Re: Deaf Frogs (394 Views)
Posted by:
Michael D. (IP Logged)
Date: March 31, 2005 06:02PM
jerry,
secretariat, buckpasser, and 'bid were so great because they had a freakish ability to run very fast for an extended period of time. all three are well known carriers of the "large heart gene". buckpasser through blue larkspur, secretariat through princequillo, and 'bid through mahoud. in fact, buckpasser and secretariat are out of rare "double copy mares" (large heart gene on both x chromosomes). as you know, the large heart gene is usually only passed through the x chromosome. sires can only pass on their large heart gene to their daughters, not their sons (mares have two x chromosomes, then can pass the gene on to sons and daughters). the broodmare sire success of secretariat, buckpasser, and 'bid is the result of two factors - the first, as you say, is because they had great books of mares. the second is because they passed on their greatest trait, their large hearts, to some of their daughters, who then passed on the trait to some of their offspring........ my question is: is the large heart gene evaporating? are the large heart genes that let secretariat run 1:59 at CD and 'bid run 1:57 at SA no longer present in ANY horses? ...... interesting discussion, one probably better left for a quieter period.
Post Edited (03-31-05 19:13)