GILDED Venom, Western Australia's best racehorse, is fighting for his life after contracting a knee infection.

Trainer Steve Wallace said he was "95 per cent sure" the gelding would not race again.

Gilded Venom won the Group 1 Railway Stakes and has earned more than $1.3 million. The five-year-old is being treated for a bacterial infection that eats into the knee cartilage.

"He was a little better this morning, but he's still terribly lame," Wallace said.

"We're not sure how he got it, but he must have hyper-extended his knee and got a minute tear which developed a blood clot area for the bacteria to grow."

Antibiotics have had a minimal effect.

"His white cell count should be 400 and it's still up to 13,000," Wallace said.

Wallace had planned a Melbourne autumn campaign for Gilded Venom.

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