Effect of neonatal rib fracture repair on racing and sales performance in Thoroughbreds

Abstract Background The racing outcome of horses that have undergone surgical repair of neonatal rib fractures is not well documented. Objectives To evaluate the impact of surgical repair of neonatal rib fractures on subsequent sales and racing performance in Thoroughbreds. Study Design Retrospective cohort study. Methods Medical records of neonatal Thoroughbreds that underwent surgical repair of rib fractures at a referral hospital between 2014 and 2025 were reviewed. Sales and racing data were obtained from publicly available databases. Outcomes assessed included sale price at weanling and yearling sales, total career earnings, earnings per start, number of starts, and number of racing seasons. Horses that underwent surgical repair were compared with their maternal siblings to account for shared genetic and management‐related factors. Outcomes were analysed using Wilcoxon matched‐pairs signed‐rank tests, and results are presented as median pair differences with interquartile ranges (IQRs). Results Sixty‐two foals that underwent surgical rib fracture repair were included. Matched‐pairs analysis did not identify statistically significant differences between foals with rib fractures and their maternal siblings for sale price (median difference $10,000, IQR: −55,927 to 93,000), total earnings ($587, IQR: −43,122 to 35,880), earnings per start (−$433.5, IQR: −4249 to 1980), number of starts (1, IQR: −10 to 8), or seasons raced (0, IQR: −1 to 1). Similarly, no statistically significant differences were identified for yearling (−$10,000, IQR: −74,000 to 188,250) or weanling sale price ($0, IQR: −35,000 to 120,000). Main Limitations Retrospective study, modest sample size for some outcomes, variable follow‐up time, and lack of adjustment for co‐morbidities. Conclusions Surgical rib fracture repair had no statistically significant differences in sales or racing outcomes when compared to maternal siblings. These findings suggest that surgical repair, when clinically indicated, is not associated with adverse long‐term economic or performance outcomes.