Breeding giant Benstud joins forces with BetaVet

Benstud Standardbreds, one of Australia’s leading harness racing nurseries and agistment farms, has joined forces with equine supplement specialists BetaVet in the preparation of their yearlings for the 2024 sales.

Benstud will use Prepare, Gastri-Tec and Buildagut, which are part of BetaVet’s extensive preparation and racing range, on 49 yearlings – the highest number of any stud or preparer in the country – for sales in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane conducted by Nutrien Equine.

“We were introduced to BetaVet this year and have seen great improvement in the general well-being and appearance in our young stock, in particular several youngsters with ailments made impressive improvement,” Benstud General Manager Craig Judd said.

“We had a yearling filly in NSW that had been very sick and we were told to put her on Gastri-Tec. She was administered Gastri-Tec 20 mils twice a day for about a month. The horse’s appetite improved, she put on significant weight and her coat changed. It completely turned the horse around almost immediately.”

Benstud Victoria also had great success with the low dose powder blend Buildagut on two of their weanlings earlier in the year who were behind the eight ball.

“We will be using BetaVet products moving forward with our yearling prep and preparing our horses for breaking-in and pre-training,” Judd said. “We feel that their products have a calming effect on the yearlings, particularly.”

Benstud Standardbreds, who operate properties at Katunga (VIC) and Crookwell (NSW), has been the birthplace of a bevy of stars over the years including Catch A Wave, Bling It On, Petracca, Tough Tilly, Treachery, Niki No No and Centenario.

Established in New Zealand in 2009, BetaVet is a professional herbal supplement company offering a range of high quality, efficacious plant-based products at therapeutic dose rate for equine health, specifically for the high performance horse. The products are the end result of rigorous sourcing and testing of raw materials and herb active constituents to set the highest standard in complimentary healthcare to maximise potential.

BetaVet has an extensive range to support gut health, growth, condition and joint health, performance, recovery and nervous system support in liquid and powder blends, pastes and topicals ideally suited to racehorses, breeding stock, yearlings and foals.

BetaVet are major sponsors of harness racing in Victoria throwing their support behind such important races as the 2022 Inter Dominion, 2023 Breeders Crown and Vicbred and other feature race meetings around Australia as well as at local level with sponsorship at Bendigo, Maryborough, Charlton, Ballarat and Cranbourne.

BetaVet Australian Marketing and Sales Manager, Natalie Waters, a successful horsewoman herself in the performance area, said:

“We have had a long standing relationship with Harness Racing and Standardbred breeding in New Zealand with our NZ Brand Manager, Kylie Unsworth showing a huge passion for the industry and whilst only a relative newcomer in Australia we are thrilled to have on board some of the country’s top trainers, breeders and sales preparers.

“We are especially excited to be working alongside the team at Benstud Standardbreds, both VIC and NSW for their 2024 yearling prep. Benstud continuously show such a high level of commitment and dedication to the industry and in producing some of Australia’s top bloodstock and we are very proud to be part of their journey.

“We are very excited to have some skin in the game with part ownership and majority shareholder of a two-year-old pacer aptly named Beta Prepare trained by Arna Donnelly, racing in our own BetaVet colours. We are really hoping we may have shares in an Aussie horse over the next year. To be involved with and support the industry in this way is definitely a goal of ours.

“Developing long standing relationships and working one-on-one with clients is definitely key to the BetaVet story and we look forward to seeing how the Benstud-BetaVet partnership presents in the auction ring on sales day.”

by Peter Wharton, for Harness Racing Victoria