October
MarchLeaving home
I refer to Simon Moir’s letter (07/03) in which he claims that transferring a horse from one stable to another poses no issues, other than having to find a new trainer to put the horse through final paces and throw on a saddle on race day.
Not the case. Thoroughbreds are creatures of habit, and once familiarised with certain surroundings (especially younger horses), moving them from one stable to another three days before a Group 1 event can pose many problems.
A horse can become very used to feed products, the type of bedding it sleeps on, its handler, other thoroughbred companions within the stable in neighbouring boxes, and the familiar sounds of its original stable.
To remove a horse from this environment and plant it into completely foreign surroundings is no easy thing to do successfully.
A new stable can take a lot longer than three days to get used to. Not the type of preparation you want leading into any race, least of all a Group 1 event.
Carnegie (Vic)