Ownership and Breeding

Ownership and Breeding

BECOMING AN OWNER

The first thing a prospective new owner must do is get a Gaming Policy Enforcement Branch (GPEB) owners license. GPEB is the provincial regulating body in horse racing and everyone participating grooms, trainers, owners, jockeys etc. must be licensed.

There are three ways you can purchase a thoroughbred to race at Hastings Racecourse.

1. The easiest and quickest is to claim a horse out of a claiming race. There are numerous claiming categories from $4,000 all the way up to $50,000 and horses participating in those races are eligible to be purchased 15 minutes prior to the race. The claiming slips are available in the bookkeepers office. The successful buyer gains ownership of the claimed horse after the race and usually run their horse back in a race within two to three weeks. There have been many success stories where a horse is bought for $5,000 and goes up the claiming ladder.

2. Another popular way to buy a horse is at the CTHS yearling sale. These yearlings are the stars of tomorrow and have never raced before. It is recommended that any prospective buyer will need a trainer/agent to help select a yearling from the sale. They are essential in handing the necessary combination of pedigree and conformation of each horse. These horses have untapped potential, but there is also a higher risk with them in addition to higher costs. Horses do not race until they are two years of age so there are boarding costs, breaking and training fees before the foal gets to the races.

3. The final way to buy a thoroughbred is via private sale. This would be the most expensive route but the buyer is getting a ready-made horse that can usually race immediately.

OWNERSHIP

One can have sole ownership taking on all the risk and hopefully all of the profits. Partnerships are quite common at Hastings where two or more friends get together to own a horse and finally syndicates where a big group team up and pool their money to get involved in this exciting sport. The risk is lower but the fun is high for many and it is a great introduction into racing for owners that may eventually want to branch out on their own after getting a feel for everything owning a horse in a syndicate.

RACING

Now you have your owners license, secured a trainer and purchased a horse, it is time for the fun to start at the races. Being an owner gets you backstretch privileges to see your horse, free parking and programs. More owner benefits can be found at


It pays to own a British Columbia bred as there are numerous restricted races for B.C. breds only and also on selected races a 25% bonus on top of the original purse money for every owner. Horses ideally will race twice a month.

At tax time, owners are reminded that they can deduct the first $2,500 loss against income and if over $2,500 a portion thereafter.

HOW TO BE A BREEDER OF A THOROUGHBRED RACEHORSE

There are two different types of breeding operations, the MARKET breeders are those who strictly breed to sell their off spring at the CTHS yearling sale each year and the RACING breeders who breed to race at Hastings Racecourse.

SELECTING A STALLION

There are a number of exciting stallions in British Columbia and the prices to breed to each stallion vary and are negotiable. The Stallion Edition is published annually by the CTHS and promotes some of the prominent stallions standing in the province.
Stallion Listing

SELECTING A BROODMARE

Many mares are purchased for breeding after their racing careers come to end. The prices vary but most local non-breeding owners will either give a mare away or sell for under $5,000 depending on the pedigree after their racing days are nished.

Broodmares are available in mixed sales throughout North America. The states of Kentucky and Florida have always been the most popular places to purchase a broodmare and most are already in foal. There are many websites (True-Nicks, Jack Werk, Brisnet etc.) that offer what is termed "nicking" which gives the breeder the best hypothetical match with the best stallion family lines.

Prior to purchasing, one should contact the Canadian Thoroughbred Horse Society to determine if there are any broodmare incentive and rebates set in place for those who purchase a broodmare in the US and foal out in British Columbia.
Incentive Programs Info

B.C. BREEDERS INCENTIVES

The Canadian Thoroughbred Horse Society (CTHS) offers all B.C. breeders Broodmare and Stallion bonuses to those who qualify. Those payments are made once a year, in January. The payment is on a percentage basis e.g. if a horse earned $20,000 and the percentage was 15% for that year then the breeder would receive a cheque for $3,300 for the Broodmare award bonus.  (16.5% was percentage paid in 2019; the guaranteed percentage is 15%). Historically over three-quarters of a million dollars have been distributed to the breeders and stallion owners annually.  Click below for more information on the Breeders Award Program (BAP) and incentives to breeders.
Breeders Award Program Info

CTHS MEMBERSHIP

The Canadian Thoroughbred Horse Society is involved in all aspects of the breeding industry. They conduct the annual horse sale and provide statistics for all horses bred in British Columbia. They can assist with information regarding the registering of live foals and naming of your foal and provide help with early nominations for stakes races, which are usually due on one specific date in the spring. The annual membership dues are $50 (plus taxes) for an associate member (if you are not registering a foal) and $125 (plus taxes) for full membership (needed if you are registering a foal). Members are also entitled to membership benefits.
Membership Info
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