FEI Name change charges

[vineyridge]

They will now charge 1k (not sure if it’s dollars, Swiss francs, or euros) to change a horse’s name from that on the original birth registration. Commercial prefixes like RF, Cooley and Fernhill will cost to be added. Non Commercial prefixes, like FRH, TSF, etc. are free. Breeders’ prefixes are free, but I’m not sure if that’s because they are part of the first registration.

One assumes that commercial sponsor name additions will also cost 1k.

I’m going on very little information here, but I do think it’s interesting that the FEI is trying to crack down on name changes for advertising purposes.

[Quixotic]

It is not for advertising purposes.
It is to keep the sport transparent and to protect breeders and owners.

[vineyridge]

Let me put it this way. The addition of sponsor or procurer names like Eurocommerce or RF are to advertise a business.

[nutmeg]

I could be wrong but I remember that the Belgians got a head start on this proposal last year by forbidding name changes here on in on any Belgian-bred horse registered for sport. And some of those are the longest monikers out there. So if you get hand cramps filling out your entries, don’t be buying Hekkensluiter van de Viezen Muisjeluizenhoeve. They won’t let you call him Henk any more.

[EventerAJ]

It also will make it tougher to keep up with TBs’ registered names.

I just went through the passport process for my horse. His JC registered name is San Silvestro, but since he left the track, he has been shown as “All Aboard.” That is the only name he’s had since he was registered with USEA and USEF. His whole show record for 4 years is tied to All Aboard. When I applied for a passport, I dutifully listed “San Silvestro” as his breed registry name, with his sire/dam info, and “All Aboard” as his real name.

I got an email back from the USEF asking me to pay $1000 for my horse’s passport to say “All Aboard”. It would be no charge to register him as San Silvestro. Are you kidding me? I could understand if he had a show record as San Silvestro…but his entire eventing career has only been All Aboard. This was only happening because I filled out his breeding info on the passport. If I register him as “grade” or unknown breeding, I can call him whatever I want.

This is a gelding. While I am PROUD of his pedigree and want his bloodlines to get credit for his success, I’m not paying $1000 for that. This horse was bred to race; his breeders don’t care a bit what his name is, he isn’t a racehorse anymore. (They didn’t name him to begin with, he was sold as a yearling.) I told the USEF to scratch out his breed registered name and if they could still call him a TB, great, otherwise, I don’t care. I’m not paying $1000 to perform an unnecessary name change. Thankfully, USEF was helpful and my horse’s passport says pretty much what I want it to: All Aboard, sired by Silver Train out of Melina’s Fuse, by Lite the Fuse.

I understand the fee for sport-bred horses. It would benefit sport breeders for the horse to keep its original prefix. But in the case of OTTBs, I think it will just further separate them from their actual pedigree. All FEI horses are microchipped now, anyway, so there’s no risk of name changing to create a whole new identity.

[buschkn]

How would it make it difficult to track OTTBs? The rule is the same for ALL breeds. The horse must be listed as its registered name. This allows the TBs to be traced as well. You dutifully entered your horses pedigree information but most do not. They’d say All Aboard, TB, and leave it at that. As San Silvestro (which is one of the nicer TB names, lucky you!) his pedigree can be easily tracked. I think the fee is excessive but the concept is decent.

[EventerAJ]

[QUOTE=buschkn;8562154]
How would it make it difficult to track OTTBs? The rule is the same for ALL breeds. The horse must be listed as its registered name. This allows the TBs to be traced as well. You dutifully entered your horses pedigree information but most do not. They’d say All Aboard, TB, and leave it at that. As San Silvestro (which is one of the nicer TB names, lucky you!) his pedigree can be easily tracked. I think the fee is excessive but the concept is decent.[/QUOTE]
TBs will only be traced if their owner identifies them as such; and with the $1000 penalty, that’s a pretty strong discouragement.

My point is, I did not pay the $1000 fee and I’m guessing MANY OTTB owners will do the same. Our horses’ racing names will not be linked whatsoever to their show names, because most people, including me, feel that it’s not worth $1000 for the general public to know the (unsuccessful) racing name of a gelding. Pay $50? Sure, maybe I’d do that. But not $1000.

Maybe, for my future OTTBs, I will be more inclined to keep the registered name. But, then again (Mr Naughtypants? Rich And Creamy?), maybe not. I think most sport horse people subscribe to a slightly different naming protocol than some race horse owners.

[Outyougo]

Odd how quickly this will turn a OTTB into a TBx!

[FLeventer]

Im not paying $1000 to register my horses real name with the FEI. Her race name is horrid and she has never used it during competition. I will not pay $1000. It stinks that her race name cant be on her passport. Thanks again FEI.

[Equilibrium]

My home bred fell foul of this rule this year when they registered him with the FEI. I sold him as a foal without a name because at the time only foals with a prefix could be registered with the IHB. Then at 2 you could name without a prefix. I don’t have a prefix as it’s pointless being such a small breeder. At any rate the people who bought him used their prefix and combined part of my last name and the sire’s name to form the name part. This never bothered me. They didn’t change anything and it was his original name. Still, FEI is firm. No prefix unless from breeder. I get it as I’m firmly in the camp of not changing names but this is different.

Terri

[RyTimMick]

[QUOTE=FLeventer;8562738]
Im not paying $1000 to register my horses real name with the FEI. Her race name is horrid and she has never used it during competition. I will not pay $1000. It stinks that her race name cant be on her passport. Thanks again FEI.[/QUOTE]

You have this backwards. You only pay $1000 if you want to used a name different then her original TB registered name. The FEI passport and the Registration paperwork must match, or pay $1000.

Tim

[Lingkra]

What happens when your unsuccessful TB gelding goes on to be a world champion? And breeders want to have a look at his pedigree to see if his breeding is anything they can tap into or duplicate? The spread of correct information stimulates progress.

After a successful/semi successful/unsuccessful show career many unnamed TB mares or stallions go one to be bred. You never know when one day you may be in the position to retire your horse and look for a breeding home. Please keep the name, and the papers! The pedigree is just as important as the show record.

[RyTimMick]

It actually drives me up a wall to listen to people complain about having to use the “Original Name” from the breeder. Its about time riders paid homage to the breeder. I am sorry for those that have shown extensively under a different name, but you shouldn’t have changed the name in the first place. If you are concerned about recognition under a different name, then make sure when you place you remind the interviewer who your horse was previously known as. If you don’t place, it really won’t matter.

Tim

[EventerAJ]

Except in the TB world, the breeder usually doesn’t name the horse. The racing owner does. If the breeder wants to track progeny, you look up the horse by dam name and year of birth. Commercial TB breeders by and large don’t name their stock. That is the privilege of whomever competes it…
The jockey club allows name changes for a reasonable fee up until the horse starts racing.

I think that’s a fair way for the FEI to do it. If the horse has no competition record it should not be heavily penalized for changing the name.

[FLeventer]

[QUOTE=RyTimMick;8563556]
You have this backwards. You only pay $1000 if you want to used a name different then her original TB registered name. The FEI passport and the Registration paperwork must match, or pay $1000.

Tim[/QUOTE]

Her event name is different from her race name, which I stated in my post. Her race name is ridiculous.

Her race name: Xtralicous
Her event name: Kat Kall

I would have loved to have her registered name on the passport as was done with my other event horse on his passport.

His race name was Smokey Boy and his USEA/FEI/USEF was Gandalf (Not my choice to change that name). His lineage and race name was recorded on his passport. No cost, no fee. Same thing with my horse Dash and Roger when they got their FEI passports.

I am proud of my TB horses. I am happy to record their bloodlines, but I am not paying that stupid fee to the FEI to have the competition names they show under on their passport.

[furlong47]

IMO names are such a personal thing. Some people prefer classy ones, some like a play on words, some like humor, some like one word and some use long phrases, some like or hate horses having human names (and some of this may depend on discipline - the types of names you see on a dressage horse vs an eventer may be very different). I understand respecting the breeder, but I’ve seen some names that are just downright horrible in my opinion, and even ones that I would consider embarrassing. To the point that I don’t think I would buy the horse if I had to refer to it by that name.

In this era of things like microchipping, it should be easy to follow one animal based on that number no matter what it is called. Put additional fields in the record. List the birth/registered name, sire/dam, breeder and the current show name. If necessary, keep a list there of every show name the horse ever went by. There’s nothing about that sort of recordkeeping that should cost $1K per record in effort or infrastructure.

[buschkn]

[QUOTE=RyTimMick;8563556]
You have this backwards. You only pay $1000 if you want to used a name different then her original TB registered name. The FEI passport and the Registration paperwork must match, or pay $1000.

Tim[/QUOTE]

I get it now. So anyone with a registered horse in the U.S., including OTTBs, that the owner doesn’t like the original name, will now become ‘grade’ or unregistered TB, or TBx. That’s a real shame. I don’t change their names no matter how bad. If I did I would change it with the registry and make it official.

[pcwertb]

Even if you change the name officially with the registry, I think you will run into the FEI issues for passports.

[buschkn]

I don’t think so because it will be the horses registered name. But maybe not.

[pcwertb]

Not so sure about that:

HORSE NAME CHANGES GUIDELINEs
Definitions
Horse Birth Name:

1. The name of the horse in the document issued at horse birth
2. If (1.) is not applicable, the name of the horse in the first birth studbook document.
3. If the horse is not affiliated with any studbook, the name of the horse is based on
   the name written in the first document issued (either national passport / first
   original document, or FEI recognised document or FEI Passport).
   The Horse Birth Name must remain the same for the entire life of the horse in the
   FEI Database and/or FEI Document.
   Horse Name Change: Any modification/change to the current name of the horse
   or the creation of a different current name than the Horse Birth Name.
   Documents uploaded to the FEI Database will be used for verification. In the case
   that there is no document available for a horse, the National Federation will have
   to upload a copy of the document as listed above under Horse Birth Name.