Integrity, Safety, and the Public Interest in Ontario Horse Racing

Equine Welfare

Industry feedback included a particular interest in equine welfare. Seeking enhancements in this area would build public confidence through information sharing and ensure the public is aware of all the initiatives, practices, and protocols that take place to support equine welfare. Industry feedback included suggestions for:

• The introduction of a horse passport system to consolidate all equine medical history and information as tracked by trainers and veterinarians.
  • Such a concept could be supported by the implementation of microchips.
• More reliance on risk-based evaluations of drugs and emerging drug use.
• Communications to the industry and the general public on neglect and abuse investigations, and an anonymous contact line so animal cruelty tips can be provided.
• Enhanced partnerships between the AGCO, the industry, and animal welfare groups to promote equine welfare and to continuously improve compliance with equine welfare protocols.
• Clarification of pre-race veterinary exams and transparency around when they are done, why, and how.
  • Mixed views on enhancing pre-race veterinary exams were noted, with some stakeholders seeking more veterinary exams, and others requesting fewer.
• Enhanced control and surveillance measures, such as:
  • Participants providing documentation to racetracks within 24 hours prior to entering the grounds to ensure equine athletes have sound health;
  • Increasing surveillance cameras on the backstretch and in race paddocks; and,
  • Mandating racehorses to be on the racetrack grounds 24 hours prior to a race, or developing retention barns.
• The requirement that all racetracks have publicly available biosecurity and emergency management protocols.
• Stricter enforcement of rules that are currently in place to protect equine athletes, such as over-urging or ensuring tight reins over the finish line.
• The AGCO, the College of Veterinarians of Ontario (CVO), and wider industry groups should work closely together to create support avenues for participants in financial difficulty who may be unable to afford veterinary care to deter participants from practicing veterinary medicine without a licence.
• Implement an initiative similar to the “On Call” (“On Call” is an innovative media-assistance program developed to provide accurate veterinary information to the broadcast and print
  media during live-network races) program developed by the American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP).
• The veterinarian list could be changed to accommodate Commission/Official veterinarian discretion to take horses off the list before the required 7 days.
• Introduce standards for veterinary viewing offices, to ensure each location has reasonable sight lines, lighting, temperature control, and general freedom from distractions.
• Introduce a limitation on intra-articular treatments within a certain number days of racing, and/or create a publicly available registry for all horses that have received intra-articular treatments to prevent the masking of joint issues, for the safety of participants and equine athletes.
• Establish regulatory venipuncture maximums and support improvements in the administration of medical records.
• Coggins testing every two years for every breed.

The industry presented a drive towards better health tracking, and overall improvement of an equine’s total health index throughout its life – from birth, to racing, to post-racing career. Feedback to the AGCO included:

Participant Safety For Jockeys And Drivers

The AGCO’s Rules of Racing support the safety of jockeys, drivers and other participants, (e.g. the requirement that safety equipment be worn). Throughout the consultation process, participants requested that some higher standards be brought to racing, reflecting standards found in other racing jurisdictions and sporting leagues, including:

• Increase permitted jockey weights and provide jockeys better access to weigh-in stations.
• Introduce concussion protocols for riders reflecting increased attention to the issue in other professional sports, and research highlighting the dangers associated with brain injuries.
• Increase oversight of exercise riders to ensure safety.
• Further formalize safety standards in the backstretches, and race paddocks, such as mandatory boot requirements for participants handling horses.

Racetrack Maintenance And Operations

There was significant feedback from all three breed groups on the need to address racetrack maintenance and surfaces. Stakeholders indicated that there is little maintenance consistency between racetracks and that the rules should promote uniformity of racetrack conditions across the province. Specific feedback included:

• Maintenance standards should be informed by a best-practices baseline study conducted by experts in the field, with the objective of producing a measurable standard for all racetracks.
• The AGCO should improve enforcement of Policy Directive 2-2010, which outlines the current minimum surface standards for racetracks, and the AGCO should convene a meeting between racetrack maintenance staff and horse persons’ representatives to review the issue.
• It was suggested that the AGCO develop regulatory standards to ensure a safer and healthier working environment (e.g. proper and better drainage, new stalls, more urine stalls) at all racetracks, as informed by baseline studies.
• To better monitor racetrack surfaces and impact on participant safety – a database should be created to aggregate injury information from all Ontario racetracks in order to monitor horse welfare.
• Certain surfaces were viewed by stakeholders as being detrimental to all athletes, and as such there was a call for changes to such surfaces.
• Respondents voiced concerns about racetrack working conditions, infrastructure, and a general need for facility updates. There were calls for a greater focus on racetrack investments and backstretch maintenance.

 Education, Research, Information Sharing

Requests for improved education, research, and information sharing centred on transparency, clarification, and accountability in the industry as a whole. Such requests were intended not only for the betterment of industry participants, but for the enhancement of the general public’s understanding of Ontario’s practices, successes, and improvements in horse racing. Currently the AGCO website is the hub for regulatory information for Ontario horse racing and includes all the rules, directives, and information on licensing and officiating. In addition to the ideas found in other sections of this Report, requests included:

• Create a “bottom up” approach to education in the industry. Licensing requirements should be tied to education and development of a career path for participants.
• Increase communications focused on how industry members and practitioners make equine health and welfare a priority, allowing the industry to focus on positive public perception.
• Enhance education to industry on the rules to support ongoing compliance. For example, consistent with other lines of business at the AGCO, introduce a newsletter which provides timely information and news on the regulatory rules governing horse racing in Ontario to support increased compliance.
• Promote the use of fact or tip sheets to educate the industry. For example, fact sheets on how and why medication is used to benefit racehorse health would be beneficial.
• Simplify the Rules of Racing. They are currently onerous to understand due to their length and complexity. Rules also need to be evidence-based, with intended outcomes that are clear.
• Make relevant rules and directives available online in a single location to ensure all participants can meet regulatory requirements. Consider consolidating rules and directives into one document.
• Clearer, more accessible veterinarian lists with the removal of horses from the list at the end of the race season, and more communication with trainers when a horse is put on or removed from the list.