By: TDN

Racing Australia released amendments to the Australian Rules of Racing Tuesday. RA believes it is necessary for integrity and animal welfare purposes that unnamed horses and their owners be identified and subject to the Australian Rules of Racing, with traceability the cornerstone of the changes, in an effort to improve animal welfare standards and reduce the number of unregulated, unnamed Thoroughbreds. Integrity rules relating to anabolic steroids and gene doping would apply from birth, as well as a requirement to account for the location and fate of unnamed horses, with the aim to strengthen even further breeding and racing’s transparency and accountability.

Beginning Aug. 1, 2016, a foal will not be accepted into the Australian Stud Book unless foal ownership declaration forms have been submitted from all owners who agree to be bound by the Rules of Racing, with those forms bringing the foal under those rules. The manager’s foal ownership declaration form must provide the location of the foal/unnamed horse, with changes in location noted, except for limited circumstances.

For the complete amendments and for more information about the seven new rules to bring foals and their owners under the Rules of Racing, click here.