July, 2021 | Horse Racing Free Tips

Harrington Apologises For Galway Mix-Up

Trainer Jessica Harrington took to Twitter on Wednesday to apologize for the error that saw the wrong horse run in, and cross the wire first, in a 2-year-old maiden at Galway on Tuesday.

Harrington's first-time starter Alizarine (GB) (Sea The Moon {Ger}) had been entered for the race and appeared to run out an eye-catching winner, but it was soon discovered that the stable's 3-year-old filly Aurora Princess (Ire) (The Gurkha {Ire}), who had nine prior starts for two wins, had mistakenly run instead. Galway stewards disqualified the winner, meaning the race went to the runner-up and pre-race favourite Twinkle (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), a full-sister to G1 Derby winner Anthony Van Dyck (Ire) who was making her second start.

Harrington tweeted, “On behalf of all at #TeamJHR I want to apologise to everyone for what happened yesterday. We are particularly sorry for the owners of both fillies but also to anyone else who was impacted by our mistake. It was human error, a mistake that we will learn from. We will ensure that it never happens again. Thankfully both horses are home safe and sound.”

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Ellis Park Tractor Driver Passes Away

Dorris “Heavy” Watson, the driver of the tractor that hit the inner rail Friday at Ellis Park, necessitating the moving of two turf races on the card to the dirt, has died. He had experienced a medical emergency during track maintainance and was taken to the hospital.

Watson began his Ellis Park career in 1997 and was well known at the track. Service arrangements are pending.

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Breeders’ Cup Classic Rankings for July 28

Each week a panel of media members, horseplayers, and Breeders’ Cup World Championships officials release a poll tabulating their votes on the nation's top contenders for the 2021 Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic.

Do CBD Products Change Horses’ Startle Response? One Study Suggests They May

Products containing cannabidiol (CBD) have become increasingly popular, touting their ability to do everything from alleviate chronic pain to reduce anxiety. While some products are FDA-approved, many are not and published research on their efficacy in horses is slim, reports The Horse.

A group of students from Murray State University in Kentucky wanted to assess one product's effects on equine movement and reactivity. Led by Anna Draeger, the team used a novel object test to gauge horses' startle response with and without CBD treatment. CBD acts on the parts of the brain that control response to environmental stimuli, social behavior, cognition, learning, voluntary movement and emotion.

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The study team used 17 Quarter Horse geldings that were part of the university's herd; eight were controls and nine received 100-milligram oral doses of CBD pellets for six weeks. The horses were evaluated for reactivity and movement right before the study began and six weeks after treatment.

The study horses were exposed to an umbrella opening while wearing a heart rate monitor to determine their startle response; evaluators also scored the horse's reaction. The horses were also led through a series of cones at the walk and trot. The team studied their stride length, and duration of swing and stance phase using a motion analysis system.

The team was able to verify a relationship between CBD treatment and reactivity: all treatment horses had a consistently lower reactivity level than the control group when exposed to the opening umbrella. Results from the portion of the study that tracked movement were less clear. The team concludes that CBD products may be useful when treating horses for competition or transport stress or stall rest, reducing anxiety without significant side effects.