Changing methods for preparing NH store horses

THE French system of early racing experience is certainly popular with trainers, who are trying to satisfy the demands of impatient owners who want to go straight from the sales to the racecourse. It’s also a system that benefits its young NH horses, who have a programme in place allowing them to develop and gain experience on the track. The fact that we are talking about AQPS horses, literally ‘other than thoroughbred,’ must also have some bearing on the debate. The AQPS racing breed developed in the late 1800s when cart horse mares were crossed with thoroughbred stallions to produce a fast and hardy horse, now recognised for its qualities as a steeplechaser. AQPS horses today average 80% thoroughbred and 20% French saddlebred and are therefore all but indistinguishable from our own thoroughbreds. They do, however, possess that extra toughness that has been imparted from out-breeding. With almost 1,100 foals born each year, AQPS horses have figured in all the top races and include among their distinguished numbers Nupsala, Al Capone II, The Fellow, Sprinter Sacre, Quevega, Une Artiste, Sir Des Champs, Silviniaco Conti, and the Grand National winners Mon Mome and Neptune Collonges. The fundamental difference between the NH breeders of France, Ireland, and Britain is that the former of the three enjoy the advantage of breeding to race, rather than for the sales ring. A breeding programme is in place to produce horses with the ultimate goal of a win at Auteuil and their subsequent sale at a six-figure sum. As a consequence, a carefully structured AQPS race programme exists, with all roads leading to Auteuil. The structure sees the three-year-olds begin on the Flat over 2200m-2700m in July, progressing to 3000m in November. Switching to hurdles at four, they begin at 3500m-3800m in July, increasing to up to 4000m in August and 4200m in September, culminating in lucrative opportunities at Auteuil. While British and Irish breeders are at the mercy of the vagaries of fashion in the sales ring, AQPS breeders can afford to be more selective in their choice of stallion, and their choice, for commercially-minded breeders, often seems like financial suicide, with the preference being for sires who have won over at least 2000m and raced up to the age of five or six. Many popular French NH sires wer even winners over hurdles themselves. Stamina and stoutness might not be what buyers want at the stores sales, but prove their worth on the racecourse. With such a huge disparity in both the breeding and racing programmes of NH thoroughbreds and those of the AQPS, adopting the successful policy of one will not necessarily benefit the other. And yet as long ago as 2009, when breeders in Britain and Ireland became increasingly concerned at the level of competition from French NH horses, the respective breeders’ associations advised breeders and consignors of NH store horses to have their horses broken for the sales, supposedly a clear preference with buyers. “Buyers have been repeatedly asking for this,” said Henry Beeby, of Goffs and DBS, at the time, a point concurred with by Tattersalls Ireland; yet, four years on, with the popularity of French horses still increasing, the message still doesn’t seem to be getting through. he thoroughbred industry is, of course, built securely on tradition and the people involved can often be reluctant to embrace modern ideas. Why fix something if it isn’t broken? Irish-bred horses led the way at the 2012 Cheltenham Festival with eleven winners; followed by British-breds, with nine victories; French-breds with six; and one German-bred winner. In 2011 the Festival yielded Irish breeders 15 victories, the French-breds recorded eight, the British-breds three, and once again it was one to German breeders. Nevertheless, should breeders heed the warnings? “The days of leaving a store horse in a field for three or four years have long gone,” warned trainer Nicky Henderson. Bloodstock agent David Minton concurred: “There is no doubt that breaking store horses as two-year-olds helps them both mentally and physically, so much so that it must be a huge advantage when it comes to training them as racehorses.” Another bloodstock agent clearly frustrated with the situation is Bobby O’Ryan, who said, “People need to wake up and realise they have got to move with the times.” Many of the larger operations already do. Grange Stud has been breaking its stores for the past ten years. Even without veterinary evidence to support the idea, it makes logical sense. “It’s the same for any athlete, be they human or equine: the sooner you start skills training the better it is for their careers,” points out bloodstock agent John O’Byrne. “Look at top professionals in any sport – they had a ball, club, or racquet in their hands nearly before they could walk.” It has been shown that short controlled pieces of work at regular intervals, between recovery turn out, allow tendons and ligaments to grow and develop strength in harmony with bone growth. When a young NH horse comes into training from a background of controlled exercise it is far less likely to suffer suspensory ligament problems and its career is significantly prolonged as a consequence. Research by Ely, Avella, Price, Smith, Wood, and Verheyen, published in the April, 2009, Equine Veterinary Journal, found that ex-store horses were twice as likely to suffer tendon and suspensory ligament injuries as ex-Flat horses. In data collected from 1,223 horses based in 14 different British NH training yards over two racing seasons the recorded fracture incidence rate varied significantly by trainer, but interestingly not by gender or age. The tendon and suspensory ligament incidence rate also varied significantly by trainer, as well as by age, but not by gender. The message, even then, was clear – early breaking and training halved the incidences of tendon and suspensory ligament problems. However, this does not provide a complete picture. The ex-Flat horses selected for NH careers have already been proven as tried and sound. They make for an unfair comparison with store horses, who are entering the game without any prior filtering of soundness. The Flat horses not suitable for a career over obstacles had already fallen by the wayside before the test groups were recorded. Nevertheless, veterinary evidence is compelling in the advantages of the early training of store horses, particularly when one astute breeder pointed out the welfare benefits of handling and appropriately feeding a young horse as opposed to leaving it, overlooked, in the field. A man through whom Willie Mullins does much of his shopping is the respected bloodstock agent Harold Kirk, and Kirk maintains, “I would forgive conformation problems in a French-bred, but not in an unbroken Irish horse.” But should that be taken one step further to the racetrack? Can the pure thoroughbred stand up to an earlier racing career, like its stronger AQPS relation? Is that even a fair question, given the fact that both types of horse are nowadays so similar, to the extent that experts cannot tell them apart? Perhaps the advantage of strength in an AQPS no longer applies. If there is an answer to the question of when should a NH horse be started, then I doubt it will be found here. The arguments are equally convincing both for and against an early start. While Irish Point-To-Point guru Richard Pugh has a personal preference for unbroken stores – simply because, like so many, he would prefer to do the job himself and be assured it was done to his liking – he would like to see Three-Year-Old Bumpers run from November and December. “It is something HRI (Horse Racing Ireland) need to be aware of, to keep their finger on the pulse and not miss the boat,” he suggested. “Given the potential to win a Three-Year-Old Bumper, horses would be broken sooner and create the opportunity to buy two-year-old store horses.” Though his research is in its infancy and cannot show longevity of career, Pugh has seen that young point-to-point winners do go on to record significant results on the racecourse. An early start is certainly no detriment to their racing career. In the autumn season of the 2009 Irish point-to- point season, there were 31 winners of Four- Year-Old Maidens. 60% had won on the racecourse, with the highest rated at 120, and 76% had won or been placed. All 31 have run since their win. There were 37 Four-Year-Old Maiden winners in the corresponding 2010 season. 64% won on the track and 83% won or were placed. Again, all of them have run since. Of the 2012 season, five have already run. There were 65 winners of Four-Year-Old Maidens in the 2012 Spring season and 18 have won on the racecourse, with a further 25 placed and eight still yet to run on the racecourse proper. Speaking of the launch of an educational DVD on the breaking of store horses, Irish Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association (ITBA) Manager Shane O’Dwyer explained, “The view in NH circles is that we need to change the way we do business, in that traditionally the store horse is broken at three and four, but the French system of breaking at two years appears to be a good alternative. The sales companies are pushing for horses to be broken by the autumn of their two-year-old career and then turned away to mature.” Yet, looking at the three largest sales in Ireland and Britain last year, it’s clear purchasers have no preference from what’s on offer, but since 77% of the horses catalogued in both the Derby Sale and the Land Rover Sale were unbroken, they were given little choice. Exactly 77.3% of the Land Rover Sale catalogue were unbroken, of which 74.4% were sold. 76.2% of horses listed as having been driven in long reins were sold; 71.4% of those listed as driven and backed were sold; and 70.3% of the broken horses found buyers. The figures were similar at Fairyhouse, where 77.8% of the Derby Sale catalogue were unbroken. Only 11 were listed as broken, but all 11 were sold. 79.5% of those driven and backed changed hands and 80.3% of horses driven in long reins were sold. 83.3% of the unbroken horses found buyers. Meanwhile, at the DBS Spring Sale, looking at the 208 stores catalogued on the final day, the picture was much the same. 62.5% were unbroken, of which 73.8% sold. 62.5% of the broken horses changed hands, 66.7% of the youngsters driven and backed were sold and 72% of those long reined found homes. A lot depends on the individual horse, and the sheer volume of unbroken horses limits the purchaser’s choice, but the comparative percentages show that having a horse prepared and even broken is certainly not a disadvantage. The percentages of those sold from each group only goes to show that there’s no clear case to make for or against any of the options. But still, key buyers are looking for quick returns. “This may surprise you, but owners come into National Hunt, rather than the Flat, because they want an instant result and are not prepared to wait,” says Anthony Bromley of Highflyer Bloodstock, who does much of the purchasing for trainer Paul Nicholls. “They’re impatient. They can buy a point-to- pointer and go straight to the races. Get it out of your mind the worry that they’ve been tried. Do what’s best for the horse. Being trained at two is a good thing, they don’t tend to break down and the suspensory ligaments are lasting.” It’s a responsible conclusion to an emotive debate.

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THIS ARTICLE FIRST APPEARED IN - EUROPEAN TRAINER - ISSUE 41

TRAININGWebmaster26 April 2013Breaking In, National Hunt, Store horses, EUT41