How have you guys tracked down the breeders of your horses? I don’t have my OTTB’s papers… but I know his JC name.
mortly,
Does your OTTB have Good Old Mort somewhere in his pedigree? I’m curiou because of your Chronicle name and also because I leased a Good Old Mort gelding who is now 26 and still showing in the hunters.
I bought a allowance winning mare at Delaware Park that was on her way to New Holland. I got her papers and found the breeder to tell him that she had a good home and that she was going to be a broodmare. He sent me all her paperwork from the day she was born to when he sold her as a 3yrold. He even included her baby pictures they had taken of her and some of her siblings too. I thought that was really nice of him. 
IME, 9 out of 10 care VERY much - so much I’ve even had them eager to take a horse back home after it had fallen through the cracks, somehow ended up off the track, unsound, and on the way to a bad end - when this breeder was contacted, they couldn’t arrange to get it home fast enough, they were so relieved to find it. It was a gelding, only sound for light trail if that in future, so that response really warmed my heart.
Others I’ve (or my friends) have contacted have been so obviously happy to hear that horse is in a new career and doing well.
Opposite extreme, breeder doesn’t want to hear, if you call they think you’re trying to make it their problem - horse is off the track, thus not earning anymore money, & not their problem - they’d rather just not hear how it’s doing and they don’t want to feel obligated to help rehome it, for sure.
But, the good news, in my humble experience at least, the latter are the 1 in 10 breeder, max.
So it’s always worth chasing down that 9 out of 10 breeder, if you ask me! you may relieve some worry at the least, or gain a real new friend & fellow TB lover - and maybe help ensure a horse a forever home if it needs to retire as a pasture ornament someday.
Arcadien,
expecting her first homebred on Derby day 
-don’t worry it will be meticulously tracked and always welcomed back home - in the unlikley event it ever leaves!
I’m so glad I listened to the advice…I did a google search on Marsha Naify (turns out she was his daughter) and discovered that she’s a board member with the California Owners Assn…so I emailed the organization and today I got an email from Marsha Naify!! She was glad to hear about Thunder and although she isn’t familiar with him she’s passing my info along to the old barn manager to see what he knows/remembers.
I was so excited to hear from her.
Linny – do you know anything about Regents Farm?
What about Howard Tesher? Do you think they would have any info about one of their homebreds?
I know Howie Tesher. He’s in Fla right now. I see him alot over the summer at Saratoga.
Anyone know anyone at Hidden Point Farm in Ocala? My boy was bred and sold from there 5 yrs ago and I’d love to get some background on him…
I always attempt to make contact w/ the breeder. The worst they can do is blow you off/not remember, in which case hey, at least you tried! And sometimes, as FW said, it can lead to lifelong friendships.
Avery’s story is very sad. He was bred by a small-timer in South Dakota (of all the bizarre places). His sire & dam were both up in their 20s when he was foaled. I wrote to the breeder & sent a pic; the letter came back redirected to a nursing home. I promptly sent it there, and it came back marked “Deceased”. 
Found out later thru much netsurfing that the farm had been sold for a subdivision.
From this, I surmise that Avery must have been among the very last crop this guy bred, from his much-loffed elderly mare.
I wish the marvelous old gent in South Dakota with the keen eye for European pedigrees (see: Hedgehunter) could have seen pics of the Avemaster in his forever home and been assured that someone out here in the sport horse world truly appreciated and admired his breeding program. I often think of the fun conversations we might have had. And every single night when I hand graze the Old Professor and marvel at that classic, European conformation, I say a prayer of thanks to that elderly breeder, I swear I do.
Albert Fried/Buttonwood Farm (New York)
Albert Fried was the owner/breeder on my horse during his racing days. His JC name is “Al’s Rose”-- I have always facied that he was a special one, given the name. If anyone knows anything about Mr. Fried or Buttonwood, please let me know. I’ve often wondered if he wonders where his homebreds end up (mine raced until the age of six, and is now fifteen).
LML
I’ve always wanted to contact my TBs breeder. His pedigree shows that he was bred in KY by Mr. & Mrs. Paul J. Becker Jr.
I just did a switchboard.com search and found a Paul J Becker in KY. I’m wondering if it’s him.
Does the name sound familiar to anyone?
re Hidden Point Farm
HHMMM…
http://www.ocala.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060228/NEWS/202280345&SearchID=73238471445953_
Hmmmmmmmm indeed. Certainly makes the eyebrows raise.
Da**it.
I cant find where I read the rest of the charming comments over the last few days.
Lets just say ,not the kind of “press”,that Ocala likes.
No wonder “Canter” just cant seem to get started here in Florida.
I wish I could find the ppl who bred my little (BIG) guy. I would have no clue where to even look. He was not raced or anything (6months old when we got him)
Thats what im hoping…
My horse was bred by a Mrs. Harold Cole of KY. Anyone know any contact information for her?
I’ve worked for Mr. Fried for almost ten years now and have been his assistant farm manager for about eight months. I think Al’s Rose may have been claimed away from us during my first year, so I didn’t really have any hands on experience. Current farm manager Jenny Carpenter did the breaking in and early work on Al’s Rose and she remembers him as being somewhat hyper, but a good horse to ride when he got down to business. His biggest vice she recalled was his occasional habit of jamming on the brakes and dropping her (or whoever was riding.)
We still have win photos of Al’s Rose, as well as his dam Rosie’s Way, who Mr. Fried also campaigned. We do try to ensure that no horse leaves us with an uncertain future. For those we don’t keep for breeding purposes, we usually donate them to one of the SUNY brances which has an equine science/equestrian program. There the mares are usually leased out or bred in foal sharing plans and the colts/geldings are retrained for other disciplines. In fact, the SUNY branch is campaigning Carson Guy, one of our former runners.
Affirmed Success, our big horse for many years, resides now at the Kentucky Horse Park. Our previous “big horse,” twenty-three year old Tinchen’s Prince, still resides here. He won $953,462 the hard way in 95 races with 14 wins, 21 seconds, and 21 thirds.
May I ask though, what is Al’s Rose up to now?
I wrote my horse’s stud farm - to ask for a picture of his sire - Honor and Glory - never received anything, not even acknowledgement that I requested a photo and I offered to pay…so there ya go…
But on the upside - I correspond with Honor’s previous owner and send pictures though he isn’t the breeder, he was the longtime owner and is concerned that Honor is doing well. I got Honor through New Vocations and I must say that those people are really nice, the horse was exactly as represented and he arrived here in good condition. I will get another horse from them in the future if I find myself in need of a good horse - Honor is the first racehorse I have owned that had zero vices - no crib/weave/stall walking, and today stood for the vet like a champ even though he was hurting due to an abscess. He was a bit snorty but never flinched. He had heart but I would have liked to have seen more of his dam, I’ve never been able to find a picture of her!
I think sometimes the smaller breeders are more responsive while the big “corporate” farms look at it as a business. Now if I were asking to breed to Honor and Glory, bet I would have gotten some sort of response…put me off them entirely cause who knows…I could have been an heiress with money to burn…
I have 3 off trackers - Honor is the only one I tried to contact his breeders about and got nowhere. The other two I didn’t even try with, I am just glad I own them and am proud of them.
On the Farm…
You have a PM!
In an ideal situation, this is the kind of response an inquiry gets us…what a complete and amazing surprise! Absolutely made my night!
LML
As a side note, Sidepasser…
If you contacted the farm that stands the stallion, they may well have had nothing more to do with your horse than service the dam. Honour and Glory is at Coolmore, which is VERY commercial. They breed their stallions to as many as 120 mares a season. If your horse’s dam was not boarded there, she was probably on the grounds for about 1 hour. The farm would likely know nothing of your horse.
If you contact the actual breeder (owner of the mare at birth) you might get more satisfaction. Sometimes the owners of a big operation are not hands on horsemen, but when you get ahold of one of the handlers who raised your horse or broke him, THEN you get the big response.
