HGG Community Forums

Inconsistency is somewhat random. My experience has been that inconsistent parents are somewhat more likely to produce inconsistent foals and consistent parents are somewhat more likely to produce consistent foals. HOWEVER, I have, on rare occasions, bred two perfect foundations (perfectly consistent) and got an inconsistent foal.

Also, remember that the Consistent result on the consistency test means that the horse can have up to +/- 2 consistency. That means that its show score may vary from up to 2 points higher than its base score to 2 points lower than its base score. It may be perfectly consistent and always have the same score both times in a week. If it is +/- 1, and its base score is 17, for instance, it might score 16, 17 or 18 in each show that week. If it's +/-2, its score could be 15, 16, 17, 18, or 19.

This used to be very important when I first started playing. At that time, entry fees were considerably higher than they are now, especially in the higher levels. And only the top half of a class received more in prize money than the entry fee, so it could be very easy to lose a lot of money if your inconsistent horses all swung down in their shows at the same time.

Entry fees are lower now, and although only the top half of the class still makes more than the entry fee, having the showing bonus makes the profit/loss factor of showing much less crucial. This is because every horse except the one that comes in last earns some showing points for being in the show. These points accumulate and are permanently part of the horse's record, even when it is sold. The daily Showing Bonus is based on a percentage of the total number of points all your horses have, so it pays to show them, even if they many not place very high in the class. Their point total is still going to increase.

There is absolutely no reason to not use inconsistent show ponies as show ponies. Every point counts, and while those down swings may hurt, those Up swings may help you!

As for using him as a sire, if you have the basic upgrade you should consider holding off and trying to get your hands on a GMT. Send in a postcard/Christmas card (details in the Announcements section) or try for a Candy Pony. You can GMT him to be perfectly consistent if you want to. But you do need at least the basic upgrade.