Great move...Long Live The King!!!...

Absolutely, this database should be open and free. Rescue groups can't afford any extra money for IDing horses. They need every penny they have.

Regular folks who buy a TB without its papers as a recreational mount would likely be thrilled to find out who their horse is. That much-beloved old school horse could be a former track star! Lots of SW geldings work their way down into the claiming ranks, then end up several owners later as riding horses with their papers long gone.

I know of a 17-hand TB gelding who was a favourite mount for the youngest beginning riders at a local barn because this old fellow was so gentle with kids. Who was he? No one knew. I am sure those kids would have loved to know that the old fellow was a winner on the rack long ago and had a fancy registered name. Maybe his original owner would like to have learned how beloved the old guy was and the great care he was getting in his old age.

Free ID, bring it on!

Indeed they did get it right. I got my first OTTB when just a kid and he came w/out papers. We paid for the research and found out he'd be born in Argentina imported at 5 and ran mostly at Calder or Arlington on the turf. It was cool to get the race records and pedigree. Even better to now find out who they are for free.

This is great.  I have retrained many former racehorses to be show jumpers.  I need to know whatever I can about their race records since there are certainly things there that can give you a clue about the potential future soundness of a horse.  Also, these days, once you know who they are, you can often see race replays which is helpful since often the ability to assess a horse under saddle is fairly limited.  

To take a horse from the track to the Grand Prix level, it takes at least 5 years and a minimun of $60,000 investment even if the horse is free and you value your time at zero.  Once the horse is starting to be a Grand Prix horse at 9 or ten, you need him to be sound jumping 5 foot fences for at least a few years for the investment to make any sense.  

The people who are working hard to find homes for 'retired' TBs need to understand that a horse's best protection is the ability to do a job.  Helping the athletic, sound ones, who often don't have the 'family pet' temperament and really thrive in a training program means that people like me need to be able to get as much information as possible before making the kind of commitment we have to make to these animals.  I'm one of not too many high level show jumpers that will even consider thoroughbreds because of all the problems getting decent information on them, among other issues.  

I realize this isn't necessarily the forum, but I've got to get back to work so hopefully if I say it here, it will somehow be heard...  

THIS IS A GREAT START, but the retirement/rescue organizations should consider the possiblity that the horses can get great lives if they have the opportunity for real re-training.  The backyard pet world is only so large.  People like me don't really deal with the rescue groups since they have requirements that basically don't allow me to take the risk that if the horse turns out to be a great amateur jumper, I can sell him to an amateur and get back some of the investment outlay.  

Gotta go. Thanks again to the Jockey Club on this.

Its great- we have 30 plus TBS at our rescue in IL and some of them were dropped off with no name, no papers, and we know nothing about them.  This will be a great asset to our work.

Possibly a stupid question, so forgive me, but are US horses micro-chipped?

Since January 1999 all foals born in GB and Ireland (and probably the other major European racing countries) are microchipped at about 8 weeks of age.

All runners in GB and Ireland are scanned for their microchips prior to each race they run in to confirm identity.

I don't think the micro-chip database is available to the general public at the moment, but it would certainly be a help in tracing ex-racehorses.

That is a good thing. Lots of little steps add up. I do think an open source database would be helpful to all those interested or involved. Is there any reason for keeping it closed, other than monetary when they were charging for that information? Are the tattoos easily forged?

This is very exciting news and a terrific step in the right direction for the jockey club!

This is a tremendous step in the right direction. By having free and immediate access to the JC tattoo database, there is no telling how many more Thoroughbreds rescue groups might be able to save. I shudder to think how many times horses have  slipped through the cracks and went to slaughter because their identities came through too late for us to notify their former connections of the dilemma the horse was in. Having immediate access to this database will enable rescues to promptly identify the horse and reach out to both the former connections and to the racetracks who have implemented policies to stem the flow of Thoroughbreds to slaughter.

Kudos to the Jockey Club...this is indeed excellent news!

Thank you Jockey Club! Way to go!!

I'm so happy to see this service as free now.  I think it will help more horses find homes. I know of many OTTB's that don't have papers and their owners would love to know who they really are and what they have done in their careers.  Thanks to the Jockey Club for finally making this service available for free.

This is one good step on the horses' behalf, hopefully with more to come. Racing needs every effort possible to help erase their black eye "the unwanted ex-race horse". I applaud this action, better late than never but we want more. I know the rescue groups must be elated, especially the Woodland Ranch near me.

Finally one organization in the horse industry has done something right for the horse instead of doing nothing.  Kudo's all around for doing something for the horse.

I am so glad to see this finally happen. We get emails from people every week who want to know how to trace the origin of a horse they have bought or found. This will be a tremendous help to our organization and to rescues as well.

Kudos to the TB Registry!

Debi Metcalfe

Stolen Horse International, Inc.

Netposse.com

www.netposse.com

A great move by the Jockey Club. I'd love for the entire database to be accessible, but this is a step in the right direction. Hopefully, many OTTBs & rescue groups will benefit.

This is a great move -- thank you, Jockey Club!  I'm hoping to get an OTTB in the not-too-distant future. :)

Thanks for the "Horse Education" as i am a common punter unable to access first hand training and registration information from either owners,trainers , jockeys or race journalists.

"Indian derby-2009" was my "30th Derby attendance since 1979 and yet i realise that as a "Common Punter" i am still learning.

Best news I've heard in a while.  Maybe it'll let some old-timers get some new respect.

I often get horses left at my ranch, due to unpaid board or hard times, or hard luck for the horse, that are tatooed. It's interesting to me to find out their lineage which helps me to figure out their personality quirks and sensitivity. "Oh, THAT'S why they act like that!" I also worked for Rex Ellsworth and when I get one that has his old bloodlines, I smile, thinking that Rex is looking down on me and sending me a message. I'm glad I'm here for the horses. I just can't afford them. We've had at least 20 just left here for me to attend to and try and sell. If they are a problem, usually they live their lives out with me, cuz I know they are safe and happy and well fed here. I do come across some really nice ones. The problem is, most people can't ride a Thoroughbred. They get hotter, whereas the Warmbloods get slower. And the Thoroughbred needs to be ridden more often, which, as we know, a horse is not only a money commitment, but a huge time commitment. Lots of people think they are like a dog--throw them some kibbles, keep them in the yard, and wave at them. Too bad. They have so very much to offer and add to your life. They balance me, even though they cost money. But it's better than a shrink!

This is FANTASTIC! Rescue agencys do not have lots of dollars to spend and every dollar needs to go for the care of those horses. Just think how this could boost the donations to such groups. If the groups can let the public know who they would be sponsoring, donations might increase.

Just now seeing where Mr. Paragallo has had his court date postponed. If it were not for tatoos i don't think the dire straits his horses were in would have been found out, so too with the 4 found in the kill pen. Those were found i believe i read thru their tatoos. Meanwhile, Mr. Paragallo's evening meals of New York Strips and Maine Lobsters have not been interrupted nor his after dinner Cuban Cigar if he smokes. And the good taxpayers of Green County and people who have donated to help with the feeding of 177 horses goes on. Something does not smell right here. I saw pictures of the horses in the pens and it is a frightening sight, especially the one with the horrible skin disease. From an admirer of all things helpless.