Kentucky Equine Survey Executive Summary - 2012

2012 Kentucky Equine Survey
A comprehensive statewide survey of all breeds of horses, ponies, donkeys and mules

T

he last thorough equine inventory in Kentucky
was undertaken in 1977, leaving the state’s equine
industry with 35 years of changes, growth and contraction that were neither measured nor analyzed.
In response to these needs, in 2011, the University
of Kentucky and the Kentucky Horse Council, with
support by industry organizations spearheaded by the
Kentucky Quarter Horse Association, the Kentucky
Thoroughbred Farm Managers’ Club and Kentucky

Thoroughbred Association/Kentucky Thoroughbred
Owners and Breeders, and initial support from the
University of Louisville, succeeded in securing funding for a large-scale, comprehensive equine survey
upon which future industry plans could be built. This
was no small accomplishment, because many groups,
including the Kentucky Equine Education Project,
spent years laying the groundwork that eventually
helped make this happen.

LINDA WILSON

LINDA WILSON

LINDA WILSON

Inventory Results
• Kentucky is home to 242,400 horses.
• There are approximately 35,000 equine
operations in Kentucky.
• 1.1 million acres in Kentucky are devoted to equine use.
• The total value of the state’s equine and
equine-related assets is estimated at
$23.4 billion.
• The total of all equine-related sales and
income for equine operations in 2011
was about $1.1 billion.
• Equine-related expenditures by equine
operations in 2011 totaled about $1.2 billion; 77% of operating expenses are spent
in Kentucky.

Equine Breeds in Kentucky
Thoroughbred
Quarter Horse
Tennessee Walking Horse
American Saddlebred
Donkeys and mules
Mountain Horse breeds
Standardbred
Miniature Horses
Ponies
Paint
Arabian and Half-Arabian
Appaloosa
Belgian
Morgan
Percheron
Paso Fino
Hackney Horse
Pinto (excludes Paint)
Clydesdale
Other

Primary Use of Kentucky’s
Equines
Trail riding/pleasure 79,500
Broodmares
38,000
Idle/not working
33,000
Competition/show
24,500
Yearlings, weanlings 23,000
and foals
Racing
15,000
Other activities
13,000
Work/transportation 12,500
Stallions at stud
3,900

54,000
42,000
36,000
14,000
14,000
12,500
9,500
7,000
7,000
6,500
5,500
3,800
3,300
2,000
1,600
1,500
1,100
900
200
20,000

Kentucky Equine Inventory by County

5,001 - 10,000

*Withheld

1,001 - 2,500

10,001 - 30,000

Carroll

ell
pb
m
Ca
Kenton

2,501 - 5,000

501 - 1,000

Trim

0 - 500

e
Boon

Total Inventory

PendleGallatin
Grant ton Bracken

9

ble

Mason
RobertGreenup
Lewis
Harrison son
Oldham
Nic
hola Fleming
Carter
s
Boyd
Scott
Bourbon
Shelby
Rowan
Jefferson
Bath
Elliot
Fayette
Lawrence
Spencer
n
M
erso
Bullitt
Clark
ea
Menifee Morgan
And
de
Johnson
Powell
Henderson
Martin
Nelson Wash- Mercer
Breckinridge
Wolfe
Madison
ington
Daviess
Ga
Hardin
Estill
Union
rra
Boyle
Floyd
Lee
rd
Marion
Webster
Breathitt
Larue
Ohio
Pike
Lincoln
Grayson
Owsley
Rock- Jackson
Crittenden
Taylor
castle
Casey
Perry Knott
Ed
Hart
Hopkins Muh
Green
mo
Butler
len
ns
be
Clay
on
rg
Mc
Letcher
Pulaski
Laurel
Cra
Leslie
Adair
cke
Ballard
Lyon
n
Russell
Warren
Barren
Christian
Logan
Knox
Carlisle
Todd
Marshall
Harlan
CumberWayne
Trigg
Graves
Whitley
land
Simpson Allen
Bell
Monroe
Hickman
McCreary
Clinton
Calloway
Fulton
Owen

M

er

m

o
tg
on

y

k li

ffin

go

Ma

ck

ine

nco

Ha

n
ea
cL

3

lfe
tca

Me

ll
we

ld
Ca

n
sto

ing

Liv

1

M

2

8

sam
Jes
d
Woodfor

Fra
n

7

n

Henry

4

*Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual firms.

5

6

KENTUCKY HORSE COUNCIL

LINDA WILSON
LINDA WILSON

Operating Expenditures, 2011
Category
Maintenance/repair
Feed
Breeding fees
Health
Training fees
Boarding fees paid to others
Insurance premiums
Utilities/fuel
Farrier
Taxes
Shipping and travel
Supplies
Miscellaneous
Fees and payments
Bedding
Rent/lease
Total operating
expenditures

Expense ($)
149,000,000
123,000,000
85,000,000
71,000,000
69,000,000
48,000,000
41,000,000
38,000,000
34,000,000
34,000,000
34,000,000
27,000,000
26,000,000
25,000,000
21,000,000
14,000,000

% Spent in
Kentucky
73%
85%
77%
82%
60%
80%
77%
86%
85%
78%
70%
81%
79%
69%
85%
88%

839,000,000

77%

Capital Expenditures, 2011
Purchases of equine
Real estate purchases and
improvements
Equipment purchases

$185 million
$82 million

Total capital expenditures

$338 million

$71 million

Equine Operation Revenues and Expenses
(reported from calendar year 2011)
Revenues
Income from sales of horses, ponies, $522.1 million
mules and donkeys
Income from equine-related services
$491 million
breeding services
$220 million
non-breeding services
$271 million
In total, equine-related income
from sales and services

$1.1 billion

Value of Equine and Equine-Related Assets
(on July 1, 2012)
Value of the all horses, ponies, mules
$6.3 billion
and donkeys
Value of equine-related land, fencing
$13.9 billion
and buildings
Value of equine-related vehicles and
$3 billion
equipment
Value of tack and equestrian clothing $114 million
Value of feed and supplies
$58 million
Total value of all equine-related
assets, including the value of the
equine

$23.4 billion

An economic impact analysis of Kentucky’s equine industry was also conducted. According to three of the
most commonly-used measures of economic impact:
• The output effect, or the increase in sales of total goods and services due to the presence of the
equine industry, was measured at approximately
$3 billion.
Total Economic Impact of Equine Industry
Employment
(jobs)
Output
Direct equine
32,022
$1.78
industry impacts
billion
Total equine
40,665
$2.99
industry impacts
billion

Value Added
$813
million
$1.40
billion

SAVANNAH ROBIN

KENTUCKY HORSE COUNCIL

Economic Impact

• The employment effect, or the number of jobs created, was measured at 40,665.
• The value added effect, which is new income paid
to workers, profits earned by businesses or dividends paid to shareholders, was estimated to be
$1.4 billion.
In addition, the tax contribution of the equine industry to the state of Kentucky was approximately $134
million.
Estimate of Impact by Sector
Sector
Employment
Breeding
16,198
Competition

2,708

Racing

6,251

Recreation
Other

594
14,914

A full copy of the report, methodology, terminology and lists of
sponsors and key contributors can be requested by contacting
[email protected] or 859-257-2226.

http://equine.ca.uky.edu/kyequinesurvey
Released September 6, 2013

Output
$710
million
$635
million
$1.28
billion
$166
million
$194
million

Value Added
$333
million
$297
million
$601
million
$78
million
$91
million