I think Judy's original question was why have the numbers of some of the other breeds introduced to the USA about the same time as Icelandic's grown much more than the numbers of Icelandic's.
Compared to most newly-introduced breeds with similar "rarity" (meaning small numbers) I think the prices of Icelandic's is actually pretty low - and when I say that, I'm ignoring what I consider the inflated prices of some of the "show type" Icelandic horses. Yet, the other breeds got past the initial costs, and gained more popularity than Icelandic's have. Think about the other breeds that have become more common in the USA over the past couple of decades: Friesians, Paso Finos, Haflingers, Fjords, and more recently, Gypsy Vanners. Where were the prices of those breeds when they first arrived, and where are they now? Why have the prices changed? How many are there now of each of these breeds? I'm certainly not saying that we want to mimic everything that has happened with other breeds - sometimes we may even want to learn from their mistakes. But I think it is worth comparing, to learn positives and negatives. I've seen Friesian and Gypsy Vanner BABIES advertised for $15,000-20,000 - even more! To me, that's just nutty, but they are selling - at least for now, while they are the breeds du jour. And, I'm sure those prices will result in a glut of the horses in a few years...and the prices and quality will drop - it's almost inevitable in any breed. I see Icelandic weanlings priced about $2000-5000 or so, probably averaging $2500-3000. (Keep in mind, that with the less common breeds, you frequently have to add hauling to the full price.) I've had people say, "Is that all?" when I tell them a range of prices for riding-aged Icelandic trail horses, as I see them. Personally, I've never seen ANY horse that I'd pay $20,000 for, but I've seen "show potential" Icelandic GELDINGS advertised for that price, but I discard those prices as out of line. I certainly can't ever remember seeing an Icelandic BABY offered for sale for $15,000! What about Paso Finos? The first ones I heard about were outrageously expensive. They are gaited, as are Icelandic's - and when you compare bone structure, I think most Paso Finos are smaller than most Icelandic's...maybe I'm wrong, but they certainly aren't big horses. How many Paso Finos are there in the USA now? I know their prices have dropped a lot, at least in some cases. Karen Thomas, NC -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.5.446 / Virus Database: 268.18.20/736 - Release Date: 3/27/2007 4:38 PM
