A new app making it easier for people in the UK racing industry to access 24/7 support was launched by Racing Welfare on Tuesday. The Racing Welfare app offers a range of information, advice and guidance including:
Racing Welfare's Regional Welfare Manager, Brian Watson said, “It's a super resource for anyone who might need to access our services–all the information you can get from our welfare teams can be found on the app. I particularly think that the discrete route into our services that the app offers is going to be of huge value to racing staff, as well as the ability to connect with a counsellor at the touch of a button, whether at work, travelling to the races or at home.”
Following a month-long effort to raise funds for the TAA's 81 accredited organizations, the TAA Holiday Giving Campaign concluded Dec. 31 with $180,000 raised for accredited aftercare.
“It was encouraging to see such enthusiasm for our holiday fundraiser,” said TAA President, Jeffrey Bloom. “Thank you to every person who donated to the TAA's Holiday Giving Campaign. It takes a great deal of funds to care for our industry's retired athletes, and large influxes of donations such as these are vital to the TAA's ability to support its accredited organizations.”
The campaign featured 14 one-day only match donation days with match amounts ranging from $500 to $10,000. The 2022 match sponsors were as follows: Bob & Jill Baffert, Simon Bray, Donna Brothers, Aidan Butler & Cannonstone, Kurtis Coady & Megan Devine, Jack Damico & East Coast Partners, Denali Stud, Hidden Brook Farm, Sol Kumin, Dr. Pug & Susie Hart, Mike Rogers, Rick Schosberg, Siena Farm, and West Point Thoroughbreds.
“We are so thrilled with the outcome of the Holiday Giving Campaign,” said TAA Funding and Events Manager, Emily Dresen. “Thank you to the 14 match sponsors, hundreds of donors, and our media partners for making this campaign a success. It's all about the horses and what better time to support our beloved athletes than the season of giving.”
The 2022 Retired Racehorse Project's Thoroughbred Makeover wasn't just about competition — there was ample opportunities for education. Throughout the event, Goldophin's Lifetime Care program partnered with The Horse magazine to present multiple seminars devoted to the care of the retired racehorse and current sport horses. One seminar focused on joint issues in off-track Thoroughbreds (OTTBs).
Presenters during the seminar were Drs. Shannon Reed of Texas A&M University Medical Hospital, and Chris Newton of Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital. Both experts answered questions from audience members covering the topic. The discussion was full of information that went back and forth between both presenters, but some of the key takeaways from this talk include:
–Studies show of the Thoroughbreds coming off the track, 31% retired with musculoskeletal issues that the horse could recover from within the first year. All but 2% of those horses saw those issues resolve themselves in the first year.
Most popular areas of pain and inflammation for recently-retired OTTBs:
Most veteran OTTBs have common areas of inflammation: front fetlocks and knees
Horses training on Polytrack surfaces tend to have soreness in the hind end
Sore upper backs and lower necks in 100% of horses coming off the track
This leads to the horses overcompensating from that pain and hyper load on specific joints, which leads to inflammation
–[Cortico]steroids is not a dirty word. Many horsefolk have expressed concern about one study that examined cartilage cell cultures and showed evidence that corticosteroids were causing damage to those cells. However, experts point out this was only performed on cultured cells, not actual cells in a horse. Corticosteroids have been used to help deal with clinical symptoms of pain, including inflammation.
–However, you do need to manage risks with benefits. In light of the steroid study, Dr. Reed emphasized that severe inflammation in a join is almost as worse in cartilage than a single dose of steroids used to calm the inflammation. However, “we do know that long-term, repeated exposure of steroids to the joint can damage cartilage,” said Dr. Reed. “Some steroids are worse than others.”
Steroids can cause more issues within the body, including metabolic issues and steroid-induced laminitis if used too much, too fast because it can throw off the body's functions, thus leading to issues in the adrenal glands.
“You have to be judicious with the use of steroids,” said Dr. Newton.
–Joint injections are not maintenance. The popular marketing plot for joint injections is to be used for “maintenance” within joints, however the experts say you must throw the word “maintenance” out the window when it comes to injections.
Why? Because there is no way to reset what is going to happen within the joints and the cartilage — the damage is day to day, and you cannot use injections to “fix” issues.
“There are times where steroids and rest are the most advantageous when dealing with inflammation,” said Dr. Reed. “There are also times that surgery is the most advantageous.”
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“We can treat this and we can take the inflammation away, but if you do that too many times, you surpass the window where surgical repair is going to be advantageous,” said Dr. Newton. “There will be an upset surgeon wanting to know why you injected an OCD six times when it could have been removed after the first issue.”
“If you are an athlete and you're constantly wringing that last little bit of juice out of your efforts, then you're not going to be an athlete for much longer.”
–“OCD” is not a one-size-fits-all malady. An OCD is a disease syndrome of growing cartilage related to different clinical entities such as epiphysitis, subchondral cysts, and angular carpal deformities. An OCD begins in the development of the fetus and into a young foal. An OCD means different things in different spots in different joints for its own prognosis. During OCD removal surgery, the surgeon will remove the abnormal cartilage flap, then will work to smooth out the edges from where it was removed.
“We're trying to get the cartilage and bone to be a better surface during this surgery,” said Dr. Reed. “We are not restoring it to a normal surface. That is not possible.”
–Wolf's Law: Bone responds to the forces being placed upon it. This means that if there are no forces placed upon the bone of a young Thoroughbred because he is stall bound for the first couple years of life, he will have weak bone. If a Thoroughbred is working and applies asymmetrical forces, the bone will respond to those forces—this is how OCD lesions are forced. Even, symmetrical forces mean the bone will respond to be strong and symmetrical.
–Osselets in horses occurs when the horse's fetlock experiences chronic stress to the point of injury. They are a unique malady for horses who run for a living due to the concussive forces the fetlock takes on while training. When tracks do not have a footing specialist who pays attention to the quality of the footing, the horses that train and race routinely on those tracks tend to have the most issues with osselets because of the stress to their joints.
Treatment for each case of osselets is individualized, said Dr. Reed. Veterinarians will treat osselets according to not just the horse, but the desires of what you want to do with the horse.
The catalogue for the 487-strong Goffs February sale, which includes the dam and half-brother of juvenile Group 1 winner Al Riffa (Fr) (Wootton Bassett {GB}), is now online. Slated for Feb. 8-9, the sale includes Flat and National Hunt weanlings, breeding stock, 2-year-olds and horses-in-training, and will begin at 10 a.m. each day.
One of the highlights of the catalogue is Galileo (Ire) mare Love On My Mind (Ire) (lot 479). In foal to Galileo Chrome (Ire), the 11-year-old sells as part of the Clonbonny Stud draft, as does lot 321, her yearling half-brother to G1 National S. hero Al Riffa.
Ballyshannon Stud offers Its All For Luck (Ire) (Fast Company {Ire}) (lot 474), who is a sister to G1 Irish 1000 Guineas heroine Jet Setting (Ire) (Fast Company {Ire}). She is in foal to Profitable (Ire).
La Petite Coco (Ire) (Ruler Of The World {Ire}) triumphed in the G1 Pretty Polly S. last term prior to selling for 1 million gns to Wertheimer & Frere at the Tattersalls December Mares Sale. Her winning Thewayyouare half-sister Promenada (Ire) is part of the Coolagown Stud consignment as lot 459. Their dam, La Petite Virginia (Ger) (Konigstiger {Ger}) is a half-sister to three stakes winners led by G1 German Derby hero Lavirco (Ger) (Konigsstuhl {Ger}).
From the horses-in-training portion of the catalogue, an unnamed 3-year-old filly by Iffraaj (GB) and out of G3 Golden Daffodil S. heroine Mango Mischief (Ire) (Desert King {Ire}) sells as lot 48 for Flexford Partners.
Goffs Group Chief Executive Henry Beeby said, “As ever the Goffs February Sale boasts quality throughout, with a diverse selection of Flat and National Hunt horses of all ages catalogued over two days. Following on from the record trade for foals and breeding stock at the Goffs November Sale and Goffs December National Hunt Sale, we anticipate strong demand and a vibrant start to the sales year at Kildare Paddocks. We look forward to welcoming buyers from across the globe to this market leading sale and assure them of the unique Goffs welcome.”
