New policy for foal notification in Ireland to start in January

A new policy for foal notification in Ireland is to start in January when Weatherbys Ireland General Stud Book will have to be notified within 30 days of the birth of a thoroughbred or non-thoroughbred foal born in Ireland and bred for racing.

The notification of birth will involve the submission of DNA (blood and markings). There will be no additional fees for notification of birth within the 30-day window.

The development comes under the umbrella of Ireland's enhanced anti-doping policy and will enable Horse Racing Ireland and the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board to trace the whereabouts of thoroughbreds and non-thoroughbreds in Ireland from the earliest stage.

Jason Morris, HRI's director of racing, said: "The move to a 30-day foal notification is an important step in ensuring that we have full lifetime traceability of all thoroughbreds for health and welfare reasons. HRI warmly welcomes its introduction which has the widespread support of the industry.”

Irish Thoroughbred Breeders Association spokesman Shane O’Dwyer said: “The ITBA welcome the 30-day foal notification as a positive move that will assist in our efforts for the codes of practice and the High Health Horse Concept to be used as the basis of continued, uninterrupted free movement of thoroughbred horses post Brexit.”

On behalf of Weatherbys Ireland GSB, Russell Ferris said: “The 30-day foal notification system will be live from mid-January 2019. It will not affect the manner in which foals are registered. Foal registrations should be completed before the July 31 deadline using either the GSB Online system or the traditional paper application.”

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