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GELD
‘EM!!!
By
Dr. Rebecca Gimenez
What
is a stallion’s ONLY purpose?
Simply – to breed mares and pass on his SUPERIOR traits
to the future generation. If
I had a quarter for every stud colt that I have seen where the
owner said “I’ll keep him a stallion because (insert reason
below)”, I’d be a rich woman.
Reasons:
1. he’ll
get bigger.
2. he’ll
be easier to sell in case someone wants to breed him.
3. he’s so
nice and his bloodlines are so rare.
4. he’s so
pretty / conformation is so nice / performance “prospect”.
5. I want to
breed my mares to him when he grows up.
6. gelding
is painful, unnatural and cruel.
7. I can’t
afford the ridiculous stud fees people charge.
8. (My all
time favorite) – he was already gelded – he’s “proud
cut”.
What
is life REALLY like for most stallions?
They are separated by 2 years of age from all other
horses, many are kept in individual stalls with no contact or
exposure to other horses, because they are considered too
valuable or too viscious (why are these horses to be bred in the
first place?) to be exposed to other horses.
Many
young stallions are over-corrected for simple youthful
exuberance and natural herd behaviors.
The animal is introduced to chains (lip or nose), whips
and isolation for his interest in “the girls”, I’ve even
seen a horse’s penis visciously whipped for letting it hang
out! These
horses begin to demonstrate stress coping behaviors (cribbing,
wind-sucking, kicking, biting, weaving) out of their frustration
and isolation. Others
have severe libido problems when they actually are allowed out.
Debunking
the “reasons”:
1.
Scientific research has shown that horses gelded earlier
(at 2 weeks up to 6 months) will grow to be up to 4 inches
taller than their intact full brothers, and will not demonstrate
stallion-like behaviors at maturity (biting, rearing,
attacking). Unless
you WANT a 4 year old gelding that will act like a stallion –
GELD HIM EARLY! Many
veterinarians and vet schools are doing this procedure as soon
as two weeks of age.
2.
Knowledgeable horse people do not purchase stallions for
their children, their farm setting, or for performance events in
which they are competing. Only professionals are interested in purchasing, promoting,
and competing a stallion – and they pay huge prices for good
stock. Few horses
will ever meet these criteria.
3. If he’s a
nice stallion, he’ll make a fantastic gelding.
If his bloodlines are rare, there is probably a
reason!!!!
4. If he’s that
pretty, a knowledgeable professional will negotiate a fair price
for him as a young horse. Take
him to the shows or events.
If no one makes an offer – he’s probably not as
pretty as you think.
5. A quality
breeding operation requires equipment, facilities, and knowledge
far beyond the scope of most amateur owners.
To breed your own mares will require a significant
investment in veterinary reproductive work, time and always
remember you could lose your mare, the foal, or both.
6. Gelding has
been a normal method of controlling horse breeding and
temperament from ancient times – historical records show
gelding of horses was done over 4,000 years ago.
It can be painful if the surgery is not followed up by
correct aftercare, especially if you wait until the horse
reaches puberty (6 months or so).
After the testicles begin to produce sperm, they have a
huge blood and nervous supply – at a few months of age, the
testicles are tiny and it is almost a bloodless surgery.
Correct aftercare includes some exercise and hosing with
cold water – ask your vet to show you how to keep the flies
off the incisions.
7. Refer to #5.
It is really amazing that so many quality stud horses are
available at VERY fair prices!
The higher the fee and farther away the stallion, does
not always indicate higher quality – simply better marketing.
There are many TOP quality horses in the Southeast, as
well as shipped semen, available for very fair prices.
It is FAR cheaper than building separate facilities for
your own stallion!
8.
There is NO such thing as a “proud cut” horse!
Ask your vet if you can watch next time he gelds a horse
– the testicles are HUGE!!
You would have to be TOTALLY incompetent to cut one in
half, or “leave” a piece in the horse.
And even if you did – it would probably die, necrose
and cause a huge abscess. If
he acts studdish – have a blood test pulled for testosterone
– if it is positive then the horse is a cryptorchid –
meaning there is still a testicle inside his body that never
dropped into the scrotum. If
negative, then the horse learned studdish behaviors before he
was gelded, and this may never go away.
(When people try to tell me this one – they get a 30
minute lecture complete with diagrams and pictures to
illustrate.)
I
have visited a horse slaughterhouse.
In a very informal survey based on the 3 days I spent
there I would estimate that 70% of the horses brought in were
stallions – well over the 33% that one would expect in a ratio
of mare to geldings to stallions.
Unfortunately, due to overbreeding, there are more and
more horses each year – and the slaughterhouse is where the
uncontrollable, the untrainable, and the unwanted horse ends up.
Would these horses have gotten a second chance if they
were geldings? No
one will ever know.
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