An Australian trainer has threatened to kill his horses and send their heads to racing industry leaders if jumps racing is banned, national radio reported yesterday.
Racing over jumps was suspended on Thursday after Grand Annual Steeplechase runner Clearview Bay became the third jumper to die at the three-day Warrnambool racing carnival in Victoria state.
The decision was taken by Racing Victoria Limited (RVL), the governing body that will make an announcement on the sport’s future next week.
Warrnambool horse trainer David Londregan told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation his livelihood would be destroyed and he would be forced to have several horses put down if the sport was banned.
“I’m going to have to shoot my horses and I will, well I’m threatening to, send a head or two around the countryside to the powers [that] be, just to remind them what damage they are doing to our horses,” he said.
“All the would-be greenies and everyone else that are against jumping racing, they just don’t realize how well we look after our horses and how much we love our horses,” he said.
Australian Jumps Racing Association president Rodney Rae warned of a court action against RVL if it canceled the season.
“RVL has given an undertaking to the industry that the 2009 season would go ahead and on that basis hundreds of horses have been put into work and millions of dollars has been invested,” he told commercial radio. “If RVL reneges on its undertaking I have no doubt there will be a massive class action against them.”
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