Gelding racehorses?

Question

why do people geld their racehorses at their yearling age wouldnt it be better to run them for a season and then see wether they have got a special horse i understand its for temprement and jumping

i have never met a national hunt horse that hasnt being gelded

i one knew of was detroit city but after losing 3 races he was gelded then he died while racing

Answer 1

they say they geld jockeys also

Answer 2

I give up

Answer 3

and some of the greatest race horses, would have not

been so great without being gelded. so when i see

a old campaigner out on the track 5 years on up....

i always remember this is why the game continues,

old claimers that are geldings. and it is sad, because

when the claimer breaks downs, no one cares, but let

a grade 1 winner with only 10 races in his career go down,

and you see tears for days. hats off to the old geldings

that have made the game go on......

Answer 4

Someone might geld for a variety of reasons:

-They bought cheaply a horse that is primarily for them, which will be a riding horse later in life, but are "giving it a shot" at the racetrack.

-A colt that wasn't intended to be gelded is unmanageable - unfortunately, due to a variety of factors including inbreeding, the American Thoroughbred doesn't tend to be as behaviorally level-headed as the European horses. If a colt cannot be managed, he will not be allowed on a lot of major racetracks - Tabasco Cat was an example of what can happen with a high-strung colt. (You can Google his name to read this story.) A trainer sometimes has to make a choice between the money he feels strongly he can win with a good racehorse and the potential stud value of the animal (which will be significantly less if the horse never races due to his temperament - vicious cycle!)

-The horse was never going to be worth much at stud and gelding him will prolong his racing career, making him less prone to injury, etc.

Answer 5

Unless the horse has a good pedigree, has good conformation, shows signs up good ability and mental toughness then many times the horse will be gelded.  Geldings can focus better and many times a colt's "man parts" will bother him when he runs, which means little success and no stud career.

Answer 6

because horses are judged on the confirmation and breeding at this stage.... but it takes alot for a horse tot be good enough to remain a stallion... also so people dont like the hassle of having a stallion in the yard

Answer 7

JOHN HENRY! after he was guilded he became one of the greatest of all time! what a joy to see him run live at the track? i feel very lucky to have lived at the same time he was on the planet! he lived to be over 30 years old too!

Answer 8

I like the comment made by the trainer of the great Native Dancer, along the lines that more of them SHOULD be gelded.  He said that if he'd gelded every colt he'd ever trained, he'd have only made one mistake.  But anyway, sometimes it's due to medical conditions, such as cryptorchidism.  Or, they're just so rank and nasty as a colt that they need a little brain surgery to get their mind on racing.  Doesn't matter much how good their pedigree is, if they're so rank that they don't run, they won't draw much interest as a stallion prospect.  Or, it could be such a thing that their conformation is undesirable, so they geld them, and then find out if they can run.  Even if they themselves do have speed, I think if they have very poor conformation, they SHOULD be gelded.