A horse owner claims that her Thoroughbred, named Grand Mogul, was born 52 years ago on the Erdenheim Farm in Kentucky. The owner, while desirous of privacy, wants to authenticate the age of this pedigreed animal but is having trouble getting the Jockey Club to take her seriously.
The owner has been waging a quiet mission for over two years to get the Jockey Club to acknowledge the claim and verify the horse’s identity. The Jockey Club does not accept the pedigree papers alone, but also requires a photo of the lip tattoo which is unique to each horse. Reportedly, three local veterinarians who have treated the horse over the years have verified his tattoo and his history.
However, in her case, the Jockey Club insists that a photo is insufficient and wants her to ship the horse to their headquarters . Understandably, the owner is reluctant to subject an old horse to the rigors of transportation by trailer. Surprisingly, the Jockey Club reportedly purged their files at the beginning of the year, believing they would not have to worry about any horse born that long ago.
The horse, nicknamed Woody, has photos posted on the NC Horse News forum page. They clearly show an old horse, somewhat swaybacked, with a lot of gray around the muzzle. They do not include a photo of the identifying tattoo, however, nor of the owner. There is also and earlier thread on the same website. Also on the Chronicle of the Horse forum is a more recent discussion thread where a friend of the owner writes in asking for help in authenticating the horse’s age.
The owner has eschewed any press reporting on her case, and works through others to post the horse’s information online and ask for assistance. This approach does not seem to favor her, as the issue loses credibility when the owner and even the farm’s names are not part of the discussion.
Woody raced as a Thoroughbred, winning two and placing in seven more races out of a total of 41 starts. He earned only $15, 500 before retiring from the track. His listing on pedigree query.com (at his page with family and race data), shows his birthdate as 2-12-1955, sired by Nasrullah and out of a Sir Gallahad mare.
He also enjoyed a career as a therapeutic riding horse (at Helping Horse in Raleigh) and a lesson horse, until he retired again at the relatively youthful age of 37 in 1992. He is doing well on a liquefied diet of pelleted feed with lots of water. He is turned out daily with other horses, and has a fondness for soft peppermints. He grazes apparently out of habit, as he has only three front teeth left.
The oldest horse on record was Old Billy, who lived to be 62 years old in Woolston, England. He was foaled in 1760 and died in 1822.
