Horses Birthday celebrated in Cambridge

Cambridge commuters saw an unusual sight on their way to work on Thursday morning. 

Two miniature horses, Kidz Kartz racers Caramello and Cooper were guests of honour at a Birthday party outside of Homebrew Coffee on Victoria Street. 

The party was thrown by Cambridge Raceway to mark the Horses’ Birthday and celebrate the launch of their new racing season. 

Each racehorse born in New Zealand has their official birthday on August 1, the day on which the new season of racing begins for both standardbreds and thoroughbreds.

“Because horses often compete in races and events restricted by age-group they all officially turn a year older on the same day,” Cambridge Raceway CEO Dave Branch explained. 

“Cambridge is the horse capital of New Zealand and so we decided to bring the horses into the community to recognise the occasion.”

Guests who called into the party were able to wish the two ponies a happy birthday, give them a pat, have their photo taken, feed them a carrot or apple and enjoy a piece of birthday carrot cake themselves. 

Cambridge Raceway’s 2019/20 racing season kicked off on Thursday night with the first of 25 race meetings to be held at the progressive venue over the next 12 months. 

Check out the full list of race dates for the new season here.