During Wednesday's meeting of the Medication, Safety, and Welfare Committee of the California Horse Racing Board, committee members discussed a proposal to limit the number of high-speed furlongs accumulated by racehorses, both in training and racing.
The discussion was based on research conducted by Dr. Susan Stover and published in the Journal of Orthopedic Research in March of 2022, titled “Exercise history predicts focal differences in bone volume fraction, mineral density and microdamage in the proximal sesamoid bones of Thoroughbred racehorses.”
When researchers examined racehorses euthanized due to proximal sesamoid bone fractures versus those euthanized for injuries unrelated to the sesamoid bone, they found that horses suffering a proximal sesamoid bone fracture “participated in over twice as many lifetime works and races, accumulated nearly twice the lifetime work and race distance, had over twice as much time in training since last layup, and performed nearly twice the distance, events, and works each month, 1–12 months before death.”
Alan Balch, executive director of the California Thoroughbred Trainers, along with California equine safety task force members Dr. Dionne Benson and Dr. Tim Carpenter, has been hosting discussions on how this research might be applied to a rule which would help to prevent catastrophic breakdowns.
Balch said: “Summarizing, the question would be: based on research and objective standard, when would a horse reach a threshold level of high-speed furlongs where that horse's history would be flagged in some way, and that flag would result in extra scrutiny? Not just extra scrutiny by the attending and or the regulatory veterinarian, but potentially a mandatory nuclear scan, PET scan, or something.
“The types of injuries we're worried about here are things in particular that are not readily evident to the attending or regulatory vet. Implicit in Dr. Stover's research is that these are covert injuries of some kind, that would only be revealed in a diagnostic exam.”
Dr. Benson echoed Balch's concerns: “Quite frankly, some of the horses that get injured, we've looked at. They are doing extremely well and they are passing vet exams, both by their attending vet and by our vets. So, I think maybe we need to look at being a little bit more aggressive in those horses with the PET scans, the MRIs, the bone scans, those kinds of diagnostics.”
The discussion regarding a specific rule was ultimately tabled due to concerns about a lack of specific numbers and costs of the diagnostic exams.
In addition, there was concern that such a rule would only protect horses while they are in the state of California, thus would not be effective unless enacted as a national rule. Dr. Benson suggested that the idea might be best presented as a suggestion from California stakeholders to the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority.
In another move aimed at decreasing major musculoskeletal injuries, the committee and subsequently the CHRB approved for 45-day public comment rule amendments to increase scrutiny on horses which have not recorded a work or race for 90 days.
“An initial examination will be required by both a regulatory veterinarian and the attending veterinarian, including review of veterinary and training records for the previous 60-day period, prior to the horse going to the track to train,” the CHRB meeting packet explains. “Additionally, a follow up examination will be required between 30 and 45 days. The goal is to provide a baseline examination and identify any at-risk factors that may predispose a horse from suffering a catastrophic injury related to the shins, tibias, shoulder, pelvis, etc.”
Further details on the potential new rule may be found here: CHRB meeting packet.
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