How to Trace a Horse Pedigree

By eHow Pets Editor

Instructions

Things You’ll Need:

Internet access
Registered name or number of horse
Credit card
Printer and paper

Step 1:
Find the website for the breed registry your horse is registered with, such as American Quarter Horse Association, Appaloosa Horse Club or the Jockey Club, if your horse is a Thoroughbred. Use the links in the resources section below.
Step 2:
Go to the horse pedigree research pages and type in your horse's exact registered name or registration number. There is a small fee for this service unless you are a current member of the breed registry. Most only allow you a few free searches each month, so plan to spend some money or stretch the process out over several months.
Step 3:
Get a five generation pedigree for your horse. Save it on your computer or print it out.
Step 4:
Procure five generation pedigrees for each of the sires and dams in the fifth generation on your horse's pedigree.
Step 5:
Continue this procedure as far as you wish or until the beginning of the registry and you will then have all the records for the ancestors of your horse. Your horse may have ancestors registered with other associations. For example, the Quarter Horse Association allows the use of Thoroughbred sires or dams. The Pony of the Americas Clubs allows sires and dams of certain approved breeds. If your horse has ancestors outside his registry, you will have to visit those sites to continue your research on any cross references you find.
Step 6:
You may be able to use the pedigree research capabilities of your horse's registry to find out additional info about horses in his pedigree such as show record, off spring, owners, etc.
Step 7:
If you do not know a horse listed on your horse's pedigree, you may be find out more about him or her by searching for his name using a search engine such as Google.

Tips & Warnings

Thoroughbred horses in the lineage of a Quarter Horse are noted as TB after their names and Quarter Horses on the pedigree of a Paint Horse are noted as QH.
Some registries include a show and race record or speed index for each horse with the pedigrees, some charge extra for this useful information.
Just because your horse's pedigree is full of champions doesn't automatically mean he'll follow in their footsteps. Good training, athletic ability, talent and drive also go into creating a champion - although a great pedigree can certainly help.

Resources

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