How Cal-breds Relax

Katie Fisher with pensioned two-time Cal-bred Broodmare of the Year Ashley’s Folly at Kingfsher Farms

Where Cal-breds Go To Chill

R & R IS THE RIGHT Rx AT KINGFISHER FARMS

STORY AND PHOTOS BY EMILY SHIELDS

rickyard Ride needed a break.

After the 4-year-old colt won three stakes earlier this year, including the $202,000 San Carlos Stakes (G2) by four lengths, owner Alfred Pais decided that his brilliant California-bred sprinter could use a vacation. Te son of Clubhouse Ride— Brickyard Helen, by Southern Image, had run ffth in the Bing Crosby Stakes (G1) and then last of nine in the Pat O’Brien Stakes (G2) after breaking through the gate before the start.

But where to send him? Pais chose Kingfsher Farms.

First established in 2017 at a Santa Ynez location, Katie Fisher’s rehabilitation and layup facility moved in December 2020. Te tranquil farm is now situated just of Highway 101 and before the popular tourist town of Solvang. It has quickly become a top choice

for many trainers to send their horses for mental reprieves or to recover from injuries before returning to the races.

“Tey ran through him with a fne-tooth comb,” Fisher said of $470,977-earner Brickyard Ride. “Tey wanted to give him time after he broke through the gate. Te owner had toured my farm and referred others to me. When Brickyard Ride got here, he said, ‘Anything you can think of that might beneft him? Just throw it right at him.’ ”

Tis means diferent options for different horses.

“I knew it would be a short break,” Fisher said, “so I hand-walked him and grazed him so that he could get the beneft of the grass and the sun on his back without being turned loose to his own devices.”

Te farm has myriad equipment, including a full-sized vibration plate, to help horses relax and recover,.

“All my horses go on the vibe plate every day; every single one,” Fisher said.

Tere is also an AquaTred underwater treadmill and an arena for horses to be worked by the farm’s resident international riders.

Fisher has developed her own “starting protocols” for each type of injury or rehabilitation project.

“By the time they arrive, I’ve generally talked to the trainer and, in most cases, also the owner,” she said. “I already know what is wrong with the horse and also what the goal is. Do they just want 30 days of with time on the grass? Our refreshers always include grass time because how else do you let a horse be a horse?”

Post-surgical rehabs are even more detailed.

“I speak to the veterinarian involved so that I get a surgery report, X-rays, and/ or ultrasounds,” Fisher said. “I get copies of the scans, including MRI and PET scans, so that we have a point of reference for where we are starting and where we will be going. I like to map out their time here.”

Horses with tendon issues get handwalked twice daily, starting around 10 minutes each time. Ten they stand on the vibration plate and stand in ice.

“It’s good for their minds to go twice a day, as opposed to once,” Fisher said. “You want to get infammation and heat out of the tendon frst and foremost. It’s angry while it’s hot, but if you can get it cooled, then it starts to heal.”

Tendons get rescanned between 60 and 90 days. Depending on the scan, the horses might get another 45 to 60 days of hand-walking before they are turned out.

Once the horse is ready to go back to work, the trainer gets input on the rehabilitation process.

“Some trainers don’t want us to sit on the horse,” she said. “Others think it’s great if we can leg the horse up. Two weeks on the AquaTred keeps them moving and working, keeps those muscles going. Tey don’t lose a lot of muscle between 30 and 45 days because they are incredible athletes. But after 60 or 75 days, you see them going a little soft.”

Fisher’s success has been noticed by trainers such as Mike Puype, who sent grade 2-placed Cal-bred Tigre Di Slugo to the farm this year, and Richard Baltas. One of her biggest clients is Peter Eurton, who has sent horses such as grade 1-placed Dream Shake and 2019 TVG Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) shocker Storm the Court.

“Don’t think I didn’t do a little happy dance when Pete called me and said he was sending up Storm the Court,” Fisher said. “I said, ‘Wait, you’re sending me the big guy!?’ I hung up and did a dance.”

Storm the Court has earned $1,369,951, with two wins in 14 starts, one of those being the 2019 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile at 451. He fnished sixth in the 2020 Kentucky Derby (G1), but hasn’t won in two years. Hence the vacation.

“I love getting to watch the horses get better and then go on,” Fisher said.

“Whether it’s a broodmare or a stallion or a racehorse going back to the track or on to their second career, I get to watch that progression.”

Speaking of broodmares, Fisher’s farm is home to a handful, including pensioned Ashley’s Folly, who was twice the California Broodmare of the Year. Te daughter of Urgent Request—Cozzene’s Kiss, by Cozzene, has produced seven winners from eight starters. Among those are Cal-bred millionaire Ashleyluvssugar, who won fve graded stakes races, and three-time stakes placed Ashley’s Sassy. Te grand gray mare loves to play in her water trough, getting her nearly white coat endlessly dirty.

“She wants a pool to play in,” Fisher noted dryly.

COURTESY OF KATIE FISHER

Alfred Pais’ homebred graded stakes winner Brickyard Ride, shown spending some quality time refreshening at Kingfsher Farms before a return to the races

Individual attention is a big part of the success in getting horses back to the track and to the sales ring. Te second-highest-priced colt of the Fasig-Tipton California yearling sale, a $260,000 son of City of Light, was prepped at Kingfsher Farms. Te property used to be what Pam and Martin Wygod used for their yearlings before selling it to Fisher.

“I attract a diferent clientele because primarily what I do is layups,” Fisher said. “I’m not a breeding farm that also takes layups. I’ve heard people say they can send the horse to a cheaper farm, and they could. But I think you get what you pay for. For instance, putting the horses on the vibe plate is not a big stretch for me to do every day, so it’s included in my rate. At a lot of places, that’s an extra charge.”

Fisher, a single mom of young twins, would not be able to handle everything alone and credits her team of employees for the young farm’s success.

“It takes a village,” she said. “I am just one piece of the puzzle. It takes the referring vets, my vets here, the farm (staf), trainer, and owners. All work together for the beneft of these athletes.”

Left, the farm has many different methods to help horses relax and recover from the rigors of the track; above, Ashley’s Folly enjoys the human touch at Kingfsher Farms

The calm, relaxing atmosphere of grazing time is one of the many Kingfsher benefts