Cross Breeds

Is it true that thoroughbred race horses may not be bred via artificial insemination? Why is that?

Public Comments

1. Yes, that is true. I heard it was because of demand of specific racehorses. For example, if AI was available, everyone would want to breed their mare to a horse such as Secretariat (or for a more recent example, maybe Curlin or Smarty Jones), to try to create a great racehorse. Problem with this is, with these sires in such high demand and anyone able to purchase semen from them, the genes of these horses would be all over the place. With AI, you're not sure what horse the semen is going to be used for. It could be used for someone's champion race-mare, or it could be used for some old nag sitting in someone's backyard because they want a foal from a famous horse. In the case of racehorses, breeding a stallion to so many mares with AI will obviously create a lot of horses with the given sire in its pedigree. The accessibility of the AI would lead to overbreeding and inbreeding of the Thoroughbred breed. Refusing AI in the Thoroughbred racing industry assures the stud owners that the mare that is being covered is a purebred and up to any standards the stud farm may set on mare quality. It also cuts down on the amount of overbreeding/inbreeding of a particular stallion.
2. "A" got the right answer, but gave the wrong rational. It is true that Thoroughbred racehorses may not be bred using artificial insemination. The specific rule governing this is Registry Rule 1.d., as follows: http://www.jockeyclub.com/registry.asp?section=3#one "D. To be eligible for registration, a foal must be the result of a stallion’s Breeding with a broodmare (which is the physical mounting of a broodmare by a stallion with intromission of the penis and ejaculation of semen into the reproductive tract). As an aid to the Breeding, a portion of the ejaculate produced by the stallion during such mating may immediately be placed in the uterus of the broodmare being bred. A natural gestation must take place in, and delivery must be from, the body of the same broodmare in which the foal was conceived. Without limiting the above, any foal resulting from or produced by the processes of Artificial Insemination, Embryo Transfer or Transplant, Cloning or any other form of genetic manipulation not herein specified, shall not be eligible for registration. " "A" states in his/her answer: "...With AI, you're not sure what horse the semen is going to be used for. It could be used for someone's champion race-mare, or it could be used for some old nag sitting in someone's backyard because they want a foal from a famous horse...." Not true. And shows "A" is unfamiliar with both the rules governing registration of Thoroughbreds and the procedures involved. In the same rulebook that prohibits use of AI, you find rule 1.b.: "B. Foals must be genetically typed and qualified by parentage verification by a laboratory approved and authorized by The Jockey Club. " IOW, it's impossible to pull off the kind of fraud "A" hypothesizes. Every single Thoroughbred that is used for breeding purposes has been DNA-typed: part of the registration process for foals involves submission of a DNA sample, which is then typed against the reported parents. If there is a mismatch, if it is apparent that the parentage submitted is not possible, given the DNA of the parents involved, the registration is kicked back and an investigation is started. (This is also true if the reported foaling date and reported breeding date compute a gestation that is outside the norm for horses, or if the foal's color is not possible, given the genetics involved: e.g., chestnut x chestnut must result in chestnut, and a grey foal must have one or both parents grey.) Fraud, thus, is not an issue. "A's" other comment, about the overuse of a specific stallion, has some merit; but it is possible to prevent this by creating a rule limiting a stallion to no more than a certain number of offspring. FWIW, two of the other registries that involve racehorses permit AI and haven't reported any of the problems frequently cited as reasons for not allowing AI. Virtually all Standardbreds are produced using AI nowadays, and Quarter Horses also allow the use of AI. Given that those registries use the technology, and haven't experienced the problems that people cite as reasons for not doing AI, I think the conclusion is inescapable that the reasons for not using AI for Thoroughbreds are economic and political, not technological or practical.