Gelding

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Gelding

How & When to Geld
Horses gain the most improvements from gelding when they are young. If you buy Genetic Ratings for your yearlings and already know some need to be gelded, the best practice is to geld them by December of their yearling year. However, there is absolutely nothing wrong with waiting to geld a colt until he's 2 (or even older) if you're not ready to make that decision when he's a yearling. Once you've decided to geld a colt, all you have to do is visit his Manage page and click the Geld button. Gelding is quick, instant, and earns money based on the genetic quality of the colt. Geldings on FFH can immediately resume training and racing. If you have favorited (blue star icon) the horse you want to geld, you will be unable to geld it! You can unfavorite the horse at any time by clicking on the icon again.
Reasons to Geld
There are several reasons to geld a colt on FFH. Most commonly, geldings are simply colts who were not considered "stud quality" genetically or whose Potential was not high enough to make earning points a very easy endeavor. Gelding is also done to maintain or increase the value of a pedigree. With stats and genes in mind, you'll want to evaluate whether or not your colt is stud quality. Generally speaking, you only want to keep colts intact who can earn 100+ racing points and who also possess desirable breeding qualities. This means they usually need to be approximately 25 Potential or better (this can be somewhat flexible). The higher their Potential, the easier it is to earn points. Assuming a horse is capable of earning 100 racing points, he also needs to have reliable Producer Quality. You can guess what his Producer Quality might be once he's eligible for a Grade Inspection. Prior to that, you can only hypothesize based on his parents' producing records. Presumed low Producer Quality is a common reason colts are gelded later in their career, or even after retirement, but it's not a deciding factor in young colts. Genetic Ratings can be purchased as soon as a colt is born, making genetics one of the first, though less important, factors in deciding to geld. Genetic expectations vary a little by breed - more established breeds such as Thoroughbreds and Goldbloods might be more strict about the genes a horse should have while newer breeds such as Standardbreds and Appaloosas cannot afford to be quite as picky. If you are not sure how good your colt's genes are, it can be wise to take a quick look at the studs that are currently standing. Generally, a colt should not have any 'Poor' Performance genes and few 'Fair' Performance genes. In addition, you want to see some 'Excellent' or 'Outstanding' genes across Performance, Stat, and Heritage genes. A colt with all or mostly 'Good' genes is just average and could be worth breeding if he proves to have high Potential and Producer Quality. If a colt has a 'Poor' or a couple 'Fairs' he's also not necessarily ruled out of breeding - these genes can be balanced out with several 'Excellent' and 'Outstanding' to make up for his flaws. Other factors that may influence your decision to geld include: • Poor producing pedigree • Intermediate Distance genes • Low Peak and/or Poor Prime genes • "Locked" Blood Type More information on Producer Quality can be found on the dedicated page. If you suspect the colt is from a poor producing line, you'd likely benefit from gelding him and enjoying a long and successful racing career. Locked Blood Type is easily fixed with either a Runemaster's Tome or Mistweaver's Cloak, so it's less likely to be a deciding factor.
Benefits of Gelding
Now that you know what to geld, you're probably still asking why you should geld. The simple answer is that there are numerous benefits to gelding which will result in your horse having a longer and more successful racing career, thus earning you more points and money! Gelding your horse has a chance to improve: • Potential • Maximum Courage • Maximum Consistency • Athleticism (always increases if Low) Gelding your horse will always improve: • Longevity • Peak (if not already 100%) • Prime It is worth noting here that the (hidden) Geldability gene, as well as age (younger is better), determines how much a colt's stats will benefit from gelding. Colts whose sires have been fed Valebloom will show an increased benefit from gelding. If you have the 7th Skill Star, your colts also have a higher chance of gaining stats when they are gelded. These factors explain why some colts may see their Potential increase by 30+ points while other colts may only see their Potential increase by 2 points. Geldings are also easier to train overall, maxing out their base stats, Courage, and Consistency more quickly. If a gelding is not yet saddle trained, they'll learn basic riding skills faster as well. Stock breed geldings are exempt from series restrictions, meaning Appendix geldings and solid Paint or Appaloosa geldings may enter series races. You will also receive a monetary compensation any time you geld a horse, provided he is not Horse Trader bred, not pensioned, and, if retired, has no foals or at least 5 foal slots remaining. The compensation for gelding varies based upon each horse's genes and stats (birth max). Compensation is reduced if a colt is graded, retired, or already has foals on the ground (based upon number of slots remaining). The gelding compensation also includes an additional $2,000,000 bonus (before reductions) for each Select Sale parent.
Gelding Buddies
Retired Geldings can be used as Workout Buddies or Yearling Buddies, which allows them to bring benefits to your horses already in training or actively racing. You can find out more information about Buddies or Buddy Workouts by clicking these links to their pages.

FFH Time
Tuesday, 07:04pm
August (Meet A)
Year 58

Open Series
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Venturer’s Voyage
Prospector's Jackpot

Series Entries Close
Wednesday @ 12:00pm

Meet Rollover Begins
Thursday @ 1:00am

Making Magic

Issa (#1)
10/13/24 1:47 pm
Courage and Consistency are now capped at 5 for 2yos and 8 for 3yos. Horses cannot exceed these numbers through any sort of training or use of items.

Issa (#1)
10/13/24 11:35 am
3yos now need a minimum PR to enter G3 (25 PR) and G2 (50 PR) races. These numbers may later be adjusted upwards as needed to achieve balance.

Issa (#1)
10/13/24 10:44 am
2yos now need a minimum PR to enter G3 (5 PR) and G2 (15 PR) races. These numbers may later be adjusted upwards as needed to achieve balance.

Issa (#1)
10/12/24 12:27 pm
Ultra Wraps now reduce Risk when worn during races. (In addition to reducing chances of injury in the race.)

Issa (#1)
10/12/24 11:08 am
Race cards for G1 dirt stock horses will be expanded beginning in August (A or B).

Issa (#1)
10/11/24 8:28 pm
Points awarded to 2yos have been adjusted slightly and updated in the Handbook, although the previous numbers in the Handbook were out of date. (40 PR was the minimum to earn points while the Handbook listed 60 PR.)

Issa (#1)
10/11/24 12:00 pm
Experience and Preparedness no longer show red icons at any stage since they are never dangerous or a cause for concern. Both instead show blue icons at best within the color range: grey > yellow > green > blue.

Issa (#1)
10/10/24 10:59 am
The Select Raffle is postponed to October 18th (or possibly morning of the 19th), as I have not been feeling well and want to be sure I have plenty of time to get all the pretty ponies ready. Tickets remain available to purchase through at least 5:00pm on the 18th. Thank you for your patience!

Issa (#1)
10/05/24 8:06 pm
I know it's a bit late for this meet - but if you have been impacted by Helene and need assistance accessing or paying for a stable hand or vacation pasture, please contact me!

Issa (#1)
10/05/24 12:42 pm
Pamper now reduces Risk for 2yo+ horses who have Basic or Ultra Wraps equipped.

Issa (#1)
09/26/24 4:50 pm
October's Board Game Arena tournaments are now open for registration! See Discord for more info.

Issa (#1)
09/21/24 6:31 pm
More G3-G2 races are being added for dirt stock horses beginning in May A. Some of the additions may not filter in until May B or June A.

Issa (#1)
09/20/24 12:27 pm
Genetic Merit and Genetic Distinction awards have been removed for all yearlings and 2yos. Their testing status has been reset to allow them to be retested with their corrected Prime.

Issa (#1)
09/20/24 12:23 pm
A bug has been fixed in which all bred horses were inheriting random Prime rather than Prime based upon their parents' genes. Prime (gene and trait) has been correctly updated for yearlings and 2yos. Horses 3yo+ will not be updated and will keep whatever they have.

Issa (#1)
09/14/24 1:29 pm
Beginning in April, breed division Color Shows have a $50,000 bonus added to their purse and open division shows have an additional $100,000 bonus added to their purse. This brings the baseline purse for breed shows to $150,000 and open shows to $250,000.

Issa (#1)
09/14/24 1:27 pm
Purses in Color Shows now carry down through 30th place. The 6% reward for 6th carries down through 10th place like in races. Additionally, places 11-20 earn a 3% reward and places 21-30 earn a 1.5% reward.

Issa (#1)
09/14/24 12:20 pm
You may now earn up to a 50% discount on Color Show entry fees based on your previous month's entries. (Discount previously capped at 25%.) However, to earn the full 50% discount you must now have an average of 3 entries per horse, increased from 2. (Average of 1.5 in single-meet weeks.)

Issa (#1)
09/13/24 5:26 pm
The off season rewards raffle will be held sometime between 8pm and 9pm tonight in Discord. You do not need to be present to win, but are welcome to attend and cheer for all the winners!

Issa (#1)
09/05/24 1:09 pm
The Pro Shop sale will end with the upcoming rollover into March.

Issa (#1)
09/01/24 11:35 am
FFH's fantasy football league still has spots open! The league is just for fun and no experience is required. Some little prizes might be sent out later into the season. Our draft will be held on September 3rd, so please make sure to join by the 2nd if you're interested. Click here to join.

Issa (#1)
08/24/24 9:24 am
2 year olds now gain Off Season Advancement slightly faster than older horses.

Issa (#1)
08/23/24 4:32 pm
The Pro Shop Sale will be extended at least one week into February.

Maeve (#1539)
08/16/24 7:04 am
A couple errors were found in the sudoku puzzle sheet. The sheet has now been updated with the correct version. Please make sure the copy you downloaded says “Color Gene Sudoku FIXED” in the title to ensure you have the right version.

Issa (#1)
08/09/24 10:28 pm
Don't forget we're down to the wire on buying yearling partnerships for this year!

Issa (#1)
07/28/24 9:50 am
August's Board Game Arena tournaments are open for registration! Links and info can be found in Discord. Join us for some fun during off season (and beyond)!

Issa (#1)
07/12/24 10:55 pm
Yearling Auctions are open for consignments. Consignments will close no sooner than Thursday after the September A rollover.

Issa (#1)
07/09/24 11:41 am
A bug which was allowing horses to eat supplements more than once per month has been fixed.

Issa (#1)
06/28/24 11:22 am
July's Board Game Arena tournaments are open for registration! Links are posted in Discord.

Issa (#1)
06/12/24 10:54 am
The Appaloosa yearling raffle will be held sometime Friday afternoon or evening. Tickets are available to purchase through 2:00pm Friday. For more information, see the recent news post.

Issa (#1)
06/05/24 9:22 am
Reminder: Tickets for the broodmare raffle must be purchased by tomorrow at approximately 1:30-2:00pm. If you need a last minute ticket tomorrow, contact me to be sure it gets in. (If I'm not around I'll still see your message before finalizing horses for the raffle.) For more info, see the recent news post about the raffles.

Issa (#1)
06/04/24 5:29 pm
The limit on Horse Trader Appaloosa broodmares has been (temporarily) increased to 20.

Issa (#1)
06/01/24 1:20 pm
Reminder: Today is the last day for the GAO dispersal!

Issa (#1)
05/29/24 12:59 pm
June Board Game Arena tournaments are open for registration! Links can be found in Discord. Please reach out if you have any questions.

Issa (#1)
05/28/24 1:06 pm
Radiant Truffles are no longer limited by a horse's race starts or remaining Prime.

Issa (#1)
05/20/24 7:28 pm
A Breeding Workshop is beginning now in Discord! Head over to ask any and all questions related to breeding and matching.

Issa (#1)
05/19/24 9:54 pm
Springo now gives rewards for up to 20 games per day in January and February.

Issa (#1)
05/19/24 8:09 pm
February will again be 2 weeks with rollover running on Sunday, June 2nd.

Issa (#1)
05/19/24 10:38 am
Racing dispersal is available at the Golden Apple Orchard through the end of February.

Issa (#1)
05/13/24 1:18 pm
Beginning with the Y57 Year End Awards, contesting horses must have 15 races within their division to qualify for awards.

Issa (#1)
05/11/24 2:43 pm
Contesting horses who would have earned points in a race no longer drop below earning 1 point in their race. This means horses who would typically earn 1-2 points in a race earn 1, while horses who would have earned 3 or more points still earn 2 points less than normal.

Issa (#1)
05/10/24 9:02 pm
Gelding now offers a higher compensation for retired stallions. However, gelding compensation is decreased for any horse that is already graded before gelding. Details can be found on the Gelding page.

Issa (#1)
05/10/24 1:08 pm
Genotype Search now includes an option to search for horses who have earned a Minor, Major, or Master from a transition discipline.

Issa (#1)
05/08/24 1:39 pm
Experience decline when feeding Focus, Hype, and Gleam has been reduced.

Issa (#1)
05/07/24 1:24 pm
All Paint marking genes are now weighted by breed. Paint Horses have a higher chance of passing Paint markings to their foals, while all other breeds have a lower chance of passing Paint markings to their foals. This makes the classification of Paint markings Common for Paint Horses and Rare for all other breeds.

Issa (#1)
05/05/24 5:21 pm
Prime has been broken and has not been declining at all for several game years. As a result, most horses have substantially more Prime than should be appropriate. (Ex: A 6yo who hit 100% Peak by the time they turned 4 should have lost 24+ Prime but has actually lost none.) Rather than setting all horses to what they should have, horses 5 and older will temporarily lose Prime twice as fast to accommodate.

Issa (#1)
05/04/24 4:51 pm
Sunkissed Tarts may only be used on horses 3 years or older.

Issa (#1)
05/03/24 2:14 pm
Penalties for neglecting care of horses have been reduced.

Issa (#1)
04/26/24 6:19 pm
Reminder: The Pro Shop Sale ends Sunday!

Issa (#1)
04/26/24 11:53 am
May Board Game Arena tournaments are now open for registration through Discord. Tournaments begin May 1st.

Issa (#1)
04/16/24 1:14 pm
Forever Pro Traits are now publicly visible on horses whose owners have Forever Pro. This should be helpful when troubleshooting race performance.

Issa (#1)
04/07/24 8:40 pm
A racing workshop is starting now in Discord!

Issa (#1)
03/31/24 10:47 am
The Y56 Yearling Sales are now open for consignment. Yearlings may be consigned through the beginning of September when the auctions open for bidding.

Issa (#1)
03/22/24 2:21 pm
Alfalfa Cubes will no longer raise Maturity of 2yos who are already at least 60% or 3yos who are already at least 80% mature.

Issa (#1)
03/22/24 12:41 pm
Bundle of TLC can no longer be used on horses under age 3. Alfalfa Cubes can no longer be fed to yearlings.

Issa (#1)
03/22/24 11:28 am
The amount of Risk gained when feeding Hype now varies based upon a horse's current Energy. Horses with higher Energy gain less Risk.

Issa (#1)
03/02/24 9:11 pm
Spring season Board Game Arena tournaments begin March 5th! Visit #🎲board-game-arena in Discord for more information.

Issa (#1)
02/24/24 10:46 am
Reminder: It's the last day for open dispersal at the GAO!

Issa (#1)
02/15/24 5:42 pm
All horses need to be retested for Genetic Merit. There are no changes to the award, but some horses lost their GM/GD and retesting ensures they all have the awards they should.

Issa (#1)
02/11/24 2:05 pm
February will be 2 weeks, with rollover happening on Sunday, February 25h.

Issa (#1)
02/10/24 5:07 pm
Although Appendix stock horses cannot enter flat series races, they are eligible for contesting series races.

Issa (#1)
02/10/24 1:38 pm
Sparks of Joy, Grooming jobs and Sanctum of Gold all now award player experience.

Issa (#1)
02/10/24 12:54 pm
A new Yearling Quick View has been added. It shows Morale, Maturity, Risk and indicates if a horse has Genetic Ratings purchased (as required for YA). Additionally, yearlings now show Forever Pro Traits in their Trait & Stat Panel so that you can more easily manage Risk.

Issa (#1)
02/07/24 10:56 am
Stallions with tested Above Average or Legendary Producer Quality can no longer grade F. If you have one who is currently F, his grade will adjust if inspected again.

Issa (#1)
02/06/24 8:20 pm
Would like to earn a free Appaloosa stallion? Complete this form to claim your tickets for the upcoming raffle! Tickets must be claimed by Sunday, February 11th at 11:00am.

Issa (#1)
02/06/24 11:41 am
If you used a Cupid's Arrow for Y56 foals and all of your mares do not show the green 'Guaranteed' + icon in Mare Services, please contact me on FFH or Discord so that your mares can be fixed before they foal.

Issa (#1)
01/28/24 10:25 pm
Reminder: The January Pro Shop sale ends at the end of the month. Prices of several items and upgrades will be adjusted at the beginning of February, as explained in this news post.

Issa (#1)
01/28/24 10:23 pm
Horse care has been enabled again. You can resume feeding and training horses.

Issa (#1)
01/26/24 6:32 pm
Horses who have used either Family Jewels or Mythos Scepter now show a magic wand icon under Producer Quality (even if not visible) to indicate that their PQ is not what they were naturally born with.

Issa (#1)
01/26/24 6:31 pm
Mythos Scepter has been revamped and is now an item you can use to change either Colt or Filly PQ of retired horses. More information can be found in the item's description and notes.

Issa (#1)
01/26/24 1:07 pm
The Appaloosa raffle will be held at 9:00pm tonight. You do not need to be present to win. Since the raffle is happening pretty late, ticket sales will remain open through 6:00pm.

Issa (#1)
01/26/24 1:06 pm
Mare grade inspections have reopened. There is a now a fee for grade testing mares, as listed on the inspection page. Mares do not need to be tested to be eligible to breed. The only other adjustment to mare grading is the removal of surface from the grading formula.

Issa (#1)
01/23/24 11:26 am
Don't forget it's the last week to purchase yearling partnerships for Y55!

Issa (#1)
01/22/24 11:52 am
Open dispersal of racers and broodmares at the Golden Apple Orchard will close at the end of February Y56.

Issa (#1)
01/19/24 11:49 am
Ultra Wraps are now marked with a blue checkmark in Racing Quick View to easily find horses who are wearing them.

Issa (#1)
01/06/24 7:12 pm
Tournaround Medallion may be used on any breed to improve their transition genes. Additionally, it now improves a horse's Endurance/Lead Change gene by one level. Before you rush out and buy some - note that it will be part of the upcoming January Pro Shop specials!

Issa (#1)
01/04/24 5:56 pm
Stallion Grade Testing has been reopened. Surface has been removed from the grade formula since it no longer impacts foal Potential.

Issa (#1)
01/03/24 6:21 pm
Dance of the Dunes will have a new open division for all races this year, in addition to the usual colt/gelding and filly divisions.

Issa (#1)
12/30/23 3:19 pm
Kickstarter is now available in the Golden Apple Orchard.

Issa (#1)
12/27/23 4:58 pm
Initiate's Quest is no longer open to Amateur players and is now limited to only Green and Novice.

Issa (#1)
12/23/23 12:56 pm
100yd races for 4yo+ have been added to the Midsummer Revelry series.

Issa (#1)
12/18/23 4:08 pm
The bug with miscarriages having a blank complication note on mare Breeding Info pages has been fixed. Additionally, complicates are now sorted with the most recent at top, much like progeny lists, BWs, and race history.

Issa (#1)
12/17/23 9:27 am
Grade testing is closed until further notice.

Issa (#1)
12/02/23 10:25 am
Today's the last day to participate in the Pro Shop Sale! (Possibly early tomorrow morning if you're in a different time zone.) Please also make sure you've voted in the polls for Colby's Crew and Old Friends. Colby's Crew has significantly less votes than Old Friends, so looks like some of you might have missed it in the news.

Issa (#1)
12/01/23 11:49 am
The Year's End Calendar starts today! Don't forget to stop by the Vale of Runes to open the door each day in December.

Issa (#1)
11/24/23 3:31 pm
Great news! We are able to sponsor a horse at Old Friends. Please vote in this poll to pick a horse.

Issa (#1)
11/15/23 3:11 pm
If you won an Appy stallion in the raffle and do not have Stat Gene, Heritage, Peak/Prime stablewide upgrades, please PM or DM me a link to the stallion.

Issa (#1)
11/14/23 6:19 pm
Answers to the Upgrade Raffle Challenge can be found here. Again, I'd highly recommend reading this even if you didn't participate as these questions address some incredibly important keys to racing success.

Issa (#1)
11/14/23 10:40 am
Upgrade raffles will be running tonight at 5:00pm! You don't need to be present, but are welcome to hang out in Discord to celebrate with the winners.

Issa (#1)
11/11/23 4:54 pm
Deadline for the upgrade raffles has been extended to Monday at 6:00pm. There's not many entries yet so be sure to get yours in!

Issa (#1)
11/11/23 4:41 pm
Gene Reducers may now only be used on bred horses, not Horse Trader, Import, or Select Sale horses.

Issa (#1)
11/11/23 12:11 pm
Answers to the Stallion Raffle Challenge, as well as the most relevant Handbook links, can be found here. Highly recommend everyone check this out, even if you didn't participate, because this covers a lot of the most important information for successful breeding!

Issa (#1)
11/10/23 4:56 pm
An additional rule has been added for raffle stallions - they may not be Cloaked.

Issa (#1)
11/07/23 8:24 pm
Stallion raffle tickets must be claimed by Friday at 5:00pm. The raffle will be held Friday evening.

Issa (#1)
11/07/23 11:13 am
Juuuuust kidding! (About the previous post...) I just added 1 additional Liver Chestnut and 1 additional Flaxen Liver Chestnut. Enjoy!

Issa (#1)
11/06/23 9:53 pm
We've added 7 new shades of Chestnut including 2 regular Chestnut, 2 Flaxen, 1 Liver, and 2 Flaxen Liver. All new shades can be viewed in the Horse Previewer.

Issa (#1)
11/05/23 5:09 pm
If you have an Appaloosa who is heterozygous or homozygous for Mottling, you may update their image to correctly show their mottling by reloading from their Image Gallery.

Issa (#1)
11/05/23 4:39 pm
The Appaloosa Select broodmare raffle will be held tomorrow, Monday, at 9:00pm FFH time. Tickets must be purchased by 7:00pm.

Issa (#1)
11/05/23 12:31 pm
February will be 2 weeks this year with races running on November 19th. This is not a permanent change, but one we feel is best in the circumstances of Y55.

Issa (#1)
11/04/23 12:36 pm
Midsummer Revelry now includes 500yd races for 3yo ONLY and 700yd races for 4yo+.

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