The Making of a Champion Thoroughbred: A Race Horse Owner’s Blog - Entry 8

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vaguy1

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Iliamna Fun

Which racetrack is the top racing facility in the United States?

Santa Anita by far - it has all the components from beauty to history and racing schedule to make it the number one choice

27%

Gulfstream Park - with its new renovations and fantastic racing schedule, Gulfstream Park gets my vote.

15%

Churchill Downs - simply because it's the home of the Kentucky Derby.

21%

Saratoga Racetrack - a spectacular summer meet that highlights history while featuring top competitive thoroughbreds.

22%

None of these racetracks qualify as America's premier racing facility.

16%

Total votes: 475

How much for that Horsey in the Window

The question I get asked most frequently is how much does it cost to train a horse? So I will attempt to shed some light on the costs I have experienced in New Jersey.

I pulled a bill from last year when Beacon was in full training and even ran 1 race.

Training Fees:
$55 (the day rate is $65 this year): $1950
Blacksmith:
$110
Miscellaneous:
Aloe Vera $20
Succeed: $120 (i dont remember what this is?)
Pony to Post: $25 (cost to have a horse ponied to the starting gate)
Shipping: $0
Worming $0
Body Builder (muscle supplement): $90

So our bill from the trainer was $2315

This does not include bills from our Vet. Unfortunately our horse ripped a shoe and part of his foot off in this race and the vet was called in…I can’t seem to find the bill but I do remember it being another $500 or so in the next couple weeks.

We also have routine Vet bills for a variety of shots and treatments which can range from $20 to $200 when administered. We also have a vet Chiropractor come to examine our horses before each race which can cost $200 (coupled with acupuncture another $100 on top)

I tell people a healthy horse is going to cost around $2400-$2800 a month to keep in training. But that number can vary greatly based on a trainer’s day rate some of the top trainers in NJ charge $85 per day. A day rate includes all normal food, a stall, bedding, training and grooming.

Another cost is shipping. You can’t seem to ship anywhere (other race tracks) for less than $300 anymore. Also worming can be $10 per month, but that seems to be a charge we only get on the farm.

The key to making money or even breaking even is just getting your horse to the track. If they run and are put in the right spots they can earn a check, one Maiden Special Weight win for a Jersey Bred in a restricted races $27600 take out 20% to pay jockey and trainer for their share you have a good chunk of change. Quite often we are also the breeder of record on our horses so we get another $5000 on top of that. So a horse that is constantly injured sucks all the money while a horse running and placing in the top can bring home to big money. YOU NEED PARTNERS!

I should add laying our horse off at the farm (not in training) lowers monthly costs to $20- $30 a day or $600-$900 per month.

I hope this helps, any questions let me know.

dedewhale

Your blogs are always interesting and informative! The training fees in NJ sound very reasonable, though I don't have much experience with the cost of Thoroughbred training.
The stable I rode hunter/jumpers offered breaking/training of young horses. The cost of board and 4 days a week work was $725 per month, including the cost of grain, hay, supplements, etc... It was quite reasonable.
-Aubrie

Though she be but little, she is fierce.

Very interesting. Four or Five partners would make the cost very reasonable. We have quite a few partnership groups out west that allow new people to join and get in where they feel comfortable. Your blog has gave me great insight into what that would be like.

Does your group look into claimers or purchasing a horses privately? Or do you just focus on breeding your own and two year olds in training.

~~~~~~~~
May they all come home safely!!!

we have traditonally been a breed to race partnership but actually this year we are doing things alittle different to attract partners. For many buying into a 2 year old just is not enough action right away so we decided to privately purchase an older horse who can run right away and give us action and maybe pay some bills too. We have put that horse together with a 2 year old.

I cant say the name of the horse yet, until he is in transit to us, but he was running in stakes action in Southern Cal but recently dropped to claiming company. He is a J bred and hope that coming back here he will be stakes company again against some lesser jersey competitiion. It certainly has increase traffic because we have a lot of old partners and new inquiring about joining.

But yes a few partners is the way to go, spreads risk and give you a lot more options

That's exactly what I was thinking. It makes sense to grab a decent horse here in So Cal and take it back to Jersey. There was big deal made about California recently changing the rules. It used to be you couldn't claim a horse at the end of a meet and leave town with them. I believe there was a waiting time of 60 days or something. Now you can come in and claim them and leave the state with them. At the end of the meet you see a lot of horse being dropped to get a win and some great deals can be found.

Good Luck with the recent purchase. You never know what you have with the change in scenery. Maybe you have a Lava Man or Charismatic, both decent former claimers. One thing about this game, with a little luck you can shoot to the top.

I'm waiting for Mike to put partial ownership of a real horse in the shop. That would be something! I'll same my community points just in case ;)

Thanks for the Blog

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May they all come home safely!!!

yes most if not all states have claiming "jail " rules. In NJ you cant take a horse off grounds until after the meet is done. we actually private purchased the horse, so no such rules apply....just the cost of shipping cross country