A nice review, Tim, and I think the reindeer idea will look superb.
The white spot is where the hoof is injected in the moulding process, so it can't be avoided I imagine.
The stalls are aimed at the keen horse collector, I imagine, so what pleases one person upsets another.
I think the "whippy thing" with the Kanbstrupper set is used in training the horse on the rein. I'm sure I used to see an old friend who bred horses standing in her paddock with the horse on a rein trotting round her in a circle. In her free hand she had a "whippy thing" and would just hold it out to touch the horses's chest to slow it down.