Fred Posted March 24, 2020 Share Posted March 24, 2020 How sick is NZTR [and others] pleading for the horse industry to be declared an essential service. Quoting tosh like horses kept in stables need to be exercised and therefore training tracks must operate. Every horse at some stage is turned out of work and running free in a paddock -the only difference now is that they all will be paddocked at the same time. I see some large stables have 'bit the bullet' and sent all for a spell, good on them . 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chief Stipe Posted March 24, 2020 Share Posted March 24, 2020 What they should be doing is assisting stakeholders to obtain the subsidies that are available. Oh and indicating how they are saving operational costs. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Centaur Posted March 26, 2020 Share Posted March 26, 2020 On 25/03/2020 at 10:10 AM, Fred said: How sick is NZTR [and others] pleading for the horse industry to be declared an essential service. Quoting tosh like horses kept in stables need to be exercised and therefore training tracks must operate. Every horse at some stage is turned out of work and running free in a paddock -the only difference now is that they all will be paddocked at the same time. I see some large stables have 'bit the bullet' and sent all for a spell, good on them . Whats the difference between being in a stable or a paddock. Someone still needs to care for them. Some stables will be suitable to carry on others not. Depends if the staff can be kept in a locked down cluster. If stable rely on help that comes and goes then not suitable. For an owner who perhaps is looking to sell or discover the ability then the business of training still exists. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freda Posted March 26, 2020 Share Posted March 26, 2020 I agree in principle, i see distance and safe practice protocols NOT happening all around, but stables not the only guilty ones. Most of the horse population is in and around the Waikato, other areas also mostly rural or very close, and many options with pre training/agistment properties exist close by. At Riccarton, a city track with not a great equine focus close by, there is a certain difficulty in finding suitable properties to suddenly take hundreds of horses. The notion that ' business ' as usual can continue is very wrong, however. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ultra Posted March 26, 2020 Share Posted March 26, 2020 (edited) Our agistment farm now has horses stacked on horses, had to buy extra covers, and had to employ extra staff. The horses would have been infinitely better off in stables. Despicably, some of those making the most noise for tracks to close were the very people who stood to gain most from the closures. Edited March 26, 2020 by Ultra 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chief Stipe Posted March 27, 2020 Share Posted March 27, 2020 1 hour ago, Ultra said: Our agistment farm now has horses stacked on horses, had to buy extra covers, and had to employ extra staff. The horses would have been infinitely better off in stables. Despicably, some of those making the most noise for tracks to close were the very people who stood to gain most from the closures. The Law of Unintended Consequences. Stuff all of what has been enforced has been thought through. Take for example the Council in the Hawkes Bay shutting down the camping ground they own. THEN setting up a place for campers to park in a car park with no water and no toilets! Some people in camping grounds are long stayers I.e. it is their HOME! Great for big stables to put all their horses out but as you point put they are just shifting the problem and no doubt the liability. Not many of those with their new found powers that they can now wield from their living room are doing systems thinking and answering What If. Also who is going to end up in jail or lose their license if their horse while doing light exercise breaks into a gallop? Yet they are expected to be put out fresh into a paddock where they can gallop their hearts out which they are trained to do and naturally want to do. I bet their will be more injured horses to deal with. One lesson I see from all this is that those countries that followed a test, test, test policy straight away have got on top of it. That should be a message to the those in charge that that is the way to control drug abuse in horses and people in the industry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freda Posted March 27, 2020 Share Posted March 27, 2020 Agree, Chief...test, test, test, which is still not being done. Asymptomatic people can therefore have infected tens, hundreds before lockdown came into force. And, scarily, many are paying lip service only to distance and cleaning protocols. What I see around me is frightening. One young woman whom I forcibly pushed out my door told me to 'stop being anal ' and several of her friends were out on the piss night before last. I kicked out a flatmate's g/f who had arrived unannounced, because she had no notion of any safety protocols at all. Flatmate packed a sad and left too....so at least a quieter- and cleaner - house now....but they only left yesterday, lockdown day. No effing idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Centaur Posted March 27, 2020 Share Posted March 27, 2020 The farmer with teenage kids is ideally placed to keep horses going. Perhaps a marketing area for NZTR to pursue. Even get new families started in racing with retired trainers acting as advisers on the phone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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