THE ITBA Educational Programme 2021 commences on Thursday, April 8th with an Ask The Experts series. Introduced last year and well received, this spring series will see a number of workshops delivered virtually. For the second year running, all attendance fees have been waived.

Run over a number of Thursday evenings between now and the end of May, it covers a number of informative topics, all of which will be delivered by leading experts.

The first three in the series will be delivered in tandem with the Irish Equine Centre, and deal with a number of very topical subjects, including equine herpes virus, stud farm biosecurity and parasite control.

The fourth in the series will cover equine dental care, while work is underway for the remaining workshops in this series, details of which will be announced in due course, one of which will be work place safety.

All webinar workshops will run from 7pm for an hour and pre-registration is needed. ITBA’s Kerry Ryan said: “We are eager to get this year’s programme underway, and delighted to be working in tandem with the Irish Equine Centre on this occasion.” To register contact Kerry Ryan by email kryan@itba.ie or by calling ITBA headquarters on 045 877543.

Farm biosecurity

Given the recent EHV outbreak in Europe, the first webinar workshop is an update by Professor Ann Cullinane on equine herpes virus. A comprehensive stud farm biosecurity and disease control programme is an integral component of any successful breeding operation. Alan Creighton will cover the latter subject on April 15th, while Dr James Gibbons will speak on parasite control on April 29th. Finally, Troytown Grey Abbey veterinary surgeon Pat O’Sullivan will talk about the importance of good equine dental care on May 6th.

Four CVE credits are available to those veterinary personnel who attend all four workshops, one for each webinar.

All Bar One at Cork this weekend

BAR One Racing is a new sponsor this weekend at Cork Racecourse during the Racing Home For Easter Festival at the Mallow venue. The firm adds its name to the Grade 3 Baroneracing.com Chase and the Baroneracing.com Hurdle of €17,000 on Easter Sunday.

The Louth-based sponsor is one of Ireland’s leading independent bookmakers, and their communications manager John McDonnell said: “Bar One Racing is delighted to sponsor the Grade 3 Imperial Call Chase at Cork Racecourse. The region has a love for National Hunt racing. Although it’s behind closed doors, we hope that people tune in and enjoy the coverage across Racing TV, RTÉ and TG4.”

Andrew Hogan, general manager of the racecourse, added: “Barney O’Hare and Bar One Racing have been a huge supporter of the racing sector for a long time now, with sponsorships at Fairyhouse and, most recently, of the Leinster National at Naas. We are very excited to collaborate with them for what is sure to be another exciting renewal of our Easter Festival.”