Where a horse is born....

[SniperSB23]

The funny thing is you always hear about this great Bluegrass in Kentucky yet the horses bred in NY race every two weeks while the KY breds race every 5 to 8 weeks until they get injured. I don't understand why anyone still drops their mares in KY with all the statebred incentives out there in CA, FL, NY, MD, LA, PA, etc.

[Cannon Shell]

Originally Posted by SniperSB23

The funny thing is you always hear about this great Bluegrass in Kentucky yet the horses bred in NY race every two weeks while the KY breds race every 5 to 8 weeks until they get injured. I don't understand why anyone still drops their mares in KY with all the statebred incentives out there in CA, FL, NY, MD, LA, PA, etc.

Because when you are breeding top quality mares to high dollar stallions you are hoping not to have to resort to state bred incentives. Plus some of these states have breed back requirements where for the foal to be considered a state bred the mare must be bred back to a stallion standing in that state. One of the reasons you dont see any LA breds by good stallions out of good mares.

[SniperSB23]

Originally Posted by Cannon Shell

Because when you are breeding top quality mares to high dollar stallions you are hoping not to have to resort to state bred incentives. Plus some of these states have breed back requirements where for the foal to be considered a state bred the mare must be bred back to a stallion standing in that state. One of the reasons you dont see any LA breds by good stallions out of good mares.

Hadn't heard of those breed back requirements. That is interesting. Do you think if you breed a top quality mare to a big money stallion and drop the foal in NY or LA instead of KY it will have any impact on the foal's chance of success? I would think the fact that if the foal doesn't amount to much that it could still get a win and maybe even a stakes win in statebred company would help improve the stallion's numbers and make it more appealing for the breeding farms to book out of state mares. I guess those same farms though are probably making a boatload off keeping many of those mares on their farms so that becomes the primary consideration which makes sense.

[Cannon Shell]

Originally Posted by SniperSB23

Hadn't heard of those breed back requirements. That is interesting. Do you think if you breed a top quality mare to a big money stallion and drop the foal in NY or LA instead of KY it will have any impact on the foal's chance of success? I would think the fact that if the foal doesn't amount to much that it could still get a win and maybe even a stakes win in statebred company would help improve the stallion's numbers and make it more appealing for the breeding farms to book out of state mares. I guess those same farms though are probably making a boatload off keeping many of those mares on their farms so that becomes the primary consideration which makes sense.

That is like buying a Porsche because you can salvage some of its value at the used car lot if it is a lemon. Or playing a huge pick 6 ticket because you have a better shot of getting at least 5 with a large ticket. There is no bigger gamble than breeding high class mare and top stallions. Because of the costs associated you have to look to hit the home run. Of course there are many more statebreds by much better quality stallions in NY in particular than ever.

If a horse is going to be a really good horse it may not matter if it is born in Alaska. Good horses come from the strangest places and are sometimes by obscure breeding also. But the land, climate and quality of farms, clinics, and vets are very much superior in KY than in any other state. If I had a grade 1 winning mare in foal I would want her in KY.

there are quite a few reasons one might consider on where to foal their babies. Could be the farm where the stallion stands or where one's personal farm is or you want to be close to it, you know and trust, state bred programs or even the sales ring... a Kentucky bred is more likely to bring more than a Wisconsin bred. Remember this also.... a horse may be bred in one state, foaled in another and trained in yet another.... many factors many reasons... one person's preference....

[pmacdaddy]

To potentially further complicate the issue.

I understand that a non NY bred mare could be sent to a Registered NY Stallion, foal in a state other than NY and the foal could still be considered eligible for races restricted to NY breds.

If that is in fact true. How does it work, does the owner make a decision as to what state the foal is "bred" in? I guess theoretically a foal could meet requirements of more than one State. NY stallion as sire, but also meeting foaling requirements of another state.

[Cannon Shell]

I believe that a horse is considered "Delaware certified" if it spends 60 or 90 days as a yearling/2yo in a farm located in Delaware regardless of where it was foaled or where their sire stands.

[citycat]

I realize that this message board is made up of alot of handicappers/horse lovers but to the lot of us that own thoroughbreds it does make a difference where the horse is bred/born.

As CannonShell pointed out good horses can come from anywhere and without great pedigree but that is the exception rather than the rule.

One of the biggest reasons would be purse structures. If you look at a condition book/program you will notice that on allowance races there is generally added purse money for state bred horses that comes from state thoroughbred associations (or slots). This is important to an owner with respect to their particular situation and their trainer. For example if you have a nice LA bred horse it would be of value for you to run the horse in Louisiana on occasion to make extra purse money. In that situation you might want your trainer to "winter" in Louisiana. However if your trainer winters in Arkansas or Florida it might not be the best financial situation for you. That is when you go to sales to purchase yearlings/two year olds you generally do look at where the horse was bred. This is where your trainer/owner relationship comes into play. You have to know where your trainer runs horses. All things equal at a sale I would take a KY/FL bred over a NY/LA/ILL bred horse (in general) because my horses run in KY and winter in FLA. That gives the trainer/owner the best opportunity to make the most money.

Again, nice horses can come from anywhere but for owners/trainers it is not just as simple as "who cares" where they are born/bred.