one certainly does, and a sensible plan was adopted by the Austrian Government when Matchbox, after being bought by them for 416,000, was given a Whole year’s rest before commencing his stud duties. Common had trained very stale by the Leger/day of his year, having been out at Ascot and Sandown, as well as for the Two Thousand Guineas and Derby. Be would have got over this altogether had he been given time like Matchbox; but that was not done, and breeders were so anxious for his services that he was given rather more to do than was perhaps judicious. Thus he has been under a cloud for a while, and is only now emergingwith two-year-olds suoh as Nun Nicer. But his sire, Jsonomy, who Was trained for more years;'took longer still before coming to his stud form. I quite believe a three-year-old may be a successful sire, Young Melbourne was, after being put to the stud at that age, and I feel sure that the longer any animal is trained the longer will it take to soften and fill out into proper stud condition.”