The AHS President Describes How Inspections Help Improve the Breed Te AHS encourages breeders to physically present their foals at an inspection for registration and optional branding, and to enable the Hanoverian inspection judges to evaluate the offspring of AHS stallions. Edgar Schutte, of Lincoln, California, the current president of the AHS, explains why: “I’m looking at it from the standpoint of the breeder and the standpoint of the registry. With the goals of the registry in mind, there has to be some kind of system to evaluate where we [as a breed] are going, versus where we want to be going. Te only way to do that is to look at the horses we are pro- ducing and the mares and stallions we are using, so we can be alarmed if we are going in the wrong direction or we can be excited if we are going in the right direction. Te registry can point breeders in the right direction if we feel like their breeding results are not as good as they could be. I think for the purposes of our registry, that’s pretty important. We will be judged by the public at large as to how our Hanoverians perform. If we head in the wrong direction for an extended period, we are going to have a lot of ‘not-so-good’ horses out there for everyone to see. If they are poor performers, or not attractive or poorly conformed, they are out there for 15 years sending a message. On the other hand, when we pro- duce good horses, they are out there advertising for us for the same amount of time.” “And it’s not just advertising for the breed,” he continues.
“Each horse a breeder produces ’advertises‘ that breeder’s program. Good or bad. It takes so long to get from planned breeding to riding horse; five years can pass before you really know what you have. Having honest assessment and guid- ance to help you along the way is important. And then you do that times 100, there is a huge impact. So, I think inspec- tions serve a very strong purpose to guide breeders, to educate them, to allow them to see what other breeders are doing and other matches. If you are operating in a vacuum for five years, it’s really hard.”
Foal Inspections Te inspection process starts with the registration of off- spring. In order for a foal to be registered, it must be sired by a stallion approved for Hanoverian breeding and out of a dam that has been entered into a section of the AHS stud- book. DNA must be on file for both the sire and dam and since 1993 all registered foals are now DNA typed. Samples of mane or tail hair, which must include roots, can be pulled regardless of the foal’s age. Foals may be registered by mail (assuming the dam already has been admitted to a section of the studbook). A foal is presented in hand for an evaluation of its con-
formation and then is shown free at the side of the dam for an assessment of its gaits. A concerted effort is made by the handler to keep the mare positioned to the outside so that
58 March/April 2014 SPECIAL HANOVERIAN SECTION
The stars of any inspection are the foals! This bright and springy fellow, Wolkenmyst (Wolkentanz II) was named Top Colt at the 2011 Delaware Valley College inspection. He is owned by Kris Schuler and was bred by Dennis Moore. His dam, Amethyst Q (An- haltiner E- Lady L/Leibniz) was bred by Suzanne Quarles, Some Day Soon Farm and is owned by Dennis Moore.
the inspectors have a clear, unobstructed view. An astute handler will take care to regulate the mare’s speed to best show the foal’s trot movement. Te AHS inspectors rec- ognize that foals are presented at various stages of age and development, and no official scores are given, but the inspec- tors will offer detailed comments on the foal for the breeder and the inspection participants. Inspectors will choose one or two foals at each inspection for the honor of “Top Foal” or “Top Filly” and “Top Colt.” Breeder Jane Buyny of Clayton, California, notes, “I
think inspections with a lot of foals are really educational. You can see what they are like in terms of conformation and movement, and you can see what different combina- tions are producing.” And there are other reasons to take your foal to an inspection, she adds. “Inspections are also important for foals to create marketing material—all braid- ed and clean—perfect opportunity for video and pictures. Tat’s worthwhile. What I miss is the social aspect. It was fun to get to know the other breeders, and there is so much to learn just talking with other breeders. When I first started decades ago, it was fun to go even without a foal or mare entered.” Registration alone does not mean that a foal can go
straight to the breeding shed once it matures. To enter the Hanoverian breeding program there is an extra level of evalu- ation required; mares and eligible stallions must be inspected for approval as breeding stock.
Mare Inspections Registered mares three years of age or older must be inspect- ed and entered into a section of the studbook before their foals can be registered. Te studbook consists of Hanoverian mares registered by the AHS or the German Hanoverian
American Hanoverian Society
Bill Alphin
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