THOSE GREAT DAMES!!!!!!!!!!!!

When we look at a pedigree, we immediately look at the sire, and grandsire and so on.  We "Ooo and Aww" over the National Grand Champion stallions every year.  Large sums of money are paid for stud fees every year as well.  Stallions are syndicated and promoted.  It's big business, and rightly should be.  The stallion is half of your herd when it comes to your foal crop.  Most breeders have very high standards when it comes to selecting their herd stallion.

His height, head, show record, abilities, attitude, (often color too!), etc., are evaluated and every consideration given to how HE will influence a breeding program.

What about the broodmares?  Do we give equal attention to the mares contribution in our breeding equation?  Many genetisist and breeders believe the commonly held notion that 50% inheritance factor from a sire and dam is more likely to be 60-70% of the total genetic qualities from the dam! 

That doesn't quite agree with the Mendelian theory on genetics, but is it a possibilty?  Could it be that the bottom tail end of the pedigree could be much more influential than we realized? 

Now does that make you re-think your breeding program?

Here are a few of the influential great dams that have contributing their genetic material to  make todays American Miniature Horse.

DAM (her well known produce)

Bond Acushla  (Bond ATOY4U C)

Bond Bambi (Bond Dynamo)

Bond Counterpoint (Rhotens Little Dandy, Rhotens Showbiz)

Bond Fantacy (Bond Commodore)

Bond Honeydew (Bond Jocko, Bond Picador)

Dell Teras Lady of Spain  (Hemlock Brooks Egyptian King)

Ginns Melody (Gold Melody Boy)

Hemlock Brooks Spunky Dude (Little Kings Locomotion, Little Kings Miss Buckeroo, Little Kings Buckeroo Bonsai)

Johnstons Bo Cream (Little Kings Bantam Buckeroo, Little Kings Buck on Broadway)

Johnstons Silver (Wittmaacks Mickey Mouse)

Johnstons Tina Star (Sids Husker, Sids April Fool)

Johnstons Vanilla  (Boones Little Buckeroo)

Komokos Teenie Jeanie (Little Kings Buck Echo, Komokos Little King Supreme)

Little Kings Mon Ami (Little Kings Debonaire)

Little Tex Fancy (Shadow Oaks Paul Bunyan)

NFCS Sugar Baby (NFCS Sugar Boy)

Shadow Oaks Tiny Miss (Shadow Oaks Top Banana)

Sids April Fool (Sids Rebel, Sids Red Cloud)

Sitelle Vant Huttenest (Dell Teras General Lee II, Jesusbelle Vant Huttenest, Wazoo Bird Vant Huttenest)

Stouts Bubbles (Sugar Creek Geronimo)

Stouts Mona Lisa   (Dell Teras Moon Man)

Tara Moto (Komokos Bourbon Balls)

Vanilla 3rd (Johnstons Vanilla, Shadow Oaks Cock Robin)

Wittmaaks Freckles (Little Kings Buckeroo Angelica, Little Kings Buckeroo Baccarra, Little Kings Supreme Dream)