EXMOOR breeders say they are struggling to manage their herds and some have even been “forced” to cull ponies due to delays in issuing passports.
The Exmoor Pony Society, which is responsible for the breed’s studbook and passports, uses DNA technology to verify ponies’ sires and dams.
The society has come under fire for the time it takes to issue passports proving pedigrees.
Rex Milton grazes about 40 breeding mares and says without documentation, the ponies cannot be sold for their full value.
“The society has issued me with some ID-only passports to enable me to shift the ponies, but it’s no good sending a pony to, say, Norfolk on that if the DNA doesn’t come back right [and isn’t a purebred Exmoor],” he told H&H.
“This autumn I slaughtered 10 after weaning. If you have to keep a freshly weaned foal for more than a month or two, it doesn’t look right for sale. It makes management in a moorland situation virtually impossible.”
FURTHER PRESSURE
This story is from the March 01, 2018 edition of Horse & Hound.
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This story is from the March 01, 2018 edition of Horse & Hound.
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