It's been a rough year for a lot of horse owners, with hay prices reaching record levels -- and that's if you can find any available. In addition to bemoaning the situation, I'm trying to figure out a way to avoid the same problem next year.

The powerful UAE Derby (UAE-II) win by Honour Devil (ARG) this weekend inspires some thoughts on the colt's breeding -- and whether a reverse bloodline cross could work well in the U.S.

The Keeneland April sale of 2-year-olds offers progeny from new sires like Birdstone and Speightstown and Smarty Jones, along with family ties to In Reality and Damascus and Barbaro.

The broodmare stall and barn make a big difference to the comfort and safety of your mare and newborn foal. Here are 8 tips to keep in mind when designing or renovating your facilities.

The fact that Himyar has not one but two quality sire lines in America today is quite a feat. For the most part, the Eclipse tail-male bloodline split after his great-grandson Whalebone, and that stallion's son Sir Hercules is responsible for most of the sire lines today -- including Teddy and Swynford and all the Phalaris lines (Nasrullah, Bold Ruler, Northern Dancer, Raise a Native, Turn-to, and others). Himyar descended from another Whalebone son, Camel, who is distinguished by being the great-great grandson of Eclipse (1764) and the great grandsire of Eclipse (1855) -- just to throw some fun confusion into the mix.

In a recent poll, readers responded to the question “Do you anticipate fewer mares bred in 2008 due to the market downturn?” By a small majority, the answer was “No.” Read the full poll results, and take part in this week's poll on horse ownership.

Northern Dancer, Mr. Prospector, and a select few other sires have dominated American pedigrees to the point that other sire lines are in danger of being lost forever. The future of the Domino sire line sees hope in sons of Broad Brush; the author also looks at another, less-known Domino-line sire as a potential match for one of his mares.

The Blood-Horse Auctions Data Digest comes out about a week before major sales and gives buyers useful information about the horses being sold. It includes lists of sires represented in the sale, plus broodmare sires, leading consignors, breeders, and buyers, and other important statistical charts. For 2YOIT sales, there's also a chart of the official work times for each hip, and a bonus chart of TrueNicks "A++" and "A+" rated hips.

Pulpit and his sons are well-represented at the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's select sale of 2-year-olds in training next week. Some of their progeny's dams have interesting stories of their own.

With Equibase Virtual Stable, keeping track of works and races for your favorite horses is easy. And breeders: it's a great way to keep up with important catalog updates for your mares, too!

Let's follow up on a recent poll that asked how you, the readers, look at a page in the sales catalog. Most catalog pages are written to make the horse look good, with emphasis on the sire line and on black type winners in the female family. But those aren't necessarily what catches our eye when we crack open the catalog...