January, 2022 | Horse Racing Free Tips

2-Time BC Champ Da Hoss Dies at 30

Dual GI Breeders' Cup Mile Winner, Da Hoss (Gone West–Jolly Saint, by Welsh Saint) died at the Kentucky Horse Park Jan. 2. At the age of 30, the gelding passed away due to infirmities of old age. Da Hoss had been living at the Kentucky Horse Park since January 2000.

“We will miss Da Hoss greatly. He was a fan favorite as he proved that spirit can triumph over adversity,” said Nicole Rivera, Interim Deputy Executive Director of the Kentucky Horse Park. “I would like to extend a special thank you to Rob Willis and the Hall of Champions staff for the great care and affection they showed Da Hoss during his time here at the park.”

Foaled on Jan. 18, 1992, Wall Street Racing Da Hoss as a Keeneland September yearling for $6,000. After racing as a 2-year-old for trainer Kevin Eikleberry and Wall Street Racing, an 85% interest in Da Hoss was sold to Prestonwood Farm. He was shipped to Fair Hill training center to start training with Michael Dickinson and Joan Wakefield.

Only one five horses to win the Breeders' Cup Mile twice, and the only horse to win twice in non-consecutive years, Da Hoss annexed the turf test in 1996 and 1998, the second after returning from an injury. His inspiring finish in the 1998 Mile produced one of Tom Durkin's most memorable race calls, as he exclaimed: “The greatest comeback since Lazarus!”

Added trainer Michael Dickinson of Tapeta Farm, “We all loved him. He was our horse of a lifetime. He brought us so many highs, even with his problems, we knew he would never let us down. He gave his all and loved to win. He was spoiled but deserved to be. He loved going out in one of his grass fields with his best friend Boomer for two or three hours every day. He knew he was special. It was comforting to know he was always well looked after by everyone at the Kentucky Horse Park where he enjoyed a wonderful retirement.”

Da Hoss shared the Kentucky Horse Park Hall of Champions with other Champion horses, including Thoroughbreds Go For Gin, Funny Cide and Point Given, Standardbred pacers Western Dreamer and Won the West, and Standardbred trotter Mr. Muscleman.

Da Hoss will be buried in the Memorial Walk of Champions.

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Standing Surgery A Non-Traditional Option For Severe Colic Cases

Colic is a very real concern to horse owners. An overarching term applied to any abdominal pain, over 80 percent of colic cases can be resolved without surgical intervention.

The standard colic surgery needed for horses which do require medical intervention involves putting the horse under general anesthesia, laying him down and opening the horse along his ventral midline. This type of surgery carries additional risk to the horse and adds significantly to the cost of treatment.

A new study has found that a flank incision, made while the horse is standing, may be a good option for specific types of colic. This type of surgery is less risky to the horse and less of a financial strain for the owner.

Dr. Marco Lopes and a study team reviewed records of 26 horses and ponies and one donkey which underwent a standing flank laparotomy between 2003 and 2020. The main reason for the decision to utilize this particular surgery was financial.

Though seven animals were euthanized due to an untreatable condition or a poor chance of survival, 20 of the 30 horses with treatable conditions survived. The surviving horses suffered from small intestine impaction or inflammation, large colon displacement (specifically nephrosplenic ligament entrapment), and sand impaction.

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Small colon impaction has already been found to respond well to the standing-flank incision method of treatment.

Study authors found that there are limitations to the surgery. These include:

The horse must remain still during the operation; one in intense pain from severe colic may not be able to have his pain controlled well enough to complete the surgery
Peritoneal cavity and abdominal organ access is not as good as with a typical ventral midline incision
A second incision on the opposite flank may be necessary

The team concluded that a standing flank laparotomy may be a viable approach for abdominopelvic exploration in horses with colic related to the small intestine, cecum, large colon, and peritoneum.

Harry Beeby Honoured With Renamed Premier Yearling S.

The late Harry Beeby, formerly a DBS (now Goffs UK) Chairman, has been honoured by that sales company with the renaming of the Premier Yearling S. held at York's Ebor Meeting. Created by Beeby and his son Henry in 1997 to ensure the growth of the Doncaster St Leger Yearling Sales (now the Premier Yearling Sale), the six-furlong event will now be known as the £250,000 Goffs UK Harry Beeby Premier Yearling S.

The juvenile race is open to graduates of the Premier Yearling Sale and Silver Sale and will be held on Aug. 18, the second day of the Ebor Festival. Entries close on Jan. 10th through Horse Racing Ireland (HRI) and Jan. 11th through Weatherbys. In addition, the race will offer The Premier Prizes for the second year in a row, with winning owners receiving a free horse from Goffs UK to be purchased at the 2022 Premier Yearling Sale to the value of £40,795 and owners badges, lunch and a bottle of champagne on the table for up to six people on a race day at York; and the winning trainer will receive a free six-month lease of a two-stall horsebox from Theault.

“My Father and I worked for several years with John Sanderson at Doncaster Racecourse to persuade the BHB to allow a race of this nature,” said Goffs UK Chairman Henry Beeby. “There were many details that we insisted were just right and we were delighted with the end result which was Europe's Richest Two Year Old Race that year and has proved the most enduring event of its kind. It is a source of immense pride that it has featured in the careers of several top class racehorses and sires whilst helping our yearling sales to progress to hitherto unheralded heights. Dad always looked forward to the race and would have been very touched to learn of its renaming. I am very grateful to my Goffs colleagues and the team at York for this generous gesture.”

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NYRA Adds To Baffert Files: Trainer Said ‘Someone’ Gave Bute To His Horses, Would Offer Reward To Solve Case

The New York Racing Association, which will present its case to exclude trainer Bob Baffert at a Jan. 24 disciplinary hearing, added to its “statement of charges” against the Hall of Fame horseman, referencing two additional medication violations in California in 2019, along with an investigator's report citing “25 different kinds of medications not properly labeled and expired” found in an unlocked medicine cabinet during an August 2019 search of Baffert's barn at Del Mar by the California Horse Racing Board.

NYRA, quoting from a CHRB Report of Investigation, said Baffert reacted to the two 2019 violations – both for overages of the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory phenylbutazone – by saying “he thinks someone is intentionally giving Bute to his horses and mentioned that he would be offering a reward to help solve the case.”

It isn't known if anyone ever received a reward.

The two overages for Bute in California in 2019 are in addition to five medication violations for Baffert runners in three states between May 2, 2020, and May 1, 2021. Those violations included lidocaine positives for Charlatan and Gamine at Oaklawn in Arkansas on May 2, 2020, Charlatan in the G1 Arkansas Derby and Gamine in an allowance race. Both horses were disqualified, according to a stewards rulings, but the Arkansas Racing Commission reinstated their victories and merely fined Baffert. On July 25, 2021, Merneith tested positive at Del Mar for dextrorphan, and Baffert was fined $2,500. Gamine tested positive for a second time in 2020, this time for the corticosteroid betamethasone, after finishing third in the G1 Kentucky Oaks on Sept. 4. She was disqualified and Baffert fined $1,500.

The fifth failed drug test came on May 1, 2021, when Medina Spirit tested positive for betamethasone after finishing first in the G1 Kentucky Derby. The case has yet to be heard by Kentucky stewards, though Baffert's attorneys have said the positive test resulted from an ointment used to treat a skin rash and not from an injection of the drug.

The two Bute overages in 2019 were found days apart at Del Mar in Cruel Intention, who finished third on July 27, and Eclair, who finished fourth on Aug. 3.

A statement from NYRA said: “NYRA has amended its Statement of Charges issued against Bob Baffert to reflect additional facts, conclusions and details based on NYRA's ongoing investigation of Mr. Baffert's conduct. The NYRA Hearing Rules and Procedures provide a formalized mechanism for a respondent to reply to charges and to participate in a hearing in accordance with due process rights. The hearing for Mr. Baffert is scheduled to begin on January 24, 2022.

“A designated hearing officer will ensure the proceedings are fairly and impartially conducted in accordance with NYRA's Hearing Rules and Procedures. Following the proceeding, the hearing officer will issue a report containing findings of fact, conclusions of law, and a recommended disposition.”

The amended Statement of Charges also cites “public statements made by Mr. Baffert and others regarding Mr. Baffert's claimed retention of a veterinarian (which did not occur) to ensure against future violations, and the implementation of rule changes by Churchill Downs with respect to the qualifying point structure for the Kentucky Oaks and Kentucky Derby.”

Churchill Downs Inc. has excluded Baffert from stabling or racing at any of its facilities, including Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky. The exclusion runs through the end of the 2023 spring meet at Churchill Downs. In addition, Baffert-trained horses are not eligible to win qualifying points in designated Road to the Kentucky Derby prep races.

NYRA attempted to ban Baffert shortly after he was excluded by Churchill Downs, but Baffert sued in federal court, saying he was denied due process. A judge ruled in his favor and NYRA established rules for the subsequent disciplinary hearing.

O. Peter Sherwood, a retired New York State Supreme Court justice, will serve as hearing officer in the Baffert matter.

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