Stallions, standing on trust.

Breeding on Hoofine

• Does a verified badge mean the studbook has approved this stallion?

  No, and the distinction matters more than any other on this page. Verification checks a stud's identity and the documents they upload. It is not a studbook licence and cannot be one: approval is granted by the studbook your foal will be registered with, it is not interchangeable between books, and several books require a performance test as well as an inspection. Confirm approval with your own studbook, in writing, before you book a season.

• Which covering methods can a stud offer here?

  Live cover, fresh-cooled (chilled) semen, frozen semen, ICSI and embryo transfer. A stallion profile states which of those it offers, and can price a chilled dose and a container deposit separately from the standing fee — so you can work out the real cost of a cycle before messaging anyone. A fee quoted without naming the method is not a quote.

• How does payment work on a breeding booking?

  The stud fee runs through escrow rather than direct to the stud, so the money is held until the booking terms are met. The buyer pays 3% on top of the agreed fee, shown before the payment is funded. The stud pays 4.8% plus a fixed service fee from the payout. Nothing is charged on a booking that is cancelled or refunded.

• What happens if the mare does not get in foal?

  That depends on the stud's own contract, not on Hoofine. Almost every stud offers some form of live foal guarantee, and almost every dispute is about its conditions rather than its existence — what counts as a live foal, by when you must report a barren mare, whether the return service is transferable, and whether collection and shipping are payable again on it. Read those four clauses before you pay, and keep the contract.

• What does it cost to list a stallion?

  Listing is free. Fees apply only to a completed booking, and the current figures are on the pricing page rather than restated here, because they can change.