The Great Conformation Debate

[Shammy Davis]

Interesting article:

http://www.breedingracing.com/pdfs/ARCH ... mation.pdf

[Georgerz]

Very interesting article. I hope Louis doesn't chime in to say it is all PH fault.

[jellac]

Yes, very interesting though no real surprises to me save one - the theme of how important a trait/criteria that 'termperment' was to all these gentlemen. In N.A. I seldom hear 'temperment' cited in similar fashion when reading these type discussions/roundtable panels, yet I think it's certainly figured into bloodstock purchase decisions, because no one really goes to an equine auction to purchase just the one particular horse based soley on catalog/online photos. Even if one's budget only allows for the purchase of one horse at a given level of likely expenditure - one either works from a short list of suitable types or one grades among the candidates from onsite inspections and works down to a shortlist based on their observations. In any event it is almost always a matter of 'elimination' to the one or more 'biddable' candidatesfro one's purposes/budgetary limits from among the larger set of possibles so if an otherwise suitable/attractive candidate is unruly or appears highly stressed/reactionary to the sale surroundings/handlers then there is always another equally/nearly equally attractive/ranked individual that is well within him/herself at the sale to consider instead. I liked what the one respondant said: that 'stressful' behaviour or highly strung termperment could well point to the development of vices later on - that's certainly been my rather painfully gained experience. And vices are training issues for the racehorse - so it's certainly been my experience that a trainer is wont to avoid those highstrung/easily stressed types...so they can, hopefully, avoid the development of performance decreasing/affecting vices/bad habits. Personally - the smartest money I ever spent on thoroughbreds was having one of my homebreds taken on by a sales prep trainer as a late yearling to specifically NOT be trained for the sale but rather to be 'gentled' to the idea of being handled, being asked to perform - even if the performance being asked for was to simply stand to be blanketed/saddled and tacked instead of gittsying around or to be led forward willingly in a straight line and to stand when signaled to halt. I specifically told this trainer that my number one goal was to have a young yearling returned to me that was perfectly comfortable being lightly lunged in a round pen, relaxed yet willing while being led, thoroughly willing to be stopped on lead, inspected, groomed and in general 'handled' - BUT nothing more. Afterwards she was returned to the farm where she was born to be let out for another 6 months or so. That filly was the only offspring of my mares' 5 foals that was totally relaxed at the track when she eventually arrived there as a late 3YO and who, while alert and "on her toes" come racing day was never a head case with the track pony, in the saddling paddock, entering the gate, etc. That few months of low stress, basic handling paid off tremendously when I sent her to be backed/trained and conditioned. I would certainly do it again with any weanling or early yearling I might buy in the future.

Another of the things I found most interesting in this article is how the views/strictness of criteria varied with not only the individuals being interviewed BUT also to some degree with their role in the industry, i.e. who their 'stakesholders' or customers were. Very insightful to see the difference between someone looking for candidates to train/race and someone looking for yearlings to pinhook at a later sale and someone seeking out/advising on bloodstock purchases for any number of different (levels) of investor in that bloodstock.

Finally - the unamity among the panelists as to the difference in bone development between N. and S. hemisphere Tbs and the importance of good substantially boned legs for racing success on the S. Hemisphere's hard dirt tracks interested me - especially since as a Texas breeder all our tracks are a choice of dirt and/or turf - no poly and most are reputedly quite hard and fast (though not so much my home track of Sam Houston).

[louis finochio]

When a breeder plans a mating with 3 crosses of Nasrullah, he is more than likely to breed a tb with high strung nervous temperment. Nasrullah was a high strung Individual. The younger generation of today were not present in Nasrullah's time.