Some of Britain and Ireland’s leading experts in equine welfare and thoroughbred retraining have met for the inaugural ‘Behind The Bridle’ seminar, an event specifically addressing wellbeing in horses.
Hosted at Newmarket’s Rowley Mile racecourse by racehorse trainer Richard Phillips and broadcaster Hannah Baycroft, a panel of six industry specialists led discussions on a number of topics ranging from preparing racehorses for retirement and retraining to the importance of properly trained staff to the wellbeing of the thoroughbred.
The panellists (pictured below) were:
· Andrew Braithwaite, Chief Executive of the British Racing School.
· Anna Kerr, Chief Executive of The National Stud.
· Diana Cooper, Strategic Advisor of Charities at Godolphin and IFAR member.
· James Ferguson – Group 1-winning Newmarket-based trainer.
· Dr Rachel Annan – Post-doctoral Research Fellow University College Dublin, School of Veterinary Medicine.
· Therese Murphy, Founder of Equi-Ed and specialist in racehorse rehabilitation and re-education
The event, organised by The Jockey Club and taking place for the first time, was designed to bring together leading industry voices to explore how focusing on the wellbeing of the thoroughbred can support performance and improve their long-term welfare and suitability for retraining and life beyond racing.
Co-host Richard Phillips said: “The panel were absolutely brilliant. We had James Ferguson, Newmarket trainer, discussing welfare and wellbeing of horses, along with Dr Rachel Annan, who is an expert in racehorse behaviour. We were also fortunate to have Therese Murphy from Equi-Ed, talking about how we educate racing’s people, along with Andrew Braithwaite from the British Racing School, Anna Kerr from The National Stud and Diana Cooper from Godolphin all bringing their own perspectives.
“As well as being very experienced, they were all fascinating about the subject matters and wanting to find ways to ensure we move forward and explain that we can improve horses' welfare and wellbeing. The premise of the session was to share ideas and to start the conversation – it’s really important that this is very much the beginning of conversations not just a one-off event.”
Phillips was also keen to thank representatives from a host of horseracing’s stakeholders for attending the seminar.
He added: “There were so many different organisations in attendance. The conversation around wellbeing and welfare is so important and whether that's a difficult conversation or perhaps it makes people feel uncomfortable, it's a conversation worth having because we're all here for the same reason, it's for the good of the thoroughbred.
“Retraining Of Racehorses were there along with HEROS, a great retraining centre, with the Levy Board, Horse Welfare Board and lots of people in the room asking questions, talking about the very same subject. It is a fascinating subject and there's so much good work going on.
“We've improved the thoroughbred in so many ways as well. We've made a lot of progress to make their lives better but we can always do more. To share those ideas is always fascinating and inspiring.
“I think basically we're all on the same side - the whole industry wants to come up with as many good ideas as possible and listen to other people's ideas, come up with research and also show the public how much we do to make sure that a horse has a great life.”
Phillips also believes putting the spotlight on welfare and the first-class care that thoroughbreds receive can be a huge plus for the British racing industry.
He explained: “Racehorses on the whole have lives that humans should have – a balanced diet, exercise programmes, private health, dentistry, spas, 24-hour care. But there are also things that we can do to improve their lives even more and the more we do that, the more opportunities we have to showcase that to the public and grow the sport and its fanbase.
“The thoroughbred is so adaptable. They are such intelligent, incredible, sensitive creatures that can do so much for other people - we need to make sure that when we retrain these horses that we understand how they think and how they need to be looked after.
“These discussions about their wellbeing and their welfare is definitely going to help us think more in the future about the training and retraining of these racehorses to make sure they have a happy life, not just while in training but afterwards too.”
As well as the Behind The Bridle seminar on Friday (May 15th), Newmarket’s Rowley Mile racecourse hosted an immersive raceday experience on the Saturday of its Spring Meeting (May 16th).
Designed to highlight the journey of the thoroughbred beyond its racing career, the event was hosted by Newmarket Racecourses, Retraining of Racehorses – British horseracing’s official charity – and other partners.
A number of retired racehorses were on course for racegoers to see and there were a range of demonstrations, educational exhibits and interactive experiences, all designed to deepen understanding of racehorse aftercare and retraining.
Former racehorse Kinross at Newmarket
Behind The Bridle was generously sponsored by Price Bailey and the Retraining of Racehorses, with valuable support across the weekend from the British Horseball Association, the Hurlingham Polo Association, The National Stud, Godolphin, British Racing School, Equi-Ed, The Howden Way and Tattersalls.
