Bad luck name changes? I may be a little stitious...

[atl_hunter]

@SFVine

Just for fun!

Do you believe it is bad luck to change a horse’s name?

Would you avoid changing a horse’s name because you are superstitious?

Do you change it to something that sounds almost the same in hopes that the horse won’t notice because you are a little stitious?

Anyone have any good stories about name changes that ended up being really bad?

Anyone change the name and had the best luck ever for the horse’s career?

I have changed one horse’s name (his name was Geekers when I bought him). It did end up being my worst purchase. I don’t think it’s because I changed his name buuuut… LOL

My old trainer used to rebrand every import that came into her barn as their European names weren’t always as marketable as she’d liked. Most also had their barn names changed.

My trainer before her had two clients who changed their horses names, and it was a disaster for both. One accidentally changed her horse’s from a classical Greek name to a fun, pithy name that she liked. The grooms didn’t like the name - they warned her against it and that it meant “villain” or “desperado,” not a very becoming name for a ladies’ horse. Sure enough, the horse was a completely trainwreck, developed the dirtiest of stops, and had to go.

Another horse came into the barn for a different owner. They gave her a pretty celestial name, and again the grooms said “no,” is it’s a bad name and means “no go” in Spanish. Well, the mare was diagnosed with significant allergies and had to go back to the seller after months of heartache. The grooms told me - never, never change a name unless you understand the meaning!

Now, regarding name changing in general. This January I bought an incredible horse who was imported. When I finally got his passport, I was able to see his real name, which led me to locate his breeder and former trainer, as well as owner of his grandsire on Facebook. They now follow his progress in the US and are extremely proud of his accomplishments and of their accomplishment as a breeder to have a horse in the US. Without his passport, I would have no idea who my horse was, and would have never been able to track down the people who brought him along. So, if you change a name, always be sure to register the alias with the horse’s USEF details in case a future owner is interested in your horse’s past. My horse was rebranded by the agents when he landed in the US and he’s been fine with his new American barn and registered name, which is nothing like his PZHK name, He knows his American name just fine and doesn’t seem to have any trauma from it. But then again, he also had never been exposed to English so everything was foreign to him and I think he’d also respond to “hey, you!” he’s such a cool customer.

[grandprixer]

Never changing a name again lol.

Bought a fancy green warmblood and changed his show name but not his barn name. Since then, he was sound for a year and then, in order, 95% tear medial collateral, 75% tear lateral collateral, torn suspensory, navicular bursitis RF, multiple abscesses, multiple colics, multiple chokes, a close call with founder, EPM, and finally navicular LF.

He’s about to move up to novice though!

[JBCool]

I’m not super 'stitious, but I am a bit leery of that now. The horses I had when I was younger all had registered names, so no I didn’t change them. As an adult owner, I changed two: one I sold before he hurt me and the other I loved dearly, but had to put down after 3.5 years of spending more time on lay-up than riding. My trainer changed my current horse’s name when she tried him for someone else, but I stuck with the name she came up with (what I knew him as). So we say it was bad luck for her of him not working out for the original plan, but good luck for me.

[mollymoon]

What about changing your new horse’s name BACK to a previous name that’s listed as an alias on their registration? Is that bad luck, or is it reversing prior bad luck?

[Fillabeana]

Bought a horse for my husband… probably should have changed his name.

His name was Buck.

Sent him back, as the seller told us we could do so, if for any reason he didn’t work out.

[jvanrens]

@beau159

I changed my horse’s registered name when he was (I think) 4 years old. I purchased him as a 6 month old. I took him to this first barrel race and I could not stand to hear the announcer say his registered name. He’s been a fantastic horse so no bad karma yet! He is 9 this year.

His old registered name was… CK Grey Meatball :no:

Don’t blame you one bit! This coming from someone who showed Otoes Taffy Apple at hunter shows.

[anon40672407]

I seem to have a superstition about buying horses with terrible names.

Yes I change them. All the time. Barn names, too.

[ecileh]

I am a little superstitious and only change names if the one they came with was horrid.

My big mare came to me as Betsy as a 3 yr old. I gave her the show name Take A Chance on Me and the barn name Quincy.

My field hunter came as Fortuna (aka Tunie) at 13. I added Redux to her show name (Fortuna is the Roman goddess of luck and fate and Fortuna Redux was the aspect they prayed to when seeking a safe return from a journey–seemed a good choice for a fox hunter.) I mostly call her Tunes, but she does still go by Tunie.

My husband’s horse came to us as Sally and will remain so. I have been trying to call her Sal, but he corrects me every time. She does have a fancy registered name from someone who bought her as a youngster, had her for 30 days, and sent her back. We will not pay to change it, but will never use it.

[Janet]

I bought a horse whose barn name was Dominique. I could not get the Singing Nun song out of my head, so I changed her name. Her sire’s name was Nocturne, so I changed her name to Night Music (Musc for short). I lost her a few weeks ago at age 34 after a successful career as an eventer, jumper, dressage horse, with a little bit of how hunters, filed hunters, and parade horse thrown in.

I bought a hors with a TFC name “Morning Glory’s Memphis Belle” (barn name Belle). I couldn’t stand EITHER connotation of “Memphis Belle”, so I registered her as “Morning Glory’s Belle Fille”. Her breeder knew about the name change. Barn name did not change, but I did have some problems with announcers who could not figure out how to say “Fille” (“fee”). She is a FANTASTIC jumper, and we have mostly done eventing and jumpers, and still going strong at 24. But she thinks dressage is a form of torture and is NOT a hunter (show or field).

I had a TB named “Spy Illusion” that I showed as “I Spy”. His career was hampered by hip arthritis, but he always tried as hard as he could to do what you were asking.(I lost him last year at the age of 37.)

The others have kept the names they came with.

[Renn_aissance]

@Indy

I’m not one to change barn names, even if it’s a fairly terrible name (I had a pony named Never…it was short for Neverland but she’d been called Never since she was a baby so that was just her name).

I thought about changing my horse’s name to Neverland because he had the sort of personality that made it clear he was never, never going to grow up. My mom looked me in the eye and said “Michael Jackson” and that was the end of that.

The name would have fit, however. He’s now 25 going on 4. He does little shows with my mother and I keep entering him under the name The Patron Saint. That’s not really a change. It’s short for his full name, which is “Tipperary, the Patron Saint of the Guinness, Despoiler of Gardens and Eater of Everything.”

My first horse came with his track name, Intrepid John. That shoe did not fit- “Intrepid” was optimistic. I showed him as Renaissance as he was a very classic-looking make of Thoroughbred horse. His lack of intrepid nature was a problem as a show horse but he was golden out in the field. I took him to some hunter trials under the name H.R.H. The Black Knight. H.R.H. for His Royal Highness, of course, and The Black Knight after Monty Python- “The Black Knight always triumphs!” Bless him, John was about as sound as the Black Knight was, but he got his best ribbons under that name.

[Indy]

@Renn/aissance

I thought about changing my horse’s name to Neverland because he had the sort of personality that made it clear he was never, never going to grow up. My mom looked me in the eye and said “Michael Jackson” and that was the end of that.

The people that bought my Neverland from me changed her name because it was right in the middle of Michael Jackson’s abuse trial and they figured it probably wasn’t the best name for a kids pony…

[MsM]

Not really superstitious about name changes.
I kept the name of my first horse. He soon developed an incurable problem.
Next horse I changed the name. Unregistered, he had a name that I did not like from the riding school I bought him from. He was a bit of a spook and not really suitable for me, but he remained sound and I sold him on.
Next unregistered horse came with a name I didnt like. Since he didnt seem to know it (and was not treated well by previous owner) I changed it. I had him for many years and did everything from low hunters to starting my dressage journey. RIP Tribulation aka Tribble.
Next horse was registered and I also kept his barn name. Fabulous temperament, but terrible luck with soundness, always fighting something. Owned him for nearly 20 years - he was sound, maybe 8 of them. RIP Stevie.
Current horse is registered. Previous owner again, gave him a barn name I did not like. She owned him less than a year and he did not seem to know his barn name so I changed it. He has had an unexpected soundness issue, but is currently sound and I am really enjoying him 3 years in!

[Belmont]

I’m the believer that it’s bad luck. The few I’ve changed have not been good purchases in the end. :lol: I just stick to “nicknames” now, if I don’t like their barn name. All my horses wind up with multiple anyway.