Horse Welfare is the priority in British Racing

THE RACEHORSE IS AT THE HEART OF BRITISH RACING 

Collectively the sport is committed to ensuring the welfare of all the racehorses in England, Scotland and Wales. Across Britain, 6000+ people who are passionate about horses and racing dedicate their lives, daily, to caring for the 20,000+ horses who race across a year.

We are proud of the high welfare standards that racehorses receive on and off the racecourse pre, during and after their racing careers. Over the past 20 years British Racing has invested over £40 million in veterinary research and education, benefiting for all breeds of horse in Britain. For more on Equine Welfare in British Racing click here.

An overview of the key elements of Equine Welfare in British Racing are below, however, please visit the links for more information.

REGULATING WELFARE IN BRITISH RACING

The BHA is responsible for setting and enforcing the welfare standards that all participants must adhere to. These standards are embedded in the sport’s rules, raceday regulation, education, licensing and disciplinary procedures, and are enforced by teams of vets, racecourse inspectors, stable inspecting officers and raceday officials. Through setting and adhering to these standards British Racing is widely regarded as one of the world’s best regulated animal activities.

Together with the RSPCA and World Horse Welfare, the BHA is a signatory of the National Equine Welfare Protocol, which was developed by representatives from local and national government, the police, welfare organisations and others with an interest in equine welfare. For more on the BHA regulation of welfare in British Racing, click here.

RACEDAY WELFARE

All of the BHA officials who operate on raceday are there to ensure the health and welfare of our participants, including horses, as well as stewards, integrity officers and BHA vets.

Additionally, a team of BHA Veterinary Officers is on the racecourse to oversee equine welfare, and who:
• Ensure that the sport’s strict welfare rules and standards are adhered to
• Oversee teams of veterinary surgeons employed by the racecourse
• Carry out pre-race and post-race checks on horses to ensure they are healthy and fit as well as any testing

There are minimum numbers of vets who officiate at every fixture. For example, at the 2023 Cheltenham Festival there are six Veterinary Officers and eight Veterinary Surgeons and every runner will be checked by a vet before competing.

“A LIFE WELL LIVED” – British Racing’s Welfare Strategy

The sport’s independently-chaired Horse Welfare Board has a five-year strategic plan for the welfare of horses bred for racing. The plan includes 26 projects identified to help British Racing continuously improve all aspects of racehorse welfare in the sport.

20 projects are now live with £3 million of funding secured from the Racing Foundation in 2022, and ongoing financial support from the Horserace Betting Levy Board. Click here for more on the Horse Welfare Board and its Horse Welfare Programme

MAKING HORSERACING SAFER

It is the responsibility of the BHA and everyone involved in the sport to ensure that we do everything possible to minimise risk to horses and to ensure that no injury or fatality occurs which could reasonably have been prevented.

British Racing has an excellent safety record, however, it’s always striving to improve, constantly investing in welfare research and education. The approach the BHA takes is one of constant assessment and improvement, identifying causes of risk and working with racecourses to address them, and investing in new approaches, science and innovation. Click here for more on safety in horseracing including research and progress on Equine Vision.

WHOLE LIFE CARE

The sport takes steps to look after horses at all stages of their lives, from the mandatory microchipping and registration of a foal within 30 days of its birth, through to the sport’s own charity – Retraining of Racehorses (RoR) – which is responsible for developing longer‐term, sustainable solutions to the question of what happens to horses when they finish racing by generating a demand for these horses across a range of equine disciplines. For more on Whole Life Care in British Racing click here.

FREQUENTLY ASKED WELFARE QUESTIONS
Please visit our video resource section for a series short films on Equine Welfare in British Racing.

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