ON MY TACKBOX WITH LAURA CHESHIRE

ON MY TACKBOX

xxxxx xcxcxhk

Jockey LAURA CHESHIRE says as far as she’s concerned most people in racing are in it for the love of horses.

So here I go, invited to climb up onto the proverbial tack box to announce to those whose opinions seem to waiver on the topic of thoroughbreds and horse racing - that we in the industry truly love the animal more than the game.

I do believe that there’s been a lot of negativity about racing and I’m happy to be a voice from within the industry to let those with doubt in their minds know, that there are many, many of us within racing who are simply here because of the horses.

I’m not sure if those who criticise the racing industry have ever really looked into wages of stable staff, smaller trainers, smaller jockeys and trackwork riders, to name just a few. Anyone who did would certainly see people are in it for the love of the horses, not for the big dollars.

The wages are simply not a big enough draw card to get people out of bed as early as 2:30am, to prepare for a day that starts at three. Sure, you have high profile jockeys, high profile trainers and owners who probably polish their shoes with $100 bills. But for every one of these, have a few hundred small time people with big dreams, whose lifelong wish is to be apart of a journey with a fast horse.

This doesn’t happen to many. Horses like Black Caviar and Winx don’t come through the stable gate often. You’ve got more chance of winning lotto than of owning even a tail hair of a horse like Winx. Yet people chase the dream, and invest their hard earned dollars into a horse who may - or may not - have any ability. In the hope that one day, they’ll crack a big one.

For those who doubt wether thoroughbreds love to race, you only have to watch their expression in a race finish. Ears flat back, the look of determination evident on their faces. Horses have it instilled in them to run. Wild horses fly across vast plains just for the sheer thrill of it. In racehorses it’s no different. It comes from hundreds of years of breeding. It is ingrained in their DNA.

If you walk into any racing stable at the grand old time of 4:30am, you’ll see a hive of activity. Box boys cleaning stalls; strappers whizzing around grooming and saddling in order that the track riders and jockeys can come and put the horses through their paces.

Trainers sit out in the huts, or stand over by the running rail, measuring their charges speed on stopwatches, squinting to catch these flying horses as they pass the markers. Some choose to watch through binoculars to pick up their horses tiniest ear movements, working out if they’re being pressed for the time they’re running or doing it easy. Watching legs, the flying changes as they turn into the home straight. Being mindful that the wrong lead can mean soreness, and soreness can mean time out.

Because in racing, horses in racing is how everyone gets paid. Horses are the cog in the wheel of racing no one wants to break. And it seems to me that people who don’t know about the industry forget this.

Horses go for holidays too. ‘Spelling’ as it’s known, is part of their routine. A fresh mind and a fresh body produce the best results, whereas a tired horse, a horse with even the smallest injury means

real time on the sidelines. Serious time. Six months to a year to mend a blown tendon, three months to get over a virus. And being that thoroughbred racing is a business, a massive industry in which so many people are employed, sidelined horses are not desirable.

So these horses are watched, and checked, hands run down legs sometimes twice a day. Temperatures taken every morning. Feed bowls inspected, the amount left being the decider on what work the horse will undertake on that morning. The term ‘he licked the tin’ is what every owner and jockey wants to hear after a race. It means the horse has come through a run with all systems go. Because happy horses eat. A lot. We joke they should be fed notes straight from the wallet. Horses can surely keep you poor. But trainers buy the best feeds with the best supplements to give every horse the best chance of being a top athlete. And owners are happy to pay for that. Because they are chasing the Dream.

Yes, there is no denying that the animals are here to do a job. But they are special - they are racehorses, and they are treated like kings to try and get the absolute best effort out of every individual each time they step foot out onto a racetrack. Horses love routine. They like to know when feed time is, and they all have stable staff who will cater to their every need.

For many of us in the industry – far more than people realise – what a horse’s life is going to be after racing is of paramount importance. Often it’s the workers and riders who take horses off the track, to give them a more docile life in a paddock, be it as a riding horse or a retiree. In recent times, racing bodies are getting involved in structuring retraining and rehoming programs for OTT”s, as they are known (Off the Track Thoroughbreds).

I think as time goes on, more and more focus will be on the life of a thoroughbred after racing. I personally foster an old ex-racehorse, Cadillac, who was rescued by Save a Horse Australia, and quite a few horses have come through my stables for rehabilitation.

I am really looking forward to thoroughbred welfare coming into its own throughout the whole industry.

But remember this - quite simply, we love the animal. We love the industry. And we love the thrill that horse racing brings.