Open the AMHA Studbook to Hardship AMHR Horses

[sfmini]

JMS, what law would they be breaking?

None.

 

[Lewella]

It's a pretty simple scenario really sfminis - after AMHA closes the first horse AMHA attempts to exclude from registration due to being over 34" will likely result in AMHA being sued. The owner(s) will likely use the same arguements that were used in the AQHA embryo transfer lawsuit. In that suit the courts essentially ruled that AQHA x AQHA = AQHA. It didn't matter how the foal was conceived or how many were conceived, it didn't matter what color it was, etc. AQHA suddenly had no option but to register them. That is why there are now horses like Colonel Smokingun/Colonel Smoking Gun who are APHA and AQHA registered. AQHA can't exclude the crop outs or the double dilutes anymore thanks to the ruling in the ET lawsuit. AQHA can still penalize them in the show ring but they have to accept them for registration - they can no longer be a solid color registry like they were.

 

[disneyhorse]

I wonder though, lewella, if they could come up with some sort of non-breeding papers. My friend breeds Friesians and said the registry will pull breeding rights of horses not meeting standards... But they do require keurings and approval...

 

[Lewella]

Non-breeding papers would be an option or simply not allowing anything over 34" to show because they don't meet the breed standard. In many livestock breeds you show to the standard of perfection and it isn't at all unusual for some of the breeding stock to be either larger or smaller than the ideal set forth in the breed's standard of perfection.

 

[AshleyNicole]

Seriously? Thoroughbred breeders are incredibly concerned about the lack of genetic diversity in the breed! Why do you think AI is not allowed and only live cover? That was mandated to limit the number of foals a stallion could sire per year and help prevent the overuse of popular stallions from further reducing the gene pool. The growing popularity of stallions standing part of the year in the Northern Hemisphere and part of the year in the Southern Hemisphere and thus breeding almost year around is a huge concern in the Jockey Club and may result in furture registration rules because it too is reducing the genetic diversity of the breed. Thoroughbreds have, thanks to their lack of genetic diversity, developed horrible immune systems. No matter how routinely she's been vaccinated, a Thoroughbred mares colostrum often isn't good enough - foals are routinely given plasma shortly after birth to ensure they receive immunity. I could go on and on but lets suffice to say that the Thoroughbred could be used as the poster breed for why a narrow gene pool is not a good thing!

Hmm....while there may be little genetic diversity I have read many studies on the subject and copied from one. Inbreeding in today' s Thoroughbred is estimated to be about 14%, slightly higher than one would expect from a mating between half-siblings. However, much higher levels are seen on other breeds of livestock and some wild populations, and Cunningham and coworkers suggest that despite the small number of founders, the Thoroughbred has sufficient genetic diversity for modern breeding goals.

Enough about Thoroughbreds lol I suppose there are as many opinions about that subject as we have people in miniatures arguing over the genetic diversity in the miniature horse. My point is that yes in every breed even Shetlands you have faults that come with breeding. Closing the registry can work as long as one or two stallions don't dominate, I agree Buckaroo line is prevalent but I can't believe that the miniature horse in about 10-15 years has gone from having one of the most diverse gene pools to the dire straits many claim it is in today. lol

I agree I really hope AMHA makes a place for those who go over 34" That to me would be another step toward making the miniature horse a breed. Like some said if the horse goes over make maybe they can be breeding stock.

 

[Little Hooves]

Hey everyone, sorry I have not been around to repost any updates... Obviously the rule change did not pass, but after diving head-first into this only days before the Annual Meeting, I was quite rushed and also realize that this rule that was presented this year was not well written. I've been able to hear about concerns from all sides and opinions from everyone. And I am actually working with a few other people to write a new rule change and new section essentially that will cover issues regarding hardshipping... and hopefully it will pass... and hopefully many of you will be in favor of it passing!

I wanted to address that miniatures are likely not threatened at this stage with genetic depression due to closing the registry. This usually happens with severely bottle-necked populations or horses that share many of the same genes (like a popular sire for example). And many of the points I addressed in my papers were to say that miniatures are not completely immune to the effects of these issues. The reality is, it's completely unpredictable, so why not keep your chances reduced as much as possible?

My thoughts are, though, if you're going to close the studbook, you are promoting the same dishonesty you tried to cut off (by refusing to allow oversized horses to be hardshipped into AMHA) - now people will be tempted to keep papers on horses born into AMHA that go over, because they know there is no way for that horse's offspring to be included in the registry. It is something that I agree could spark a lawsuit. Of course, I am in favor of keeping the books open for multiple reasons, and I will continue to refine and add to those reasons