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Horsemen’s Groups Partner On Horsemen U Continuing Education Platform

The California Thoroughbred Trainers (CTT), Maryland Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (MTHA) and New York Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (NYTHA) have teamed up to provide a Continuing Education platform for Thoroughbred trainers and assistant trainers called Horsemen U, which offers approved online CE webinars and issues CE certificates after a course and a short quiz have been completed. Trainers and assistant trainers can register, free of charge, and maintain their CE records in their account at www.HorsemenU.com.

Continuing education has been adopted as one of the core Best Practices developed by the stakeholders involved in the Mid-Atlantic Strategic Plan to Reduce Equine Fatalities. CE requirements have been implemented in California, Delaware, Maryland, New York, and West Virginia. Pennsylvania and Virginia are in the process of adopting CE regulations.

All licensed trainers and assistant trainers in the U.S. are eligible to register for a Horsemen U account. There are currently 12 webinars offered on the platform, on topics ranging from “Diagnostic Imaging of the Racehorse Fetlock” to “Equine Drug Testing” to “Equine Welfare, Horse Racing and the Social License to Operate.” The webinars have been hosted by the California Horse Racing Board, the Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation's Welfare and Safety of the Racehorse Summit and the Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association.

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New York Anti-Slaughter Bill Passes Both Houses

Both houses of the New York State Assembly have now passed legislation that would prohibit the slaughter of racehorses and breeding stock for both Thoroughbreds and Standardbreds.

The bill will make it illegal to slaughter racehorses or to “import, export, sell, offer to sell or barter, transfer, purchase, possess, transport, deliver, or receive” a horse for slaughter, or to direct another person to do the same. Violations of the law will be misdemeanors punishable by a $1,000 to $2,500 fine per horse, which is doubled for repeat offenders. The proceeds from such fines will help fund aftercare programs.

The new law will also require owners to show proper documentation of transfer of ownership, with liability for a horse's whereabouts falling to the last individual in the Jockey Club's chain of ownership records. It will also require all racing and breeding stock to be microchipped.

The New York Racing Association already has an anti-slaughter policy stating that any owner or trainer found to have sold a horse for slaughter will have stalls permanently revoked.

“This legislation positions New York as the national leader when it comes to responsibly protecting our retired racehorses,” said NYRA president and CEO Dave O'Rourke. “NYRA is proud to have long supported all elements of this important legislation because it reflects our commitment to thoroughbred aftercare. We thank Senator Joe Addabbo and Assembly Member Gary Pretlow, Chairs of the Senate and Assembly Racing, Gaming and Wagering Committees, for prioritizing the health and safety of thoroughbreds in New York.”

The New York Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association also expressed support of the legislation.

“NYTHA and all our members are gratified that we are able to work with animal advocates both within the sport and in the legislature to achieve this historic legislation benefitting horses that are bred and raced in New York,” said NYTHA president Joe Appelbaum.

“This effort was a hard fought and long overdue recognition of an issue that has, for years gone under the radar. Equines have, for centuries benefitted the world, and served to advance the human condition,” said Gary Pretlow, chair of the Assembly's Standing Committee on Racing and Wagering. “It is impossible to think about our lives today without gratitude for their service and usefulness, and in the racing industry, wonderment at their astonishing speed, agility, power, and gracefulness. Yet for all their value and the joy they bring to us, they often suffer from inhumane treatment by the very industries they benefit. This bill is a strong step in the direction of rectifying this and I am proud to have sponsored and championed it.”

The legislation will go into effect Jan. 1, 2022.

The post New York Anti-Slaughter Bill Passes Both Houses appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Aqueduct Adds March 25 To Racing Calendar After Pair Of Cancellations

The New York State Gaming Commission has approved a request from NYRA, NYTHA and NYTB to add Thursday, March 25 to the Aqueduct racing calendar.

The request was made following the cancelation of two cards during the Aqueduct Racetrack winter meet.

The Dec. 17 card was canceled due to a winter storm, while high winds and extreme cold resulted in the cancelation of the Jan. 28 card.

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Record Overnight Purses at Belmont Spring/Summer Meet

The upcoming 48-day spring/summer meeting at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York, will offer the richest overnight purse structure in the history of the New York Racing Association, the organization said Thursday.

Open-company maiden allowance races will feature purse money of $90,000, while first-, second- and third-level allowance races will be worth $92,000, $94,000 and $96,000, respectively. New York maiden special weight races will carry prize money of $75,000, while horses bred in the Empire State will benefit from an $85,000 purse for non-winners of two/ $45,000 claiming and an $80,000 purse for the non-winners of one category. NYRA has also written races for $250,000 claiming, which offer purses of $100,000. Bottom-level, open $10,000 claimers will run for $28,000.

“NYRA is pleased to be able to offer the highest overnight purse levels in the history of Belmont Park,” said Martin Panza, NYRA Senior Vice President of Racing Operations. “These increases come at an important time in support of horsemen and will drive the industry forward as we emerge from the challenges wrought by COVID-19.”

Referencing the state-bred program, Panza added: “There has never been a better time to race or breed right here in New York state. The New York-bred program continues to thrive, and the purses and incentives that will begin this spring will continue through the summer at Saratoga making an investment in New York-breds all the more enticing.”

Joe Appelbaum, president of the New York Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (NYTHA), also welcomed the news.

“It's gratifying to see these significant purse increases to the overnight and NY-bred races,” said Appelbaum. “These races are the foundation of the NYRA racing program and the continued investment in them has proven to be successful.”

Unlike the 2020 spring/summer meeting, which was conducted behind closed doors due to COVID-19 protocols, the 2021 meet is likely to be open to a limited number of spectators following a Feb. 10 announcement by Governor Andrew Cuomo.

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