Feeding versus X-Rays

What is the answer?

Since X-rays have started in Australia, are the horses softer ?

Below is my opinon of where we are heading...

The last two years before X-raying yearlings became standard pratice, we were averaging 24% stakes horses to runners. Our last crop before X-rays were viewed, we produced Fragmentation (stakes winner and 2nd in Adelaide Magic Millions), Gallieni (Gr3 winner, 2nd in Magic Million 3yo), Blackink (Gr1 placed) from 10 yearlings sold. The X-rays of two of the above horses would have been medium to high risk for racing - obviously no one told the horses that! Since then, the X-ray issues have been a major factor in how much money you made per year from selling yearlings.

Have we have started raising our yearlings to make sure we have the best possible set of X-rays for sale time? Have they become a softer horse? I think they have.

The major change I have seen: people started to feed what vets and feed sales people told them to.  Please note ! they are professionals in their fields, as we are in ours. The new processed feed became very popular. Combined with the droughts and a shortage of grain, we started to feed the complete feeds. For us, we still had many stakes and group winners but our average did drop down. But I can now breed a good set of X-rays.

My father, Les Irwin, managed Narrung Stud and Blanford Park before having his own farm at Rothwell Park. He raised over 70 Gr1, Gr2 and Gr3 winners. All raised on a good solid oats, soya bean meal and supplement pellet diet with ad lib lucerne hay.

My 2007 and 2008 foal crops have been raised as we did before X-raying was introduced, on the same diet Dad used. We have gone back to feeding the horse to make a racehorse, not an x-ray horse. This crop of yearlings are as tough as we have raised. They never stop galloping in the paddock. They play and fight hard and haven't been raised on irrigation country. And surprisingly, all have X-rayed without any OCDs or cysts. A couple have had very small fetlock chips that we have removed (they have a excellent racing prognosis). This is the first time I have X-rayed 16 horses without a OCD or cyst. Some people might not be as open as I am about their X-rays but I believe I have a good reputation in this industry and there is no point hiding important information. I prefer to be honest upfront rather than wearing it later.

The above is my opinion but this yearling crop is tough, they have good pedigrees, and they have been raised to run and not wrapped in cotton wool.

What you see is what you get from both my horses and Karen and me. We are in this game for the long run.