Dog Branch Farm

LLC

Services

Breaking/Training

Frank has a reputation for turning out young horses that behave well, know their job, and are sound in mind and limb. The early lessons of race horses are critical to their future. New owners are often impressed by a trainer who spouts off his breaking/training regimen with dates attached: “…the horses I train all have riders on their back by such and such a date and then they head to the track and are galloping a mile by such and such a date and then…” etc.  Good horses can be ruined by being rushed though “cookie-cutter” breaking programs. Read about Frank’s thoughts on breaking.

Preparing for 2-year-old in-training sales

            The Middleburg Training Center is good place to prepare young horses for the Midlantic 2-year-old in-training sales. These sales, held during May and June in Timonium, MD, showcase nice, mid-price-range, 2-year-olds who developed well and progressed through their breaking/early training with few to no setbacks. The 2-year-old in-training sales take a bad rap at times. Some of the concerns are legitimate; others are not. It used to be that horses often had to breeze a 3/8^th or a half in these sales. That was just too far for some young horses to go so fast, so early. Nowadays,1/8^th mile works at the sales are very common. In contrast, half-mile breezes in training sales are relatively uncommon. Also, though the faster times are indeed noticed by buyers, good reputable buyer’s agents are recognizing horses with nice movement, an efficient way of going, good attitude, and an unpressed effort by rewarding sellers with good prices even when the horse did not publish the fastest time.

            The Maryland sales are held during a time that is reasonable for the average, healthy, sound horse to be breezing, in contrast to some sales held in January, when very few horses are actually 2 years’ old (by birthdate). Still, not all horses are well-suited to be pointed toward these sales. Frank can help advise you as to whether this is appropriate for your horse. Frank works closely with a few well-known consignors at these sales and they respect Frank’s opinions and his ability to ready a horse safely for these sales.

Racing 

            Flat

Horses stabled at the Middleburg Training Center can ship in to race at a variety of racetracks. We race at Laurel (MD), Pimlico (MD), Colonial Downs (VA), Charles Town (WV), Delaware Park (DE), Philadelphia Park (PA), and Penn National (PA).      

            Steeplechase

            Numerous point-to-point courses and sanctioned steeplechase races are held within a few minutes to 3-hour drive from the training center. Races occur nearly every weekend throughout the spring and fall, and once or twice weekly throughout the summer. Owning a steeplechase racehorse is often fun for families or for people who like to socialize and have a tailgating weekend to watch their horse race.

Layup/Rehabilitation

            The Middleburg Training Center provides a good environment for a horse recuperating after surgery, recovering from an injury, or just needing a little time off away from the racetrack.   Horses can be slowly brought back into full work, with exercise options including shed-row handwalking, hacking, round pen turnout, paddock turnout, and/or swimming before proceeding to controlled exercise on the track. The low key atmosphere of the training center calms nervous horses and freshens track-sour horses.

 Partnerships

            Joining with a group of friends in the ownership of a horse can be fun and more economically feasible for many. You split purse monies won, but you also get to split expenses. You share in the ups and downs. Forming a partnership might allow you to own a share in more than 1 horse, increasing your chances of success. Many couples find horse ownership partnerships an enjoyable way to spend time together and with friends. Group trips to Kentucky to the sales and stud farms or an annual trip to the Breeders Cup Races adds to the fun.

            Partnerships can involve racing, breeding, pinhooking (buying to resell), or a combination. Private partnerships can be formed or you can join a syndicate.

            If you are interested in forming a private partnership to purchase a horse for racing or pinhooking, or a broodmare for breeding, Dog Branch Farm can help.

Bloodstock Consult

Purchasing weanlings/yearlings

Frank is available to select or advise on the purchase of sales weanlings and yearlings at the Fasig-Tipton and Keeneland sales in Maryland and Kentucky. With his extensive pedigree knowledge and eye for athleticism and conformation, he can find “good buys”. Anyone can find the sales toppers, but most buyers are looking for a nice, possibly underpriced (or at least fair-priced) horse with the potential to outperform the expectations for it—in racing or in breeding.

Frank’s most recent weanling purchase for a client was for a $25,000 filly. This filly became the half-sister to well known multiple G1 winner, Premium Tap, and so was resold as broodmare potential. Frank is good at finding “hidden potential” in a pedigree---something to help preserve or increase the animal’s future value beyond racing.

Often at sales of weanlings and yearlings, good youngsters go for below-market value because they don’t have “perfect” conformation. Pinhookers and many buyer’s agents tend to shy away from those horses, leaving them as good buys for people looking to purchase to race. Certainly, there are conformational defects that make a horse prone to injury, such as severely offset knees or being severely back at the knees, amongst other things; these need to be avoided. However, if you are not buying a horse to take into the conformation class of a show ring, and if you are not looking to resell in the near future, then you might be wise to accept a minor conformational blemish that is unlikely to have any impact on a horse’s athletic ability.

Long-term studies are underway by veterinary groups to prove exactly which conformational and radiographic changes are likely to negatively affect a horse’s future soundness versus those conformational or radiographic issues that won’t. And, if you ever questioned whether perfect conformation results in the fastest horses, take a tour through the stud farms of Kentucky and evaluate the best stallions with the best racing records. It is very hard to find one with perfect conformation, especially one with “correct” legs!

            In contrast, if your interest in purchasing a weanling is to resell it as a yearling (pinhooking), then you must play the “perfect conformation game” in the selection of your individual, and Frank and Candace can help you with that.

Purchasing 2-year-olds           

            The advantage of purchasing a 2-year-old in training as opposed to a yearling is that you are getting a horse much closer to being ready to race, often at a price that is less than what it would have cost to train a yearling up to that same point. You also get to see the horse gallop and breeze before you buy it. With a yearling, you only see them walk!

            The difference in purchasing from a 2-year-old in training sale and claiming a horse is that you are getting an untested race horse (which later could far outperform OR underperform when in an actual race). However, the advantage is that you have the prerogative to have a complete veterinary examination, with x-rays and endoscopic evaluation of the upper airways prior to putting money on the line (not an option if you claim).

            The disadvantage in purchasing a horse at these sales is that some horses have been pushed beyond what they were ready for---as an individual. Remember, horses progress at different rates and if an owner or trainer is involved in churning out horses for the 2-year-old sales as if it were a factory assembly line, there are going to be problems. Thus, careful evaluation of potential purchases at these sales is critical. In addition, the buyer must be aware that some issues may not be evident at the sale and only show up a week or two after the horse arrives home.

Purchasing broodmares

            Interested in purchasing a broodmare to breed and sell out of? Or, do you want a broodmare to breed and produce your own homebreds to race? Let Frank help you select the right mare for your needs. Involvement in the breeding side of the Thoroughbred industry is generally a longer term investment than racing---it can be a little like the stock market, with ups and downs, trends in the marketplace, and dividends in the form of breeders bonuses/awards.

Breeding consultation

Planning matings involves evaluation of several factors (ie, bloodlines, conformation, mare’s produce, stallion’s produce, intended purpose of the resulting offspring, attitude). Use of popular “computer mating programs” often involves only the first factor, essentially ignoring the others, which are of equal or greater importance.

            We are constantly evaluating stallions in person (visits to KY stud farms twice yearly) and watching for future stallion prospects (eg, at the Breeder’s Cup). We also evaluate stallion offspring at the sales and on the track, and we monitor the trends for the market. Don’t be one of those who breeds a piece of paper to a piece of paper because a stud farm manager said it was an A+ nick. Ask why? There are pros and cons to every mating and you should know what they are.  If your goal is to breed a graded-stakes winner, let us assist you in your stallion selection.

Claiming consultation

            It used to be somewhat common that horses were stuck in a claiming race with the primary intention to lose it because it had an unsoundness. That is not so true today. As pre-race veterinary inspections were instituted along with better drug testing, and as purses in claiming races increased and quality horses were entered in claiming races, the claiming game became a more legitimate way of purchasing a nice horse. The advantage is that you get a horse “ready to race”, often at a price below what you would have to pay to buy it privately. The disadvantages are that you do not have the opportunity to have a veterinary examination of the horse and you assume possession of the horse immediately after the race from which it was claimed, regardless of its condition.

            There are trainers who “specialize” in claiming horses to re-race in claiming races. Some are very successful at it. It takes an owner who does not get too attached to “his/her” horse and who can accept lots of ups and downs.

            Frank will occasionally claim a horse, most often with the intent to re-train it for steeplechase racing or possibly to obtain a filly with a nice pedigree for future breeding potential. Good buys can sometimes be had this way. He will also periodically claim a horse that he has previous knowledge in, such as having trained its mother and liked her etc.

            However, if you are looking to really get into the “claiming game” and looking for a trainer who frequently claims to race, it is probably best to use a trainer stabled at the racetrack from where you wish to claim and who maintains a large stable of horses coming and going out of his/her barn.

Sales Prep

            Frank’s past experience in prepping horses for the show ring provides him with a good eye in determining what a young horse needs to look its best in the sales ring. Each horse develops differently and each has its own pluses and minuses. Some need weight, some need heavier muscling, some need more definition, some need a little fat trimmed from their abdomen, some need a shinier coat etc. Frank will give your sales yearling what it needs.

            We have found that swimming yearlings can add some muscle and trim the “baby fat”, while avoiding the risk of splints that may be prone to develop when young horses are exercised in circles on a longe line or in an Exercizer.

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Frank Zureick, Professional Horse Trainer       Candace Lundin, DVM, MS

P.O. Box 1694, Middleburg, Virginia 20118

Main: 540-554-4525     Training Center: 540-687-3734     Mobile: 540-270-5157

Frank@DogBranchFarm.com

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