The RIB have now carried out thirteen announced audits of harness trainers facilities across both the North and South Island. The response to these audits has been excellent and we look forward to working with more trainers and HRNZ as the programme continues.
As the number of visits increases, we will be providing regular updates to inform Stakeholders of any issues or trends we may be noticing. The hope is that once aware of these, trainers will be able to better prepare for certain components of the audit with some assistance from HRNZ.
There have been a number of improvement notices issued so far and the RIB is encouraged by the timely resolution of many of these. These matters will be discussed with you in person at the conclusion of your audit. If, after receiving your report, you have any questions or queries please get in touch with one of the audit staff members who will be able to assist.
Whilst still very early in the schedule, there are some common issues appearing. These are listed below with links to more information which may assist you in complying with the regulations.
- Treatment records – as of October 2022 it is a requirement for trainers to keep detailed and thorough treatment records. HRNZ have produced a treatment record template which is available below. You do not have to use this exact form if you have a preferred method, but it will be worth looking at the document to ensure you are capturing all the required information. We encourage you to discuss this with your Veterinarian and consider how best they can assist you with the filling of this document.
Links
More information on what is a treatment
- Medicines – All medication kept on site must be correctly labelled and not expired. Medication is checked in an audit and improvement notices are issued for incorrectly (or not) labeled medication and for products which have expired. Again, we encourage you to discuss this with your Veterinarian who will be able to issue appropriate labeling and advise on expiry dates.
Links
What information is required in a treatment book?
- Emergency plans – the animal welfare act requires facilities to have in place a considered plan in the event of emergency. We have recently seen floods and fires and encourage all trainers to consider a response to such events. Spending some time now advising your staff of an evacuation plan could be very useful should such an incident occur.
Links