CBA discussion panels strengthen lines of communication

The Consignors and Commercial Breeders Association is continuing its series of “Deal or No Deal” discussion panels for industry participants that launched last year. The series is mainly built around candid discussions of common veterinary issues that may arise in growing yearlings, and how veterinarians and buyers can work with consignors to evaluate young horses and their ability to move forward as a racing or pinhook prospect.

The CBA’s missions include educating industry participants to encourage a fair and expanding marketplace, and to provide a unified voice on sale issues, policies, and procedures. In keeping with that mission, CBA president Allaire Ryan, the sales director for Lane’s End Farm, stressed a theme of unity at the yearling sale season’s first Deal or No Deal panel, held prior to the market kickoff, the Fasig-Tipton July yearling sale in Lexington, Ky. The CBA plans a similar event prior to the Keeneland September yearling sale.

Ryan said that buyers, veterinarians, and consignors should develop relationships and open lines of communication with one another to promote satisfactory sale results for both buyer and seller.

“The whole theory behind the CBA Deal or No Deal events was born out of a desire to get industry professionals together in a very casual setting, where we could be candid with each other about what we do and why we do it, partly with a focus on vet work in sales horses, be they weanlings, yearlings, 2-year-olds, racing prospects,” Ryan said. “This business is more than a job or more than an occupation for a lot of us; it’s a way of life. Anything we can do to increase industry solidarity and just stick in it together, I think is a good thing.”

The majority of the panel discussions have focused on the evaluation of common veterinary issues in young horses, including bone changes or remodeling over time, bone spurs or chips, sesamoiditis, osteochondritis dissecans (OCDs), and airway issues. Very few horses are perfect on clinical evaluation, but many can still go on to be successful runners.

On a previous CBA panel, trainer Kenny McPeek noted that two-time Horse of the Year Curlin and classic-winning champion Swiss Skydiver, both of whom he sourced as yearlings, had OCDs present, and Grade 1 winner Eskimo Kisses had bone spurs.

At the July panel, Dr. Greg BonenClark of Florida Equine Veterinary Associates said that his evaluation of veterinary findings ultimately depends on what the buying client is looking for – be it a racing or resale prospect – and the amount of risk involved.

“Sixty percent of the time, I’m in discussion with clients about their tolerance for risk, about whether they’re looking for a sprinter or a router, about the likeliness of a horse’s issues being a problem,” BonenClark said. “Very rarely do I [rule out] a horse completely if I see an issue. Out of five clients, I can fail a horse for two of them and pass it for three, saying the same things, because the clients have a different level of risk tolerance.”

The comments by BonenClark and other veterinarians on the panel came back to the theme of communication, which the CBA stresses throughout the season.

“I want to encourage those buyers that are here, when you’re at a consignment, ask about the horses that we’re representing – where they were raised, what they’re like, what we think of them,” Ryan said. “We’ve put in a lot of work to get to this stage in the sale season, and we’re proud of what we have to offer. As far as I’m concerned, we’re an open book.”