Without the money she receives from the Ontario Thoroughbred breeders’ awards, Sherry McLean is certain her farm in Hillsburgh, ON farm could not stay open.
“I can’t stress it enough,” said McLean (above / Dave Landry photo), the owner of Northern Dawn Stables. “Without that money, we probably wouldn’t be here… and that money needs to keep coming back into the programs. Without it, we’re done.
“I’m probably paying seven or eight people right now. Where would they be if they didn’t have jobs?
In 2025, despite being a small Ontario breeder, Northern Dawn finished fifth on the list of total breeders’ awards with $148,055 in bonus money (from 13 horses) when you account just for the money the farm earned as a solo breeder. The farm also earned additional money from six Thoroughbreds bred in partnership and a major share of $26,500 in awards from the Ontario Sired Reward of Excellence fund when two horses McLean bred cracked the top three in the 2-year-old fillies’ division.
“It pays the bills here,” McLean said of the awards. “That keeps you going through the summer, until we get to yearling sales. I’m totally dependent on the horses paying the bills. They are my only income. So, every little bit helps… The money goes right back into my business.”
BREEDERS’ AWARDS WORTH NEARLY $6 MILLION
In 2025, Thoroughbred breeders’ awards were $5.87 million of the total Thoroughbred Improvement Program (TIP) budget of $15.1 million.
Breeders’ awards are paid to the breeder of record – whether individual, partnership, syndicate or corporation – at the time of foaling of registered Ontario Breds and Ontario Sired horses. In 2025, awards were given to:
- Registered Ontario Breds and Ontario Sired horses racing in Ontario.
- Registered Ontario Breds and Ontario Sired horses racing in Graded and Open Stakes races within Ontario.
- Registered Ontario Breds and Ontario Sired horses racing outside of Ontario in Graded Stakes races, worldwide.
- Ontario Sired horses racing in all race types world-wide with top earnings.
Each of the top 10 breeders on the 2025 list received at least $100,000 in awards all the way up to Chiefswood Stables Inc. in the top spot with $225,000. Even the 100th breeder on the list earned $12,300, showing the money was well distributed among many breeders – from the very largest operations to the smallest outfits.
AWARDS “BEST BANG FOR YOUR BUCK” SAYS DI GIULIO, JR.
Frank Di Giulio, Jr. finished second in total Ontario Thoroughbred breeders’ awards both in 2024 and 2025. (Dave Landry photo)
Medium-sized breeder Frank Di Giulio, Jr. of Etobicoke, ON was second on the list in 2025 with $181,630 in awards. He was also second in 2024 with $177,604.
“If you’re going to race in Ontario, I think it’s the best bang for your buck,” Di Giulio, Jr. said. “You should own Ontario Breds and even better, Ontario Sired horses. It gives you the best chance to be successful, because if you get one that can run, the bonus money you run for as an owner is substantial. You’re basically running for roughly 50 per cent more if you have an Ontario Bred and Ontario Sired horse than if you have a non-Ontario Bred and Sired horses. So, [the awards are] significant. It’s a big difference. And you notice it when you’re running one that isn’t Ontario Bred and Ontario Sired that the purse isn’t quite as good.”
In 2025, 14 horses contributed to Di Giulio, Jr.’s total. He also earned an additional $21,000 from the Ontario Sired Reward of Excellence fund when his Go Kart Mozart topped the list of 3-year-old colts and geldings.
“Anything I get gets reinvested, whether pre- or post-earnings,” Di Giulio, Jr. said. “It’s not inexpensive to breed horses, and oftentimes, there are years where you’ve kept the mare and she’s open or she’s had a dead foal or she’s aborted. You’re not producing a horse every year, but you’re still paying expenses every year. So, it’s not as simple as you can count on producing a foal each and every year. You need to hopefully find ones that will make up for those lean years.”
Di Giulio, Jr. said he’s such a fan of the breeders’ awards program he fashioned his entire program to take advantage of it by producing Ontario Bred and Ontario Sired horses whenever possible.
“I can’t speak highly enough about the program,” he said. “Breeders deserve it. It’s not an easy game for anybody, whether you own your own farm or just board. Any reward they get is well-deserved and well-earned, and I think everyone’s in the same boat as me, it just gets reinvested. It’s not like you’re putting it in your pocket, because there’s always expenses.”
CHIEFSWOOD SPREADS THE MONEY IN SEVERAL TOWNS
It’s the second year in a row that Chiefswood has topped the list.
Rob Landry, the farm manager for Chiefswood Stables Ltd., told Ontario Racing a year ago that the breeders’ awards the farm receives are spread through several communities.
“We have our own training centre,” Landry said last year. “We have our broodmare farm… [and] the costs of maintaining those facilities is very high. It’s lumber to fix the fences that comes from the local lumber yards, and it’s the gas stations. We’re supporting them… That money is all invested back into the business.
“Our broodmare farm is in Schomberg, and then we have the training center in Loretto. So, it’s not just one town. You’ve got Loretto, Alliston, Simcoe, they’re all supported… It’s the local feed mills and all that.”
Landry said the entire Chiefswood team takes pride in ranking first in awards, because, “it means you had a great year.
“The other thing is, we breed to race. It’s not like we’re commercial breeders that sell the horses… They’re all bred by ourselves, and they’re all raised by ourselves. So that makes it that much better.”
Top 10 Ontario Breeders Rewards recipients in 2025
- Chiefswood Stables Ltd.* – $225,000
- Frank Di Giulio, Jr. – $181,630
- Howard Walton – $155,770
- Adena Springs – $149,005
- Northern Dawn Stables Inc. – $148,055
- Paul Buttigieg – $124,370
- James Everatt, Janeane Everatt and Arika Everatt-Meeuse – $115,180
- Colebrook Farms – $110,425
- Spring Farm – $109,970
- Anderson Farms Ont. Inc. – $101,390
*includes awards from the Princess Elizabeth Stakes
Ontario Sired Reward of Excellence 2025 Finalists
Top 2-year-old FILLIES
- Souper Diva (by Souper Speedy) – $21,000 – Northern Dawn Stables Inc.
- Pageant Queen (by Point of Entry) – $11,000 – Anthony B. Russo and Leslie L. Russo
- Sipping History (by Old Foerster) – $5,500 – Northern Dawn Stables Inc. and Kathy Biers
Top 2-year-old COLTS and GELDINGS
- Big Bold and First (by Signature Red) – $21,000 – Howard Walton
- Duckduckduck (by Silent Name (JPN)) – $11,000 – Kingview Farms
- Silver Is Best (by Signature Red) – $5,500 – Howard Walton
TOP 3-YEAR-OLD FILLIES
- Foresters Exec (by Old Forester) – $21,000 – Colebrook Farms
- Ella It Is (by Point of Entry) – $11,000 – Norse Ridge Farms
- Takemybourbonneat (by Souper Speedy) – $5,500 – Keowee Racing Stable
TOP 3-YEAR COLTS and GELDINGS
- Go Kart Mozart (by Souper Speedy) – $21,000 – Frank Di Giulio, Jr.
- Deputy Daddy (by Frac Daddy) – $11,000 – Paul Buttigieg
- Dark Screen (by Big Screen) – $5,500 – Spring Farm
