Blog By: Jared Abrahams
The thoroughbred horse industry in the United States is at an inflection point. On the surface, the introduction of federal oversight, through the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (“HISA”), seems to be a meaningful step in pushing the industry forward and combating the public perception issues that have persisted in recent years. However, the issues impeding the industry’s success appear to be beginning far before a horse ever steps foot on a track. The thoroughbred horse industry cannot function without a healthy breeding program.[i] Over the past 30 years, the number of foals born in the United States has declined.[ii] In 1990, there were 40,333 foals born in the United States, compared to the roughly 17,300 born in 2022.[iii] Statistics show steady year-over-year declines.[iv] This translates to a decrease in the number of horses in training and racing.[v] In 1990, a total of 89,716 horses participated in races in the United States.[vi] In 2022, there were only 45,840 horses that made starts.[vii] This, in turn, has resulted in a decrease in field size.[viii] With this trend, the industry has been forced to put out a product that is less appealing to gamblers, who are fundamental to the funding and operation of the entire industry and are more apt to gamble when field sizes are larger.[ix] These problems are challenging to reverse, however, a possible first step in improving this product may be one that occurs at the breeding shed, eleven to twelve months before any foal is born.[x]
The stallion market is a robust one, with stallions commanding hundreds of thousands of dollars per mare bred. This aspect of the industry is extremely profitable; however, in recent years, many stallion farms have taken advantage of the power they have over the breeding industry. Today, the foal crop, in Kentucky especially, is handcuffed to a select few stallions who are breeding upwards of 200 mares per breeding season.[xi] As stallion farms focus intently on their toppling revenue, thoroughbred gene pools and the health of stallions continue to suffer, both of which require industry-implemented solutions and protections.
One possible solution to the above-mentioned issues is a stallion cap. A stallion cap establishes a limit on the number of mares that a stallion can breed in a particular breeding year.[xii] The Jockey Club, the regulatory body overseeing the breeding aspect of the thoroughbred industry in the United States, attempted to institute such a cap in 2020.[xiii] The proposed cap would have restricted the number of mares a stallion foaled after 2020 could breed to 140 mares per breeding season.[xiv] This attempt was met with significant pushback by large stallion farms and eventually rescinded.[xv] To put things in perspective, the stallion who bred the most mares in Kentucky in 2022, Gun Runner, bred 248 mares that year.[xvi] In breeding a mare to a certain stallion, the owner of that mare is required to pay the stallion farm a certain sum for that breeding service.[xvii] This payment is often referred to as a stud fee. Thus, a stallion cap of 140 would result in 108 fewer mares bred by Gun Runner, costing the farm upwards of 13.5 million dollars in stud fees, with his stud fee set at $125,000 for 2022.[xviii] This difference is no doubt staggering. However, the economic cost to these stallion farms should not outweigh the importance of maintaining the future of the breed and the thoroughbred industry. A stallion cap is more vital than ever.
For starters, the genetic implications of increased numbers of mares being bred by certain stallions will be incredibly damaging.[xix] Studies show that increased breeding numbers lead to an increase in inbreeding, which leads to “an increase in ‘mutational load,’ which is associated with a general decrease in genetic quality and exposes the breed to undesirable traits in performance and/or production.”[xx] The pattern does not seem to be stopping, and if the industry wishes to avoid the introduction of these “undesirable traits,” changes must be made via the introduction of a cap.[xxi] Additionally, with the introduction of a stallion cap, horses will likely have longer and healthier racing careers leading to increases in field sizes that would result in a healthier and more enticing product. A stallion cap has been successfully implemented in the standardbred horse industry.[xxii] The cap helped curb the inbreeding and genetic concerns for that breed.[xxiii] There is no reason why such a cap cannot be feasibly, legally, or effectively implemented in the thoroughbred industry.
Additionally, the institution of a cap will provide opportunities to a wider range of stallions, diversifying the gene pool, and providing opportunities for stallion farms to limit any losses and allow for other stallions to get a greater shot at success. In 2022, there were 208 active stallions in Kentucky who bred, in total, 16,826 mares.[xxiv] Of that number, 16 stallions were responsible for breeding 3,463 mares.[xxv] Thus, 20% of mares bred in Kentucky during 2022 were mated with a small, select group of stallions.[xxvi] This constriction is highly detrimental.
The top line for stallion farms cannot be this industry’s bottom line. If the health of the horse and the sustainability of the racing industry are not prioritized, stallion farms will have no stud fees to collect. The thoroughbred horse industry needs ways forward, and a stallion cap may just be one way to start this rebirth.
[i] Brie Taylor, Breeding: Making A Bloodline, Ky. Derby Museum (Apr, 25, 2022), https://www.derbymuseum.org/Blog/Article/334/Breeding-Making-A-Bloodline [https://perma.cc/ELN2-G5VB].
[ii] Annual North American Registered Foal Crop, The Jockey Club Fact Book, https://www.jockeyclub.com/default.asp?section=FB&area=2 (last visited October 26, 2023) [https://perma.cc/J26N-M5ZP].
[iii] Id.
[iv] Id.
[v] Size of Field and Starts Per Horse, The Jockey Club Fact Book, https://www.jockeyclub.com/default.asp?section=FB&area=10 (last visited October 26, 2023) [https://perma.cc/BCH5-LHJK].
[vi] Id.
[vii] Id.
[viii] Id.
[ix] Dean Towers, Field Size Needs to Go Up, and Go Up Big, Thoroughbred Daily News, https://www.thoroughbreddailynews.com/field-size-needs-to-go-up-and-go-up-big-shared-archive/ (last visited October 26, 2023) [https://perma.cc/K87S-6T2T].
[x] Benjamin Espy, Equine Reproduction From Conception to Birth, Am. Ass’n of Equine Prac., https://aaep.org/horsehealth/equine-reproduction-conception-birth#:~:text=Normal%20mares%20have%20a%20broad,most%20commonly%20cited%20gestation%20length (last visited October 26, 2023) [https://perma.cc/WQ9B-MLX7].
[xi] Report of Mares Bred, The Jockey Club Fact Book, https://www.jockeyclub.com/default.asp?section=Resources&area=16 (last visited October 26, 2023) [https://perma.cc/Q9SQ-DXM2].
[xii] Eric Mitchell, KY Bill Takes Aim at Jockey Club Stallion Cap, BloodHorse (Feb. 15, 2022), https://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/256838/ky-bill-takes-aim-at-jockey-club-stallion-cap [https://perma.cc/2UZ8-225J].
[xiii] Id.
[xiv] Id.
[xv] Id.
[xvi] Report of Mares Bred, supra note xi.
[xvii] Stud Fee, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stud%20fee (last visited Nov. 12, 2023) [https://perma.cc/P9PN-CGV5].
[xviii] Eric Mitchell, Gun Runner to Stand for $125,000 in 2022, BloodHorse (Oct. 20, 2021), https://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/254206/gun-runner-to-stand-for-125-000-in-2022 [https://perma.cc/GW48-Z6UB].
[xix] Eric Mitchell, Mare Cap Rule Shelved, But Inbreeding Still a Concern, BloodHorse (Feb. 23, 2022), https://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/257011/mare-cap-rule-shelved-but-inbreeding-still-a-concern [https://perma.cc/DS69-VV4Q].
[xx] Id.
[xxi] Id.
[xxii] Id.
[xxiii] Id.
[xxiv] US Distribution of Active Stallions and Mares Bred, The Jockey Club Fact Book, https://www.jockeyclub.com/default.asp?section=FB&area=3 (last visited October 27, 2023) [https://perma.cc/N226-TR2K].
[xxv] The Jockey Club, Report of Mares Bred Points to Slight Breeding Decline, BloodHorse (Oct. 27, 2023), https://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/272924/report-of-mares-bred-points-to-slight-breeding-decline [https://perma.cc/FJ5K-KPUD].
[xxvi] Id.