SPCA advocates for a ban on the use of whips and other painful equipment used in the training and racing of horses due to the negative impacts on their welfare.
Horses in thoroughbred and harness racing experience negative welfare impacts when subjected to excessive behavioural restriction, discomfort, pain or constant pressure from the use of equipment such as whips, bits, tongue ties, or head pole burrs.

Currently, use of equipment designed to cause pain or discomfort such as whips, is common in thoroughbred and harness racing. Evidence proves that whips cause pain, and their use does not increase safety, performance, or reduce interference in races. Indeed, there is evidence that human safety is improved when whips are not used and that horses may be more likely to sustain a fracture when a whip is used on them within a race.

The use of equipment that may injure horses by causing cuts or abrasions that bleed or discharge or prevent the animal from breathing normally or drinking is prohibited under the Animal Welfare (Care and Procedures) Regulations 2018.

SPCA opposes rules of racing that penalise riders and drivers who choose not to carry or use whips or other painful or restrictive equipment.

Updating rules of racing to allow jockeys and drivers the choice to use equipment that minimise the negative impact to a horse’s welfare and to remove the requirement to use or carry potentially painful or restrictive equipment, such as whips.

SPCA opposes jumps races, such as steeplechase and hurdling, because of the negative impacts to the horse’s physical, health, and behavioural needs.

Jumps races are associated with higher risk of injuries and fatalities than flat races. SPCA advocates for the prohibition of such races as it is not possible to adequately mitigate the risks involved.

SPCA is concerned about the use of immature horses (e.g. in two-year-old races) in racing.

While exercise from a young age is important for musculoskeletal development, the extreme exertion inherent in competitive races is associated with sore shins in two-year-old horses. SPCA advocates for independent veterinary certification, verifying that an animal has physically matured and is able to withstand the physical demands of racing or competing, to be obtained before training for riding racing is permitted to commence.

SPCA is concerned about the breeding practices of horses for racing, and the potential welfare problems for unwanted, retired, or injured animals.

Not all horses will excel in their intended discipline. Thus, to produce the next champion, more foals are typically bred than will compete. This can leave a large number of horses in need of a home.

The breeding of horses for racing needs to be carefully planned and managed to address over-supply and reduce wastage rates. In addition, the racing industry is responsible for ensuring the future well-being of all unwanted, retired, or injured animals.

SPCA is concerned about the welfare of teaser stallions and mares.

Teaser stallions, used in horse breeding to identify whether a mare is in oestrus and ready to be bred, may experience injury if mares are not receptive and frustration due to repeated exposure to mares without the opportunity to mate.

Where breeder stallions show low libido, teaser mares may be used to assist with semen collection for artificial insemination. These mares may be used frequently throughout the breeding season and can be injured or stressed by aggressive stallions or inappropriate restraint.

SPCA supports the mandatory collection and publication of comprehensive lifecycle (birth to death records) and injury statistics for horses bred for racing, and a national identification registration and traceability system.

Strict and enforced regulations for horses used in racing help to ensure the welfare of the horse throughout their lives, not just when they are participating in events.

SPCA opposes the use of drugs or surgery to attempt to alter the performance of a horse or to enable the horse to race, including masking pain.

Use of pain-mitigating substances in the horse racing industry can place horses at increased risk of injury and requires caution. It is important that racing horses are protected from deliberate or accidental exposure to dangerous banned substances, such as methamphetamine. Administration of substances believed by some to be performance enhancing, such as sodium bicarbonate ‘milk shakes’, can be stressful to the horse, and potential severe side-effects include lacerations to the nasal cavity, throat oesophagus, gastrointestinal upset, diarrhoea, and even death.

Blistering, firing, mechanical soring and nicking are prohibited procedures under the Animal Welfare (Care and Procedures) Regulations 2018.