Bloodstock News

The way the market is at the moment and considering how popular they are, you'll probably get plenty for the foals from the coloured mare!
 
Shadwell Fees for 2010 -

Name Fee 2009 Fee 2010
Aqlaam N/A £7,000
Haafhd £12,000 £6,000
Nayef £15,000 £15,000
Sakhee £12,000 £6,000
 
So sorry to hear that, Songs. Am now bloody relieved about our Iceman! Those nominations are crashing, too - 50% off from Gal's post. What would a £5000 fee be in 2010 - £1000? Desperate times, desperate times.
 
SteveM said:
Limits are imposed to regulate exposure to particular lines, but this is usually through choice or circumstance.

In an overproduced industry the imposition of limits would be a good idea. Some stallions have been used too liberally, others not enough.

A slavish following of so-called best-with-best matching has led to a restriction of the gene pool when outcrosses to less fashionable stallions, to those free of Northern Dancer (for example), and perhaps even to other breeds (assuming the stud book were to be 'opened') could be desirable to invigorate the breed.
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There's no need to do that and it wouldn't work. People need a good choice not just any choice or they'll just end up going back to the Danzig line 7 times out of 10.
 
Not when the stallions have sensibly restricted books, though, Sheikh. Unlike SADLER'S WELLS in his most prolific - no, promiscuous! - seasons when he was servicing up to 250 mares, calming down to 'only' around 180 when in his dotage - the average book for most good stallions today. When stallion owners won't restrict the quality of mares visiting their sires, let alone the quantity, it's a recipe for not just overproduction, but overproduction of rubbish.
 
Is Sadler's Wells not a bad example, since his huge fee would presumably have ruled out anything but the best mares being sent to him? Or are there that many bad/stupid breeders out there who would invest that kind of money into a bad mare?
 
Trying to find a suitable stallion in this country who doesn't got back to Danzig is very tricky. In the Uk there are more opportunities to outcross.
 
Gareth Flynn said:
Is Sadler's Wells not a bad example, since his huge fee would presumably have ruled out anything but the best mares being sent to him? Or are there that many bad/stupid breeders out there who would invest that kind of money into a bad mare?
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Gareth, you would be amazed at the amount of people with money to burn in the past who grossly over-covered their mares in the hope they'd get a star. On the odd occasion, it worked (Mr Gerald Leigh sending CANTON SILK - a very average handicapper - to HABITAT being an example) but in the main, it doesn't and the cast-offs comprise the vast majority of the breeding stock sales.
 
Songsheet said:
Gareth, you would be amazed at the amount of people with money to burn in the past who grossly over-covered their mares in the hope they'd get a star. On the odd occasion, it worked (Mr Gerald Leigh sending CANTON SILK - a very average handicapper - to HABITAT being an example) but in the main, it doesn't and the cast-offs comprise the vast majority of the breeding stock sales.
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A tad unfair on Canton silk ? :o She also turned out to be a good broodmare Grand dam to useful stallion Desert style.
 
Don't forget we are talking 30 plus years ago - wouldn't equate the ratings with today. However, she was out of a very ordinary mare - CLOUDED LAMP - and it was a definite case then of over covering (we are talking the days when stallions only covered around 50 mares tops) and so were able to more selective. Both Mr Leigh and his then bloodstock adviser, James Delahooke, described the mating as such, so it's not an original opinion! I certainly wasn't accusing either of being either 'bad' or 'stupid' breeders - far from it!!

I wasn't being 'unfair' about CANTON SILK, either Sheikh - I know she was a very good broodmare - I looked after her dam... CS is also grandam of BARATHEA.... and was a foundation mare of Mr Leigh's stud.
 
Songsheet said:
No, it hasn't but most of us could see it coming. At least I am glad I've had the sense not to put my lot back in foal this year and, apart from Songy and the cob mare, probably won't be next, either - in fact I may well move a couple of mares on.
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Now how about a nice piccy of the cob youngster?
 
Songsheet said:
I wasn't being 'unfair' about CANTON SILK, either Sheikh - I know she was a very good broodmare - I looked after her dam... CS is also grandam of BARATHEA.... and was a foundation mare of Mr Leigh's stud.
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I know , I was just soliciting more info.:o She bred a Grp 3 winner by High top before she went to habitat. Was High top considered a good stallion ?
 
by Frank Angst
The number of Thoroughbred mares bred in North America in 2009 may dip below 50,000 for the first time in more than 30 years.
With industry declines in both sale prices and racing purses, horsemen have reduced the number of mares they are breeding. Released Thursday, the Jockey Club’s Report of Mares Bred for 2009 documents a 13.5% slide to 45,317. Last year the report listed 52,410 mares bred.
John Cooney, of the Jockey Club, said the Report of Mares bred figures are the lowest since the Jockey Club started releasing in-season reports in 1996. Typically, the report includes about 92% of mares that eventually will be reported bred, but even with that factored, the figure will likely fall below 50,000 or perhaps just higher.
After seeing the reduction in reports of mares bred, the Jockey Club projects the 2010 registered foal crop will be 30,000, which would be the lowest since 28,809 in 1976 and down 13.3% from the 2009 projected foal crop of 34,000. It is safe to say 1976 is the most recent comparable year to 2009 in terms of mares bred.
Coinciding with the country’s overall economic problems, the 2010 foal crop would be down 22% from ‘08.
“Our mid-August projection of 30,000 registered foals in North America for 2010 was based on initial RMB returns, and these latest statistics reinforce that estimate,” said Jockey Club Vice President of Registration Services Matt Iuliano.
Kentucky, typically the leader in North American Thoroughbred breeding, stayed steady last year with just a 1.9% decline in mares bred. But this year the national trends as well as regional pressures led to a 10.3% decline to 19,112 in the number of mares bred to Kentucky stallions.
While Kentucky’s figures still did not match the overall 13.5% decline, the state’s percentage drop compared to last year was accelerated by the success of Pennsylvania, the only top-ten breeding state or Canadian province to show an increase in mares bred, up 25.3% this year to 1,550.
“The thing about our decline is that 10% of 21,000 is a lot of mares,” said Kentucky Thoroughbred Association/Kentucky Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Executive Director David Switzer. “Then you look at a state like Pennsylvania picking up about 300 mares bred and that’s pretty significant.”
While Kentucky stallion numbers were down from 318 to 308, the state did manage to improve its market share to 42.2% of all Thoroughbred breeding in North America. Last year the state accounted for 40.7% of all horses bred in North America.
Switzer noted that Kentucky could face additional bad news with next year’s live foal report as many breeders are still sending mares to Kentucky stallions before shipping them to other states so foals become eligible for incentives in other states.
With its increased activity, Pennsylvania jumped from tenth to sixth in number of mares bred in 2009. Still, even there horsemen are concerned a recent funding cut from alternative gambling projected to reduce purses and breeder incentives $50-million annually could hurt those positive trends.
Along with Kentucky, the other top-five breeding states all showed double-digit percentage declines as Florida was down 24% to 4,041, Louisiana 13.3% to 3,048, and California 22.8% to 2,946.
The number of stallions declined 8.9% from the 2,643 reported at this time in ’08. Based on reports received through October 13, The Jockey Club reports that 2,409 stallions covered 45,317 mares in North America during 2009.
Iuliano noted the largest decline in breeding occurred at the top end of the market, where the number of stallions covering 100 or more mares declined for the fourth consecutive year, from 113 in 2008 to 85 in ‘09. These stallions accounted for 24.6% of the total mares reported bred this year, down from 28% in 2008.
In 2009, Giant’s Causeway and Medaglia d’Oro led all stallions with 194 mares bred. Rounding out the top five were Candy Ride (Arg), 182; Lion Heart, 180; and Corinthian, 171. Giant’s Causeway and Lion Heart stood at Ashford Stud this year, while Medaglia d’Oro stood at Stonewall Farm Stallions, Candy Ride (Arg) at Hill ‘n’ Dale Farms, and Corinthian at Gainesway. Candy Ride will stand the 2010 season at Lane’s End.
The leading first-year stallion by reports of mares bred is Majestic Warrior, who covered 169 mares while standing at Ashford.
The Jockey Club reports that data is generally accurate but occasionally errors occur as a result of incorrect data received from others, mistakes in processing, and other causes. The Jockey Club disclaims responsibility fro the consequences, if any, of such errors but would appreciate them being called to its attention.
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MYBOYCHARLIE coming to the National Stud next year for his first N. hemisphere season - he's at Vinery in Australia at the moment.
 
The Kids where screaming but did i hear Bruce Bladon on the morning line say that:

A) Horses with straight legs get as many problems as horses with crooked legs

B) crooked legs can help with displacing stress down the legs.

If I wasn't hearing things, what does this say about the discussion we have been having about the criteria a mare should have to make her a suitable broodmare. Should people going to the Sales look for the crooked ones. Someone once told me that Mark Johnson never looks at a horses leg below the knee when buying, true or not ?
 
I can't have that! If you look at it logically (as my old trainer would say) a crooked leg, being out of sync, is more likely to place extra pressure on certain parts of the tendons, ligiments, muscles, parts that can't handle that extra pressure.

If conformation doesn't matter, how come so many respected judges (I don't include Mark Johnston in that one!!!!) look for it first and foremost?

Admittedly, conformation - including straight legs! - is possibly of more importance when it comes to buying jumpers rather than flat horses as the jumpers have to be that much more sturdy, their physique having to deal with more than your average flat horse.
 
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