The 18 racehorses lining up for the 2026 Hollywoodbets Durban July share much in common with elite human athletes.<\/p>\n
To compete at the top of their game both must receive the best training and conditioning that ingenuity and hard work can provide.<\/p>\n
Like most top athletes, racehorses start when they are fairly young, but theirs is a gentle beginning, as Hayley Dixon, who runs pretraining at the Hollywood Group\u2019s Ashburton training centre, in KwaZulu-Natal explained.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe start them off slowly to gain their trust,\u201d she said of the thoroughbreds who are already yearlings (12 to 18 months) when they come to her, \u201ceverything is done with their best interest at heart.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dixon, a registered assistant trainer with 30 years\u2019 experience, uses horse psychology to help her charges become comfortable taking a bridle and saddle.<\/p>\n
Following a method pioneered by American Monty Roberts, she watches a horse for subtle signals (a flick of the lip, for example) and as much as a human can, takes on the role of matriarch, who in mustang herds dispenses discipline.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey are getting the kindest, gentlest method of being backed,\u201d said Dixon, describing a very natural process of building trust, \u201cwhere no one gets hurt\u201d.<\/p>\n
Training continues at a pace determined by the horse as it\u2019s eased into work. If it\u2019s going through a growth spurt, for example, Dixon will back off.<\/p>\n
Once the pretraining is completed, Dixon\u2019s colleagues take up the reins.<\/p>\n
Megan Trott, an assistant trainer to head trainer Wengesai \u201cVengi\u201d Masawi, is part of the team which looks after Hollywood Racing\u2019s string of horses, at Ashburton.<\/p>\n
Their training is individually tailored to each horse\u2019s condition. Trott spends many hours on the training tracks, as well as in the racing barn, where treadmills and other equipment are used to get horses into shape, without putting strain on their bodies.<\/p>\n
Diet is another vital ingredient for successful equine athletes. To help a racehorse perform at its peak, it receives carefully formulated feed, matched to its individual needs.<\/p>\n
Trott explained that every horse is different and that an animal\u2019s protein and carbohydrate intake must correspond to its workload.<\/p>\n
Managing diets correctly from a young age ensures good bone health, while electrolytes, multivitamins, and supplements are also used to help keep the horses hydrated and feeling good.<\/p>\n
As always, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, so every morning the team takes their horses\u2019 temperatures, checks what they have eaten and examines their legs for any swelling or injuries that may have occurred overnight. The vet will also manage any aches, bumps or bruises that may crop up.<\/p>\n
Hollywood Racing\u2019s horses spend plenty of time in the paddocks; they do a lot of stretching their legs under the sun. Theirs was a good life, said Trott, and she felt most South African trainers go the extra mile to keep their horses happy and healthy.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s their livelihood and they would not do anything to impact the horses negatively. Horses can only perform if they are fit and healthy,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Apart from veterinarians, other equine health and welfare professionals frequently visited their stables, including physiotherapists and chiropractors.<\/p>\n
Equine physio Paige van Rensburg is one such person. As part of a bigger, team effort, Van Rensburg said horse physiotherapists provide an early-warning system, aiding trainers and vets to detect health problems.<\/p>\n
They pick up any minor niggles and help sort these out – using similar therapies to those practised on humans – preventing more serious injuries developing later.<\/p>\n
Like all living creatures, horses are not perfect. They have their asymmetries and physios use treatments and specific exercises to manage these so the animal can get better and return to running optimally.<\/p>\n
Van Rensburg has been an animal physiotherapist since 2019 and began treating horses in 2020. Over the years she has come to appreciate how well racehorses are treated.<\/p>\n
\u201cHappy horses run and race well. These racehorses get looked after incredibly well throughout their careers and are visited by vets regularly,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The 18 racehorses lining up for the 2026 Hollywoodbets Durban July share much in common with elite human athletes. To compete at the top of their game both must receive the best training and conditioning that ingenuity and hard work can provide. Like most top athletes, racehorses start when they are fairly young, but theirs […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":49202,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[9069],"class_list":{"0":"post-49201","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sponsored","8":"tag-hollywoodbets-durban-july"},"yoast_head":"\n