Breach Of Protocol

Since the start of the EI outbreak, international eventer, Blair Richardson has been helping Horse Deals with our regular Morgan Park updates. We all read, with some relief that the Warwick detainees were able to go home last week, or were they? For a while we had visions of shanty towns being established on the Queensland side of the Qld/NSW border, as NSW residents were not permitted to enter.

“It took me days to get a permit to just skirt through the Purple Zone”, commented Blair. “The first question they asked me when I applied was, is it a Thoroughbred mare going to stud? When I said no, they told me I could not get a permit. I persisted and of course I am now home and all the horses are well and have recovered from EI. But what really concerns me is that the Thoroughbred industry has pushed for the Purple Zone to allow movement and there is no doubt that the movement of horses has spread the disease in the area. That is what was expected. However, I am concerned that trucks loaded with horses are leaving the Purple Zone at night. I live on a back road 15 kilometers from Scone, on the border of the Purple and Red Zones. I drive into Scone every second day and there are no check points. I have seen trucks drive past at night and I was driving back from Scone the other night and was behind a truck with horses. Perhaps they had a permit and just ran out of daylight? I have tried to chase it up with the DPI and since my enquiries, they announced that any truck leaving the Purple Zone had to stop at the Scone saleyards to be decontaminated.

“A breach of bio-security protocol resulted in EI escaping from Eastern Creek and it is of the utmost importance we do not let EI get away from us because of possible breaches of movement bans. The Thoroughbred industry have got what they want at the expense of the ‘pleasure’ horse industry and it would be devastating for everyone if EI was prolonged because a few thought they could get by undetected.

“It is six weeks now since this all started and we are really beginning to feel the pinch. There are so many people out there really struggling and not many of them are Thoroughbred breeders in the Hunter Valley. We are trying to prepare horses for the Olympic Games and that may not be possible if there are not competitions in the New Year. To eradicate this so everyone can get on with their lives and business, it is so important that everyone sticks to the bio-security protocols”.