The Horse Flu Thread

[Titanium_BD1103]

HodgoBerro and DIEHARD, got any Greyhounds you can send down south to run... the Dogs are going to get worked over severely this spring...

From:http://www.smh.com.au/news/horseracing

Flu kills spring carnival Brian Robins
August 30, 2007 - 2:44PM

Sydney's racing spring carnival is off with confirmation that eight out of 10 racehorses at Anthony Cummings's stable at Randwick racecourse have tested positive for horse flu.

NSW Primary Industries Minister Ian Macdonald said the positive tests spelled the death knell for Sydney's spring carnival, with Randwick racecourse to be quarantined for about two months.

The quarantine would extend for 30 days from the last case of the flu and was expected to go through the Randwick site quickly, he told a media conference today.

Peter V'Landys, the chief executive of Racing NSW said: "This is a dark, dark day for racing."

Ten horses from Cummings's stable were tested, with eight returning positive results to the flu.

They are the first racehorses to test positive since the beginning of the nation's flu crisis.

Until today, the flu had been restricted to the pleasure horse industry.

The first sign of the flu among racehorses came overnight, with the results of initial tests taken from the Cummings-trained Paxton showing the gelding had the highly contagious virus.

About 700 racehorses are trained at Randwick and most are expected to eventually be affected by the virus.

There was some good news, however. The flu testing of racehorses at Warwick Farm, Rosehill, Newcastle and Dubbo courses had all proven negative, Mr Macdonald said.

- with AAP

Well this isn't good and it's very sad to see a horse have to go like that...

Looks like it's a day out at the Dogs in Sydney this spring... with no spring carnival in NSW, massive losses for bookies, no racing at Randwick, Wyong, Grafton, Rosehill, Warrick Farm, Hawkesbury, Nowra and any other track in NSW, and a full quarantine on all horses in NSW... which means no NSW horses in any of the Victorian spring carnival races including the Melbourne Cup...

[DIEHARD]

This is devastating for the racing industry! Our family has always been involved in racing, all codes of it and I hate to see this.

This will also be devastating to greyhound racing as our income isn't just off what we generate (Even though that scenario would generate millions upon millions of extra revenue for the dishlickers.) but a percentage of the overall turnover.

So without the horses, greyhounds lose out. But with the greyhounds still racing at least both the horse racing codes still get a little bit of income.

Greyhounds in Queensland has added an extra meeting, taking over Saturday night at Albion Park, the time and venue usually occupied by harness racing.

They have gotten strong support from the industry with 12 races in total! Usually 10 is the normal number. And people thought there wasn't enough racing dogs in Queensland!

I'm happy to see greyhound racing at Albion Park on a Saturday. I'm actually heavily involved in the administration of greyhound racing in Queensland and I was really gunning for the introduction of a Saturday meeting.

Greyhounds and harness racing share Albion Park so even for trialing days, greyhound trainers need to adhere to strict requirements in attempting to contain the virus.

There have been reports of a Queensland race horse coming down with it. This is bad news.

Greyhound racing is enjoying huge pools but with no horse racing I fear not only for the people in the industry and above all the animals, but that we might lose punters to sports betting and worse....poker machines!

[Titanium_BD1103]

I know, it's bad isn't it DIEHARD.. I'm surprised at how much one relys on the other though TBH... I thought it would be a big windfall for the dogs, didn't realise all that...

Yeah, I have people I know, not mates as such but people I use to go to school with and who I've worked with who have shares in horses, are horse breeders or in once case, own an entire farm of horses for racing... this will cripple them... and I don't want to see that, it really is devastating...

[DIEHARD]

It is a big windfall in other ways, we will still get bonus revenue from on course gambling and it is a windfall of publicity and attention.

Hopefully all these punters will stay punting on puppies, the best form of gambling...with rugby league a close second.

I wish we had some race ready dogs to put in for Saturday, but we are currently coming back from spelling our dogs and they are a couple weeks off being fit. They still got a strong draw, with 2 extra races than normal.

I'm looking forward to it.

[HodgoBerro]

motoring along is running on sat at albion park are you gonna be there diehard as we are all going

[PROMETHEUS]

So is the flu capable of killing the horses?

[Titanium_BD1103]

So is the flu capable of killing the horses?

Uh Huh... it's already done it to a horse that was being kept under supervision in Campbelltown today...

[Capital_Shark]

I heard somewhere that this flu wasn't deadly.. That was only a day or two after it broke out though - has it got worse?

[HodgoBerro]

a case has broken out at royal randwick causing the spring carnival to be cancelled this also means there will be no racing there for 2 months

2 cases have been reported at brookfield in qld making the come back date for qld racing extended for another fortnight at least

[travop]

this flu has hit our family pretty hard beacause my cosuin was compeating at morgan park when it broke out last sunday and in the past few days both her horses have contracted the flu. this has set her back greatly dampened her olympic hopes for bejing next year. on top of that she works two jobs one at a suncorp branch, second as the rider of buck for the broncos

[HodgoBerro]

is buck ok? it was an empty feeling last sunday without him

[Queenslander]

is buck ok? it was an empty feeling last sunday without him

There is a nation wide ban on the transportation of horses so that is why Buck wasn't at the Raiders game.

[jenny]

this flu has hit our family pretty hard beacause my cosuin was compeating at morgan park when it broke out last sunday and in the past few days both her horses have contracted the flu. this has set her back greatly dampened her olympic hopes for bejing next year. on top of that she works two jobs one at a suncorp branch, second as the rider of buck for the broncos

Thats awful Trav...Poor girl
Dont lose hope yet

[HodgoBerro]

There is a nation wide ban on the transportation of horses so that is why Buck wasn't at the Raiders game.

i knew that. i wanted to know whether buck has contracted equine influenza in the midst of the ecidemic as due to the ban on transportation of all equine animals it was very empty on sunday

[travop]

oh no bucks ok my cuz she just rides buck she dosent own him but her horse "ks archie" has got it pretty bad