Possibility of selecting racehorses on jumping ability based on their steeplechase race results in France, the United Kingdom and Ireland.

The research article investigates the potential for using Thoroughbred mare families and sire lines’ performance in steeplechase races to predict their suitability for sport horse breeding in France, the United Kingdom and Ireland.

Research Methodology and Design

• For the purpose of this study, race results were collected from all steeplechase races from 1998 to 2003 in France, the UK, and Ireland.
• A total of 17,355 horses from 12,861 dams and 2,452 sires were included in the study. It also incorporated non-Thoroughbred horses in France as they actively participate and breed with Thoroughbreds.
• The performance of the horses was evaluated based on two criteria: earnings and ranks after mathematical transformation. These parameters were considered to determine their breeding value estimation.
• The influences of year, sex, age and race were accounted for as fixed effects, while factors such as the animal involved, the permanent environment and maternal environment were treated as random effects.

Results and Findings

• The results revealed that the maternal environmental components for ranks were 0.02 in France and zero in the UK and Ireland.
• Heritability estimates for the ranking criteria were found to be 0.18 (repeatability 0.33) in France and 0.06 (repeatability 0.19) in the UK and Ireland.
• Interestingly, the genetic correlation between the two measurement criteria (earnings and ranks) was high, 0.94 and 0.97 respectively. This suggests that race earnings and ranks can be accurately used to estimate the breeding value of horses.
• The adoption of the ranking value, especially after statistical normalization, was found to be beneficial for cross-country comparisons.

Implications and Conclusions

• The study’s findings suggest that the performance of Thoroughbred mare families and sire lines in steeplechase races could inform sport horse breeding decisions.
• The high genetic correlation between earnings and ranks signifies the reliability of these criteria for assessing breeding value.
• The application of ranking values, especially after statistical normalization, is particularly helpful for making comparisons between different countries.