“AN ounce of breeding is better than a tonne of feeding” this is an old saying but one that is still very relevant here at Ballypatrick Stables today. Ever since I was young I have always loved horses. All my family were involved, be it show jumping or hunting but my heart was always with breeding. For me there is no better feeling then breeding young horses and seeing them being produced in Ballypatrick with my brother Greg Broderick.

Many of our top mares who were performing at a high level in the sport of show jumping, were being sold. I knew the only way to keep these pedigrees in Ireland was to look at different breeding methods, in order to be able to take foals before they were sold overseas.

SPEED UP A BREEDING PROGRAMME

Breeding one foal per year is of course the natural way for any mare. Show jumping mares had to finish out their jumping careers before starting their new life as a broodmare but at Ballypatrick we wanted to take foals from the top performance mares early in their career. We decided in order to speed up our breeding programme and keep the strong pedigree, embryo transfer was the way forward.

Our first attempt at doing embryo transfers was after Ballypatrick Mystique won a bronze medal at the World Breeding Championships in Lanaken, Belgium. She had a fantastic pedigree and strong results so keeping her pedigree in Ballypatrick was important and embryo transfer made that possible. At the time we were lucky to get a twin flush (two foals) from her. Two filly foals were born 11 months later and they are now part of our breeding programme.

Many of the mares we take embryos from are at the peak of their show jumping careers and taking time out from the sport to have a foal is not an option. Embryo transfer allows the mares to continue jumping while reproducing, and sometimes even producing multiple foals per year. It is an expensive, timely process, and one that should be given a lot of thought and planning. I would like to offer my experience to breeders thinking of taking on such an adventure.

HOW DOES EMBRYO TRANSFER WORK?

Embryo transfer is the process whereby the mare is covered and her eggs are flushed (removed) eight days later and implanted into a recipient mare. In our case, we put our recipient mares on regumate to support the pregnancy, although you dont have to. The recipient mare is then scanned after 15 days and if she is in foal, she carries the foal to full term and the donor mare continues on in the sport. The process of embryo transfer allows a breeding programme to develop at a faster pace, producing more top quality foals and ensuring the strong dam line is continuing. The rate of success in embryo transfer has gone up to about 70-80%.

START WITH A PROVEN DAM LINE

Always start with a well proven dam line. I believe that the mare needs to have jumped to a high level in the sport, originate from a good family of show jumpers and have a strong pedigree. Beginning the process with such a mare, you are giving your breeding programme the best possible chance. Breeders must be aware of how fertile their donor mare is. This process is very time consuming and expensive, so if your mare has poor fertility you will run into high costs very quickly without any success.

Of course it’s not all about the donor mare, recipient mares play a key role in the process. Our mares are now with us for years, so we know how fertile and reliable they are. In my opinion good recipient mares are the key to successful embryo transfers.

Recipient mares should be relatively young, exhibit normal reproductive cycles with absolutely no history of reproductive problems. I always pick mares that are easy to handle, have good lactation and great motherly instincts. To date we have had the most success with batty or cob mares. These types tick all the boxes for me. The disadvantages to having a herd of recipient mares is the cost which is mainly due to scanning costs.

Some breeders disagree with sport horse foals being born to the batty type mares, but with a large herd of foals like at Ballypatrick, we find it works very well and does not affect the foal.

COMMUNICATE WITH RIDERS

The stallion is another important factor and great care should be taken when picking one for your mare. I believe this is where the breeder needs to communicate with the riders. Here at Ballypatrick, Greg has ridden a lot of our breeding mares so he is aware of what areas the mare may need to improve on. To give you an example, we may choose a stallion to bring more size, scope or balance, and counteract any weaknesses the mare may have. Greg also attends the auctions and young horse classes around Europe, from which he brings back knowledge of crosses that are working well and what stallions are breeding the most consistent and commercial young stock. Riders are more than happy to talk to breeders about this and I would encourage breeders to contact riders for advice. At the end of the day they are the ones that will be riding them.

FACILITIES

Facilities are another important factor. A mare breeds better when she is at ease and comfortable in her surroundings. Mares respond better to being handled by the same people every day and having a routine. We have developed a custom-built heated stock room and an embryo transfer laboratory, complete with a growing stock of frozen semen from the top stallions around the world. This means that mares will no longer leave Ballypatrick to be bred and with little disruption to their routine I believe we will obtain better pregnancy results.

SUCCESS AT BALLYPATRICK

Ballypatrick has always prided itself on being a place to breed, develop and produce young horses. Many top young horses have gone on to represent us at National and International level. In 2014 Greg became the only rider in history to have a clean sweep in the young horse Championships in Dublin winning the four, five and six-year-old Championships. The six-year-old winner, Super Chilled, was bred in Ballypatrick Stables out of a mare called Ballypatrick Codex. Days like that make all the hard work seem worthwhile.

In recent years MHS Going Global who was produced in Ballypatrick has been putting us on the map on an International stage, jumping a double clear in the Aga Khan to help Ireland win being one of the highlights. We are lucky to have his sister Ballypatrick Flight in our breeding programme, and we have flushed a number of embryos from her. At the Breeders Classic Foal Sale in 2015, her Elvis Ter Putte colt foal topped the sale making one of the highest prices at an auction in Ireland.

I believe the future is bright for breeding in Ireland. Nothing happens overnight but with patience, hard work, attention to detail and determination I think it’s possible for many more top horses to be bred.

Ballypatrick Stables in Thurles, Co Tipperary is home to International showjumper Greg Broderick. Cheryl manages the extensive breeding programme. For more information check out gregbroderick.com