Breeding industry is sleepwalking into oblivion over gene pool welfare

For many years I have been concerned about the alarming decline in the thoroughbred’s ability to cope with training and racing regimes. I am also concerned this represents a serious long-term risk for the racing industry.

It was with the publication of the July 2016 edition of the Thoroughbred Owner & Breeder magazine that I decided to attempt to raise the profile of this issue and of the attendant welfare dimension. The magazine published an interview with the much-respected Henry Candy.

Henry, in his fifth decade as a trainer, was asked what the most significant change in the thoroughbred was during that time. The question prompted this candid response: