As Keeneland Celebrates Record Prices, Eight Older Mares Face Uncertain Futures: A 2024-2025 Update
Elusive Surprise at the 2024 November Sale
By Kyle Rothfus, Co-Founder, Mareworthy Charities
While Keeneland's November Breeding Stock Sale is already celebrating a banner year—with 596 horses selling for $164,126,000 through the first three sessions, an average of $275,379 representing a 21.90% increase over 2024—a familiar pattern is emerging in the final days of the sale. Eight broodmares age 18 and older will sell Saturday and Tuesday, likely overlooked amid the champagne toasts and record-breaking hammers.
One year ago, my analysis of over 22,600 sales records published in Paulick Report revealed a troubling reality: broodmares over 16 face dramatically increased risk of entering the slaughter pipeline, with median prices plummeting as age increases. Now, with 2024 data in hand and the 2025 sale underway, I can examine what actually happened to last year's oldest mares—and what must change to protect this year's vulnerable consignments.
I'll be on the grounds at Keeneland through Tuesday, watching these mares sell in person, talking to consignors, buyers, and sellers who genuinely care about finding solutions. This isn't about shaming anyone—it's about creating visibility and accountability so we can build better systems together.
If you can't afford to retire her properly, you can't afford to buy her.
What Happened to the 2024 Mares?
Last November, 12 mares age 18 and older were catalogued at Keeneland. I've been tracking their outcomes, and the results tell a complicated story:
3 withdrawn before selling (Cauy's Humor, Golden Mystery, Miss Canada)
9 sold for an average of $12,889, ranging from $2,500 to $30,000
The nine who sold were: Win McCool, Bel Air Beauty, Windyindy, Splendid Solution, Elusive Surprise, Panther Strike, Peach Brew, Quick Town, and Seeking Ms Shelley.
Of the 12 total catalogued, only 8 produced reported 2025 foals—meaning 33.3% did not have reported foals despite being catalogued as in-foal ahead of the sale. The four who did not produce reported 2025 foals are Win McCool, Splendid Solution (likely overseas), Miss Canada (hasn't foaled since 2021), and Peach Brew.
To put this in context, these mares would have been at least 4 months pregnant (120+ days) by the time of the November sale. Research on late-term pregnancy shows that fetal losses from day 70-300 account for approximately 4% of pregnancies, with an additional 0.3% between days 301-315, and 1.4% stillbirth/perinatal death in normal mare populations. Overall, abortion rates between day 44 and day 310 average around 9.1%. The 33% rate of unreported foals for these elderly mares is notably higher—though it's important to acknowledge this could include stillbirths, foals that didn't survive, or owners who opted not to register foals for various reasons, in addition to the overseas mares where foals don't appear in North American registries.
Elusive Surprise and her 2025 colt “A Dozen and Won” at Horse Husband Stables
Tracking the 2024 Mares: A Detailed Look
I've been tracking every one of these 12 mares through The Jockey Club registry and Equineline reports. This level of transparency is exactly what the industry needs—not to shame individuals, but to understand patterns and celebrate responsible ownership. Here's what I found:
The Three Withdrawn Mares
The three mares withdrawn from the 2024 sale represent exactly what responsible ownership looks like. These sellers made the choice to withdraw their older mares from public auction after cataloguing them and retain ownership, and that decision deserves recognition:
Cauy's Humor - Withdrawn by Stonestreet Thoroughbred Holdings, who purchased her at the 2018 Keeneland November sale and has been the registered breeder of all her foals since. She produced a 2025 colt with Stonestreet listed as breeder. This is seven years of consistent, responsible ownership. Stonestreet decided against selling their 18-year-old mare and kept her in their program instead.
Golden Mystery - Withdrawn by Donald Michael McCormick, who purchased her at the 2021 November Keeneland sale for $60,000 and has been the listed breeder since her 2022 foal. She produced a 2025 filly with McCormick as breeder and is bred to Bolt d'Oro for 2026. McCormick bought this mare when she was already older, has bred her responsibly for four years, and chose not to sell her at 18.
Miss Canada - Withdrawn by Faustino M Paz, who purchased her at the 2016 November Keeneland sale for $9,000. No 2025 foal reported, and her last foal was born in 2021. She's been bred only three times since Paz acquired her nine years ago. This appears to be a mare who's been allowed to wind down her breeding career gracefully rather than being pushed year after year.
These are the sellers we need to celebrate. Stonestreet, McCormick, and Paz all made the decision to withdraw their older mares from public sale after evaluating the market and their mares' situations—whether due to how the sale was shaping up, closer evaluation of the mares themselves, or simply choosing to retain ownership. They took responsibility for horses they've owned for years rather than risk them ending up in uncertain situations with new ownership. This is the model the industry should follow.
The Nine Who Sold Through the Ring
Bel Air Beauty (Sold for $30,000 to Tom Drury, agent) - The 2025 filly has Cherry Valley Farm listed as breeder. All her foals prior to the sale list W. Bruce Lunsford as breeder—Lunsford has raced Bel Air Beauty as one of his graded stakes winners. This appears to be long-term ownership continuing. Update: I've confirmed Bel Air Beauty is retired and living with a retirement herd at the farm.
Elusive Surprise (Sold for $3,000 to Horse Husband Stables) - That's our personal boutique breeding and racing operation. Horse Husband Stables is listed as breeder for the 2025 colt (her 13th foal), and we'll retire the mare to Mareworthy Charities after weaning, with lifetime protection for the colt through our Foal to Forever program. Elusive Surprise required multiple joint injections for her stifle arthritis and her colt has been hospitalized twice this year—bills we've paid without hesitation because we bought her with a clear retirement plan.
Panther Strike (Sold for $7,000 to Krista Seltzer, agent) - Stone Base LLC is listed as breeder for the 2025 filly, and Krista Seltzer (buyer agent) is affiliated with Stone Base LLC. This was the mare’s first time selling at auction, and her most recent foals prior to sale have Edward Seltzer and Beverly Seltzer listed as breeder. Based on these records, this appears to be potential family ownership continuing or a buy back—the mare never truly left the Seltzer family. This is another example of retaining long-term ownership, similar to the withdrawn mares, but handled through the sales process.
Peach Brew (Sold for $4,000 to K Bar K Enterprises) - No 2025 foal reported. Here's where it gets concerning: the low sale price without a reported foal could mean the mare has fully left the industry and could be at risk. Buck Pond Farm & Rob Auerbach—who was actually her consigner at the sale—is listed as breeder for all her recent foals prior to the 2024 sale. But there's no 2025 foal reported despite her selling in-foal. This is exactly the kind of gap in transparency that concerns me, and we need to learn more about what happened to this mare.
Quick Town (Sold for $7,500 to Blue Rose Farm) - Blue Rose Farm is also listed as breeder for the 2025 filly. Fairly straightforward outcome.
Seeking Ms Shelley (Sold for $17,000 to KOID Ltd) - Equineline shows a 2025 filly reported with an "=" prefix, but The Jockey Club registry has no record—this typically indicates a foal born outside North America. Mare likely overseas.
Splendid Solution (Sold for $25,000 to Ramzi Alghul) - No 2025 foal reported in North American registries or Equineline and ownership records in The Jockey Club show an address in Libya, likely because the mare went overseas.
Win McCool (Sold for $20,000 to Scott Pierce) - No 2025 foal reported, but bred to Gunite for a 2026 foal. All her foals since 2018 have Hill n Dale & Jared Burdine listed as breeder, suggesting long-term partnership continuity. A trusted farm representative assured me last year that the mare would stay with them through retirement, and the foaling records support this commitment to her long-term care.
Windyindy (Sold for $2,500 to William Nicks) - Jennifer Irelan is listed as breeder for the 2025 filly, indicating the mare changed hands after the sale. I connected with Jennifer earlier this year at an American Horse Council event and learned she has Windyindy and plans to give her a long-term home.
What This Data Actually Shows
Looking at this comprehensively, the outcomes are more positive than I initially expected:
The Wins:
3 withdrawn mares: Stonestreet, McCormick, and Paz all chose to withdraw their older mares after cataloguing—this is responsible ownership that deserves celebration
At least 6 of 9 sold mares: Appear to have stayed with or gone to established operations or responsible long-term owners:
Win McCool → long-term partnership with Hill n Dale with commitment to her care through retirement
Bel Air Beauty → stayed with Bruce Lunsford/Cherry Valley Farm and is now retired with a retirement herd
Windyindy → now with Jennifer Irelan who plans to provide a long-term home
Elusive Surprise → Horse Husband Stables with clear retirement plan
Panther Strike → stayed within Seltzer family ownership
Quick Town → Blue Rose Farm (straightforward responsible sale)
The Concerns:
Peach Brew: Ownership discrepancy between The Jockey Club registry and buyer, low purchase price, and no foal reported despite selling in-foal
Seeking Ms Shelley & Splendid Solution: Both likely overseas, which means we lose traceability and cannot confirm their care or outcomes
The Numbers:
8 of 12 produced reported North American foals (67% success rate for mares 18-21 years old)
33% did not produce reported foals (Win McCool, Splendid Solution, Miss Canada, Peach Brew)
Key Insights:
Responsible sellers exist and should be celebrated: Stonestreet, McCormick, and Paz withdrew their older mares rather than risk uncertain outcomes. The Seltzer family kept Panther Strike within family ownership. This is the model.
Most sales appear to represent continuity, not crisis: Win McCool, Bel Air Beauty, and Panther Strike all appear to have stayed with long-term owners or family, with commitments to their ongoing care.
But the system still allows problematic breeding decisions: Even with responsible ownership, we're breeding senior mares with recent gaps in their foaling records which could indicate great risk of complications.
Transparency gaps remain: Cases like Peach Brew show we need better industry-wide participation in The Jockey Club Traceability Initiative.
The problem isn't necessarily bad actors—it's the system itself that normalizes breeding mares into their twenties and doesn't celebrate or incentivize the responsible choice to withdraw older mares from sales or skip entering them at all in favor of retiring them directly. If you can't afford to cover retirement for an older mare, you certainly shouldn't breed her again. Breeders need to understand the risk factors and stop chasing "one more foal" or expecting someone else to handle the mare's retirement when her breeding career ends.
The Importance of Transparency and Traceability
As of today, I thankfully haven't tracked any of the 2024 mares age 18+ to kill pens or concerning situations—but tracking becomes exponentially harder once mares leave the sales grounds. The reality is that cheap horses often pass through multiple hands quickly, and not every transaction is visible or documented.
I haven't yet fully analyzed the 16-17 year old mares who sold at last year's November sale—a much larger population with more mares selling for under $5,000. I'll be following up on those mares in a future post, as they represent an even broader risk category that deserves the same level of transparency and tracking.
I can deduce where most of these mares are based on foals reported and information in The Jockey Club registry, but that's not a guarantee. This is exactly why we need more people to use The Jockey Club Traceability Survey tool. The Jockey Club Traceability Initiative helps track Thoroughbreds after their racing careers, estimate the current population, and improve traceability. Analysis of information submitted through the Initiative allows The Jockey Club to more effectively direct information and resources regarding a horse's transition from racehorse to a second career.
Do you own, lease, or board any of these 12 mares from last year's sale? Please use the Traceability Survey tool to report their current status, or to report if a horse has died. If you have information about their current location or status, please also contact Mareworthy at info@mareworthy.com so we can update our "We're Watching" list. Visibility and accountability only work when we have complete information.
The 2025 Picture: Fewer Mares, Same Risks
This year's November sale shows modest improvement in one metric: just 8 mares age 18+ are catalogued (compared to 12 in 2024), and 36 mares age 16+ (compared to 51 last year). Whether this reflects industry awareness from my reporting, farms implementing age cutoffs, or simple market dynamics remains unclear.
The 8 oldest mares consigned to the 2025 sale include:
Selling Saturday, November 9 (Session 5):
Hip 1845: Strawberry Sense – 18, by A.P. Indy out of Strawberry Reason, in foal to Muth, consigned by Gainesway
Selling Tuesday, November 12 (Sessions 8-9):
Hip 2726: Alpha Centauri – 18, by Dynaformer out of Prima Centauri, in foal to Vino Rosso, consigned by Green Hills at Elmendorf
Hip 2790: Don'tgetsuspicious – 19, by E Dubai out of Poco Bambino, in foal to Authentic, consigned by Grovendale Sales
Hip 2794: Dr. Zic – 19, by Milwaukee Brew out of Royal Corona, in foal to Lexitonian, consigned by Buckland Sales (now withdrawn)
Hip 2811: Forever Vow – 18, by Broken Vow out of Charmander, in foal to Goldencents, consigned by Frankfort Park Farm
Hip 2890: My Baby Baby – 20, by Bernstein out of Sarah Darling, in foal to Collected, consigned by Vinery Sales
Hip 2993: You're Beingplayed – 18, by Speightstown out of Unbridled Run, in foal to Title Ready, consigned by Paramount Sales
Hip 3049: Media Madness – 18, by Empire Maker out of Batique, in foal to Heartland, consigned by Warrendale Sales
I'll be watching every one of these mares sell in person. Strawberry Sense goes through the ring Saturday during prime viewing hours—she deserves the same attention as the seven-figure lots earlier in the week. The other six sell Tuesday, the final day, when buyers have depleted budgets and attention spans, when consignors are packing up, when the spotlight has moved on.
They deserve better than to be forgotten in the rush to celebrate record prices.
The Real Solution: Stop Before the Risk Begins
I'm proud of what we did with Elusive Surprise through Horse Husband Stables, but let me be clear: celebrating responsible buyers is a downstream solution to an upstream problem. The real answer isn't finding good homes for 18-year-old mares—it's not putting them in the sales ring in the first place.
Industry leaders like Claiborne Farm have already implemented age cutoffs for their broodmare bands. It's time for this practice to become standard across the breeding industry.
Mares should be retired before they reach high-risk status:
Over 16 years old
More than 5 foals without strong produce
Repeated complications getting pregnant or maintaining pregnancy
Declining physical condition or chronic health issues requiring significant intervention
Every mare bred at 18, 19, 20 years old represents a failure of planning. We know the data. We know the risks. We know these mares will bring bottom-dollar prices. Why are we doing this?
What Needs to Happen Now
For the Industry:
Adopt age-based breeding cutoffs. If a mare hasn't produced stakes-level runners by age 16, retire her with dignity rather than rolling the dice for a few more foal seasons. The math doesn't work—not financially, not ethically.
For Consignors:
Educate sellers before accepting consignments. Have frank conversations with owners about the realities of selling older mares. Present retirement options alongside sales estimates. Make Mareworthy and other aftercare organizations part of the standard consignment conversation, not an afterthought.
I'll be talking with consignors this week about exactly this—how we can work together to build better pathways for mares before they enter crisis situations.
For Buyers:
If you're bidding on mares 16+, have a retirement plan. Know the costs, accept the complications, and commit to retirement before you raise your hand. If you can't afford to retire her properly, you can't afford to buy her.
I'll be talking with buyers too—the ones who care, who want to do right by these mares but might not know about resources like Mareworthy. Let's have those conversations before the hammer falls, not after.
For Everyone:
Support upstream solutions. Mareworthy needs sustainable funding to build capacity before mares enter crisis situations. Donations from sellers and buyers—even small percentages of sale prices—could transform aftercare from reactive rescue to proactive planning.
If you're at Keeneland this week and want to talk about how we can work together on solutions, email me at kyle@mareworthy.com
Accountability and Transparency: We're Watching
We're launching our "We're Watching" tracking page this week. It will list:
Mare name and age at last sale
Last known buyer
2025 foal and registered breeder
2026 breeding status
This transparency celebrates responsible outcomes (like the three withdrawn mares from Stonestreet, McCormick, and Paz, and Panther Strike staying within the Seltzer family) while maintaining accountability for mares that might otherwise disappear from public record.
When mares can disappear without anyone asking questions, bad outcomes become easier. When people know we're watching—when there's visibility and accountability—better decisions get made.
The Bottom Line
As of Friday morning, the 2025 Keeneland November sale has grossed $164,126,000 with an average of $275,379—a 30.67% increase in gross and 21.90% increase in average over 2024's corresponding sessions. The industry has never been healthier financially.
Yet six mares age 18+ will sell Tuesday on the final day, likely for five-figure sums or less, to buyers who may or may not have their best interests at heart. They'll foal next spring—at ages 19, 20, and 21—and then face the same uncertain future: another breeding season, another sale, another roll of the dice.
Unless something changes.
The Horse Husband Stables model shows one solution: buyers who purchase with planning, absorb the costs, and commit to dignified retirement. The Stonestreet, McCormick, and Paz model shows another solution: sellers who choose to withdraw their older mares rather than risk uncertain outcomes. But relying on individual actors to save mares one at a time isn't sustainable.
Systemic change requires industry leadership. It requires consignors to say "no" to risky consignments. It requires sellers to plan retirements before problems arise. It requires buyers to walk away from mares they can't properly care for. And it requires financial support for organizations building infrastructure for the inevitable: every broodmare eventually needs a retirement home.
The data is clear. The risks are known. The solutions exist.
I'll be at Keeneland watching, talking, and working toward those solutions. Join me if you care about building something better than what we have now: kyle@mareworthy.com
Kyle Rothfus is co-founder of Mareworthy Charities and co-owner of Horse Husband Stables. His November 2024 analysis, "Here's How To Protect Retired Broodmares From The Slaughter Pipeline," examined over 22,600 sales records from Keeneland's November and January sales between 2015-2024.
For more information about mare retirement planning, visit Mareworthy.com. To view the "We're Watching" tracking page, visit mareworthy.com/we-are-watching. To support our work building sustainable upstream solutions, please consider donating.
