Tag: Horse Care

Dr. Scott E. Palmer, NYS Equine Medical Director, gave the following Equine Health & Safety Briefing regarding the 2023 race meet at Saratoga Race Course to the New York State Gaming Commission during its meeting on Oct. 3, 2023: 

Any equine fatality at New York racetracks – while racing, training or otherwise – is investigated to identify any risk factors that may have contributed to the deaths. Each horse is sent to Cornell  University's College of Veterinary Science for necropsy. Necropsy findings, exercise history, medical records, weather, racing surface conditions and any other factors that are likely to have contributed to the fatality are reviewed. At this time all 17 of the equine fatalities that occurred at the Saratoga Race Course in 2023 are under review. 

Each year, there are approximately 1,800 horses on the grounds or in private stables adjacent to the Saratoga Race Course during the late July-Labor Day meet. Several hundred more horses reside on the grounds for training purposes, generally between April and November.  

In 2023, a total of 17 horses – or 1 percent of the approximately 2,000 horses stabled at Saratoga, died on Saratoga Race Course property. This number is consistent with 2012, 2016, and 2019 figures. For reference, in 2017 and 2020: 21 horses died on the grounds of Saratoga Race Course. 

Of note, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Animal Health Monitoring System surveys private farm owners across the country as to how many horses, mules and donkeys are on their grounds. To be clear: these are not racehorses. They are equids that are living and/or working on farms across the US. The survey asks farm or stable owners how many of their horses, mules or donkeys died during the past year. The most recent survey listed a mortality rate of 1.4 percent – statistically higher, if not comparable with the mortality rate of racehorses at Saratoga. These statistics indicate that horses that race in New York are as safe if not more so than those that live on farms in non-racing capacities. 

Racing Injuries:  

Most exercise-associated equine fatalities are the result of musculo-skeletal injury. These tragic incidents rarely have a single cause. Numerous individual horse and environmental risk factors are currently under review. 

Although the total number of equine fatalities at Saratoga in 2023 was statistically similar to previous years, the number of racing fatalities in 2023 was 3 times higher than that seen in 2021 and 2022. Of note: they were “clustered” around the Whitney and Travers weekends. When investigating factors that may have contributed to an unusual increase in injuries, it is appropriate to determine what risk factors or circumstances were common to previous years of experience and what risk factors were unique to the period in which the injuries occurred.  

Many of the individual horse risk factors common to the horses that experienced exercise associated fatalities during the 2023 Saratoga Race Meet were similar to those of previous  years.  

Type of Injury – Fetlock 

For those horses that suffered exercise-associated fatalities: one commonality has been the type of injury. The fetlock joint is the most common site of fatal musculoskeletal injury in racehorses across the United States. Published research studies of racehorse injury in both New York and California over the past 10 years found that fetlock injuries represented 48 percent and 50 percent of fatal musculoskeletal injuries, respectively.  

However, during the 2023 Saratoga race meet, fetlock joint injuries represented 92 percent of all the exercise-associated fatal musculoskeletal injuries during the meet. This is a significant finding. 

Location of Incident – Fatigue 

Another commonality: 12 of the 13 exercise-associated injures occurred in the final furlongs of the race or as horses were galloping out after the race. This finding suggests that fatigue was likely a factor that contributed to these injuries. 

Weather – Surface Changes 

In terms of environmental risk factors, the most significant finding was the unprecedented amount of rainfall (11 inches) that occurred during the 2023 Saratoga race meet, compared with nine inches in 2021 and eight inches in 2022. 

“Surface change” is the term used to describe a situation where the amount of moisture in the turf courses is determined by racing officials to represent an unacceptable risk to the safety of horse and rider and would likely result in irreparable damage to the turf course itself. For that reason, the number of “surface changes” is a useful metric to quantify inclement weather. During the 2023 Saratoga Meet there were 65 surface changes (16 percent of the races were moved off the turf onto the dirt), compared with 17 surface changes (4 percent of the races) during the 2022 Saratoga Race Meet. Given these dramatic and unique findings, moisture content of the racing surfaces at Saratoga has become a primary focus of the investigation. 

Existing research has found no correlation between the surface condition of the racetrack and exercise-associated catastrophic injury. In one recent study, the incidence of catastrophic injury was compared among racetracks classified as “fast,” “sloppy” and “muddy.” No significant difference was found. However, it is important to understand that these classifications are assessments by racing officials and are not based upon actual measurement of the amount of moisture in the racing surface.  

Consistency of the racing surface is the primary goal of racetrack maintenance. A consistent surface is considered a safe surface. The variables that contribute to consistency and safety of  the racetrack include: composition of the surface material, design of the oval, and moisture content. Only one of these variables can change within a short time frame: moisture content. 

Analysis of variance (ANOVA) is a statistical test is used to measure variation (inconsistency) in a data set. In addition to comparing the average value of multiple data points, ANOVA tests compare the range and distribution of data points within minimum and maximum values in a group of numbers. The moisture content of the main dirt racetrack was evaluated using this type of analysis. 

During the 2023 Saratoga Race Meet multiple measurements of the percent volume moisture content (VMC) were made twice daily at 15 points around the dirt main track and 12 points around the Mellon and Inner Turf Courses.  

There were 2 exercise-associated racing fatalities on the dirt main track during the 2022 Saratoga Race Meet when the spatial and temporal distribution of moisture in the racetrack was relatively consistent.  

Conversely, there were 4 exercise associated racing fatalities on the dirt main track the during the 2023 Saratoga Race Meet, when the spatial and temporal distribution of the moisture content of the racetrack was significantly less consistent.  

This finding suggests that increased moisture in the Saratoga main dirt track and spatial and temporal variation of the moisture content of the track during the meet were likely contributing factors to the increase in the number of racing fatalities during the 2023 Saratoga Race Meet. 

Summary:  

In sum, the comprehensive investigation of the 2023 Saratoga Race Meet fatalities by HISA, NYRA, and NYSGC veterinarians is ongoing and has thus far identified the following preliminary findings: 

• Fetlock hyper-extension injuries comprised 92 percent of the musculoskeletal injuries that occurred during the 2023 Saratoga Race Meet.  
• Fatigue was a factor in all but one of the exercise-associated injures, as they occurred in the final furlongs of the race or as horses were galloping out after the race.
• The unprecedented amount of rainfall (11 inches) that occurred during the 2023 Saratoga Race Meet impacted the consistency of the racing surfaces. 

A comprehensive report of this investigation will be made available to the public as soon as the  investigation is complete. 

The post Saratoga Investigation: Early Findings Suggest Fatigue, Consistency Of Moisture In Track Surface Played Roles In 2023 Fatalities appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Dr. Scott E. Palmer, NYS Equine Medical Director, gave the following statement about PET scan technology during a Equine Health & Safety Briefing regarding the 2023 race meet at Saratoga Race Course presented to the New York State Gaming Commission during its meeting on Oct. 3, 2023: 

Recently, there have been conversations about possibly scanning all horses prior to racing with a Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scan.  

(PET) scan is a form of “advanced” imaging that involves injecting a radioactive isotope into the body and then using a sensor to image the localization of that isotope in areas of the body with increased metabolic activity, such as bone modeling or bone remodeling. Because of its ability to detect active metabolic processes, it can often detect abnormalities in bone or soft tissue before those abnormalities can be detected with other imaging modalities, such as radiography, MRI or Computed Tomography (CT).

As such, PET is a fantastic diagnostic tool. However, PET is not an appropriate screening tool to detect horses at risk for catastrophic injury. 

Identification of horses at risk for catastrophic injury should begin with a screening protocol that can be scalable, practical, affordable, and applicable to every horse while training or while racing without regard to any clinical indication of injury. Wearable biometric sensors are best suited to accomplish this first level of screening. These sensors detect subtle abnormalities in a horse's gait that are not detectable with the human eye. They serve as a “check engine” light that alerts us to the possibility that there is something wrong with the horse and that the horse should be examined by a veterinarian. 

The veterinary examination is the second level of detection of an abnormality that might predispose a horse to injury. The goal is to reach a diagnosis of musculoskeletal abnormalities and typically will include use of diagnostic nerve blocks and digital radiography. If lameness is detected in a limb during this examination and digital radiographs are inconclusive, then advanced imaging such as PET can be employed as a final step in this process. 

The NYS Gaming Commission has been doing pioneering research with wearable biometric sensors to identify horses at increased risk for injury at NYRA racetracks for the past three years. The results are promising. Sensors were placed in the saddlecloths of racehorses racing at Saratoga, Belmont Park, and Aqueduct in 2021 and 2022. These sensors measure acceleration in three dimensions during high-speed exercise. Thus far, this technology can identify horses at risk for injury, but wearable biometric sensors are not quite ready for “prime time” use at this time. Stay tuned for further developments.  

In summary, PET can play a very important role in the diagnosis of subtle musculoskeletal injuries in horses, but it is not useful at the screening level.

The post New York Equine Medical Director: PET Scan ‘Not An Appropriate Screening Tool To Detect Horses At Risk For Catastrophic Injury’ appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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As uncertainty over the potential end (or not) to racing at Golden Gate Fields and Turf Paradise continues to bubble, people have wondered what will happen not just to the trainers based at those racetracks, but to their horses if and when the tracks call it quits.

For those who envisioned a mass exodus of racehorses suddenly swarming overtaxed rescue organizations in Arizona and California after these closure announcements, rest easy – for now. Those on the ground in those places say that, so far, there hasn't been a significant change in the number of horses seeking placement as a result of the uncertainty at either track.

Track owner The Stronach Group announced Golden Gate Fields in Albany, Calif., would stage its last race in December, but then agreed to run for the first half of 2024. Turf Paradise owner Jerry Simms said last month the Phoenix, Ariz., track would not reopen after a deal to sell fell through, but then said a new buyer stepped forward to run an abbreviated live race meet beginning in January.

We spoke to longtime Arizona trainer Cynthia George before last week's news about the potential new buyer of Turf Paradise. George said she's been working with the Arizona Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association to secure funding and placement for former Arizona runners in need of second careers and soft landings, but she's not hearing from people who need her help because they're liquidating their entire barn.

George is working with Teri Ferguson (her partner on the Turf Paradise Race Horse Feed Angels program that provided feed and hay to horsemen in need at the start of COVID-19) to put together a non-profit called A Love 4 Horseracing Aftercare. The group is awaiting IRS approval of its 501(c)3 status and its purpose will be to serve the typical aftercare needs of the circuit.

“We place horses and we also watch for retired horses that end up in bad situations,” said George. “We did buy one off the Stroud kill pen and rehabbed him and he's currently looking for a new home. That's more what our efforts are towards, the aftercare, second careers, keeping the integrity of the sport by helping people that get in hard times.

“If people do need help they can reach out. we'll either take on the horse — we have several people who have offered to be foster homes until we can get horses placed.”

George said she heard from an older gentleman who asked for her help to sell his two pony horses after the original Turf closure announcement, but otherwise she's not aware of the potential closure pushing anyone else to retire horses.

Rumors about the future of Turf Paradise have circulated for years, and rose to a fervor earlier this year. George said that meant horsemen were ready for the possibility they may need to go somewhere else to race.

“From what I've seen, other people picked other racetracks,” she said. “Some of the people that would return from Emerald Downs in Washington are going to Golden Gate Fields because it's open an additional six months. We have some people going to Louisiana. A lot of people are filtering into New Mexico. People are going to Kentucky, Iowa; Indiana has year-round training, Florida has year-round training. People have been researching all summer, and they were prepared.

“We've been ready. It's been ongoing since the beginning of summer. It's nowhere near a dire situation. Horses are all still in good hands with owners and trainers, and they're trying to just support the industry as best they can.”

In Northern California, CARMA executive director Lucinda Lovitt agreed that if and when racing does end at Golden Gate Fields, there will still be a market for runners based there in other places.

CARMA (California Retirement Management Account) provides funding for retirement of California-raced Thoroughbreds and serves as an education resource for the public and racing community.

“I recognize there is an overall concern by horsemen, track management, etc., that there will be a significant influx of horses into the aftercare system with the closure of any racetrack and that makes sense,” she said. “However, I know from all my years working at TOC (Thoroughbred Owners of California) that most owners are in this as a business or at least to attempt to break even and if they have stock that is viable in other places, my thinking is many of them will try to sell their horses to other jurisdictions where they will be frankly more competitive and run for twice as much money.”

Lovitt said she could see NorCal runners who don't ship to Southern California ending up in New Mexico, Texas, Indiana, or maybe Louisiana. She has fielded a couple of calls from people who are opting to do an off-track placement for their horses rather than selling them on, but is not seeing an enormous change in demand for placement services as of now.

Any time a track closes, however, it impacts not just horses stabled there, but the supply of horses who would have been headed there at some point in the future – and that's where Lovitt is a little more concerned about ripple effects.

“I think the challenge is going to be what the challenge always is, which is those individuals that are not 100% racing at the moment,” she said. “If they're laid up, if they have a recent injury, breeding stock, 2-year-olds that are at a farm and haven't started yet, yearlings — to me that's what I'm more worried about, the hard horses to place.”

Despite the announcement that Golden Gate will run at least six more months, Lovitt said now is the time for owners and trainers to be preparing for their horses' futures. Most of the charities within CARMA's network have a minimum wait time of three to four weeks before they can accept a horse into their program, because the majority of facilities are at or near capacity the majority of the time.

Many of the aftercare organizations Lovitt works with are boarding horses that are in the process of retraining, and horsekeeping costs in California remain extremely high. The low end of board is $600 to $750 per month per horse, and many horses who are eligible for retraining and adoption end up requiring six to nine months for training, marketing, and adoption at a pricetag to the non-profit of $5,000 to $7,000. For that reason, owners are expected to help foot the bill for a horse they want to donate into an aftercare program – either by paying to board the horse someplace until a space can open up, or by sending the horse for placement with a check.

Not everyone is thrilled to hear this, but Lovitt said it's the reality for accredited organizations. Those that are accredited by the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance are held accountable to the organization, which scrutinizes their finances and stocking rates. Becoming overcrowded or financially strapped could risk the grant money they rely on from TAA.

“From the aftercare community's perspective, we are getting much better at saying 'Sorry, we can't help you,'” she said. “It used to be everybody was scared to say no. These charities would take horses all the time. They felt so bad, everybody was so worried about the welfare of the horse that they would just take it. That's how organizations go broke. I don't think they do that as much anymore.”

The best thing she can advise for horse owners? Use this grace period to plan – for your horses' sake.

“For CARMA the important message to owners, trainers, horsemen, breeders — you need a plan,” she said. “You need to plan for retiring your horse. That may mean setting some money aside, that may mean reaching out to organizations before the horse needs to retire so you have information on what the expectations will be. That means making retiring your horse a part of your business plan.”

The post No Aftercare Crisis Looming In Arizona Or California, But Experts Say Now’s The Time To Plan appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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The flow of food and waste through the intestines is critical to the health and wellbeing of horses; when movement through the intestines is interrupted, and gut motility slowed, the horse is at risk of serious illness and death. 

Ileus is a disruption of the normal flow of materials through the intestine without a physical cause. In horses, this condition is a possible complication of abdominal surgery. 

Humans suffering from ileus have found relief from “sham feeding,” like chewing gum. No food is ingested, but the chewing and swallowing action tricks the body into believing it is eating, which may promote gastrointestinal motility and improve clinical signs. 

A study led by Dr. Molly Patton, of the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine at Virginia Tech, wanted to determine if horses that chewed on the bit, a form of sham feeding, would have reduced gastrointestinal total transit time (TTT) in their small intestine. 

Patton and a team of researchers used nine healthy horses for the study. The horses were all fed a standardized diet, then fasted for 24 hours. A video endoscopy capsule and acetaminophen were placed in the stomach via nasogastric tube. The horses were then divided into two groups: one group wore a bit and chewed for 20 minutes every six hours and one group did not wear a bit. Three weeks later, the groups reversed, allowing each horse to serve as its own control.

Acetaminophen serum samples were used as a marker to gauge gastric emptying time (GET). Additionally, ALICAM capsules helped in determining not only GET but also small intestinal transit time (SITT) and overall orocecal transit time (OCTT), which measures the time from ingestion to passing the ileocecal valve.

The findings indicated a significant reduction in OCTT after bit chewing took place. No adverse effects were reported. The scientists concluded that bit chewing could be a safe and cost-effective means to enhance small intestinal motility in horses, possibly leading to better post-surgical outcomes. 

Read more at Equine Science Update. 

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