Ferraris fed-up: “EU protocols are unfair!”

A fed-up Hong Kong based David Ferraris has declared he will not buy any more South African horses until there is a breakthrough with the lengthy quarantine process, which he says is “unfair”, reports the SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST.

South African horses are typically required to spend 21 days in pre-export quarantine at home before making the trip to Mauritius, where they spend 90 days in isolation. From there they make the trip to Britain where they are required to spend a further 60 days in quarantine, which allows them to get into Hong Kong.

It has become somewhat more complicated of late with Britain currently not accepting horses from Mauritius, so time is required in a third country before being allowed in.

Ferraris said the process has become “too much” and it was taking its toll on the horses, with many sustaining injuries shortly after their arrival.

“It’s not fair on the horses, they shouldn’t have to spend six months in quarantine,” he said. “It’s not right, so until they sort that out I am just not going to take any more of them.

“The worst part is that I have horses stuck in Mauritius, one is finally now taking off to France because England won’t accept them. They have to go to France now for England to accept them, it is a total waste of time.”

South African horses are considerably cheaper than those from Europe or Australia, with Ferraris saying they offer an alternative for owners who don’t want to spend millions of dollars.

A fed-up David Ferraris has declared he will not buy any more South African horses until there is a breakthrough with the lengthy quarantine process, which he says is “unfair”.

South African horses are typically required to spend 21 days in pre-export quarantine at home before making the trip to Mauritius, where they spend 90 days in isolation. From there they make the trip to Britain where they are required to spend a further 60 days in quarantine, which allows them to get into Hong Kong.

It has become somewhat more complicated of late with Britain currently not accepting horses from Mauritius, so time is required in a third country before being allowed in.

“It’s not fair on the horses, they shouldn’t have to spend six months in quarantine,” he said. “It’s not right, so until they sort that out I am just not going to take any more of them.

“The worst part is that I have horses stuck in Mauritius, one is finally now taking off to France because England won’t accept them. They have to go to France now for England to accept them, it is a total waste of time.”

The Jockey Club last week spent HK$1.25 million on one of the top lots at the South Africa National Yearling Sale in Durban, while they averaged more than HK$3 million across five lots at January’s Magic Millions sale.

“To be honest, it is just an excuse to not allow the South African horses to come in because they are so reasonably priced,” Ferraris said.

“[South African horses] can win their Class Fours and Fives and then you see the better ones go on with it too. Until such time that they sort out this nonsense, I am not going to be buying any more from there.”

The tipping point came after his promising import Bay Tibbs broke down after his second run in March.

The South African handler said the lack of work put into the horses over the quarantine ordeal creates issues when they come to a harsh environment such as Hong Kong.

“You have to be very careful when they get here because they lose their bone density,” he said. “Although they have been kept in work, it’s not what we would give them.

“I had that beautiful horse Bay Tibbs, he broke down in his second run so he’s just gone and forgotten. After that horse broke down, there was a chance I could get a decent one out of there again to replace him but I thought ‘that’s it, no more’.”

Officials hope change could be imminent however, with South African authorities requesting a European Union audit of its exports arrangements, which if successful would see the three-month process in Mauritius slashed.

A successful audit would also open the door to the potential of reducing the 60-day quarantine in England.