I just bought a bay gelding with brand on his left hip...?

Question

The brand Is a backwards C with a bar in the middle of the letter. Any info would be great. I live in N.C but i know the horse was in South Carolina for a while. I dont know if this is where he was branded. ANY info would be great! Thank you

Answer 1

I don't think the person above me realizes that your horse might not be a Thoroughbred.  All of the things that he said apply to Thoroughbreds, and sometimes to other breeds, but I think what you have here is a ranch bred stock breed horse, most likely a Quarter Horse.

All brands are required to be registered.  If you contact the department of agriculture in your state, they will send you a form to fill out and you need to draw the brand on it.  If that brand is registered in your state, then they can tell you who it belongs to and you can go from there.  If not, then you can contact the DOA in South Carolina and do the same.  It should be free... also, if there is not an exact match, then they will send you a list or similar brands, just in case your horse's brand "muddied" up over time as the horse grew or aged.

I stumbled across a club on the 'net... they might can help you.  Here is their link:  www.brandedhorseregistry.com

Also, if the horse is AQHA or APHA, the brand will be listed on the papers (or it should be anyway).  Contact them at [phone] (AQHA) and [phone] (APHA).

Good luck on your quest!!!

Answer 2

If the horse was gelded, he might have been gelded for the purpose of racing. You could check it out by placing a towel over the horses eyes and rolling back the upper lip. Take a 4/5 mega pixel photo of the rolled back upper lip with the towel over the horses eye so as not to spook the horse.

Transfer the photo of the horses inside upper lip with the number onto a comp and download the photo and the number. Take the number and contact your equine veterinarian and explain to the vet you would like to find the pedigree/background of the horse from the racetrack. If there is no number, maybe the Vet can assist you in tracing the brand. Also, the bill or receipt may indicate or identify the birthplace of the horse.

Or, you could do it yourself by calling the jockey club of the nearest racetrack and e mailing or fax the photo with the number clearly showing.

The jockey club at the racetrack will look up the number and get back to you for a small fee of fifteen or so dollars. Usually the first letter of the horse's tattoo number will tell you the year the horse he was born...

So, in essence, the jockey club at the racetrack and/or the vet are your best bet....and you might want to contact the South Carolina Department of Agriculture regarding brand names of and branded horses. They might have a list of brands/farms.