Question for Stallion/Mare Owners

If you sold a mare to someone as "in foal" but were told if for some bizarre reason she was not bred she could be brought back and bred at no additional cost for the following year...

The mare didn't end up being bred so we brought her back through 3 different heat cycles last summer - (about an hour away and left her for a week each time)... low and behold again this year she isn't in foal.

She is 16 this year and heeves... in my opinion she just simply isn't going to catch and I probably spent close to a breeding fee worth of fuel taking her there and picking her up...

I contact the lady and asked if I could bring up another mare because I really don't think she is going to catch especially after all the effort I made last year... she tells me that she will not bred another mare but I can try the mare she sold me again...

Am I out of line thinking she is being a bit unreasonable? Should I just suck up the loss and forget about it? I'm really rather annoyed about the situation but we've only ever stood a stallion for a limited period of time and never ran into this type of situation so maybe I'm being the unreasonable one.... thoughts??

Having stood several stallions in the past and maybe future again if Kid stays sane, We've always had a substitution clause along with LFG in our contract, where if a mare fails to conceive and is deemed barren/unbreedable to where she is not capable of producing a live foal, then a different mare (approved type/breed etc) can be substituted. But since you Purchased the mare as "in foal" rather than having a mare you took to the breeder this makes it somewhat murky as 'in foal" purchase doesnt guarantee that a live foal will be the final outcome though its what we would hope as the end result.

What has the vet said about this mare as to why she, after so many attempts, was not able to take/carry.

Well technically your contract, whether it was verbal or written, says that you could bring that specific mare back for breeding - not another one. Did she sell the mare as gaurenteed breeding sound? In that case I would say you have and argument since she obviously is having trouble conceiving. Ideally if the lady wanted your future business she could decide to let you bring your other mare but it doesn't seem she's looking that far into the future. I guess if it were me I would take the loss and, if possible, put some training on the mare and sell her. I wouldn't be dealing with this lady again though without a well defined contract.

LB you make a very valid point...selling a mare in foal is not necessarily a LFG although in my head it was. I guess because the comment was made, "if she doesn't foal she can be rebred"... although that doesn't really specify LFG either maybe a poor assumption on my part.

I guess I was looking at it more in a future business manner... by shutting me down like this she is guaranteeing I never do business with her again.

The mare was sold as "bred" so to me that is breeding sound but hubby believes she knew she wasn't breeding sound and that's why she was selling her. The price paid was with the assumption she would produce a viable offspring.

NORMALLY if we purchased a mare in foal we'd have her checked to make sure the pregnancy was viable but with Miniature Horses it is a different situation because confirming a pregnancy is a lot harder. We've had the vet look at her and because they can't palpate and external ultrasounds are "vague" it is hard to say if she is ovulating or not when she is showing heat.

I appreciate the comments you gals make... Sometimes when I get ticked off I only see in my little box but I'm aware I do that so wait to react

I like the way you think. I fly off the handle quickly so I have implemented a "48 hour rule" in my life. If something ticks me off I don't open my mouth to the other person for 48 hours - that way I don't say something I may later regret. That's the problem with words, once they're out of you mouth you can't take them back.

We have had a stallion for many years. If it were us we wouldn't have a problem with you breeding another mare. To me wouldn't make a difference, if the mare you bought ended up not breeding sound then to me I'd just breed another mare. As long as that other mare met the standards of what the stallion owner would want to breed their stallion too.

Guess it just depends on the person, some people are a little strange that way. To me it isn't a big deal.

Without having anything in writing you might be **** out of luck, but if it were me who owned the stallion (and sold the mare) I'd tell you that you could bring another mare. That's what our live foal guarantee says, if for some reason we can't get the original mare bred you bring another (acceptable) mare.

I think she should allow you to bring another mare .. you paid for a mare in foal ... if she won't do that she should at least give you the breeding fee back.

I was given a TB mare for breeding, and paid for a breeding to a stallion at the Zoo. The mare failed to conceive after a few attempts, due to age, and went back to her old owner. The following year, the stallion owner agreed to breed another mare, my Hannoverian/TB, but also let me substitute another, higher priced stallion. She didn't catch. I was able to take her back the following year, and breed to the more expensive stallion, all on the basis of the first stud fee paid for a TB mare. Now that was great!

I would be really hoping that I could breed another mare, like you are!

Will you keep her as a pet?