We are coming up to 12 months since the 7:30 report brought horse slaughter to the attention of the whole of Australia.
The perception was that ALL ex-racehorses end up at these abattoirs and knackeries.
The equine industry knows this isn't the case, due to the high numbers of thoroughbreds participating in different disciplines, but the "noise makers" will go out of their way to continue to give the racing industry a bad reputation for "the disposal of ex-racehorses."
the equiprove® founders come from the non-racing equine industry and know the value that the ex-racehorse holds for equestrians, particularly for those that cannot afford to breed or buy a warmblood or Sport Horse.
Unfortunately, because the history of the ex-racehorse is not being provided conveniently, and the suitability/purpose of the horse is unknown, many choose the registered non-racehorse.
The ex-racehorse can have its racing name changed to something entirely different because there is no verification required when that horse is registered with a performance group. It suddenly becomes an "entirely new horse".
Tracking and tracing can be even more problematic due to quick turnovers of the ex-racehorse. It may be with the trainer for 8-12 weeks to learn flatwork and basic jumping, then it will move on to its next home for 1-2 years then on to another etc.
The off the track programs that have been established in many states is a great first step to ensure that an ex-racehorse has every opportunity to gain a second career, yet the well-developed programs are performance orientated and the multiple pathways that an ex-racehorse could take are not clear. There is no way to determine, "what is next?"
equiprove® has broken the pathway model down to show four categories:
There is no current process in place to determine if a horse would have had a long, happy life if their pathway had have been predicted when leaving the track.
Enter equiprove®
Imagine if you could collect, track and trace information on horses, people, events and venues across an entire lifespan.
That’s exactly what equiprove® will provide with the Equine Intelligence Network; a cloud platform that brings together all owners, riders, coaches, judges, officials, volunteers, merchant providers, breeders and other equine stakeholders.
We use three words as our mantra: CERTAINTY | SAFETY | BIOSECURITY
equiprove® is able to establish the provenance of a horse and maintain a single source of truth.
equiprove® will create transparency by providing an easy and convenient way for the Australian equine community to access, record and send their equine data to whomever they choose.
equiprove® will enable tracking with the recorded hour by hour activity that is networked over multiple databases, whether they are directly or indirectly associated with a horse, person, event or venue.
equiprove® 's technology partner is SAP® and the solution that will house the Equine Intelligence Network is the Intelligent Asset Management Solution. The IAM is currently successfully being used globally in other industries - mining, locomotion and insurance. It is the correct fit for managing the equine asset.
We have spent the past 18 months gathering requirements and believe equiprove® V1 offers the capability and services that the equine industry in Australia has been asking for, for a long time.
equiprove® will take all the current horse identifier mechanisms and use these to establish that a horse that may be registered across multiple databases, for whatever reason, is the same horse - an entity.
equiprove® will be able to track and trace an ex-racehorse, even its name, location, ownership, multiple times over during its life, as it is still the same entity.
equiprove® allows for third parties to provide evidence of proof of health and performance. Results and reports can be easily stored against a horse's equiprove® by the attending third party, making it accessible to the owner and whoever they would like to share that information with.
equiprove® allows for the racing industry to know who the horses are that may not be as active as others so that these horses can have welfare checks actioned.
Owners that are seen to be doing the wrong thing or just simply not educated to know they are not doing right by their horses, can be investigated and education can be put in place for monitoring over periods of time. All records of welfare can be stored against the horse and owner's equiprove® profiles.
equiprove® is excited to see the full capability of the Equine Intelligence Network. Future predictions and insights are able to be established so that when a horse leaves racing, equiprove® will be able to advise which specific pathway that horse should take for its next career.
Whether it be a performance horse, a leisure horse, a foundation breeding horse, a riding school horse, a police horse, a specialised equine-assisted therapy horse, or a loved family member.
If not, it is a horse that needs to be humanely dealt with.
