How old is horse racing

Racecourses emerged all over England, offering increasingly large purses to attract the best horses. The purses made breeding and owning horses for racing more profitable. The rapid expansion of the sport created the need for a central governing authority. In racing's elite met at Newmarket to form the Jockey Club. This organization still regulates English racing to this day. The Jockey Club wrote rules of racing and sanctioned racecourses to conduct meetings.

Standards defining the quality of races resulted in the designation of specific races as the ultimate tests of excellence. Since , 5 races for 3 year old have been called "classics. Leger Stakes. There are two classic races open to fillies only: the 1, Guineas and the Epsom Oaks. The Jockey Club also worked to regulate racehorse breeding. James Weatherby, whose family did accounting for members of the Jockey Club, was given the duty of tracing the pedigree of every racehorse in England.

In , he published the results of his research as the Introduction to the General Stud Book. From to today, members of the Weatherby family have recorded the pedigree of every descendant of those racehorses in subsequent volumes of the General Stud Book. By the early s, the only horses that were allowed to race were those who descended from the horses listed in the General Stud Book.

There horses were called "Thoroughbreds". Every thoroughbreds can be traced back to one of three stallions, called the "foundation sires. British settlers brought horses and horse racing to America. The first racetrack was laid out on Long Island in Although the sport was a popular local sport for some time, organized racing did not exist until after the Civil War in when the American Stud Book was started. For the next several decades, during the industrial expansion, gambling on racehorses, and horse racing itself, exploded.

By , there were tracks operating across the United States. The rapid growth of horse racing without a governing authority led to the domination of many tracks by criminal elements. In , the nation's biggest track and stable owners met in New York to form an American Jockey Club. This organization was modeled on the English and it soon ruled racing with an iron fist and eliminated much of the corruption.

In the early s, racing in the United States was almost wiped out by antigambling sentiment that led almost all states to ban bookmaking. By , only 25 tracks remained. That same year, pari-mutuel betting on the Kentucky Derby was introduced and it created a turnaround for the sport.

Jumps racing involves horses racing at speed, over long distances at least 2. There are two types of jumps racing — hurdles and steeplechase races, with the latter generally being over longer distances than hurdles and involving higher obstacles. Victoria is the only two State which permits jumps racing, with Racing SA announcing that jumps races would not be held in South Australia from From to , at least 76 horses have died as a result of participating in jumps racing.

The true toll is believed to be higher as industry statistics on deaths occurring in training and trials are not publicly available. Despite attempts by the industry to improve safety, injury and deaths continue. There are no mandatory welfare standards for racehorses. Therefore, legal protection is limited to the minimal requirements under State based animal welfare legislation. Other areas, where animals are used such as farming and animal research, have specified welfare standards which must be adhered to.

The RSPCA believes that the implementation of legal welfare standards for racehorses, to eliminate practices that cause injury, pain, suffering or distress, is an urgent government priority. The horse racing industry largely governs itself in terms of animal welfare through state based racing authorities.

Self-regulation, particularly in the absence of appropriate standards, raises concerns regarding adequacy of monitoring and enforcement. Unfortunately, without independent inspections, significant welfare issues can continue undetected. In addition, incentives such as increasing prize money for two-year-old races can encourage more rigorous training of immature horses, thus potentially leading to more injuries.

The RSPCA advocates the comprehensive regulation of all horse racing by an independent body with a formal and complete separation between the integrity and regulatory functions from the commercial functions.

It is essential that the racing industry collate and publish relevant data that affect the welfare of horses. Until such data are available, the industry is not motivated or compelled to take action to improve welfare in these specific areas. Equine Veterinary Journal 52 2. Animals 10 11 , Australian Veterinary Journal Oversupply of racehorses To increase the chances of finding the winning champion, the racing industry depends on breeding a high number of horses and a high turn-over rate.

Use of painful devices The RSPCA is opposed to the use of whips due to their potential to inflict pain and injury and believes that the use of whips cannot be justified given that performance is influenced more by genetics, preparation and rider skill.

Risk of injury and death Racehorses are at risk of harm during races, training and trials with the main types of injuries involving muscle, bones, tendons and ligaments. Racing immature horses Horses commence training as one-year-olds in preparation to compete in two-year-old races.

Jumps racing Jumps racing involves horses racing at speed, over long distances at least 2. Lack of enforceable standards There are no mandatory welfare standards for racehorses. Flat racehorses can start their racing career at just two years old — and some of them retire by the age of four, although many can go on racing much longer, until they are ten or older.

Although some of the most prestigious races are confined to three year olds, generally flat racehorses tend to be at their peak aged four or five. Most jump racehorses are at the peak of their ability between the ages of seven and ten. There are seven different official colours for racehorses… You can see the abbreviations for each colour below in the racecard on raceday next to each horse.

All about the Thoroughbred. Racehorses are allowed to race from the age of two years old. Often these are called Juvenile races. All horses born in the same year share their official birthday as the 1st January.