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Post by brandeek1 on Jul 12, 2012 12:58:38 GMT -5
I love the Kigers. I just cannot figure out why so many people are cross breeding them with other breeds. It defeats the whole purpose of having one. Why would anyone want to dilute the Kiger genetics down? I realize that it betters the other breed, but totally hurts the Kigers in my opinion. What are yalls thoughts??
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Post by Michelle Clarke on Jul 12, 2012 15:26:54 GMT -5
Back 16 years ago when I first got involved with the Kigers, they were a novelty and not many serious horse folks would buy one - at least east of the Mississippi. My husband was told by one of the largest breeders that he bred for the long mane and tail plus color - that most gals bought them based on looks and would "never do a d**n thing with them" so disposition and trainability were not important. The market got soaked with pretty horses that were delivered half wild (or totally wild) to lots of people who had a tough time with them.
The whole stigma of a mustang also turned folks away. Speaking solely for me personally - I stayed away from promoting the purebreds because there was so much negative crap going on within the breed that it could only end badly - which it did for many people. Try and try as I did, I got slammed every angle I went to promote these horses and it was other breeders and registries. There was NO support. The first Kiger I bought I heard from a breeder when he met me that I must be the "fancy trainers that were sold so-and-so's rouges"; and the breeder that sold them to me laughed all over the US about it. When I bought my stallion, I barely had him off the trailer when so-and-so was telling another buyer "...and that is the only reason she got that horse". I said "what's the matter - now that he does not belong to you he is a piece of crap?".
With all that said, I am surprised I even stayed in the breed but I believed in the horses - not the people supposedly behind them. I began cross breeding to get the name Kiger out there. People would be more open to buying a half Thoroughbred or a half Lusitano than a purebred Kiger. It opened the market and got horses out there.
The Kiger does improve other breeds - especially physically. From some aspects, other breeds improve the Kiger. The QH tones them down and makes them easier for beginner riders. Their minds are not so busy, for one, and they are not so over active when they don't get regular work. The QH puts more muscling across the back - which can be good or bad. Good because they have more carrying strength; bad because they are less flexible, so it depends on what you want the horse for.
The biggest contribution the Lusitano makes to the Kiger is saddle trainability. Kigers are not genetically predisposed to be ridden - whereas the Luso is specifically bred for that sole purpose. If you've never experienced starting Lusitanos under saddle, it may be hard to understand, but they just "know" and they love it! They love patterns and solving tricky movements; whereas Kigers HATE repetition and many despise arena work. Lusitanos also add more heat for performance - which, again, is good or bad, depending on your target market.
The TB crosses are going to give you more spring and jump; something sportier. There are of course, crosses that don't help each other, so there is no point. And surely there are exceptions in the Kiger breed on all levels but it will take generations of select breeding to define specific lines and breeders who care to do it. Most breeders ( who are now going by the way side) were just interested in the quick sale of the basic Kiger and no other goals but that. That market is now gone and Kigers need to be able to do something, which is slowly happening. Not just the exceptions like Cougar and Vaquero. More serious horse people are getting involved and taking them further.
As for me, the Kiger is the ultimate all-around horse. They are my pick, hands down but as a breeder, I have to also support my habit which means I have to produce horses that are sellable and remember that I am not my own market. I breed my crossbred to sell to support my purebred program. It has only been the last couple years that I will sell a purebred Kiger. Now I am beginning to hone my lines to what I want for a larger market base but that all takes time.
The best thing right now is that we have the trail competitions and Working Equitation on the forefront of sport riding. Two things the Kiger excels at! So instead of trying to compete against a QH in cow work, or a Warmblood in dressage or jumping - we can compete on a level playing field in areas the Kigers will do super well in. The tides are changing...
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Post by gotkiger on Jul 12, 2012 17:02:51 GMT -5
AMEN Michelle
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Post by brandeek1 on Jul 13, 2012 1:22:06 GMT -5
I understand. Thank you for your explanation. I love them the way they are. I can't wait to finally get one of my own. Thank you again.
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Post by Michelle Clarke on Jul 13, 2012 11:32:20 GMT -5
Kiger are truly a treasure...please share with us when you find the one of your dreams!
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