Click here for details about a FREE breeding to Sinclair B

As many of you know, we had a very disappointing first foaling season with Sinclair B in 2007, when half of his foals were born with a lethal heart defect. The foals were born, took one breath and then perished; the way their hearts were formed prevented their survival for any period of time outside the womb. The only foals that were afflicted were out of mares which were located in our local area. The foals born outside of Virginia were completely normal and one foal born in Virginia was also normal. At that time, in May of 2007, we were told by 6 veterinarians that the problem was most likely genetic and the problem was with Sinclair B. We were devastated.

We tried to make the best out of a bad situation. We stopped all breeding to Sinclair B for 2008, refunded all Booking Fees to mares not already bred and refunded breeding expenses to persons who lost their foal from this heart defect in 2007.

In the late fall of 2007 the veterinarian who had first done the necropsies on the Sinclair B foals called to tell us that many calves, some llamas and more foals had been born with the exact same heart defect as the foals he had seen sired by Sinclair B. He said it was showing up primarily in a 4 county radius to our area and that they were now pretty confident that the heart defect was caused by Environmental factors and was not a genetic problem with Sinclair B as at first thought.

We have done more research, talked with more veterinarians and have had three out of three healthy, normal foals sired by Sinclair B born in 2008. (All foals for 2008 are alive and accounted for). All research indicates that the heart defect is not related to the stallion, but is caused by something to which the mare is exposed (what the experts still do not know).

We are confident enough in the evidence pointing to environmental factors to restart our breeding program with Sinclair B. We plan to breed 5 of our own broodmares to him for the 2008 breeding season.

We are also offering a FREE breeding to Sinclair B for the 2008 breeding season. For details about the free breeding and a link to the contract please keep reading...

We have decided to offer a free Stud Fee and Booking Fee to Sinclair B. to help gather more information about what happened with Sinclair's 2007 foal crop. We want to be 100% sure that the problem with the foals was indeed environmental, as all of the evidence is indicating, before reintroducing Sinclair B to the public for a fee. (Please see Note To Our Breeders above and FAQs below for more information about the evidence.)

To participate in our program, we would need a signed contract stating you understand the details of the study and the risk involved. There would be no Booking Fee and no Stud Fee. The only cost to the US breeder is a $150 collection fee (per collection) which would include collection, shipping and a shipping container. (Canada residents have a $200 collection fee due to the higher shipping costs to Canada. Click here for the Canada Version of the contract.)

Anyone breeding to Sinclair B does so with the known risk of having the breeding result in a foal that does not live and that there is no compensation for losses from Greenstone Farm, LLC. Should the foal be stillborn (or takes one breath and then expires) breeders will be required to send the foal to a state lab for necropsy or to have only the heart examined by a veterinarian to determine if the heart structure is normal. A copy of the findings should be sent to Greenstone Farm, LLC. Upon receipt of the report, we would send you (the breeder) $100.00 regardless of the result of the findings.

Should it turn out that Sinclair does not have a genetic problem (as we expect) and the foal did not survive, we would offer one year to rebreed your mare at no additional cost (other than the collection fee) Should the foal be healthy then you would have a lovely foal eligible for registration with any of the registries Sinclair B is approved for breeding with no other obligations to us.

Click Here for a Contract

1. What exactly was wrong with the foals born in 2007 with the heart defect?

Generally speaking, the vessel that supplies and transports blood from the heart to the lungs originated in the wrong place in the hearts of these foals.

Below are excerpts from all four of our necropsy reports. The first necropsy report was the second case to be seen in the area and was at the beginning of what would become a large number of foals, calves and llamas to be seen with this condition. The second and third necropsy report were also from foals that were born soon after the first case and not much information was available. At that time all of the veterinarians we consulted suspected the problem was genetic and not environmental. The last report was done after veterinarians had started to see this affliction in not only foals but also many calves and some llamas. Although veterinarians do not know the exact cause of the problem they feel that it is more likely from environmental factors rather than genetic ones.

First excerpt - "The aorta originated from the right atrium.... In a normal heart, the aorta originates from the left ventricle. Blood from the left ventricle supplies the entire body. Because of this, the colt could only have lived as long as he could receive oxygen from his mother's blood. Once he was separated from that supply he could not survive. The developmental anomaly in the heart was a congenital defect. Congenital defects may be caused by environmental or genetic factors, or a combination of both."

Second excerpt - "... The aorta originated from both the left ventricle and the right atrium. The vessels from each structure were fused together and ran parallel for 7cm and then combined forming the aorta. The likelihood that this cardiac anomaly is genetically founded has increased with now a second case."

Third excerpt - "...The aorta originated from both the left ventricle and the right atrium. Of the two chambers, the right atrial attachment was larger. The heart anomaly was consistent with the first two cases performed recently."

Fourth excerpt - "The only abnormality found in the fetus was the overriding aorta with a branch to the pulmonary artery. In the past, this defect was attributed to genetic factors. At present, with many species exhibiting the same defect, environmental toxins appear to be more likely responsible for the congenital defect of the great vessels."

We have been informed by the lab which performed these necropsies that they have been contacted by veterinarians in California about spring calves which have been born with this defect and from a veterinarian in Kentucky about an afflicted foal. All of these cases from other states have occurred during the 2008 birthing season.

On the positive side, farms which were gravely affected by losses in our area in 2007 have so far (as far as we know) not had any issues in 2008. We also have had two Sinclair foals (one out of our mare and another out of a mare 10 miles down the road) which were born as normal healthy foals. Hopefully this means that whatever caused this heart defect in our area is no longer an issue.

Many meetings have been held with veterinarians, pathologists, ecologists and farmers to try to determine a common cause or agent. So far there is nothing to link any of the farms and afflicted animals together. Feed, fertilizers, pesticides, pasture, vaccinations, and management of the animals has differed from farm to farm. Some farms have had great losses while their neighbors or animals in neighboring fields have not had any occurrences. This problem has a lot of experts scratching their head.

2. If the veterinarians are confident that the cause of this heart defect is environmental then why are you not going back to selling stud service for Sinclair B? Why are you offering a free test breeding?

We are confident in the veterinarians' opinions; however, since there is a chance that the cause could be genetic (even though small based on the evidence) and the 2007 foal crop was our first foal crop by Sinclair B on our farm, we want to be 100% sure that the problem is indeed environmental. As breeders and stallion owners, it is our goal to be as honest and responsible as possible.

We are also hopeful that once breeders see the quality of foal that Sinclair B sires, they (or you) will want to breed to him again even if the stud fee and booking fee are not given at no charge.

3. What information will this study give you? How will you determine if the cause of the problem is environmental or genetic?

If the problem is from environmental causes, then foals born outside our local area should not be affected. The veterinarians believe that the problem is caused by the mares (cows & female llamas) being exposed to something in the environment that is producing a change in the structure of the fetus' heart during development.

The percentage of Sinclair's foals confirmed with this defect lost during the 2007 year was approximately 50% (all local). Should the cause be genetic then we would expect to see a similar percentage of foals born with the same heart defect in all locations and not just from foals confined to a local area. It is our belief that this will not be the result of this "study" based on the evidence but genetics cannot be absolutely ruled out as a possibility until there are more foals sired by Sinclair B on the ground.

4. What if I have a foal that does not survive? What happens then?

If you are unfortunate enough to have a foal that does not survive then we would ask that you have a necropsy or at the very least have a veterinarian look at the structure of the foal's heart to determine if it is normal. (We understand that this may be a gruesome thing to ask for some people but without the information as to how the foal died we cannot learn anything that would help us determine if what happened in 2007 was environmental or genetic. If you don't think you can have your foal examined if it does not survive then please do not participate in this "study"). Once you have a report about the cause of death or the structure of the heart then please send a copy of the report to us here at Greenstone Farm, LLC. We will then send you a check for $100.00 for your trouble. It costs us about $65.00 to have a foal necropsied at our state lab. The lab will also cremate the remains as part of the service.

Should it be determined (as we expect) that the problem is environmental then we would offer a re-breeding to your mare under the same terms of this "study" with a $150.00 collection fee as the only cost for the breeding.

Should it be determined that the problem is genetic (which we don't expect but is a possibility) then we would thank you for your time and effort; however, we could not offer a rebreeding to your mare because we could not in good conscience allow Sinclair B to keep breeding with the possibility of perpetuating a severe genetic flaw.

5. Is there any risk to my mare during foaling if the foal does not survive? Is there a higher chance of dystocia (malpositioned foal for the birthing process)?

The foals we had with this heart defect were still alive when they were born. They expired after the mare was no longer supplying oxygen to their blood which happened as soon as the umbilical cord severed. Because the foal is alive in the womb, the foal gets into the proper birthing position. There is no greater risk to your mare during the foaling process than if she had been bred to any other stallion.

6. Is there a limit to the number of mares that I can breed to Sinclair B for the "Sinclair B Test Breeding 2008"?

No, there is no limit to the number of mares that can participate in this program. We ask that a contract be signed for each mare that participates.

We designed the Collection Fee to cover our costs. Unfortunately when shipping to Canada the amount UPS and Fed Ex charge exceeds our costs. We are happy to ship to Canada provided we can get a shipment there overnight but we have to charge a higher amount to have our costs met. The Collection Fee includes collection, shipping container and shipping.