Frequently Asked Questions

Do I have to pay a nomination fee every year?

Yes, all horses need to be nominated every year to remain eligible even if they are not competing that year.

What are the due dates for nominations?

Nominations are due every year by August 1 for $200 OR by December 1 for $300. This is same for both Pink & Ruby Buckle.

If I paid a nomination fee with my entry fee do I have to pay again before Dec 1?

No, only ONE payment is due every year, whether you paid in January, August or December. The payments are for the calendar year, not from the time to you paid it the year before. If you paid one year in December, you could make another payment the following January because it is a new year.

I have already paid my horse into Pink Buckle, do I have to pay a separate fee for Ruby Buckle?

Yes, they are separate incentives and therefore have separate fees.

When do I need to start paying nomination fees?

Nomination fees are due starting the year a horse is born or the year their sire joins our program by 8/1 for $200 OR by 12/1 for $300.  If a horse is born after 8/1 you would just owe $200 by 12/1.

What if my foal isn’t registered yet, how do I nominate it?

Horses DO NOT need to be registered in order to be nominated! Please don’t put off sending in a nomination by Aug 1 on a foal. You will need to fill out the nomination form with everything but the registered name, and number and send it in or you can go online and nominate it there. Once you receive the papers from AQHA/APHA you can email us a copy so we can update our records, or you can go to your dashboard and update it yourself.

How can I check and see if a horse is current on their nomination schedule?

There are 2 ways to check a horse's current status.  If you own the horse you can sign in to your account and go to your dashboard.  All the horses you own in our system will be listed there as well as their nomination status.  The second way is to go to the nomination tab, along the top is a bar that says Search For A Horse’. Type in the registration number OR dam for best results and click ‘Search’. If the horse does not pull up there than you can contact the office at [email protected] for more information.

If I don't see my horse on my dashboard should I just create a new horse?

No, if a horse you own is not showing up on your dashboard, please email or call the office for assistance.  Creating a new horse will create an error in payment amount due.

I am a new owner of a currently nominated horse, what do I need to do now?

You have 2 options:  You can have the previous owner mark the horse as sold and then enter your email address.  This will automatically move the horse into your account. THIS IS THE QUICKEST & PREFERRED WAY.  Or you can reach out to our office and we can move the horse into your account.  You will need to email the office a copy of the registration papers of the horse and your contact info, including full name, address & phone number and we will get our records updated.  You will not be able to nominate horses on our website until you are listed as the owner so please do not wait until the week of the deadline as we receive a high volume of calls, emails and mail that week and we can't guarantee the owner info will be updated immediately.

What happens if I miss a yearly payment?

All horses need to be nominated every year, if a year is missed the horse will become ineligible. We do have a missed nomination option for horses that are under 5 yrs old and have never competed at any event ever. That fee is $2000 due by Nov 1 of their 3 yr old year OR $3000 due by Nov 1 of their 4 yr old year (Missed Nomination Form). You will need to continue making payments every year after that to keep your horse eligible. Once a horse turns 5 and a payment is missed they become ineligible.

Do you send out invoices for our yearly nomination payment?

No, it is the owner’s responsibility to send in payment every year, but we do send out monthly newsletters with reminders and other pertinent info. If you are in our database you should receive these newsletters, if you are not receiving them please go on to our website and subscribe at the bottom of the home page.

Do you need to have nominations in office on due date or can they be postmarked?

All nominations need to be postmarked (stamped from the Post Office), emailed by (Midnight MST) or processed online (Midnight in your time zone) by the due date. If they are received after that the late fees will be applied, or they will not be accepted if applicable. PLEASE do not wait until the last day!! We are very strict on our deadlines!

How long does it normally take for processing nominations and entries & how will I know if it was processed?

Normally processing time is just a day or two, but if you wait until the deadline we ask that you allow at least 2 weeks for processing. We send an email receipt with everything that gets processed. If you submit it online you will instantly get an email receipt – please check your junk folder if it doesn’t show up in your inbox.

Will you send me a sticker for my registration papers once my nomination has been processed? 

No, we do not send out stickers because the fee has to be paid every year for the horse to remain eligible.

I won money at an event as a breeder and have not received my check what do I need to do?

10% of our payout goes to the breeder listed on the registration papers. If we have your contact info & W9 on file we will issue a check within 2 weeks post event.  However if we do not have your contact info & a W9 on file we cannot issue a check. It is the breeder's responsibility to contact the office and send in a W9. 

Click here to see a list of breeders who have won money at our events in 2023 that we do not have a W9 on file for.  Once you email or mail us a W9 we will send you your earnings.

Money has to be claimed during the calendar year it was earned.  Any monies unclaimed by Dec 31st will go back into the pot for the following year, and can no longer be claimed.

If I have a frozen embryo by an enrolled stallion, how do I know if the embryo will be eligible?

Frozen embryo eligibilty is based off of year of conception.  You will need to provide documentation showing when embryo was conceived and frozen when nominating for the first time.

How do I know what stallions are currently Ruby Buckle stallions?

Please click here for our Ruby Buckle stallion guide year-by-year.

When a new stallion is added to the program when is the first payment due?

Payments for offspring of new stallions added can be made starting in January of the year they are officially a Ruby Buckle stallion. Contracts are due Dec 1 for stallion owners and Ruby Buckle will announce our official list for the next year around Dec 15. Any new stallions announced DO NOT become an official Ruby Buckle stallion until January, at that point nominations will be accepted for his offspring.

When a new stallion is added are all of his offspring eligible to be grandfathered in?

Yes, the year a stallion joins our program, all offspring - no matter their age - are eligible for nomination at the regular rate of $200 by 8/1 or $300 by 12/1

Ruby Buckle Stallion Facts:

  • The 150 stallion slots are owned by the stallion owners, with consent from the Ruby Buckle. 
  • There will never be more than 150 total stallions in the Ruby Buckle.
  • We will not announce the following year’s stallion roster until after Dec 1 when the contracts have been finalized. No payments are due on their offspring until the year they become a Ruby Buckle stallion.
  • The Pink Buckle stallion waiting list was replaced with the Ruby Buckle stallion roster.
  • Our first priority is to promote the current stallions in the Pink & Ruby Buckles! The ONLY WAY to GUARANTEE that you will have an eligible horse is to BREED TO or BUY ONE that is sired by a Ruby Buckle stallion. 
  • We will not promote the Ruby Buckle waiting list because it is of zero value to our currently enrolled stallion owners, breeders and contestants.