LAHORE, Oct 14: The horse-breeding industry has been hit hard by steep price-hike during last couple of years and its impact is being felt now.

Prices of two-year or older horses have risen and there are not many buyers left in the market.

Even the opportunity of racing at Lahore throughout the year, have not boost sales and many owners are reluctant to buy fresh stock. Instead, a few race-horse owners have silently quit the racecourse and some have curtailed the number of their horses. There are hardly five hundred horses at the racecourse which once was a sprawling and bustling village of over eight hundred animals.

When contacted by Dawn, representatives of breeders, horse-owners and trainers were of the view that the main cause of reduction in number of horses was ever-increasing cost of maintenance, feeding and veterinary treatment.

They said grain available in the open market was getting more and more expensive day by day and the matter required urgent attention and should be solved on priority basis.

Since racing requires good and healthy horses there is a need to conduct tests of horses to find out who are the best animals available to breed from on the basis of hardiness, stamina, speed and endurance. The only modern test to judge horses’ ability is racing.

Horse-breeding has a chequered history in Pakistan. Moreover, no government had ever provided incentives to private breeders to stimulate the industry. Although many parts of Pakistan are suitable for horse-breeding but the desired results cannot be achieved without government’s patronage.

This is no secret that horse-breeding in Pakistan has improved a lot. With the induction of imported stallions and mares there had been magnificent growth of diverse bloodlines to elitist English, Irish, Australian and American stallions. —AG