Retired Racehorses

THE STATE OF RETIRED RACEHORSES IN NEW YORK 9
The racing industry does not maintain statistics
on the number of racehorses – Thoroughbred or
Standardbred – that are retired each year, making
it difficult to determine the overall costs to care for
retired horses.
Out of a total statewide horse population in
2005 of 195,500, approximately one quarter
were considered racehorses (50,200). Of these,
33,300 were Thoroughbreds and 16,900 were
Standardbreds.
The Equibase Company, LLC, maintains a database
of Thoroughbred racing information and statistics.
The company provided the Task Force the number
of horses that stop racing in a given year. The Task
Force termed this the attrition rate of horses and
used it in estimating the number of horses that
had raced and retired each year. The Task Force
did not include in its figures the number of retired
racehorses that were retired prior to their racing
careers or prior to their first race.
• Of the 71,662 horses that started in at least
one race during 2009 in the U.S.A. and Canada,
27,948 did not have a start in a race from January
1, 2010 through December 31, 2010 (38 percent.)
• Of the 68,235 horses that started at least one
race during 2010 in the U.S.A. and Canada,
27,186 did not have a start in a race from
January 1, 2011 through November 20, 2011
(39.8 percent.)
Therefore, the Task Force has applied an estimated
annual attrition rate of 39 percent to New York
racehorses, both Standardbred and Thoroughbred.
The Task Force examined two surveys. The first,
initiated in 2005 by the Department of Agriculture
and Markets and conducted by the U.S. Department
of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics
Service, surveyed all horse owners in the state. A
subsequent survey of racehorse owners licensed by
the New York State Racing and Wagering Board was
coordinated by the Task Force in 2007. Copies of
both of these surveys are included in the appendix.
While these statistics are several years old, they
provide the most recent data to capture a snapshot
of the New York equine agricultural and racing
industry.
Using data compiled by the New York State Racing
and Wagering Board in 2007, the Task Force
surveyed 4,012 licensed racehorse owners with
addresses in New York state to gauge their opinions,
attitudes, and actions regarding the retirement of
Thoroughbred and Standardbred racehorses. More
than half of those surveyed responded, with 2,095
questionnaires tabulated.
Results showed that 1,845 New York racehorses
were retired in 2007 by 1,108 owners (1.7 horses per
owner retired in 2007). Of those horses that were
retired:
• 79 percent were retired in New York and 21
percent were retired out of state.
• 28 percent were still sound for racing.
• 2 percent were considered unsound and needed
to be euthanized.
• 46 percent of the retired horses were geldings,
23 percent mares, 21 percent fillies (females 4
years old and under), and 10 percent colts (males
4 years old and under)
• 73 percent of the horses were from 3 to 6 years
old.
• 49 percent of the retired horses had lifetime
earnings of less than $25,000 and 73 percent
had 2007 earnings of less than $25,000.
• 48 percent of the respondents would pay to
retire a horse and 65 percent would support a
voluntary payment fund to retire horses.
According to the Agriculture and New York
State Horse Breeding Development Fund, 1,585
Standardbred mares were bred in 2010 and 1,613
mares bred in 2011. According to the New York
State Thoroughbred Breeding and Development
Fund, 2,121 Thoroughbred mares were bred in
2010 and 1,786 were bred in 2011. An increase
in Thoroughbred breeders awards is expected to