Breed Secure vs. Foal Share

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bluejayjack
Suckling
Posts: 19
Joined: Tue Jul 28, 2015 11:09 am

Breed Secure vs. Foal Share

Postby bluejayjack » Tue Mar 28, 2017 1:10 pm

I have been offered either a breed secure or a foal share to a first year $15,000 stallion. The mare was less than stellar racehorse, but comes from a good female family. Her 1/2 brother is a multiple g2/g3 placed turf horse that has placed 2nd to the likes of Messi. The mare is 9 years old and never had a foal which will make her harder to sell in foal. The farm is offering me my choice of either a breed secure or a foal share to this mare. The breed secure is nice in that if the 1/2 brother has a great year racing, I can capture that momentum to sell her in foal in November, in spite of her age and the fact this would be her first foal. If not - I can foal her out and sell the resulting foal and breed her back. She has a 1/2 sister that sold at the 2 yr. old in training sale for $215,000 - so some potential there for results as well.

The nick and physical match-up are both A++

What would you do? For an older mare with a first year foal - the foal share is nice as the risk is shared. But...a breed secure doesn't box me in, gives me flexibility as to when I sell - in foal, weanling, short yearling, yearling and allows be to see how the stallion is received and her family develops?

Thoughts for or against either of these options? Feedback is appreciated.
thanks,

Tappiano
Grade II Winner
Posts: 1349
Joined: Sat Jan 20, 2007 5:28 pm

Re: Breed Secure vs. Foal Share

Postby Tappiano » Thu Mar 30, 2017 12:57 pm

I wouldn't care about her being nine, but I'd be concerned about the sire and the potential "crowd" you'd be up against if you had one of 30 foals by the same sire in a sale. How many mares are in this stallions book?

Did you check the sales results for other stallions at this farm to see how their other stallions who are part of this program have done? If you see the average is really low for a first year stallion who might have a comparable stud fee/race record that could be an indication of what you can expect. I suggest this because I looked at this type of program too and studied a lot of sales results before deciding against it and going to another farm where I got a season at a good price that made it a no brainer.

If I had to choose between the two I would have opted for a foal share. There is nothing due until the sale and the risk is minimized if the resulting yearling doesn't sell well. Keep in mind the market is almost non-existent at the lower end these days so you're entering a space that demands a superior physical to command the type of attention and subsequent money.

kimberley mine
Breeder's Cup Contender
Posts: 1811
Joined: Tue Jan 11, 2005 8:43 pm

Re: Breed Secure vs. Foal Share

Postby kimberley mine » Thu Mar 30, 2017 10:34 pm

If your mare is who I think she is*, she's definitely from a good family...

...and she has stealth and not-so-stealth grass all through her pedigree. The turf talent isn't just with your mare's half-brother, it's from her sire (most of his better foals are turf runners, as is the case with his full brother), from her dam's sire (five of his top six fillies are stakes winners or stakes placed on turf), and her 3rd dam whose best foals were all turf runners. Also consider that the successful half-brother's sire is not throwing a huge amount of turf talent, and neither is his grandsire.

Is the stallion you've been looking at a horse who is likely to fit well with a mare who might well be a turf type? Is he the kind of horse who has close relations who have won on both surfaces?

This also affects which market would best suit the resulting foal. Buyers in areas with few grass races will not find this mare as attractive in areas where there is more grass racing or there are synthetic tracks. Would a foal-share arrangement allow you to negotiate for that?

Good luck to you.

*It's late at night and I like a challenge.