RCI calls for end to medication in race horses

Barnmouser Ash · Grand Prix

RCI calls for end to medication in race horses

Barbara F · Grand Prix

Including Lasix?

Barnmouser Ash · Grand Prix

I'm not sure if Lasix is on the list of things to phase out, but I would imagine it is. I think that and other medications which prevent things like bleeding and arthritic lameness/etc are a tricky subject. Yes, they make the horse comfortable enough to race at top speed and reduce the casualty rate, but are we really treating the symptoms, or are we creating the cause?

As Justice said in the other post about Equine Recoup, I think it could be a case of smothering out legitimate ailments and genetic weaknesses with medications, when really we could probably just breed better, or stop racing quite so hard. (I don't mean "don't race the youngsters so young" because it's a hard fact that in order for the horses to build up the necessary resistance/support to such difficult demands, they need to be started when their bodies are still growing and adjusting to their environments.) I mean that perhaps we are expecting too much out of these animals to begin with. If we wanted to watch 4-legged critters run a mile and a quarter in under two minutes, why don't we watch a cheetah go hunting? So it's a bit of an opinion thing and that's kind of a silly analogy, but I think we can enjoy horse racing without the need to constantly push these animals to their breaking point.

All of that being said, relating back to Lasix and other like-minded medications: Lasix may probably be banned/phased out, and I think it could be a good thing in the future. Treat the horses who have bleeding problems now, but breed for stronger lungs/etc in the future.

$0.02 ;)

justice · Grand Prix

At 2 years of age: horse can carry xx pounds for x/day/week, no track work, just backing and ground work for manners and work ethic development. Let the work be applied as physical therapy. Those owners/trainers that comply are recognised by a point system.

thru 2 and half 3: horse goes to track for gate training, light work, can carry no more than xxx in weight, can not exceed x:xx in speed, cannot exceed x furlongs, cannot be on track more than 3 times/week, verified/monitoured by track steward. Earns wellness points at vetcheck:END of same day.

with earned points minimum required,

at 3 half and 4: horse begins actual track training, speed, conditioning with heavier weight, longer distance, more frequent track time. Begins official racing career with open card at 5 if wellness points agree. Point system continues thru-out race career of horse. Not enough or too many points (however a point system would work) gets horse sent to downtime and re-eval by vet before returning to track or retiring.

at 6: Horse is either race career worthy, rich or onto second career as eventer/hunter/jumper/etc but sound : )

This is not the absolute answer but could allow for the differences in the way life develops: some faster than others. Also, the need for drugs would not generate as easily if breeding for structure and longer term function were more thoughtfully considered, the training rates less demanding at first. Get off the speed only gig and go back to adding durability and distance tools. We don't have to drug them if we don't break them in the first place. They won't break so easily if they aren't so fragile to begin with....

Remember when a US Triple Crown winner was a fairly regular thing? hm? We need to go back to those breed specifics and study the training logs of the old men and horses that made it work. Of course there was corruption and abuse then, too, but the success/waste ratio was much different.

I understand and don't totally disagree that effective workouts on a young body CAN be beneficial physically, but how does one mature the mind? Eight Belles died simply because she was too big and immature to understand that her job was done for the day. Ruffian found it but didn't know how to keep it. How many countless others that we'll never hear about? Too often, they just don't get to understand : (

I think this might have turned into a rant....sorry!

-- Edited by justice on Wednesday 30th of March 2011 08:08:58 AM

Barnmouser Ash · Grand Prix

I like your thinking, Justice. I have no idea if it's plausible, or if the industry would ever accept it, but a lot of things that are better for the horses are dismissed as too light (ie horses are tough animals, they wont break in half if we run them at age 2!). I like that in your plan there is an evaluation/point system, and that horses CAN be started at 2, but are not put to track work until they are essentially breeding age. I think you are right in that Eight Belles and Ruffian and other horses alike had extreme potential but were just too immature to maximize it before the inevitable happened.

As a side note sort of: I love racing. I love watching horses gallop to their hearts content, and you can tell that most horses love their job. They aren't confined in any sense; they aren't held in a frame and the extent of the equipment they have is simply to maximize their potential while still keeping a jockey on their back. All of that, and they can still move completely naturally.

Bringing it back to the point: ^ That is, until they are run too hard and the drugs are brought in. This is where I think your system or a like-minded one should be brought in, Justice. If we conditioned these horses at the rate that their bodies are growing AS WELL AS their minds, I think we would see a lot better results. Wise old sage horses know how far they can be pushed and how far their rider can be pushed, so it only makes sense that a 5 or 6 year old horse would know better how far it can be pushed as opposed to when it was 2 or 3 years old. It just makes sense that a horse is more likely to be a champion AND usable after their race career, if their minds are allowed to mature.

Of course, this would slow down the turnaround rate (foal on the ground -> training -> track -> sold/stud/broodmare -> foal on the ground -- all in 6 years or less), but I think if we implemented this, we would see less horses breaking down on the track, and more horses being more valuable. They could be used later on as sound athletes in other disciplines; not just OTTBs that lesson kids get to move onto after they learn how to w/t/c/jump 2' on their own. They could be moved on to be competitive eventers, chuck-wagon racers, heck, even some TBs have cow sense, or could be barrel horses. Point being, sound horses are more valuable than broken, wound-up off-the-track babies.

Rant too, I suppose? :P

ETA: I think a good example of a sturdy racehorse is the Standardbred. These horses were bred to race on the weekends and come home sound afterward to work the ranch the rest of the week. I understand that Thoroughbreds and Standardbreds are different critters, but I think if Thoroughbred breeders focused on creating horses more similar to Standardbreds, we would have less of a problem. Combine a sturdy base with a sturdy mind, and you've got unlimited potential. Just a thought. :)

-- Edited by Barnmouser Ash on Wednesday 30th of March 2011 01:10:57 PM

justice · Grand Prix

The industry will never accept it as it would mean SOMEbody has to wait to get paid. And... it would likely cost more initially to put a horse on the track (into a race) even tho the potential to make it back faster, more often and more consistently is greater ; )

I love racing, too, just not big on the current process and mentality that inundates it. Have you ever seen a horse dig in, find it when all was thought lost and cross the wire up front? Ever RIDDEN that kind of power? How can one NOT feel SOMEthing... Breath-taking is an understatement! There is sublime beauty in a horse that runs full out, purely for the joy and the drive to fly, believing in his heart that he actually can : )

Well written, Ash, per usual : )

Barnmouser Ash · Grand Prix

As a matter of fact, I was checking out Kentucky Oaks fillies yesterday, and I saw a race where Zazu (<-- link) came up in a sort of match race in the middle of a race against Turbulent Descent (<-- also link), and it was incredible to see the power Zazu had as she nosed by for the win, coming from nearly the back of the pack. It's an incredible thing to watch.

I would agree that it means somebody has to wait to get paid, and we know how those people creatures are. biggrin

On a side note sort of, I came across this in my inbox earlier, and I thought it was interesting/relevant sort of: Growth of Thoroughbreds Around the World -- It shows that Thoroughbreds in America are smaller on average than those in Australia or New Zealand, but much larger on average than those in India or the UK. It also shows that weight fluctuations in certain age groups are rather common and diverse, but height fluctuations are very minimal. (ie 4% difference in weight is not so different in one horse compared to another, but 4% height difference is considerably different).

Food for thought. :)

Nikki Salo · Grand Prix

Just to jump in with my Lasix/lungs knowledge.

All horses, no matter if they are racehorses or not, incur some amount of bleeding from deep within the lungs when they are worked hard. This includes horses galloping across a field while on turnout, a brisk canter while on a hack, a reining horse performing at speed, a dressage mount doing canter pirouettes. Exercise-induced Pulmonary Hemorrhage (EIPH) is well noted in horses, the problem is that there is a lack of understanding as to why it actually occurs. While 95% of cases never make it to the nasal passage (so it is not noticed), it still occurs (1 in 20 horses). You may have brought a horse in from the field and found dried blood in it's nasal passage and let it go as an insect bit, where infact the horse may of been enjoying a good gallop.

Why is it most noted and seen in racehorses? EIPH concerns most trainers (and owners, and jockeys etc.) as a hinderance to the horse, cutting his work ability through "filling his lungs with blood", there is no actual hard evidence that this is the case, and 98% of bleeding within the lungs is very very minimal vs. an actual hemorrhage. Some horses get bogged down, others do not. Only a small amount of racehorses (Thoroughbreds, Quarter Horses, Standardbreds) actually have blood show up in the nasal passage, 20 years ago EIPH was actually called epistaxis or "nose bleeds" and was thought to come from some sort of hemorrhage within the head. Only due to the fact that we've been scoping horses for the past 20 years with fiberoptics, have we realized that "nose bleeds" occur in the horse's lungs.

At this point Lasix is allowed on race day at all racehorse tracks (to my knowledge), to help prevent the occurrence of EIPH, more out of fear from the humans involved, than for the safety of the horse (EIPH is very rarely fatal in any breed of horse, the horse is more likely to have a heart attack standing in a field). While I'm not for drugging horses, it'll be many many more years to isolate the reason, and perhaps the genes involved with EIPH. Just wanted to point out that this isn't a horse racing related issue, but rather cross breed and discipline, it is just at the forefront of horse racing due to the fact that they are looking for an edge on the racetrack.

Stepping off my soap box now aww

Barnmouser Ash · Grand Prix

Thanks for bringing the facts to light for us, Nikki. You make very good points about EIPH, and the length of time it will take before we figure out how to isolate the gene/s that control/s it. I think that it is a very strong possibility, however, and therefor stand by my idea that eventually we will be able to/should be able to race horses un-drugged because they are physically fit to do so. I can't make a fair argument saying something like, "well, human athletes never take pain medications before races!" or something of the sort, because it's not true. It doesn't make it a wise idea, but we humans do it, too.

:) Controversy!

justice · Grand Prix

I think the market for OTTBs would improve markedly if the breeding/track training was improved. They just don't mysticallymajically disappear when they fail at the track like they used to, but they still get dumped. The dumpster (rescue/placement/sales) would be more interested and effective if the trash were less dumpster-worthy. I like TBs. I am an eventer. My students are eventers. We like the TBs. We would be far more likely to seek track horses more often if we knew they had better substance structurally, could stay sounder longer, weren't in the typical tho not exclusive state that they are in when they are released from track life. If the racing TBs were better bred and more thoughtfully trained with future use after track life in mind, the market for them aftertrack would surge. Slaughter would falter. PETA would wet themselves.

I like that the drug scene is more open now and the info is more readily available. It will be good for the horses if less drug use and more common sense are applied. It's been proven positive more than once, Curlin and Zenyatta come to mind : )

Barnmouser Ash · Grand Prix

I had a conversation on another forum with a gal who was quite passionate about the subject, recently. She felt that the problem isn't that we have too many OTTBs, but that we don't market them (or horses in general) properly/enough. Thus the economic trend isn't supply ^ / demand ^, its more supply ^ / demand stays stagnant or decreases. I would say the trend is correct, but I'm more fond of your idea, Justice. I think there are plenty of places that would love to have OTTBs in place of expensive warmbloods, or use the OTTBs in breeding their warmbloods, IF the OTTBs were more sound/able to stay sound longer/etc etc. It's a tricky balance that I don't think has been achieved in a very long time, if ever. I think it's possible to get there, though.

justice · Grand Prix

Demand is dictated by quality/ability (to facilitate putting one's nothing special butt on the Big Picture map), no quality/skill/potential, no demand. People aren't necessarily stupid up front, they are greedy, it's the greed that makes them eventually give in to stoooopit ; ) Offer what the majourity think they see as unique and speshul to them only and the demand is immediate. Such is the state of the "ooo! Bright! Shiney!" breeds' popularity currently, from the view I am limited to.

For those that might see things a little less cynically, many if not most of the mid level competitive riders are looking for affordable and immediately schoolable horses (and competitive within a year or so). TBs meet the athletic criteria for sport use time and time again. However, what comes off the track requires the biuyer to have a skilled eye and backstretch savvy in order to have a chance at a suitable horse. They require time and money that the new owners want to spend in competition, not all on repair and prep after a 6-12 month lay-up on a maybe. IF the retirees came off the track with a better, cleaner care record, a little heavier boned and more mature, the turn over could/would be faster, the retraining more efficient and the horse subsequently more valuable, sooner, to a broader market, maybe even a more willing one as well.. More ability or faster retrain (EVERYbody wants their money's worth, fair enough) = more interest. Interest creates demand. Or this could all just be my naive and hopeful rose coloured glass view being smudged....

-- Edited by justice on Thursday 31st of March 2011 02:01:05 PM

Barnmouser Ash · Grand Prix

Couldn't have said it better myself :) Quality is what attracts people, and when you lack diverse quality (see: Quarter Horse, Standardbred, etc.. horses bred to race that can still end their career on the track sound enough to do other things like ranch work, eventing, etc etc), you lack interest, which creates and upside-down economic graph. Increasing supply and decreasing demand = huge no-no.

Don't quite know where I'm going with that; cold medicine is making me loopy! :P But you said it very well, as always. Breed smarter, breed better, and you'll end up with a larger profit and more ponies re-homed.

Emiry · Advanced

Justice, you should start your own racing circuit. You have the good ideas to make it work for people and the horses. Mostly the horses.

justice · Grand Prix

You are generous and kind, Emiry, thanks so much! Truth be told: I am far from a people fan. I frequently need reminding to keep an open mind and shut mouth after initial experiences.

Barnmouser Ash · Grand Prix

"I frequently need reminding to keep an open mind and shut mouth after initial experiences. "

Haha. I can relate to that ;)

Barnmouser Ash · Grand Prix

An update on this situation:

Summit Planned on Race-Day Medication

I'm happy to see that progress is being made. What do you think? :)

-- Edited by Barnmouser Ash on Thursday 21st of April 2011 03:57:47 PM