Rachel Alexandra

[Affirmed1]

I was reading the comments following a Bloodhorse article, and several of the posters mentioned that Rachel Alexandra may never be bred again. Can anyone tell me why?

[Mahubah]

She suffered serious internal injuries while foaling her 2013 filly by Bernardini (http://www.americanclassicpedigrees.com/rachel-alexandra.html).

[Affirmed1]

Thanks for responding, Mahubah. Very tragic, had not heard this.

[Mahubah]

I hope she can produce another foal, but things aren't looking good.

[madelyn]

This is So Tragic - not just for Rachel and her connections, but for racing. There are an awful lot of Rachel fans out there would would be rooting for her offspring..

[Patuxet]

Does her condition actually preclude her being bred or is the danger merely in the physical foaling process? If she can be naturally bred why can't the fertilized embryos she produces be harvested and frozen or transplanted into host mares, thus preserving her genetic abilities for later generations? If the jockey club rules outlaws such a procedure then the rules could/should be modified to allow for superior exceptions and scientific advances.

[madelyn]

That is a long controversy that has been argued for decades. Our society does not allow for exceptions so if you allow embryo transplant for Rachel Alexandra, you allow it for all Thoroughbreds and then, not to discriminate sexually, you then allow artificial insemination for all Thoroughbred stallions. If you wrote the law any other way, lawsuits would crop up claiming trade restrictions, discrimination, etc. and the lawyers would prevail. It is a TRUE example of Pandora's box.

[Heidilady]

Does her condition actually preclude her being bred or is the danger merely in the physical foaling process? If she can be naturally bred why can't the fertilized embryos she produces be harvested and frozen or transplanted into host mares, thus preserving her genetic abilities for later generations? If the jockey club rules outlaws such a procedure then the rules could/should be modified to allow for superior exceptions and scientific advances.

She seems to be able to carry the foal fine. The problem comes when she goes to give birth because she's producing ginormous babies for what she's probably meant to carry based on her physical makeup. The filly was huge. There's always c-section but the thing is you can't just schedule one of those. The odds of the baby making it basically mean you gotta time it right when she's about to foal. There's still danger there. They might not wanna put her through that, but other mares have done this as a matter of routine in fact, not just due to emergency foaling complications. There was some mare of a recent well-known horse that I remember always has to have c-sections because she'd had a pelvic injury back in the day. I'm blanking on whom, but I remember she does. It's not that far-fetched. Barbara Banke might be terrified of our reaction as a fandom to losing her if they took the risk. It's not just a fan favorite we're talking about here. It's Rachel. The criticism would be an avalanche from Mt. Everest.

There's no point in saving her embryos and I dunno that I'd want to do the IVF route for TBs. Samantha Nicole is around as is Lotta Kim as is Rachel's filly so that'll have to do. Bayakoa didn't have that many foals and neither did the great Colin but they ended up having an impact. Of course Rachel could end up being another Genuine Risk as a broodmare and maybe isn't meant to throw a bunch of talented youngsters. Could be another cause for not breeding her again, the fact that even if they do it might not pass on genes that they thought they'd want. I read a commenter's remark the other day that her filly's front legs were short. Not sure how they know but if the babies aren't super correct it might give pause. Of course Bayakoa's babies had crooked legs if memory serves. It can ultimately work itself out for the better sometimes.

[madelyn]

I believe Toussaud had serious problems and had to be carefully managed and her foals were all raised by nurse mares?

[Cree]

Toussaud had laminitis, so was not physically well enough to care for her foals. She also had colicked.

Why don't they breed Rachel to a small sire that produces smaller foals? I'm sure they've thought of that. She's better off not breeding, why put her in danger? She's certainly done enough.

[madelyn]

Hm. English Channel?

[francesca]

Don't forget she has a full sister, Samantha Nicole, who is currently racing. Barbara Banke bought her while Rachel was still racing.