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Lexington, Ky - Although attendees of this year’s Keeneland January Horses of All Ages Sale are still waiting for the stork to visit the sale grounds, it’s not unusual for one or two foals to be born to mares waiting to sell.
Thoroughbred breeding sheds open on February 15, and with the average equine gestation of 11 months and two weeks, foals can arrive as early as the first few weeks in January. Many mares, like women, don’t adhere to the average gestation of course, and since breeding sheds stay open as late as June or July, most foals aren’t due until later in the year. When 1,893 horses are in the catalogue however, it’s always possible that consignors could find a surprise in a stall in the morning.
“People know these mares so well [and know when they usually foal], but when you get them out here in a different environment, all bets are off,” said Laurie Metcalfe, DVM of Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital. “They’re not going to follow the same game plan that they would in their barns at home.”
Many mares seem to have some degree of control over when they deliver, Metcalfe says, and most will not choose to do so in a strange, noisy place such as a sale barn. Foaling at home is preferable, since biosecurity is difficult to control in an environment where many horses are shipping in and out and walking through the same areas, potentially exposing little ones to more pathogens than they would normally encounter at home.
Consignors are prepared with foaling kits for their night watchmen and women (sale barns are typically monitored 24 hours a day, regardless of whether foaling mares are in the consignment). They’re also prepared to keep the new babies warm.
“We have a blanket pre-made that will fit a little foal for when they come up,” said Mark Taylor, vice president of marketing and public sales operations at Taylor Made Sales Agency. “We’ve got one that says ‘It’s a colt!’ and one that says ‘It’s a filly!’”
Since foals are part of the package being offered for sale with their dams, whether they’ve been born yet or not, newborns must be visible for inspection by buyers.
“I think in the January sale two years ago we had one, and we had a big snow,” said Taylor. “I remember we had the little baby out there running in the snow around the barn, it was pretty cool.”
Metcalfe says that having a foal already on the ground is sometimes a selling advantage.
“For the buyer, what you see is what you get,” she said. “You don’t have to worry about the trauma of childbirth, and everything that can go wrong … you’ve got a lot of advantages when you can see the foal that you’re buying.”
As long as the foals are born healthy and are not premature, Metcalfe says, this isn’t likely to cause problems. As prey animals, newborns are usually up and walking within a few hours of birth. If they are in some way compromised from birth however, they need careful handling. Premature babies sometimes need stall rest to prevent knee and hock damage if their joints are not fully solidified yet.
“You still do everything the same—you check the mare’s milk and the foal’s bloodwork … knock on wood, everybody that I’ve ever looked at here through the years has been perfectly fine.”
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The sale’s third session finished with massive gains over last year’s third day, with the median soaring by 73.3 percent to reach $13,000 and the average jumping 34.9 percent to $21,823. Total sales for the day were also up 16.4 percent from 2012’s third day to $4,953,900. Horses not meeting reserve increased again however by 27.3 percent, continuing the trend from Monday.
Wednesday’s session brought cumulative total sales receipts past those of the entire 2012 sale. Cumulative 2013 total sales come to $40,299,000, as compared to last year’s auction total of $37,991,900.
The session topper, raking in $350,000, was Hip 1065, a yearling colt by famed sire Medaglia d’Oro out of Carson City mare Bohemian Lady. The colt’s dam is a half sister to classic winner and sire Any Given Saturday. He sold from the consignment of Three Chimneys Sales to Ben Glass, acting as agent for Gary and Mary West.
“I loved the colt, I love Medaglia d’Oro; he’s a great sire,” said Glass. “I didn’t want to have to try to buy him as a yearling [later in the year]; better to buy him now and try to get it done.”
Of the market at large, Glass said, “When they lead something in there that’s good, the money’s still there. It’s unbelievable. There’s a few that went in there I think that went way over what I thought they were worth … the money’s here, right across the board.”