A few months ago the BLB took over paying stakes money because the ARC was taking between two and three months to pay out first prizes.

The BLB cleared off a debt of more than $1 million owing to owners.

The Board is funding stakes money to the tune of $165,000 a race day.

In a response, the Racehorse Owners’ Association (ROA) said the 20 per cent increase is just a drop in the bucket.

An official of the ROA said owners had not yet caught up with last year’s increased costs of horses in training.

He feels the increase should have been not less than 50 per cent if owners are to be encouraged to invest in horses.

The official noted that grooms got two increases last year -- from $150 - $200 for one horse, while farriers fee went up from $60 - $100.

The cost of racing shoes for horses, feed, shavings, medication and veterinarian fees had also increased considerably.

It now costs an owner between $3,500 - $4,000 per month for the up-keep of a horse that is racing. The charge for a horse not racing is about $2,800 a month.

One owner blamed the small prize monies for importations as the main reason for owners not buying foreign-bred horses.

He said the first prize for imported horses is $11,000, which is not encouraging for an owner.

This is one of the reasons why there are just a handful of importations racing and about five horses in the top bracket.

President of the Trainers’ Association, Dr. Jadgis Suratsingh, did not share the view that the increase was minimal.

He said the ARC is moving to address some of the problems facing the industry, including higher prize monies.

ARC vice-president John O’Brien said the 20 per cent increase is what can be afforded at this time.

“If we had gone higher we would be back to square one, where owners would experience problems in getting pay,” he added.