All mares and stallions that you want to use in Hanoverian breeding must be presented for acceptance of the Hanonerian studbook.

Only those foals that come from stallions and mares that are accepted to the Hanoverian studbook can be registered and branded to the Hanoverian register.

The mares must fulfill certain requirements concerning pedigree, conformation and movement.

The Main Studbook (symbol H)
Studbook (symbol S)
Pre-Studbook I (symbol V)

To be entered into the Main Studbook these requirements must be fulfilled:

Four generations of recognized ancestry must be proved. That means the sire, the sire of the dam, the sire of the dam’s sire, as well as the sire of the granddam’s dam had either to be entered into the Stallion-Book of the Verband or to belong to a breed which is recognized by the Verband.

The dam of the mare must be entered either in the Main-Studbook or in the Studbook.

The mare has received an average score of at least 6, and for each six sections at least a score of 5.

To be entered into the Studbook these requirements must be fulfilled:

Three generations of recognized ancestry must be proved. The dam must have been either a Main-Studbook mare or a studbook-mare or a Pre-Studbook I-mare.

At the studbook inspection the mare must reach a total score of 5 points. In each of the six main criteria it must receive a minimum of 4 points.

The minimum age for inspection is at the age of three years, above that there is no age limit. The mare can be inspected the same year she foals, so the mare does not have to be inspected the year it is mated.

At the inspection following aspects will be registered; pedigree, color, gender, date of birth, marks for conformation, results from the performance test and so on. Conformation, breed, type and movement scores are judged in 6 different sections with a scale of 1-10. The overall grade is calculated by the grade point average. Only full grades will be given.

People authorized by the Hannover Verband will give points for conformation and for the possible mare performance test.

The mare needs to have a pedigree with four acceptable generations. The mare needs to score a grade point average of at least 6, and none of the sections judged can receive a score under 5. Thoroughbred mares
Arab mares
Anglo-Arab mares
can now be accepted into a section of the studbook if the following criteria are met: Minimum total score of 7 in the studbook inspection with no sub score below 5 and a trot score of 7. They can be upgraded into the main stud book with a performance record in dressage, show jumping or eventing or a good mare performance test result. A trot score below 7 can be compensated through such a good performance record.

Warmblood mares can qualify for the studbook with certain requirements. The pedigree must be acceptable from four generations. Both the sire and the dam need to be registered to a pedigree that Hannover Verband approves of. The average grade for conformation needs to be at least 7, and none of the judged sections can have a score lower than 5. More information about the inspection of mares can be received from Dr. Ludwig Christmann from Hannover Verband.

IMPORTANT!
Non-Hanoverian mares with less than 50% Hanoverian blood need to be bred to a Hanoverian stallion or a stallion with at least 50% Hanoverian blood.

It is recommended to train for the inspection, to be shown in both walk and trot. It is important to make sure that the mare is shown in good condition and nutrition. Besides this, the hoofs should be groomed and the mane braded.

It is necessary to bring the mares original registration papers to the studbook inspection. The advocate from the Verband checks the information about the mare from these documents and takes them with him / her to the Verband in order to make the studbook results official. The documents will be sent back to the owner with correct information.

You place the mare at a distance of about 4 to 5 meters in front of the judges for evaluation of conformation. Here the so-called open position is obligatory. Then the mare is presented in a triangular course in trot so that the judges can see the movement from behind, the side and the front. The person presenting the horse has to be able to run sufficiently in order for the mare’s movement to be shown. The both reins should be in the presenter’s right hand.

The walk is presented in a large circle. The presenter should let the mare walk as freely as possible.

Finally the judge(s) give an oral evaluation of the mare. The official studbook statement will be written by Hannover Verband into the mare’s registration papers.