Written for GoHorseShow.com by Jane Cryderman Ely.
With this year’s major horse markets and World Sale all over, it was probably the most challenging market we breeders have faced for some time, possibly even more difficult than in the eighties.
When comparing notes with (World Show salesman) Mike Jennings, it seems we saw a perfect storm of economic crisis and uncertainly in 2008. The major sales, including the World Show sale, were affected by a market flooded with oversupply for the number of buyers, skyrocketing feed and transportation costs, and the closure of slaughter plants for animals on the bottom tier.
As a breeder who WAS around in the eighties, I recall we too had economic downturn and very high interest rates, as well as some over supply, but the other conditions were not present in the way we now face.
The World Sale was well run. The number of consignments was pared back to a more manageable number and the facilities were vastly improved for both buyer and seller.
Was the over all quality down from previous years as some have suggested? I am not the person to answer that question. There were some attractive pedigrees in the catalog for sure, but I had a horse in the sale and I was busy. Very busy! The interest of our beautiful yearling stallion by One Hot Krymsun and out of our “homemade” broodmare Rolls Radicalle by Radical Rodder was intense right up to the time he went into the ring. I say homemade because TheWayTheWestWasOne represents four generations of our breeding program. He is the poster boy for the truism, “If you come with a great one there will always be buyers.”
Randy and Pam Wilson of Georgia were the high bidders for “Nigel” for their daughter Dana. Dana is graduating to amateur competition and Randy and Pam and wanted very much for Dana to have a great one to show in the amateur.
All that being said, based on my other trips to this same sale venue, I have no doubt this yearling would have brought a good deal more money in other years. This is an observation based on the experience of being the breeder of the World Sale high seller three times in the last six years.
So what did I come-away with at the end of the day? We need to breed fewer horses and breed better individuals. The public won’t pay you for just a set of registration papers. The shoppers I mostly saw were very experienced, very tough shoppers that wanted a quality individual. They do want a great pedigree, but they want the genuine article standing in front of them.
So for me it’s back to the genetic drawing board to maintain and improve my stock. It seems like the industry is still there. We are bruised and shaken up, and appear to be loosing some of our middle class buyers for now, but the industry is still there all the same.
Every one needs to think about what we can do for our industry, and maybe not so much what the industry can do for us, until we get it through this deep spot. Meanwhile back at the ranch, we chose to have no foals coming in 2009, so we are going to breed three mares this spring and wait to see what 2010 will bring.
