August, 2021 | Horse Racing Free Tips

Peat Moss Or Wood Shavings: Bedding For Asthmatic Horses

The natural dust and molds found in bedding material often intensify the clinical signs of horses with asthma. Bedding materials differ in the inhalable and respirable particles they release, just as they have variable absorptive qualities and aesthetic appeal. While horsemen the world over use straw and wood shavings extensively, the popularity of peat moss often coincides with where it is easily obtained, such as in Nordic and Baltic countries. Finnish researchers recently investigated if the use of wood shavings and peat moss as bedding had different effects on the respiratory health of horses.

Researchers chose 32 clinically healthy riding-school horses for this study. The daily schedule of the horses included 18 hours in a stall, 2 to 3 hours of exercise in an indoor arena, and 3 to 4 hours outside in sandy paddocks. Horses were stabled in identically sized stalls with a common airspace and with the same level of ventilation. Researchers maintained bedding at a depth of approximately 4 inches, with new bedding added each day after stall cleaning to keep the depth consistent. Horses stayed on each bedding material for 35 days. Diets consisted of haylage and pelleted concentrate. Horses ate the haylage off the stall floor. Researchers performed lower airway endoscopy and sampling (tracheal wash and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid) for cytological examination at the end of each bedding period.

[Story Continues Below]

While researchers found no differences in respiratory rate or tracheal mucus accumulation between treatments, horses bedded on wood shavings had more neutrophils in their tracheal washes and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid. The researchers concluded that “between the two bedding materials used in this study, peat caused less neutrophilic lower airway inflammation in horses.”

Asthmatic horses should be kept outside as much as possible, a management strategy that keeps many horses from having severe symptoms of asthma. High-performance horses must often be stabled to accommodate training and competition schedules. In these instances, medical management of asthma should be guided by a veterinarian well versed in the respiratory care of horses. Management decisions are often based on reducing inhalable dust and molds, which includes careful selection of bedding and forages.

Aside from forage type (haylage versus dry hay) or treatment (soaking versus high-temperature steaming), another nutritional consideration is the use of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids, particularly docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). In a consensus statement from the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine, experts recommend the use of omega-3 fatty acids as a way to control airway inflammation.^° The most potent sources of omega-3 fatty acids available for horses are marine-derived oils, such as EO-3.

^*Monki, J., M. Sasstamoinen, N. Karikoski, M. Rajamaki, M. Roaekallio, J. Junnila, S. Sarkjarvi, M. Norring, A. Valros, S. Oranen Ben Fatma, and A. Mykkanen. 2021. Effects of bedding material on equine lower airway inflammation: A crossover study comparing peat and wood shavings. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 8:656814.

Internet Poker Strategy: Avoid Playing Too Many Hands

The starting place to improve your poker style is to honestly and correctly evaluate your qualities and see just which those things that need improvement are. You must ask yourself what is it that you need to improve. Pose the question, and then try to answer it as good as you can, setting objectives and following a close list to achieve them. This list will most definitely vary depending on experience, your knowledge of poker and your way of being in general. But there is an aspect that needs improvement every time, no matter who you are, when you are playing online. Keep in mind that online you cannot see the others so there are no tells.

The most common and money-losing mistake is playing too many hands. If you want to know if you are playing too many hands just watch your style, your games, and see how many hands you are loosing, especially those that you suspected from the begging they are bad, but still went along with them. We all live under the impression that at some point we didn’t have a good hand since forever. And this is the moment that a hand we wouldn’t have played the moment we first entered the poker room suddenly becomes interesting and full of opportunities. This is the trap boredom leads us to. We will always find reason to keep playing a hand even if we know it is a poor one just to take part in the game.

So, if you think this is an aspect of you game that needs improving, your objective is to increase the number of hands that you are giving up in pre-flop. If you are playing aver 40% of the hands you are getting and mostly loosing, then something is wrong. We must most definitely play fewer hands. So your objective will be in this situation the attempt to throw at least 70-80% of the hands you are getting. Just do it mechanically. Count the hands and when you realize how many more you have to drop, you will start dropping all those questionable hands automatically. Firstly, stop playing bad cards from early position. This is a must. If you are not sure of what the term of good hands for every position means, they you can refer to articles or booker written by experts for this purpose. Try and let others teach you and stop thinking you are experienced and know everything. Make a list and count every time you are folding. After you finish your games, remember the total number of hands that were in the game. Then calculate your pre-flop folding percent. If you managed to get it up to 80% or at least 70% it means you are disciplined and you have achieved you goal. If not, keep trying till you do.

Remember that this goes only for full-ring tables mostly. Once you managed to adjust your folding style, you already achieved a new level in paying online poker, you are one step up on the stairs to the pros category.

Veterinarian Changes Plea, Agrees To Forfeit Over $1 Million Plus Restitution In Federal Case

Dr. Kristian Rhein, longtime racetrack veterinarian, entered a guilty plea Aug. 3 to one felony count of drug adulteration and misbranding in U.S. District Court. Rhein told Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil that he marketed and sold adulterated and misbranded drugs, specifically SGF-1000, to trainers for the purpose of enhancing performance. Rhein also admitted that he modified veterinary records to conceal administration of SGF-1000, as well as the administration of clenbuterol, which he said was not always given with a valid prescription.

As part of his plea agreement with prosecutors, Rhein has agreed to forfeit $1,021,800 of the proceeds he generated from the illegal drug sales, and to further pay over $700,000 in restitution to the victims of his crimes. Prosecutors did not specify who the victims would be for the purposes of restitution, only that a sealed list would be filed along with sentencing recommendations. Vyskocil also clarified with prosecutors that the restitution amount owed by Rhein could lessen if additional defendants are found or plead guilty.

Sentencing will take place at a later date, but the charge Rhein pleaded to carries a maximum recommended prison sentence of three years, with an additional possible sentence of one year of supervised probation. Vyskocil made clear to Rhein that she could decide to impose a higher sentence if she chose. Rhein could also face fines of $10,000, twice the gross gain of his scheme, or twice the losses to others as the result of his crimes, whichever amount is greatest.

Rhein specifically mentioned that he conspired with trainer Jason Servis to administer and conceal the administration of SGF-1000. Prosecutors revealed they had evidence collected from wire taps stating that SGF-1000 was untestable and demonstrating that trainers described anecdotal impacts of the drug on their horses' performance. Further, prosecutors had archived information showing that after drug makers realized there was regulatory scrutiny of SGF-1000, they changed their marketing to stop referring to it as a performance enhancer and vasodilator, and to begin referring to it as a homeopathic treatment. Prior to this change, the drug was also advertised to contain various growth factors, but that was also modified to evade scrutiny.

Read more about the evolution in the marketing of SGF-1000 in this Paulick Report feature published during the week of the indictments.

Intercepted phone calls also allegedly contain discussions between Rhein and others about SGF-1000 being undetectable on post-race drug testing. Indeed, prosecutors say, based on the evidence they collected about the drug's use, it was not showing up on post-race tests.

[Story Continues Below]

Prosecutors also revealed they had evidence showing the shipment of SGF-1000 from an overseas manufacturer to MediVet Equine, a Nicholasville, Ky.-based company which claimed to be the originator of SGF-1000. Michael Kegley, Jr., former director of sales for MediVet Equine, changed his plea to guilty in late July 2021.

Also during Tuesday's hearing, prosecutors revealed they believed between $26 and $65 million in purses was collected by Servis while using drugs given by Rhein on their horses. They did not specify which horses or which races they were referring to. Rhein stated that the dates of his drug adulteration and misbranding stretched from December 2016 until March 2020.

The post Veterinarian Changes Plea, Agrees To Forfeit Over $1 Million Plus Restitution In Federal Case appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Upcoming Kentucky MSW Purses: KD $135K, CD, $125K, KEE $78K

Projected purse levels for maiden special weight (MSW) races on the Kentucky circuit in September and October will be $135,000 at Kentucky Downs, $125,000 at Churchill Downs, and $78,000 at Keeneland Race Course.

Those figures were revealed by representatives of those respective tracks Tuesday during a video meeting of the Kentucky Thoroughbred Development Fund (KTDF) advisory committee.

Ted Nicholson, Kentucky Downs' senior vice president and general manager, also said that his all-turf venue will also be raising non-stakes purses across the board by 8% from the amounts that were initially listed when the condition book for the September meet first came out in April.

Last year, Kentucky Downs carded $90,000 MSW races, but that money represented a 30% cut from 2019 because of lost-revenue circumstances related to the pandemic.

Bill Landes III, the chairman of the KTDF's advisory committee, who represents the Kentucky Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association (KTOB), asked fellow advisory committee member Rick Hiles, the president of the Kentucky Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association, if he was okay with such a high purse value for Kentucky Downs horses winning a first career race.

“Well, I've had some concerns about getting [MSW purses] up too high [because I'm] afraid that the legislators are going to step in,” Hiles said, alluding to the potential that elected officials might think that's too much KTDF money to be giving away.

Hiles added that he has relayed that sentiment to Nicholson in the past and will do so again when they discuss the issue in the near future. “But, you know, we just have to go with the flow I guess,” he said.

“Ted, be careful,” Landes cautioned Nicholson.

Ben Huffman, who serves as both the director of racing at Churchill Downs and as the racing secretary at Keeneland, provided the figures for those two tracks. He added that Churchill's MSW purse figure is the expected “range” of money for right now, pending the finalization of the condition book for the September meet.

In 2020, Churchill offered split MSW purse values in September–$97,000 during the rescheduled GI Kentucky Derby week, then $75,000 for the balance of the month. Those numbers were also skewed by pandemic conditions that affected the generation of purse money.

Keeneland carded $70,000 MSW races in October 2020 after losing the entire April meet to COVID-19 and instead running during July.

During the Aug. 3 meeting, the committee unanimously approved all of the tracks' requests for KTDF funding, which means a recommendation from the advisory committee to release the money will be forwarded to the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission, which votes on the actual disbursement at its next meeting.

The KTDF is funded by three-quarters of 1% of all money wagered on both live Thoroughbred races and historical horse race (HHR) gaming, plus 2% of all money wagered on Thoroughbred races via inter-track wagering and whole-card simulcasting.

The post Upcoming Kentucky MSW Purses: KD $135K, CD, $125K, KEE $78K appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post