Coalition for the Protection of Racehorses WA

28/07/2026

28/06/2026

The City of Rockingham has once again decided to allocate $240,000 of ratepayers’ money to the 2026 Rockingham Beach Cup under its Iconic Events Program. Last Tuesday residents attended the council meeting to hold the council to account for funding animal cruelty.

These community members raised serious concerns including:
* The number of horses injured and killed in racing across Australia. Including 15 in Western Australia.
* Questions over whether the funding application met the City’s own sponsorship guidelines and whether the claimed economic benefits have been sufficiently scrutinised.
* Cost-of-living pressures facing local families while hundreds of thousands of dollars are directed to a horse racing event.
* The inclusion of 30 complimentary VIP tickets and $2,500 worth of food and bar hospitality as part of the sponsorship package.
* The lack of consideration given to horse welfare as a risk in the City’s own assessment.

City of Rockingham mayor, Lorna Buchan stated that whilst she appreciates that the community have differing views, ‘this isn’t really horse racing. These are retired racehorses and they’re brought out for a festival’.

A ludicrous statement when the horses very clearly race down the beach with the fastest winning. A festival that forces racehorses from retirement to compete once again, facing the inherent risks of racing, potential injury or death that they had supposedly escaped. The absence of whips and gambling does not mean it’s not horse racing, but rather highlights how deeply those practices have become embedded in the sport’s identity, to the point that many struggle to recognise horse racing without them.

Public funds should not be used to support events where horses are put at risk for entertainment, and the councils own policy reflects this. Councils should prioritise family friendly fun without a side of exploitation, supporting events that don’t place animals at risk.

Shame on the City of Rockingham.

01/06/2026

Sunday 7th June is National Animal Rights Day, held in cities around the world, including Perth.

It is a day where we acknowledge and honour animals who lost their lives at human hands over the last year. This includes the multiple millions of farmed and wild caught animals killed in our state, wildlife and introduced species, captive animals used for human entertainment, animal testing and any individual killed due to some form of human exploitation.

This year during the memorial we will be remembering Capre Omnia, Chama, Prince and Starry Heights who all died either on track, or as a result of injuries sustained whilst racing in Western Australia in the last year.
Coalition for the Protection of Racehorses

Come join us in Perth, 10am - 2pm at Forrest Place.

25/05/2026

Sky Poet was only three years old when he panicked in distress inside the start barrier at Pinjarra WA on 27 April, 2026, and injured himself.

The attending vet pulled him back out from the barrier to examine him. Despite being heavily distressed and bleeding from his mouth, Sky Poet was passed ‘fit to race’ and put back into the barrier.

Welfare will always come second in an industry that is based on profit. Thank you for standing with the horses and saying every day of the year 💔

21/05/2026

How many “bad apples” does it take before it is clear that the abuse of horses in the racing industry is inherent? This prominent WA trainer, Mike Santich, was caught during track work at Ascot punching a racehorse in the face twice, followed by kicking them in the stomach - twice.

What goes on at training stables when no one is watching, that never gets reported?

Mr Santich was punished for his actions with a five-month suspension of his license. According to Racing WA, this penalty should reflect the seriousness of his conduct.

In Mr Santich’s defence, Stewards took into consideration his otherwise clean record of this kind of offence, his lengthy time in the industry, and that there was “no evidence of physical injury to the horse as a result of his actions.”

This is what we get when the racing industry is allowed to regulate itself. The conflict of interest could not be any more obvious.

Thank you for saying every day of the year. Horses deserve so much better💔🐴

12/05/2026

Another death by heart attack on the track💔 May you rest in peace, Prince💔 Thank you to all who're saying every day of the year and choose

28/04/2026

On Sunday a group of predominantly local Rockingham residents took time out of their long weekend to protest against the Lark Hill Cup Race Day.

After the races, Lorna Buchan, Mayor of Rockingham shared a post enthusing about what a fantastic day she had, realising a 'shared vision' showcasing 'the energy and spirit of Rockingham'. Meanwhile we had owners/trainers leaving the track towing their horse floats yelling out at us about how much money they had won (because it's always about the money), threats of physical violence hurled by event staff and verbal abuse from punters, including children in cars with their parents. As a horse was walked over to the nearby equine vets from the track, those leading them bragged about taking them, as if providing veterinary care was some kind of virtue rather than a minimum expected standard. So our experience of the energy and spirit of Rockingham was certainly less than fantastic.

Horse racing is an exploitative 'sport' which frequently results in injury and death for the non-consenting equine participants. This isn't an opinion, this is a fact. If it doesn't happen in a high profile race, it happens behind the scenes. Lark Hill is a death track, having claimed a victim, Capre Omnia, only 2 months ago during trials.

No matter how glamorous the marketing, alluring the potential winnings or chance of glory and fame, horse racing is a sordid, violent and barbaric stain on our society.

Thank you to everyone who came out to join us, to those who contacted the council and spoke at meetings to express your disapproval of their sponsorship of the Lark Hill Cup and every other way that folks made noise about this. Don't stop.
We have Rockingham residents who still have unanswered questions relating to the funding which will be raised at upcoming council meetings. We must ensure the council understands that ignoring policy, animal cruelty and gambling harm is not a 'shared vision' of the community.

We will continue to stand against the violence, cruelty and exploitation until we see an end to horse racing.

25/04/2026

The decision to recommence racing at Lark Hill, and the funding provided by the City of Rockingham, has been controversial. For us it's always primarily about animal exploitation, but there are a variety of other concerns that have arisen. We've broken down the key issues driving our protest outside the event tomorrow.

• The City of Rockingham has provided $280,000 of funding to horse racing in the last year (93% of its Iconic Event budget) despite contradicting council policy against events featuring gambling and animal cruelty.

• Councillor Craig Buchanan resigned recently citing lack of confidence in administrative processes - potentially driven by the decision to sponsor the Lark Hill Cup.

• MLC .dorn.ajp has raised concerns about council governance and policy compliance with the Minister for Local Government.

• Horse Racing Kills - Capre Omnia was killed at Lark Hill during trials on 9th February. He was 6 yo, had won $249,310 and was first raced as a 2yo.

• ANZAC horses toiled, suffered, and lost their lives during wars and this ANZAC weekend horses will be forced to risk their lives, not to fight for their country but so people can gamble!

• Gambling will take place adjacent to the family area at Sundays Lark Hill Cup - Australian research indicates early exposure, and normalisation of gambling can lead to problems with gambling in adulthood, with children particularly influenced by gambling marketing in conjunction with sport.

This debate is framed within broader declining public support for gambling and animal exploitation and raises concerns about the expansion of the racing industry despite public sentiment and in light of the requirement of large amounts of public funds spent at both state and local government level to prop up the racing industry in the face of ongoing losses.

If you would like to join us the protest please meet us at Dankz Furniture in Port Kennedy at 11.40am to rideshare to the protest location. The road to the racetrack will be closed to all private vehicles, only admitting shuttle bus or rideshare vehicles. Protest at Lark Hill Racetrack commences at 12pm on Sunday 26th April.

https://facebook.com/events/s/lark-hill-cup-protest-port-ken/26466387309687749/

14/04/2026

BYD is this year's Quokka Race Day sponsor. The Quokka is the final installment of the Western Trilogy tri-code slot race, held at Ascot in Perth this Saturday.

We're surprised that a progressive, sustainable company would put their name, and funding behind an antiqued and cruel 'sport'. The sponsorship of the Quokka supports animal exploitation and negative social outcomes such as gambling harm and alcoholism. This seems a bit of a misaligned marketing faux pas to us at Coalition for the Protection of Racehorses, and we want to let them know.

We need your help!
Let know that you share our concern.
We've prepared a pre-written email you can use to contact BYD and let them know how we feel about them supporting animal cruelty. Feel free to edit to share your own thoughts or send as it is.

Email to: [email protected]

Pre-written email: https://horseracingkills.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/BYD-Quokka-Sponsorship-2026.docx
Instagram: Link in bio

16/03/2026

Three-year-old Chama had been raced since he was two years old. His tongue was tied down and his vision was restricted by blinkers.

When his front knee shattered during a race in Perth on 4 February, his suffering wasn’t ended in front of the spectators. Instead, he was made to hobble onto a float and was transported off the track for ‘further assessment’.

When Chama arrived at the vet, he was put down, although the stewards report only noted he had been taken away for treatment. Weeks later a supplementary steward’s report noted that Chama had been under veterinary treatment in the time leading up to the race that killed him.

We cannot emphasise enough that catastrophic injuries to horses during racing are not accidents. They are a direct result of pushing the horses too far, too fast, and from far too young.