Charming Kitten to Stand at Indiana's Breakway Farm

Ken and Sarah Ramsey's grade 1-placed, grade 2 winner Charming Kitten  has been sold to a partnership and will enter stud at Breakway Farm near Dillsboro, Ind.

The 10-year-old son of Kitten's Joy  was bred and raced by the Ramseys, who watched the dark bay horse out of the Wild Again mare Iteration compile an 8-8-3 record out of 33 starts and bank $1,018,701. He won or placed in eight graded stakes, including a victory in the W.L. McKnight Handicap (G3T) at Gulfstream Park and a third-place finish in the 2013 Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (G1) at Keeneland, when the Lexington track had an all-weather main track surface. Charming Kitten also started in the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (G1), where he finished ninth.

When the pre-mature closing of racetracks due to COVID-19 forced a half-dozen horses the Ramseys had hoped to sell at the track to return to the farm, the owner/breeders turned to Jim Perry Bloodstock to assist with listing the horses available on the Starquine online market. They added their stallion prospects Charming Kitten and grade 1-placed, grade 3 winner Oscar Nominated to the listings to gauge interest.

Dr. Tony Wolfe, who owns Wolfe Equine Services in Northern Kentucky near the Ohio River, was looking for a stallion to stand in Indiana and saw a lot of potential in Charming Kitten. He in turn sold a 50% interest in the stallion to Breakway Farm, where he is the farm vet and also boards his mares.

"Tony was looking specifically for a stallion to stand at our farm," said Tara Mathias, manager of Breakway Farm, which her family owns and operates. "He breeds and races Indiana-breds, so he was excited to be able to participate in the Indiana-sired program, too, with his own horse. Charming Kitten matches well with his mares."

Charming Kitten, a full brother to multiple graded stakes-placed and listed stakes winner Queen'splatekitten, hails from a solid family. His second dam, Lady Madonna (Chief's Crown), is a half sister to Irish group 3 winner and stakes producer Saranac Lake and to listed stakes winner and producer Alashir. The family has also produced West Virginia Breeders' Classic winners and full siblings Castle Bound and Bound to Windsor (both by Windsor Castle).

Mathias said the partners see an opportunity in standing a stallion that excelled on the grass.

"Indiana is starting to offer more turf racing so we are expanding our program," she said. "This horse is a good fit. He was a top racehorse, he started in the Kentucky Derby, and he is by a top sire in Kitten's Joy."

Because it is midway through the breeding season, Charming Kitten will stand for a complimentary fee to approved mares. Wolfe also will provide complimentary vet work associated with getting the mares booked in foal this year. Next year, Charming Kitten will stand for $2,000.

"He wants to guarantee your mare will get in foal without a lot of expenses," Mathias said.

Perry said the Ramseys were thrilled to see the stallion going to nearby Indiana.

"We could not have found a better home for him. It was a fair offer, a vet bought him, and we are really happy about the location," Perry said.

The Starquine listing for Oscar Nominated also generated several inquiries, which Perry said the Ramseys are reviewing.