The Jockey Club released its Report of Mares Bred statistics for the 2013 breeding season Oct. 17. Based on RMBs received through Oct. 10, the number of mares bred in North America declined 3.4% from 2012 figures and the number of active stallions fell 8.8%.
The Jockey Club reports that 1,698 stallions covered 34,174 mares in North America during 2013. The number of stallions declined from the 1,861 reported at this time in 2012 while the number of mares bred a year ago was at 35,391.
The annual statistics represent approximately 90% of the mares that eventually will be reported as bred in 2013. According to historical trends, The Jockey Club expects to receive RMBs representing an additional 3,000-4,000 mares bred during the 2013 breeding season.
The number of stallions covering 100 or more mares increased by one, from 87 in 2012 to 88 in 2013. These stallions accounted for a greater percentage of the total mares reported bred this year--34% of all mares bred in 2013 versus 31.9% of all mares bred in 2012 as reported at this time last year. RMB statistics for all reported stallions in 2013 are available through the Publications & Resources section of The Jockey Club's website at www.jockeyclub.com.
Further book size analysis shows a 2.9% increase in the number of mares bred to stallions with a book size of 100 or more in 2013 when compared to 2012 as reported at this time last year; an 11.6% decrease in mares bred to stallions with a book size between 75 and 99; an 11.3% increase in mares bred to stallions with a book size between 50 and 74; a 15.9% decrease in mares bred to stallions with a book size between 25 and 49; and a 5.3% decrease in mares bred to stallions with a book size fewer than 25.
Of the top 10 states and provinces by number of mares reported bred in 2012, only Kentucky, Oklahoma, and Texas stallions covered more mares in 2013 than in 2012, as reported at this time last year. The following table shows the top 10 states and provinces, ranked by number of mares reported bred in 2013 through October 10.
|
State/Province |
2012 Stallions |
2013 Stallions |
Pct. Change |
2012 Mares Bred |
2013 Mares Bred |
Pct. Change |
|
Kentucky |
224 |
235 |
4.9 |
15,361 |
15,695 |
2.2 |
|
Florida |
126 |
126 |
0.0 |
3,070 |
2,853 |
-7.1 |
|
California |
166 |
136 |
-18.1 |
2,406 |
2,332 |
-3.1 |
|
Louisiana |
144 |
137 |
-4.9 |
2,072 |
1,833 |
-11.5 |
|
New York |
60 |
62 |
3.3 |
1,641 |
1,560 |
-4.9 |
|
New Mexico |
109 |
97 |
-11.0 |
983 |
971 |
-1.2 |
|
Oklahoma |
93 |
89 |
-4.3 |
911 |
928 |
1.9 |
|
Pennsylvania |
74 |
53 |
-28.4 |
1,061 |
902 |
-15.0 |
|
Texas |
110 |
105 |
-4.5 |
835 |
865 |
3.6 |
|
Ontario |
66 |
37 |
-43.9 |
1,288 |
726 |
-43.6 |
Into Mischief , a leading second-crop sire of 2013 and a half brother to last year's champion 2-year-old filly Beholder, led all stallions with 210 mares bred in 2013. The son of Harlan's Holiday stands at Spendthrift Farm near Lexington. Stallions standing at B. Wayne Hughes' Spendthrift took down five of the top 10 slots according to The Jockey Club.
Top 10 Stallions by Mares Bred
Stallion Standing Mares Bred
Into Mischief Spendthrift 210
Archarcharch Spendthrift 187
Harlan's Holiday WinStar 187
Kitten's Joy Ramsey Farm 184
Majestic Warrior Ashford 176
Tizway Spendthrift 175
Bodemeister WinStar 173
Paddy O'Prado Spendthrift 171
Shackleford Darby Dan 168
Warrior's Reward Spendthrift 165
Kentucky traditionally leads North America in Thoroughbred breeding activity. During 2013, Kentucky's 235 reported stallions covered 15,695 mares, or 45.9% of all of the mares reported bred in North America. The number of mares bred to Kentucky stallions increased 2.2% compared with the 15,361 reported at this time last year. The number of stallions was also on the rise in 2013 as 224 Kentucky-based stallions were in service last year.