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DIFFICULTIES OF THE HORSE BREEDER Fifty Out of Every Hundred Maros Fail to Produce —Barren Mares Mostly the Cause. The public devoted to the thoroughbred horse docs not appreciate the difficulties under which the breeder operates, says a Kentucky turf writer. It is safe to sav that fiftv mares out of every one hundred ha-d "in Kentucky fail to produce. That is. a breeder must keep two or more mares for each foal ho umls to raise. In these times of high costs of feed, it falls heavily on the men who are trying to send on the breed. The fault for the most part is due to barren mans, rather than to sterile stallions. Of all do mestic animals, except the jennet, the man- is most inclined to barrenness. Her organs of reproduction are susceptible to manv disorders that render con ception impossible. There seems to follow in the wake of influenza a train of irregularities that render manv alalia worthless for breeding purposes. Encysted ovaries, inflamed uterus and acid secretions are some of the conditions that follow. Some vears mares conceive much more readily than they do at other times and yet breeders do not know why it is so. Many mares seem disposed to proihice every other year, while others are hard to catch in case* tlicv miss a year. Once iu a while "a band of mares are bred to a stallion not in condition ami all of them fail to produce. The writer found one stallion, not a thoroughbred, which one vear was bred to thirty mares. the next to seventy, with the result that in two seasons not a mare produced. Examination with the miscrosenpe showed him to tie sterile and he was gohl-d. Another case is even more aggravated. A stallion failed to settle his mares. Repeated microscopic examinations showed him to Is- impotent. ||e was cared for in the Is-st of style and had all possible medical attention, but never was able to sire a foal, although he was bred freely two seasons. A m..st interesting case comes to light this year. A Kentucky thoroughbred breeder, who has a life time of experience in breeding horses, bred a year :ig tweinv-eight mares to a most promising young stallion. Out of the twenty-eight mares he will get but foal. The writer recently examined the stallion and he seems to bo in good condition this year. Prom the story of the matings a year ago. it is niv opinion that the lack of conception was due to the imiXTfect matings made by the young stallion. Whatever mnv have boon the reason, the fact that on one farm twenty -seven out of twenty eight mares are barren, is a most bitter disappointment and a heavy financial loss to the breeder, as well as to the i.i |.
