Rider is thrown on to wire fence

A 14-year-old girl had to spend two days in hospital after she was thrown from her horse on to a barbed wire fence in Cornwall.

The incident happened on a public right of way on Mithian Downs near St Agnes. on Sunday afternoon.

Her horse reacted to a 4x4 vehicle taking part in an off-road event and she was thrown from the horse and suffered serious facial injuries.

She was treated and has now been released from hospital.

Fire crews rescue pony from ditch

A pony has been rescued after falling into a ditch filled with 3ft (1m) of mud and water.

Firefighters were called to a farm in Blackridge, West Lothian, at about 2000 GMT on Sunday after the horse, called Barney, became trapped.

A spokesman for Lothian and Borders Fire and Rescue Service said fire crews had managed to get the pony out using slings.

Barney was later checked by a vet but appeared to be uninjured.

V'Landys wants fair go on EI costs

RACING NSW chief executive Peter V'Landys has called for an urgent meeting with the new Federal Government's Primary Industries Minister to ensure horse owners are not forced to pay the $100 million-plus equine influenza bill.

On Thursday, V'Landys welcomed the NSW Government's announcement that EI restriction zones in NSW had been lifted but raised concerns about the coming showdown. "It is back to the trenches," he said.
V'Landys was referring to Federal Government legislation which would seek to bill owners of all horses for EI, even though former High Court justice Ian Callinan's wide-ranging inquiry into the disease is ongoing.
"We did have a commitment from the previous minister, Peter McGauran, that if it was found in the Callinan inquiry that the disease entered the country due to the negligence of the Federal Government-managed quarantine centre they would pick up the bill for the containment and eradication of EI," V'Landys said.
"The best analogy I can make in regard to this legislation is a third person drives your car, smashes it, and expects you to pay to get it repaired.
"We hope they don't use that legislation to do that. We will be talking to Mr Tony Bourke, the new Federal Minister for Agriculture, as soon as possible. We will be making him aware of the previous government's commitment."
Another major worry for V'Landys and the racing industry surrounds Federal Government plans to stop sanctioning the use of EI vaccinations. He said the government was set to stop granting permission for the issue of vaccinations on March 19.
The majority of racehorses in NSW are receiving, or had been given, the third vaccination shot.
"There is no doubt the process of vaccinations expedited the eradication of the disease," V'Landys said. "Without vaccination we would still not be racing and industry participants along with the government would be losing millions of dollars in income.
"We are going to continue with the vaccination program. If we stop now, we end up back where we started. The third shots are vital. It will mean horses have completed the course and will need only one shot every 12 months.
"Racing cannot be shut down again and we will be letting government officials know what the consequences are."
The lifting of restriction zones in NSW means horses are free to move across the state, but V'Landys stressed a "certificate for movement is still required".

Witnesses sought after ponies die in arson attack

POLICE investigating an arson attack in which two miniature ponies were killed are appealing for two key witnesses to come forward.
The pedigree miniature ponies, that stood a mere 27inches tall, died after the blaze at stables in Binney Road, Allhallows, near Rochester, last Friday at around 2.20pm.
Dc Steve Goldsmith, who is investigating the incident, said: "We are particularly keen to speak with two boys, believed to be around 12-years-old, who were seen in the field at around the time of the arson.
“Though they may have paid no part in the crime, we do think they are key witnesses.”
He added: "To allow two young ponies to burn to death is both cruel and malicious and we are keen to arrest the person or people responsible for this heartless act.
“The owners of the ponies have been left distraught by the death of their beloved pets and if someone out there has information about this crime I would ask them to contact officers at Medway police station."

Unbridled joy as outbreak finally eradicated

SYDNEY'S $20 million autumn racing carnival has been given a significant boost following confirmation the devastating equine influenza outbreak has been eradicated.

NSW Primary Industries Minister Ian Macdonald yesterday declared the state was "EI-free" and lifted the restrictions on horse movements.
This announcement ensures the best racehorses from interstate and New Zealand can now compete in Sydney during the autumn carnival in coming weeks.
Racing NSW chief executive Peter V'Landys said the eradication of EI was "a wonderful day for racing in NSW".
"The black clouds have finally lifted from the horse racing industry," he said.
"It's been a great strain both emotionally and financially for hundreds of thousands of people and we don't want to go through that again.
"Sydney missed out on the spring carnival due to EI and it had a disastrous impact on the racing industry. We couldn't afford this to happen again for the 2008 Sydney autumn carnival."
After EI hit on August 25 last year, NSW racing was forced to abandon 193 race meetings - 30 in the metropolitan area, 31 provincial and 132 country - precipitating a TAB betting downturn estimated at more than $500 million.
During the peak of the EI crisis, more than 47,000 horses on 6000 properties in NSW were infected.
Mr Macdonald revealed a vaccination program was then undertaken with more than 63,000 horses administered a genetically modified vaccine.
"We are now officially EI-free," Mr Macdonald said.
"The equine influenza has now been eradicated in this state. This fantastic news means that from today all permit and testing requirements for moving horses within the state have been lifted."
The only other Australian state directly affected by EI, Queensland, has no confirmed cases and is on the verge of declaring that it is free from horse flu.

Unbridled joy as outbreak finally eradicated

SYDNEY'S $20 million autumn racing carnival has been given a significant boost following confirmation the devastating equine influenza outbreak has been eradicated.

NSW Primary Industries Minister Ian Macdonald yesterday declared the state was "EI-free" and lifted the restrictions on horse movements.
This announcement ensures the best racehorses from interstate and New Zealand can now compete in Sydney during the autumn carnival in coming weeks.
Racing NSW chief executive Peter V'Landys said the eradication of EI was "a wonderful day for racing in NSW".
"The black clouds have finally lifted from the horse racing industry," he said.
"It's been a great strain both emotionally and financially for hundreds of thousands of people and we don't want to go through that again.
"Sydney missed out on the spring carnival due to EI and it had a disastrous impact on the racing industry. We couldn't afford this to happen again for the 2008 Sydney autumn carnival."
After EI hit on August 25 last year, NSW racing was forced to abandon 193 race meetings - 30 in the metropolitan area, 31 provincial and 132 country - precipitating a TAB betting downturn estimated at more than $500 million.
During the peak of the EI crisis, more than 47,000 horses on 6000 properties in NSW were infected.
Mr Macdonald revealed a vaccination program was then undertaken with more than 63,000 horses administered a genetically modified vaccine.
"We are now officially EI-free," Mr Macdonald said.
"The equine influenza has now been eradicated in this state. This fantastic news means that from today all permit and testing requirements for moving horses within the state have been lifted."
The only other Australian state directly affected by EI, Queensland, has no confirmed cases and is on the verge of declaring that it is free from horse flu.

Ajay's OK and back in saddle

THERE'S dropping kilos and then there's dropping from the back of a horse and ending up in hospital.

But that was the unhappy ending for The Biggest Loser host Ajay Rochester, who was taken to a Hawaiian hospital for X-rays, after falling during the taping of an extreme sports episode of the weight loss show yesterday.
A Channel 10 publicist confirmed Rochester had been injured when she was thrown from a horse, but got back on to complete the filming.
"As a precautionary measure, staff took her to hospital to ensure she was all clear,'' a spokesman said.
An experienced rider who grew up on a farm, the host reportedly told mates her ego was also bruised.
In one text message she wrote: "My ego's hurting as I have ridden horses my whole life.''

Australians see Beijing Olympic torch

STUDENTS at a Werribee primary school yesterday became the first Aussies to see a 2008 Beijing Olympic torch.

The torch was revealed at the launch of an education program for schools to support Australia's team at the games in August through the internet.
Special Olympic lessons have been designed and posters from primary school students will decorate athletes' rooms in the Olympic Village.
Five-time Olympian Andrew Gaze said the program would help athletes as well as students.
The Boxing Kangaroo is the focus of the 2008 Olympic Education Program, and was a hit with students at Werribee's Manorvale Primary yesterday.
"The Boxing Kangaroo is a great motivator," said Australian Olympic Committee president John Coates.
"He spurs on our athletes at the cricket, the football and at the Olympics. Now he is inspiring our young students."
Mr Coates yesterday also set an ambitious target for our athletes in Beijing: to finish in the top five on the medal table for both gold medals and overall.
Deputy PM Julia Gillard and Olympians Gaze, Russell Mark, Claire Mitchell-Taverner and Nicole Livingstone helped to launch the Aspire program.
It encourages children to adopt the Olympic ideals of sportsmanship, pride, individual responsibility and respect.
The Games torch is due in Canberra on April 24 during its 137,000km relay through 21 countries from Athens to Beijing.

NSW 'is clear of horse flu'

NSW has been declared free of equine influenza six months after the virus brought the state's breeding and racing industry to its knees.

Queensland, the only other state affected by the outbreak, has no infected properties on record, but quarantine rules remain in place restricting the movement of horses.
But it is understood that the Queensland Agricultural Show Society is pushing to have the state declared EI-free within weeks, possibly on the eve of the showcase Toowoomba Show.
The end of the crisis for NSW was in sight two weeks ago when all restrictions bar movement and testing of horses from within certain areas were lifted.
Yesterday, the state Primary Industries Minister, Ian Macdonald, made it official. "Horse flu has now been eradicated from NSW and this fantastic news means that from today, all permit and testing requirements for moving horses within the state have been lifted," he said.
"Tens of thousands of tests have been carried out and today we cannot find a single EI-infected animal."
The outbreak began on August 25 last year, a week from the start of the multi-million-dollar thoroughbred breeding season. Sydney racing was stopped for more than two months, forcing the Randwick Spring Carnival to be abandoned.
Former judge Ian Callinan chaired an inquiry into the EI outbreak, and is to release his findings in late April.