I recently had the opportunity to talk to Dr. John Basarab who’s doing some interesting work in genomic testing of livestock herds at the University of Alberta. The idea is to improve on the quality of breeding stock by using science to ensure that the best qualities of a sire and a female are brought together to strengthen the breed. A lot of this work is still at an early stage, but I asked John if the work he’s doing could be applied to the horse racing industry.
“Oh, absolutely,” he told me. “Horse racing breeders study pedigrees to determine which stallion to breed to which mare to produce horses that are bred for such things as speed, distance, and size. What we’re doing is identifying bits of DNA that are passed on to the next generation that result in failure to conceive. Maybe it’s failure to conceive, maybe it’s early embryonic death loss. Can you imagine if we could identify those regions of the genome that are associated with that infertility and we could identify that in young females before any mating occurs. It would save a lot of time and money. That’s a future area of research but we’ll find the answers.”
Breeding, of course, involves a number of costs that are incurred long before a foal is born. Last year in Alberta, of 311 mares that were bred, only 181 foals were registered. That’s about 57%. The industry average over the past five years isn’t much better. And the challenge isn’t only in Alberta. The horse supply problem is industry-wide across North America. More mares in foal is only one part of the solution. More productivity of the mares that are here now is also a part of the solution. Perhaps, as it matures and develops, genomic testing will be an important part of the future.
Which is a bit of a roundabout way of getting to this year’s annual ASHA Yearling Sale set for Sunday, September 10th at the Olds Regional Exhibition Megadome. A total of 71 yearlings are to be auctioned. There are 25 stallions registered this year in the Alberta Sire Stakes program which means that their foals that are paid into the program have additional value because they can compete in the added money events that are only available to Alberta bred foals. There are 18 consignors to the sale. Meridian Farms has the largest consignment with 16 yearlings. Al Neurauter has nine and Surdale Farms of Kelowna has eight.
Custard The Dragon is the most prominent sire with eight colts, two geldings and eleven fillies in the sale. Vertical Horizon is well represented with six colts and seven fillies. Mystery Chase has five colts and five fillies. Riverboat King has four colts and five fillies. Given the opportunities presented by artificial insemination, there are also individual foals from such out of province sires as Sportswriter and Sunfire Blue Chip. There’s also a Sunshine Beach filly in the sale. Sunshine Beach is owned by a syndicate which includes Edmonton’s Diane Bertrand. He is standing this year at Seelster Farm in Lucan, Ontario.
“I’m hoping we have a good sale,” breeders committee chair, Connie Kolthammer, told me. “It’s a tough business. I’m hoping that with Century Mile coming on stream next year that we can get to the point of a healthy and sustainable industry here in the province. It’s really important that we continue to try and attract new owners and breeders to our sport so that we can continue to grow the racing business. That’s another part of the process of improving horse supply in our industry.”
Among first time consignors to the ASHA Yearling Sale is Lynda Atkinson, who runs a 600-acre operation near Quesnel, BC. A long time breeder of Morgan horses, Atkinson has expanded into the Standardbred ranks and has acquired the sire, Test Flight, from Bill Andrew of Meridian Farms.
“I really like the Alberta system,” she told me. “It’s well organized, ASHA staff communicate well with us and it’s a little easier to get to Olds in September than to the BC yearling sale in Langley in November, from where I live. The fact that I have a couple of yearlings which are Alberta foaled and BC bred means they are eligible for Sire Stakes in both provinces. I think that gives them added value, given the complementary scheduling of racing dates in Alberta and BC.”
Also consigning to the sale for the first time is Angelique Currie from Langley BC, and Jane Grainger from Regina. Dr. Larry Hanson of Regina, who’s been a long time seller at the Alberta Sale, is back again this year with four yearlings. It speaks to the notion that growing the number of breeders is not restricted to Alberta. If the financial strength of the industry improves in this province, buyers are going to have more money and more incentive to make an investment. Alberta has a strong Sire Stakes program and a solid administration structure in place. It stands to reason that breeders from across western Canada are going to want to be a part of that.
“Those breed bonuses and foal incentives are really important to breeders,” says Atkinson. “In this business, we’re price takers, not price setters. We basically have to accept the buyer’s price for our yearlings, unless we want to start setting reserve prices for them. We think we know what a yearling is worth but the clearest valuation comes from the market.”
Of special note are three yearlings which have been raised by 4-H club members as part of their learning experience. Madisen Groves has Hip #26, Queenoftheriver, Sierra MacDonald has Hip #38, HF White Lightning and Dayton Rickard has Hip #33, Ceia Lata Alagata. This is Sierra’s second year in the program. She’s raised her filly for Colleen Haining of Clive, AB. Dayton has acted for long time owners and breeders, Bryan and Cheryl Brook of Leduc. Madisen has worked hard with her filly on behalf of Amanda Barron of Trochu, AB. It is the first year that Madisen and Dayton have been involved. The 4-H members spend several months with the yearlings, learning to care for them and preparing them for the sale. They share in the proceeds from the auction.
As well, Hip #54, June Morning, is offered for sale under the auspices of the Let The Sun Shine program, organized by Bill Andrew at Meridian Farms. Proceeds from the sale of this yearling will be divided among five charities. The initiative has raised about $34,000 to non profit/charity groups in its first two years of operation.
Sale catalogues have been distributed to ASHA members. They’re also available from the ASHA office in Airdrie, AB. The sale is set for 2:30 pm Sunday, Sept. 10th, at the Olds Regional Exhibition Megadome. Previews go Saturday evening, 6-9 PM and doors open Sunday morning at 10 AM.
“Oh, absolutely,” he told me. “Horse racing breeders study pedigrees to determine which stallion to breed to which mare to produce horses that are bred for such things as speed, distance, and size. What we’re doing is identifying bits of DNA that are passed on to the next generation that result in failure to conceive. Maybe it’s failure to conceive, maybe it’s early embryonic death loss. Can you imagine if we could identify those regions of the genome that are associated with that infertility and we could identify that in young females before any mating occurs. It would save a lot of time and money. That’s a future area of research but we’ll find the answers.”
Breeding, of course, involves a number of costs that are incurred long before a foal is born. Last year in Alberta, of 311 mares that were bred, only 181 foals were registered. That’s about 57%. The industry average over the past five years isn’t much better. And the challenge isn’t only in Alberta. The horse supply problem is industry-wide across North America. More mares in foal is only one part of the solution. More productivity of the mares that are here now is also a part of the solution. Perhaps, as it matures and develops, genomic testing will be an important part of the future.
Which is a bit of a roundabout way of getting to this year’s annual ASHA Yearling Sale set for Sunday, September 10th at the Olds Regional Exhibition Megadome. A total of 71 yearlings are to be auctioned. There are 25 stallions registered this year in the Alberta Sire Stakes program which means that their foals that are paid into the program have additional value because they can compete in the added money events that are only available to Alberta bred foals. There are 18 consignors to the sale. Meridian Farms has the largest consignment with 16 yearlings. Al Neurauter has nine and Surdale Farms of Kelowna has eight.
Custard The Dragon is the most prominent sire with eight colts, two geldings and eleven fillies in the sale. Vertical Horizon is well represented with six colts and seven fillies. Mystery Chase has five colts and five fillies. Riverboat King has four colts and five fillies. Given the opportunities presented by artificial insemination, there are also individual foals from such out of province sires as Sportswriter and Sunfire Blue Chip. There’s also a Sunshine Beach filly in the sale. Sunshine Beach is owned by a syndicate which includes Edmonton’s Diane Bertrand. He is standing this year at Seelster Farm in Lucan, Ontario.
“I’m hoping we have a good sale,” breeders committee chair, Connie Kolthammer, told me. “It’s a tough business. I’m hoping that with Century Mile coming on stream next year that we can get to the point of a healthy and sustainable industry here in the province. It’s really important that we continue to try and attract new owners and breeders to our sport so that we can continue to grow the racing business. That’s another part of the process of improving horse supply in our industry.”
Among first time consignors to the ASHA Yearling Sale is Lynda Atkinson, who runs a 600-acre operation near Quesnel, BC. A long time breeder of Morgan horses, Atkinson has expanded into the Standardbred ranks and has acquired the sire, Test Flight, from Bill Andrew of Meridian Farms.
“I really like the Alberta system,” she told me. “It’s well organized, ASHA staff communicate well with us and it’s a little easier to get to Olds in September than to the BC yearling sale in Langley in November, from where I live. The fact that I have a couple of yearlings which are Alberta foaled and BC bred means they are eligible for Sire Stakes in both provinces. I think that gives them added value, given the complementary scheduling of racing dates in Alberta and BC.”
Also consigning to the sale for the first time is Angelique Currie from Langley BC, and Jane Grainger from Regina. Dr. Larry Hanson of Regina, who’s been a long time seller at the Alberta Sale, is back again this year with four yearlings. It speaks to the notion that growing the number of breeders is not restricted to Alberta. If the financial strength of the industry improves in this province, buyers are going to have more money and more incentive to make an investment. Alberta has a strong Sire Stakes program and a solid administration structure in place. It stands to reason that breeders from across western Canada are going to want to be a part of that.
“Those breed bonuses and foal incentives are really important to breeders,” says Atkinson. “In this business, we’re price takers, not price setters. We basically have to accept the buyer’s price for our yearlings, unless we want to start setting reserve prices for them. We think we know what a yearling is worth but the clearest valuation comes from the market.”
Of special note are three yearlings which have been raised by 4-H club members as part of their learning experience. Madisen Groves has Hip #26, Queenoftheriver, Sierra MacDonald has Hip #38, HF White Lightning and Dayton Rickard has Hip #33, Ceia Lata Alagata. This is Sierra’s second year in the program. She’s raised her filly for Colleen Haining of Clive, AB. Dayton has acted for long time owners and breeders, Bryan and Cheryl Brook of Leduc. Madisen has worked hard with her filly on behalf of Amanda Barron of Trochu, AB. It is the first year that Madisen and Dayton have been involved. The 4-H members spend several months with the yearlings, learning to care for them and preparing them for the sale. They share in the proceeds from the auction.
As well, Hip #54, June Morning, is offered for sale under the auspices of the Let The Sun Shine program, organized by Bill Andrew at Meridian Farms. Proceeds from the sale of this yearling will be divided among five charities. The initiative has raised about $34,000 to non profit/charity groups in its first two years of operation.
Sale catalogues have been distributed to ASHA members. They’re also available from the ASHA office in Airdrie, AB. The sale is set for 2:30 pm Sunday, Sept. 10th, at the Olds Regional Exhibition Megadome. Previews go Saturday evening, 6-9 PM and doors open Sunday morning at 10 AM.
RSS Feed
