First year stallions?

Discussion and analysis of thoroughbred stallions.

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Diane
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First year stallions?

Postby Diane » Thu Mar 14, 2013 11:16 am

Something I've been wondering about first year stallions. If a stallion had surgical structural improvements as a youngster, supposing he was a successful racehorse for sake of discussion, he's now going to potentially pass on that trait. Is this something that's being communicated to breeders?

LB
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Postby LB » Thu Mar 14, 2013 2:27 pm

Not usually, no. The same holds true for mares. Unless you've bred a horse and raced it yourself before using it as breeding stock there's often no way to know if anything has been "improved" until you see what the offspring look like--and sometimes not even then.

Often, the stallion owners have no idea themselves, especially if it's a horse that has gone through several sales and/or owners before landing in their barn.

When I shop for mares, I always ask "Has this mare had any surgery?". Occasionally I'm told she's had colic surgery. Usually the consignor either says "we don't know" or "not in the time we've owned her." Even when people want to be honest, it's hard to get conclusive answers.