How do I buy a horse?

See the Trading FAQ.

Where are the horses kept?

Right now, all horses are at one farm, run by the TC Bank. As the game grows, players will be able to start their own farms and racetracks and compete for horses.

How do I change a horse's name?

You don't. Owners receive a special form to name horses when they are born, but the name can't be changed afterwards.

I do not understand the costs in my report, it lists 100 each for horse feed and trainer but my costs are higher than that.

That means actually 100% -- ie, you're paying full amount, but no more. A number of 125 would mean you pay an additional 25% to whatever the basic charge is. This would be done to increase racing performance. The basic charge is set by the faction faction council. To see more about factions see the Factions FAQ. To understand the costs better see the next answer.

How much does it really cost to own a horse?

For owners of only one horse, the faction picks up annual faction costs of that horse for player. The player must still pay for the racing and breeding costs. For owners of more than one horse the break down is like this:

Faction or stable costs (see the Factions FAQ for more info):

Annual food cost: Percent set by the owner multiplied the faction charge multiplied the number of horses.

• Annual trainer cost: Percent set by the owner multiplied the faction charge multiplied the number of horses.
• Annual stable cost: Percent set by the owner multiplied the faction charge multiplied the number of horses.

Racing costs (see the Racing FAQ for more info):

• Race entry fees, detemined by the races expected purse.
• Standard bet per race, 500 minimum.

Breeding costs (see the Breeding FAQ for more info):

• Stud fees, set by Stud's owners.

With all these costs how do I make any money?

There are two ways to make money with horses. These are directly associated with the last two costs:

Racing income (see the Racing FAQ for more info):

• Race purse
• Winning bets

Breeding income (see the Breeding FAQ for more info):

• Selling foals
• Stud fees. The faction will take commissions or give rebates depending on whether or not the mare's owner are within your faction.

What is the 500 bet on my horse all about? I didn't bet on that bag of bones.

Horse owners are required to bet at least 500 on their horse. To adjust your standard bet use the Player Updates Form.

My horse isn't winning any races but her value is higher than most of the horses she races against.

The speed and general value of a horse are only two factors in what horse wins a race. There are random factors in every race, weather, stumbling, injury, and temperment. Each of these factors have an associated genes to determine how likely your horse is to succumb to one of these factors. If her stress is getting too high it might be more profitable to start breeding her.

Why does my New Prestige drop so much after foaling?

New foals bring down your average value, AND the effect is increased based on number of horses.   Eg, an unweighted average of 8000 is worth less when you have 400 horses than when you have 300.  The idea is to make larger stables more difficult to maintain without placing any artificial limit on the total horses you can have. 

Horses reach peak value at about age 4-6 for racers

Another factor is on the breeding turn, you have a bunch of yearlings that go from farm to racing, and they don’t gain value until they start winning races.

How can I rest my horse? The game is running her to death.

Check the 'rest' box on the claims form. This pulls the horse from races until you decide to return it.