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Post by fantasykiger on Feb 22, 2009 14:47:25 GMT -5
Does anyone here know about 'Rafter 7 Mustangs' in Texas? I have another horse board where I am an adminsitrator, it is mainly for horses owners in differant countries but this guy recently signed on looking for people to come work at his BLM Mustang breeding facility, where he claims he breeds large numbers of Mustangs for ranch horses. He does not have a website. I was wondering if he was legit, as he claims he has not experienced any reduction in demand for his horses or foals.
I don't know it just seems odd to me, I would think everyone has felt the the hit of the horse market to some degree or they are kidding themselves.
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Post by ctxkiger on Feb 22, 2009 14:54:12 GMT -5
"BLM MUSTANG BREEDING FACILITY" Sounds bogus to me. What city in Texas is he claiming to be located in?
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Post by Michelle Clarke on Feb 22, 2009 15:24:35 GMT -5
Never heard of such a place here in Central Texas.
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Post by canadiankigers on Feb 22, 2009 15:39:05 GMT -5
If he trains and brakes them so they are ready for ranch work then MAYBE he has a small or limited market but for the rest, it sounds pretty darn shady to me. I'm with CTXKiger, I would like to know more about this person also.
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Post by fantasykiger on Feb 22, 2009 16:14:16 GMT -5
Apparrrently he works with the BLM adopting older and unwanted horses from the holding facilities and adding them into his own herds where he then breeds, trains them for ranch horses.
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Post by lindad on Feb 22, 2009 18:40:42 GMT -5
Why would you breed common mustangs to train to sell when you can buy them for $125 as 4 or 5 year olds ready to train. No way could you come close to keeping brood mares and raising foals for 3+ years for 10 or 20 times that fee! Doesn't make economic sense. Currently, it hardly makes sense to breed Kigers or any other breed for that matter given the state of the economy. We chose not to breed last year as planned because we didn't feel it was right to bring more horses into the world with so many horses that are loosing their homes. Maybe he has lots of time, talent, grazing land, and money and does it for a hobby for the sheer joy of it.....hmmmmmm?
Linda D
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Post by canadiankigers on Feb 22, 2009 19:20:37 GMT -5
Tiffany, does he say how many mares he has and how many foals he produces a year? If he has only a few mares and produces only a few foals a year it might be viable but to be honest, I have to agree with Lindad's comment about the economy.
I bought two bred mares last year and they are due shortly. Other than that I have no planned foials for this year. There is a slight chance that one other mare is bred but it was not my choice. She decided to jump over her fence and go visit with Shelby. Hopefully she is not bred.
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Post by DianneC on Feb 23, 2009 1:08:31 GMT -5
If she was motivated enough to jump the fence then odds are that she is bred. Girls are just as randy as the boys are. I don't know, but I thought mustang was a four letter word in Texas.
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Post by desperatehorsewife on Feb 23, 2009 8:17:43 GMT -5
That rather turns my stomach...BLM Mustang breeding facility...<shudders> Could be he's got a couple mares he runs with a QH stallion and produces grade babies. People may be a little more inclined to buy something without the brand as a grade QH for ranch work than a branded horse. We were checking out the sale prices at a ranch in Burns, OR from last fall and a lot of the grade horses were outselling the papered ones. It wouldn't be too far fetched to be finding mustangs in the mix in that area  |
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Post by Michelle Clarke on Feb 23, 2009 8:35:02 GMT -5
Since the Mustang Makeovers in Texas, mustangs have gained some popularity. I know the adoptions here as of late have been successful. There are a good number of guys who compete/train them - also the local ranch versatility group has classes for freezebranded mustangs.
The Kigers and x's we have taken over to the local roping arena have created quite a stir. This past week, a guy who runs the amatuer rodeo assocation saw Desi being worked and flipped out. I have been shocked at the responses we are getting from that crowd. 'Course there is always the "if-it-ain't-a-quarter-horse" crowd that turn their noses up.
We have an open show coming up in April with alot of "english" type classes we will be going to, and also some of the Ranch Versatility competitions, so we'll see....!!!
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Post by canadiankigers on Feb 23, 2009 9:48:32 GMT -5
Normally I would agree with you but in this specific case the odds are that she is not pregnant. This specific mare has only one ovary that works and she only ovulates every 2 to 3 heat cycles. Yes there is still a slim chance but for the most part, I am still hoping that she did not catch.
So far (knock on wood) we have had little difficulty selling the foals. As the only Kiger breeders in Canada, we have the market cornered in this neck of the woods. But even so, the economy has caught up with us and this is the first year we do not have the foals sold in utero. Perhaps they will sell as weanlings but if not, I will just keep them and train them until a good home comes along.
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Post by Michelle Clarke on Feb 23, 2009 13:07:16 GMT -5
Gonna be a hard year for everyone....unfortunately, I talked with the tax office in January, and in order to keep the ag-exemption, we have to breed a few mares this year. My husband just wanted to buy calves for his meat business because they are so cheap, but we need to still raise a few too. $80,000 in taxes is just not a bill that is do-able!
It will be a great year to concentrate on getting the horses out and shown, so people can be exposed to them.
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Post by fantasykiger on Feb 23, 2009 14:26:41 GMT -5
Well the guy has not made a return to the site, after I asked exactly where in Texas is he from yet, but as he was looking for helpers and the majority of members on the site I administrate do not even live in the states, I think he moved on. Then again it could have been a troll looking for a fight, professing to breeding mass amounts of Mustangs, waiting for someone to shout back at him. That is why I came here asking if someone from Texas heard of such a place. He did not fully fill out his profile, but men don't always. Well, he picked the wrong website because we are all pretty laid back on that site and with differant cultures on board you just don't get those battles. They are more likely to listen to your story and let you hang yourself. Besides I like my ban button Thanks for the help guys ;D I am all for adopting mass amounts of Mustangs training them and selling them for ranch, sport and performance horses. I even think some prove worthy thru conformation, temperment and ease of trainabilty to reproduce or cross breed. I however never in my right mind would consider this the post made by the guy .... "We are looking for 5 hard working individuals to help at our BLM wild horse facility. If you have a good work ethic, are willing to learn, and would like to come work with the program please reply to this e-mail with your contact info and one of our staff members will get back to you as soon as possible. Well foaling out over 3,000 mares is no easy task by any means and is ALOT of work for 5 people. Thats why we are trying to find help anywhere possible we have outs everywhere looking for experienced hands, We can always get college interns but they never want to put in the hours the job requires. This is the worst time of the year for us. Thanks Bryan Rafter 7 Mustangs " |
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Post by fantasykiger on Feb 23, 2009 14:32:53 GMT -5
When I asked him about a website he said he never had a need. other memebers asked for pictures of his horses. Just lots of red flags in my book ...should he ever pop back up, I will let you know. That is if you are as curious as I am |
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Post by ctxkiger on Feb 25, 2009 11:05:34 GMT -5
OVER 3,000 MUSTANG MARES ON ONE RANCH IN TEXAS?  HE HAS GOT TO BE FULL OF IT. AS ANOTHER MEMBER METIONED MUSTANGS ARE NOT POPULAR IN TEXAS. WHY WOULD THE BLM EVEN CONSIDER CREATING ANOTHER HERD IN ANOTHER STATE (TEXAS). NOTHING ADDS UP...... |
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HE HAS GOT TO BE FULL OF IT. AS ANOTHER MEMBER METIONED MUSTANGS ARE NOT POPULAR IN TEXAS.