Monitoring Strategy for Female Families

[austique]

Okay I'm setting up monitoring (Virtual Stable etc) for the new herd and I was wondering how far back some of you monitor. I went back to the second dam of the first mare and while her third dam (Far Beyond) has a lot of active strains I don't think it necessarily effects my mare from a commercial standpoint (not that she's that commercial). I mean just thinking of doing Far Beyond's active strains makes my head hurt. Any advice?

[LSB]

I usually monitor anything that would appear on the page if the mare or her offspring were sold. So how how far back I go varies from mare to mare depending on the quality and the production of each succeeding dam. Sometimes I only follow what's under the mare's first dam, sometimes I go as far back as the third dam.

That's a breed-to-sell attitude, I know, but it works for me. Otherwise I'd be following hundreds of horses that are never going to be any commercial use to me.

[austique]

Thanks LSB. That makes total sense.

[henthorn]

I had the same problem with the large family of Vivid Dreams, since her second dam has twelve producing daughters and another still racing. Now that I've removed the retired five-year-olds and up from the virtual stable, I still have to watch for the two and three-year-olds and progeny from race-retired cousins, etc. But as long as the catalog page of her foals will still include the third dam, I'm at least trying to keep up on the grandchildren of that third dam and successful producing daughters. For instance, (catalog) third dam Viva Sec's daughter Escrow Agent has now produced graded stakes winning sons Vicar and grandson Navesink River. There is plenty of black type on the page, but the GSW will stand out.

In my case, it would be much easier to buy an equineline report once in a while than to research each twig on the family tree; much less likely to miss something important and unexpected. And saves a lot of time.

In my opinion, there is no reason to bother with the catalog page unless there is an improving catalog page--black type, big earners, and young mares bred to good stallions.

[austique]

The girl I referenced above has a fairly young dam (1995) who is still producing and her second dam is still actively producing (she has a 2006 foal), not to mention daughters of the second dam who are all fairly young (including a GR II winner whose oldest foal is a yearling). I started into the third dam and got about half way through Battle Creek Girl (her oldest filly) and gave up. I know...I'm lazy.

I'm sticking to the first two dams and giving up. That third dam's a killer.