How to read standardbred brands

[♘امیرحسین♞]

Standardbred horses in New Zealand and Australia are freeze branded on the neck (offside). Two different systems are used:

* New Zealand uses the "TVI" system, in a two-line brand, using the symbols below.​

 

[♘امیرحسین♞]

The three symbols on the top line denote the year of birth, and the Z indicates the horses' country of origin - New Zealand. The bottom line of the brand is a four-symbol number.

For example a brand may be:​

 

[♘امیرحسین♞]

This means the horse was born in 2001, in New Zealand, and its registered number is 1569.

# Australia uses "alpha angle" symbols, and brands are made of two lines of four symbols each.​

 

[♘امیرحسین♞]

From August 1, 1987, all freeze brands had an "S" added, denoting the horse is a standardbred. The first letter on all brands is "S", followed by the horses' year of birth, then the state ID number:
o 2-New South Wales
o 3-Victoria
o 4-Queensland
o 5-South Australia
o 6-Western Australia
o 7-Tasmania

In the example above, the horse was born in South Australia in 1991, and its registered number is 8410.​