A vital week to get our message across to the unconvinced and the open-minded

Racing League and Sunday Series are two of the hottest talking points at the moment, and both have the potential to thrive and prove assets to racing, but there is one initiative that promises to outscore both in its contribution to the wellbeing of the sport.

National Racehorse Week, running from September 12-19, will hopefully attract a healthy number of interested observers through the gates of racing yards up and down Britain, giving them the chance to see at close hand the life of these most impressive of working animals.

With luck, this rare opportunity will get across the message that the vast majority of racehorses are treated in the same way we would all treat our family pets. We value them and nurture them, we feed them, water them and do our best to keep them fit and well, and in return they do us a service. That can be as guard dogs or guide dogs (I'm a dog man, as you may have guessed, despite the two cats) or as simple companions; in my case they're also the incentive to go out on a vigorous daily walk to stop me tipping the scales at 20st.