to geld or not to geld

[Pedigree Ann]

Originally Posted by the_fat_man

On a more serious note, I'd be interested to know whether horsemen in other areas (Europe, S. America, Asia, and Australia) are as quick to cut as their American counterparts.

In Australia/New Zealand, it is not unusual to see geldings winning the major races that the mares don't. Especially in NZ, many prospects are bred on farms that keep only a handful of mares as a sideline and they don't have room to pasture their yearlings separately, so the colts must be gelded.

For a long time Aussie breeders were convinced that any import was a better stallion prospect than the local product, so locally bred colts were routinely gelded. Three of the last five AJC Derby winners have been geldings.

The Euros, on the other hand, disdain geldings and won't let them run in their Group 1 races, which is why Teleprompter had to come over here to get a G1 win. And why Donativum is considering trying for the Kentucky Derby rather than his own.