Horse Racing - Money

Aces_High

Aces_High

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I just would like everyone here to have a little insight into Horse Racing. I am speaking from the Flat Racing side of things.

Yes there is a lot of money involved and people can and do look upon the horses as being a commodity. To a degree this works in the horses favour. They will be fed the best feed, conditioned the best, trained the best and looked after the best. If the trainer can get the best results with this horse then the owner is likely to buy another and another. The best results also attract new owners therefore more money is being ploughed around.

To anyone who is business minded this all makes sense. You do not make money from a poorly run concern be it baking cakes, running M&S or training TB's. You have to look after your staff, you have to nuture your product and have good results to attract more potential clients and more money.

If there wasn't any money in horse racing and the horses were not looked upon as a commodity, what do you think the end result would be?? Pretty grim in my opinion.
 
What many average horse owners fail to realise or refuse to see that whilst all this money is being put into racing for the horses, the training, the care, the big race days, an absolute MOUNTAIN of money is being ploughed back out into veterinary research so that when your happy hacker colics, becomes ill for no known reason, needs routine vaccinations, all of the research into this was funded mostly by the racing industry.
 
I totally agree. If it wasn't for the medical research which goes into the racehorses both in the UK and the USA and AUS then the knowledge would be far behind. The Racing Industry per se doesn't automatically donate to vet research but obviously due to the nature of the sport and the money involved yes the owners do pay a lot on vets bills. I also do not know if the average horse owner realises that bloodstock can only be insured for death or infertility should it be going to stud. You do not get any form of veterinary cover within the insurances.
 
I think most be people who are so against racing, actually KNEW SOMETHING ABOUT IT would fast change their minds. If they worked in racing yard for a fortnight they would have a completely different attitude.
As far a trying to agrue your case on here... give up. Someone said to be it was cruel to gallop horses on grass and they would never do it with their pony. :eek::eek::eek::eek::D:D:D:D:D
 
It's good to hear these perspectives. I'm not a racing fan - purely in terms of sport it just doesn't appeal to me, the very same as I don't watch golf or football. I have, however, absolutely no problem with it in terms of the way it's run.

If people are well informed, understand where the statistics/videos/images of cruelty etc are sourced from, have experienced both sides of the coin etc, and still feel the same way, fair enough, each to their own. It seems wrong though that minds are made up without the full story.

Whether I'm a fan or not, I don't like to hear the kind of sweeping statements that racing seems to suffer about any sport (or person, or industry etc), so thank you for pointing out these positive points all :)
 
The Horserace Betting Levy Board used to be quite generous in giving grants for research. My work on flehmen and the vomeronasal organ in 1980/81 with Flora Lindsay was partly funded by the HBLB (not that our expenses came to very much).
 
The Horserace Betting Levy Board turf money from betting back into the racecourses, care of horses, training of staff etc and ex racehorses, but due to online betting and decreasing bets they are not making as much as they used too. Still if you make a bet on horse at the races a tiny percentage will get back to horse. :)
 
dominobrown said:
The Horserace Betting Levy Board turf money from betting back into the racecourses, care of horses, training of staff etc and ex racehorses, but due to online betting and decreasing bets they are not making as much as they used too. Still if you make a bet on horse at the races a tiny percentage will get back to horse. :)
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In my mind you want to be only betting using the Tote unless you are big time gambler. This way a much higher percentage goes back into horse racing. In Australia you only have the TAB to bet. You have on course bookmakers but you do not have the likes of William Hill, Ladbrokes etc on the high street. Yes you can bet on line but to everyone who wants to go racing please use the Tote!

Really pissed off, wrote a lovely reply to last two posts and HHO has sucked it into cyber space...... :rolleyes:
 
How much of the money made of the backs of the horses is put into a safe secure future once their racing career has ended or it's decided they weren't good enough to race?

It's all very well looking after the horses when your profiting from them but they need care after that too...

ETA - If I'm wrong and once a horses career etc is over they are well looked after then I apologize :o
 
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Here I go again......
Trish C - it is great that you are so open minded and interested enough to read the posts and want to learn about a sport/industry which you haven't ventured into before.

I put in my post which HHO swallowed that I would love to organise a yard trip, gallops trip, followed by a day at the races. This way people can see first hand how things operate in this industry.

The only thing I can suggest at the moment is for people to come to Tattersalls for the October Part 1 yearling sales. Have a look at the amount of work and care which goes into these horses.

There is a levy which Weatherbys put on the owners bills and also a voluntary donation to ROR is put on every bill. This I think is a great start to putting money into securing a future for these horses which do not make the grade to be re-trained and re-homed. There is also a lot of fund raising to help these charites throughout the racing industry. I do think that the bookmakers should give more. They seem to get away scot free in my book!
 
Jake10 said:
How much of the money made of the backs of the horses is put into a safe secure future once their racing career has ended or it's decided they weren't good enough to race?

It's all very well looking after the horses when your profiting from them but they need care after that too...

ETA - If I'm wrong and once a horses career etc is over they are well looked after then I apologize :o
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You'd be surprised at how many of us stable staff take our horses home with us when their racing career has finished. I now have 4 ...
 
There is a lot of talk on here pro and anti horse racing and many people comment thinking that they know what goes on when the truth is that they haven't a clue.
I personally love racing, as I do any form of equestrianism. If you would like to see what goes on for real at a real race yard, I think this trainer more than any other is doing his upmost to let you see behind the scenes. He is very social media friendly, has a twitter account and is always posting videos taken at his yard....You might want to check him out if you get a few minutes, as i found the insight very informative (and no I am not related or associated to him, his family or workers in any way!)
http://jeremynoseda.com/

and for the videos (14 in total to view)

http://www.youtube.com/JeremyNoseda#p/u
 
I recently visited the above trainer and have to say it was a fanatastic experience. Hes a loevly guy and his horses are very well cared for. staff are very friendly as well.
 
Never been interested or very pro racing but I am not liverying at a racing yard (economic downturn) and its fantastic. Horses and staff treated much better than in show jumping anyway. Facilites are great and always being made better/safer for the horses. I love hearing their stories and they are so so passionate about it. Don't like the stories that have "an then he broke a leg/had a heart attack" and there do seem to be a few stories like this but thats racing and not just restricted to racing. I particularly like the fact there are a good few jobs made from it and they seem to be well treated and have a team back up until SJ here where one person could be responsible for a large yard 7 days per week and still be chasing last years wages, this is common IMO.
 
Olliecp77 said:
Never been interested or very pro racing but I am not liverying at a racing yard (economic downturn) and its fantastic. Horses and staff treated much better than in show jumping anyway. Facilites are great and always being made better/safer for the horses. I love hearing their stories and they are so so passionate about it. Don't like the stories that have "an then he broke a leg/had a heart attack" and there do seem to be a few stories like this but thats racing and not just restricted to racing. I particularly like the fact there are a good few jobs made from it and they seem to be well treated and have a team back up until SJ here where one person could be responsible for a large yard 7 days per week and still be chasing last years wages, this is common IMO.
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I am really glad that you are appreciating the racing way of life! It is a wonderful and close community,
 
I am another who's really pleased to hear a positive story about a racing yard. I agree that stable staff are generally well looked after. They also have a union ( not that I am terribly pro unions) but there is a body where the staffs voices can and will be heard. As far as I am aware this doesn't happen in SJ or eventing yards etc. The treatment and love the horses get is huge. Even the blokes give their horses kisses and cuddles. These are grown men in their 30's 40's and 50's. Just because we might only have the horses in our care for one maybe two or three years it doesn't mean they are not loved or cared for as a riding horse owner might expect. Please excuse spellings on phone and it does miss letters out!
 
Aces_High said:
I am another who's really pleased to hear a positive story about a racing yard. I agree that stable staff are generally well looked after. They also have a union ( not that I am terribly pro unions) but there is a body where the staffs voices can and will be heard. As far as I am aware this doesn't happen in SJ or eventing yards etc. The treatment and love the horses get is huge. Even the blokes give their horses kisses and cuddles. These are grown men in their 30's 40's and 50's. Just because we might only have the horses in our care for one maybe two or three years it doesn't mean they are not loved or cared for as a riding horse owner might expect. Please excuse spellings on phone and it does miss letters out!
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So very well said, as all your posts are.
 
They can't do enough to help me and enquire about my horses a lot (they are very big warmbloods so very out of place on the yard ;) They've found me help with a rider and always ask how the horses got on everyday, in livery yards I found it was a glare or watch tapper at the side of the arena. They are so keen to get me on the gallops and they seem to understand my nerves with my young horse - I was expecting them to laugh at me being novice since they could sit on anything. They have great old wives remedies too, my guys had rice pudding in their dinners tonight ha ha.
We have yearlings now, which I was dreading, but they are so excited to get to know them and everyday there is a new favourite or story of which one is progressing well/showing talent etc. As soon as a horse is led out tacked up someone appears from nowhere to leg a rider up, non racing liveries included. It just seems nicer than livery, the local tack/feed shop gets so much business that we get good deals and feed/laundered rugs dropped at the yard rather than going to the shop, just phone up.
I honestly thought there would be failed racers starving and horses being shot cos of frequent injury (inevitable so had to think it would happen) once the yard filled up, I was dreading the yard filling up with racers and seeing what I thought I would see, very pleasantly surprised. If only I were a good few stone lighter I might even ride out ha!
 
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