Beating of horse brings a warning

A reinsman who kicked and whipped a fallen horse at a Dunedin race meeting will not be charged over what has been called a "shocking" incident outside Forbury Park's main stand.

Instead, the harness racing industry will be asked to adopt a raft of changes, including stopping races part-way through, to avoid a repetition of such incidents.

Driver Andrew Suddaby said last night the decision ended the longest 10 days of his racing career.

"I still don't think I did anything wrong, but I tell you what, next time a horse goes down like that, I'll be throwing away the reins and letting someone else get it out of there."

Harness Racing NZ stipendiary steward Paul Knowles confirmed yesterday that Suddaby had been warned - but would not be charged - for the way he tried to move Camsplace Davy off the track on November 25.

"There is just nothing in the rule book that covers these circumstances - the fact that there was a race in progress and that the horse was possibly a threat to the safety of others," Mr Knowles said.

He spent almost two weeks investigating allegations made by "shocked" onlookers that Suddaby used excessive force - several kicks and prolonged use of the whip - in trying to move his horse after it fell with a fractured leg just 200m into a 2200m race.

Suddaby maintained he did not know the horse was injured - a claim backed by crash crew and the race veterinarian - and that he knew he had less than a minute to move Camsplace Davy out of the way of the other horses.

Mr Knowles spoke to 16 witnesses and, while careful to point out that Harness Racing NZ did not condone excessive use of the whip, decided "public perceptions on the night" might have coloured the reaction.

Suddaby had been warned not to repeat the behaviour, "but this was a situation that could have been dangerous", Mr Knowles said.

"People forget that horses are big animals - we have had a trainer die in the past and we have a lot of head injuries ... This is not a pussy's game."

Mr Knowles will ask the sport's governing body, racing clubs and the Harness Racing Trainers and Drivers Association to reinforce the use of "reasonable" force, but will not recommend wholesale changes to the rules of conduct.

Instead, his report will ask the industry to consider new rules to allow stewards to stop, or abandon, races after an accident they believe could endanger lives.

In Australia, lights and sirens were used to call off a race, but it had never been done in New Zealand, Mr Knowles said.

The change would probably have to go to the racing clubs and the Horseman's Association first, a process that could taken anything from a few months to a few years.

- NZPA