Equine Welfare Strategic Plan  

RV’s role is to enhance welfare outcomes for thoroughbreds by supporting the work of industry stakeholders with programs that consider their welfare before, during and after racing.

For this reason, RV’s contribution to equine welfare is split across the different phases of a racehorse’s life to enhance their outcomes on and off the racetrack.

In 2019, we released a three-year Equine Welfare Strategic Plan, and in December 2022, we built on our whole-of-life approach with a five-year Equine Welfare Strategic Plan.

A contribution of 1% of prizemoney was introduced in Victoria in August 2017. This was increased to 2% in January 2020 to help accelerate and expand our 2019 plan.

The contribution from prizemoney plays an important role in funding a range of activities as highlighted further below. Notwithstanding this investment, the industry remains reliant on a whole-of-industry approach to ensure the best outcomes for our horses and our sport.

Accordingly, we are grateful for the efforts of trainers and owners who, through their own direct initiatives and financial support, ensure that the majority of horses finishing their racing careers find suitable post-racing homes.

It is a common misconception that RV’s welfare focus is solely on life after racing, and that the contribution from prizemoney is sufficient to fully fund the retirement care of every thoroughbred.

Our welfare focus and spend is much broader than that.

Since the introduction of a prizemoney contribution to equine welfare in 2017, more than $44 million has been directed to equine welfare efforts across the industry, supporting thousands of thoroughbreds during racing and beyond. This total investment is over 34% more than the prizemoney contributions for this eight-year period.

We invested $5.94 million into equine welfare across FY25, and this past year we’ve expanded our programs, supported the industry through acute drought conditions and strengthened safeguards for vulnerable horses. This saw an increase in investment across our Post Racing, Safety Net and Visibility portfolio.

That was possible through a targeted reduction in our investment in Risk Reduced Racing which we had consolidated in previous years through important investments in world-leading technology, injury prevention research and the establishment of our veterinary protocols.

The tab below shows a breakdown of our strategic welfare priorities and a snapshot of how we directed our funding across them in the 2024-25 financial year.

Risk Reduced Racing (Injury Prevention) - 18.1% of spend

• Acquisition of world leading standing CT scanners and PET scanner
• Equine Limb Injury Prevention Program with the University of Melbourne
• Diagnostic Imaging Subsidy Program (“Medicare for Horses”)
• Melbourne Cup and International veterinary protocols
• Annual Veterinary Seminars for participants and veterinarians
• Horse Management Portal to monitor horses and injuries
• Post-Mortem Program to improve understanding of injury causes
• Research into track surfaces and training facilities
• Cardiac Arrythmia and Sudden Death Research Program
• Medication and anti-doping research into correlation with injuries

• Foal Crop Studies on barriers to training entry and reasons for retirement

   

Post-Racing, Safety Net & Visibility - 46.3% of spend

• Acknowledged Retrainer Program
• Retrainer Capacity Expansion Grants Program
• RESET Program for sound horses that require extra support
• Off The Track Program event sponsorships
• Off The Track Clinics to support new owners
• Off The Track Community to improve visibility and linking key resources
• Equine Business Grants Program
• Retired Thoroughbred Companion Program
• Acknowledged Retirement Farm Program
• Partnerships to increase demand for thoroughbreds
• Emergency Aid Program
• Full Circle Emergency Contact Program
• STAR (Short Term Assisted Recovery) Program
• COVID-19 Acknowledged Retrainer financial support
• Welfare inspections on current and retired thoroughbreds
• Onsite Humane Euthanasia Program
• Traceability audits of stables and livestock sales
• Partnerships with online livestock sales company

Equine Welfare & Veterinary Operations - 30% of spend

• Expansion of RV Equine Welfare team
• New independent Equine Welfare Advisory Council
• Development of a Post-Racing Framework
• New Thoroughbred Racehorse Welfare Policy
• Enhanced statewide raceday veterinary services with 30 vets
• Emergency hospital on-call service during races

Industry Reputation & Education - 5.6% of spend

• Online Learning Platform with compulsory equine welfare module
• Industry communications and activations at racedays and yearling sales
• Promotion of equine welfare programs to industry and community
• Here for the Horses documentary and podcast series
• Off The Track ambassador program
• Content production for Off The Track Community platform

It is of note that over the past year there has been a significant shift in the investment directed towards post-racing to further support vulnerable and at-risk horses and those involved in their care and re-homing. This now equates to over 46% of our investment and will likely continue to command a greater percentage over the next 12 months with the expansion and enhancement of our transition programs to support more horses and increases to the retrainer support subsidies we’ve recently advised.

Since 2021, we have greatly improved our visibility of retired racehorses through the Off The Track Community (ottcommunity.com.au), and better collection of post-racing data, audits, program nominations and welfare inspections.

Following is a snapshot of key outcomes over the past four years alone thanks to improved capabilities:

Notable equine welfare outcomes from the 2024-25 investment:

• Drought subsidies in time of need – we delivered over $800,000 in support for more than 1700 horses under our Emergency Aid Program over a four-month period from March to June 2025. This helped eligible participants to maintain high welfare standards in areas defined by the Victorian Government as being impacted by drought conditions;
• Another safe Spring Racing Carnival - veterinary protocols were in place again in 2024 and helped ensure our fourth consecutive spring and Melbourne Cup without any fatal injuries. These protocols have become the basis for new standards of safety in several major jurisdictions worldwide;
• Increasing and expanding the monthly reporting subsidies that Acknowledged Retrainers receive plus a $350 husbandry subsidy per horse to support initial care costs and an additional $400 veterinary assessment rebate for horses which arrive with a short-term injury that requires rehabilitation prior to retraining;
• Launch of PRESET Program – providing financial support to eligible Acknowledged Retrainers via direct funding for retraining and/or rehabilitation support of between $3,000 and $5,000 per horse;
• Launch of the Off The Track Carnival – in a boost for OTT owners, we launched Victoria’s biggest equestrian event for retired thoroughbreds to be held on 13-14 September 2025 at Boneo Park. We hoped for 200 entries and received nearly 400 which is a fantastic start. We now look forward to building this event and enabling meaningful post-racing careers for retired racehorses. Click here to read more;
• Expanding our visibility of OTT thoroughbreds – we’ve reached key milestones this season with over 10,000 address updates and updated ownership records for more than 6,600 retired racehorses claimed on ottcommunity.com.au since its launch;
• Expanded engagement with OTT owners and riders – over 500 horses and their riders received subsidised lessons across 55 clinics as a value add for taking on an OTT;
• Launch of Acknowledged Rehomer Program – unveiled in early 2025, we’re building relationships with rehomers (those who rehome direct to the equestrian community) to help expand our visibility of retired racehorses in Victoria with 14 providers signed up to date; and
• Active investigations of horses at risk – 625 horses were physically inspected by RV’s equine welfare investigators, including six joint inspections with the RSPCA. Outside of racing and breeding, it’s worth noting that our jurisdiction only extends to retired thoroughbreds that are located at the properties of licensed and registered participants. 

The prizemoney contribution administered by RV does not seek to fully fund every retired thoroughbred through their transition out of racing for the rest of their life.

That would require vastly more than an equivalent of a 2% contribution from prizemoney (which is approximately $5.6 million per annum) to accommodate the 1,800 thoroughbreds retiring, on average, from racing in Victoria each year.

Responsible rehoming requires a whole of industry approach to ensure the best outcomes for our thoroughbreds and our sport.

Breeders, owners, trainers, RV and post-racing carers all have a valuable role to play. Ultimately, the financial responsibility sits with racehorse owners to transition their thoroughbred to a suitable home upon its retirement from racing.

There are many within the industry who are working tirelessly to transition their thoroughbreds to life after racing and we commend them for their efforts.

Official retirement notifications to Racing Australia show that owners, directly and with the support of trainers, are already successfully rehoming the vast majority of retired racehorses to second homes as equestrian, pleasure, working, companion and breeding horses.

To support the great work of owners and trainers, RV’s primary role is to create demand for thoroughbreds in their life beyond racing and to support the vulnerable and at risk.

The Off The Track Program promotes them as a breed of choice in the equestrian community and non-competitive pursuits.

We are supported by a network of privately owned Acknowledged Retrainers who determine and administer their own operating models. They can access support from RV to assist in the retraining, rehabilitation and rehoming of horses that are less desirable to post-racing owners.

Support for Acknowledged Retrainers includes subsidies for rehabilitation support, veterinary rebates to confirm rehabilitation duration, funding advertisements, and traceability reporting subsidies.

With the current cost of living pressures, the demand for retired thoroughbreds is slowing and this means that retired thoroughbreds are taking longer to rehome. Many Acknowledged Retrainers are adapting their own business models to face this challenge and we thank them for the work they continue to do.

When those with registered thoroughbreds in Victoria are struggling to fund the upkeep of their horses, or where a thoroughbred finds itself in a vulnerable situation, RV’s safety net programs may be able to assist. We encourage breeders, owners or trainers who need support to contact our equine welfare team via equinewelfare@racingvictoria.net.au in such circumstances.

Our equine welfare and veterinary teams will continue to focus on the 2023-2027 Equine Welfare Strategic Plan, ensuring the welfare of thoroughbreds before, during and after racing is a focus.

Our teams will continue to engage with our stakeholders and adjust priorities to best support the industry.

If you wish to learn more about our equine welfare programs and the options available, please visit racingvictoria.com.au/equine-welfare.

We are committed to keeping you updated on our investment in equine welfare on an annual basis.

Equine welfare is and will remain a priority each and every day.