Having grown up on a Farm from a young age Josh has always loved working closely with animals and learning about their characteristics. His mother Jane managed a sanctuary for 15 years. The sanctuary had a variety of wildlife including Penguins, Snakes, Eagles to name a few. These animals all had their own traits and without knowing it then he strongly believes this is where he learnt to read an animal’s behaviour, health and adapt to their needs. The senior staff at the Wildlife Park always found it fascinating that Josh could enter the enclosure of an aggressive animal that had just attacked them with no issues, Josh then learnt to apply this to horses to which he then became captivated by.

As Josh’s love affair with horses continued into his teens he began competing in Eventing with success at 2* level on a Thoroughbred Mare “Mizz Molly” who never made it to the track because of her difficult behaviour. The mare had a very strong spirit and Josh built a strong connection with her.

Pictured (Josh winning on Seafield Road at Sandown 2020)

At 15, Josh needed a job to help pay for his horses and started a job riding trackwork before school each day which then led to an apprenticeship as a jockey with prominent Trainer Brett Cavanough. Here at Brett’s his skills with horses went to a new level when he was given the job to break in 10 horses from scratch under Brett’s tuition. In that time, he broke in many stakes winners including Group 1 winner Plucky Belle, Office Bearer & Planet Voyage.

As his race riding opportunities started to pick up and career as a jockey took off which would see him win Two Victorian Country Apprentice Premierships over a career that spanned 7 years with 300 winners including riding stints in the USA and UAE.

Like most jockeys Josh spent the majority of his days in saunas whilst starving. In March 2020 he suffered a head injury in an accident at the barriers on Raceday which caused him to have a very heavy concussion resulting in a 5-month layoff.

During this time he began thinking about his future and decided to make the big decision to retire from race riding and concentrate on becoming a more knowledgeable horseman. He wasn’t sure where to start but thankfully successful trainer Symon Wilde allowed him to run his satellite stable for 6 months before the decision was made to go to Chris Wallers.

Pictured (Chris Waller)

Josh spent almost 2 years working closely with Champion Trainer Chris Waller at his Rosehill base in Sydney, Australia.

During his time at Wallers he was able to learn about the training and care of valuable horses from Yearlings right through to Veteran Group 1 winners.

He was lucky enough to have galloped and trialled several champions including Home Affairs, Verry Elleegant and many other Group 1 winners. Waking up everyday and working with such talented horses allowed Josh to train his eye to what these superior horses possessed.

Without knowing it then Chris taught Josh the importance of patience and composure. He also learnt when making a decision regarding horses the importance of not taking the most obvious option and to take a step back, consider all options and don’t be scared to crowd source before making a decision.

“I would advise any young person in racing to go and work for Chris Waller. Whilst working for Chris it gave me a greater understanding of what it takes to compete at an elite level. It was a turning point for my career and personal development, I would regard Chris as one of my most influential role models in my working life”

Josh Cartwright

Pictured (Josh with Owner Peter Sandars)

After months of planning and seeking advice from industry leaders,