The Blog
Short, specific answers to the questions new and experienced racehorse owners search for. Organized by category, searchable, and updated regularly. The four chapters are a guided introduction. The blog is the working reference.
Racehorse insurance costs roughly 4.85% to 6.5% of the horse’s insured value every year. On a $50,000 colt that is about $2,425 a year, or a little over $200 a month, for mortality cover alone; add the standard surgical endorsement…
HISA is horse racing’s federal safety regulator — the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority, created by the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act of 2020 and supervised by the Federal Trade Commission. Its rules run at 41 racetracks in 19 states,…
The short version Laminitis is the inflammation and separation of the laminae that hold your horse’s coffin bone suspended inside the hoof. When that attachment fails, the bone can rotate or sink — and that is what turns a foot…
Mortality insurance pays if your racehorse dies. It does not pay the $6,000–$15,000 bill when that horse survives emergency colic surgery — that bill is covered only if you bought a separate major medical or surgical endorsement, and most first-time…
Racehorses get put down for one dominant reason: a catastrophic limb injury that cannot be repaired and cannot be survived humanely. In 2025, that happened at a rate of 1.07 per 1,000 starts in North American Thoroughbred racing — about…
Choosing a racehorse trainer comes down to three things: fit, evidence, and accountability. Match the trainer to your horse’s class and your own goals, then verify them with the public performance record, references from current and former owners, and an…
Racehorse mortality insurance pays out the horse’s insured value if it dies or has to be humanely destroyed, and for a racing thoroughbred it typically costs about 5% of that value a year — roughly 4.85% to 6.25%, sliding lower…
Fractional horse ownership means buying a small, defined share of a racehorse — from a few percent down to a fraction of one percent — so a group of people split the purchase price and the running costs instead of…
The National Thoroughbred League (NTL) is a team-based professional racing league — a spectator and entertainment product, not a way to own a racehorse. Ten city-branded teams, backed by celebrity ownership groups, race for season points toward a championship. If…
A foal is any Thoroughbred under one year old, of either sex; a colt is a male horse four years old or younger. That is the whole muddle in one line: foal, weanling, yearling, and 2-year-old are age stages, while…