How To Register an Older Horse

Part of AQHA’s mission is to record and preserve the pedigree of the American Quarter Horse. Each horse registered with the Association is integral to staying true to the core mission of recording and preserving the breed.

The registration process is the same at any age, the first step is to get a registration application. You will complete the application the same way you do for a weanling and will need to send in pictures of the horse.

Oftentimes, when registering an older horse, you may encounter difficulties in locating the breeder for the appropriate signatures.If you are missing a signature or other pertinent information, submit your application anyway, and AQHA will attempt to contact the appropriate people for you to acquire the necessary information. AQHA locks in registration fees from the time the application is received, so no matter what is missing, your fees will not increase while AQHA processes your work or waits for answers to correspondence.

You need to be an AQHA member to register your American Quarter Horse. AQHA membership comes with hundreds of dollars in savings each year, plus The American Quarter Horse Journal (digital only for international members), access to AQHA programs and events and much more. Join AQHA or renew your membership today!

AQHA rules require horses over the age of 4 to be parentage verified before they can be registered. This can sometimes be a hindrance if one or both of the parents has not been DNA typed and no longer available to be tested. In some cases, it is not possible to get DNA from one or both of the horse's parents. If you are in this situation, AQHA can sometimes achieve this by building a DNA type through grandparents and other offspring. This is never a definite and is handled on a case-by-case basis. AQHA charges an extra $100 fee that is non-refundable for horses whose paperwork requires in-depth research and manpower.

Remember, as long as both the sire and dam are registered with AQHA, you have a starting point. To begin the registration process, view the AQHA Registration Guide and download the registration application.

For questions on the AQHA registration process, submit a Contact Us Form or call 806-376-4811 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Central, Monday through Friday.