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Champion Jockey Rosie Napravnik Takes OTTB To First Eventing Championship

Rosie Napravnik finished in 10^th place at the United States Eventing Association (USEA) Preliminary Rider division at the USEA American Eventing Championships (AEC) presented by Nutrena Feeds. The 2021 event is both her and her horse, Sanimo's, first eventing championship ever. However, she is no stranger to standing in the winner's circle aboard a Thoroughbred. At only 33 years old, Napravnik is one of the most decorated Thoroughbred jockeys of her time, having achieved the status of highest-ranked woman jockey in North America by 2014 and had lifetime earnings of $71,396,717.

Born the daughter of an eventing and Pony Club coach in New Jersey, Napravnik spent her childhood competing at the lower levels of eventing and participated in her last event at the Training level when she was 12 years old. For the majority of the following 15 years, her life was consumed by racehorses.

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“From the time I was 17 years old till I announced my retirement, I lived for racing,” she explained. “I was blessed to be a part of the absolute best of racing and I loved all of it, but when my husband and I decided to start a family it was time for me to retire.”

Her retirement announcement came on the day she won the Breeder's Cup Distaff and, in an overwhelmed state of emotion, she made the announcement in the winner's circle to the entire world on national television.

“Winning that race was truly my storybook ending,” Napravnik stated.

Already six weeks pregnant at the time, she took a brief hiatus from the saddle but continued to work in the training side of things with husband Joe Sharp till the birth of their first son in June of 2015.

“Joe and I just worked so well together because we both really respect each other's areas of expertise,” she detailed. “We met when I was riding at the stable where he was an assistant trainer in 2009. He went out on his own shortly before I found out I was pregnant and for the brief amount of time I rode for him we were an extremely successful team.”

Shortly after ending her racing career, she committed to the idea that she would return to eventing after giving birth. That vision came to life with the purchase of a horse she had won several races on in her previous career. She followed the mount closely and bought him in a claiming race and then produced the older mount up to the Training level despite his laundry list of physical ailments.

“That horse is what lit a fire in me for retraining racehorses before it was even a big thing,” she confirmed. “It wasn't something I had ever really considered before, but his strength and continued determination inspired me.”

Napravnik now runs her own Off-Track Sporthorses where she specializes in retraining and competing retired racehorses for the eventing sport as well as rehabilitating various injured or laid-up Thoroughbreds. She takes on many horses from the string in her husband's facility under the tutelage of Dorothy Crowell.

“Working with Dorothy has been truly invaluable in my riding endeavors; she is a Thoroughbred guru,” Napravnik laughed. “More than anything, it has made me addicted to learning new things and having new experiences with the Thoroughbreds.”

Her current partner, Sanimo, a 6-year-old Thoroughbred gelding (Smart Strike x Sanima) came out of her husband's training program as a young 3-year-old and after a year hiatus was already the clear winner in the eventing section of the 2019 Retired Racehorse Project.

This season has been both Napravnik's and Sanimo's debut at the Preliminary level, but she continues to look forward to their future development with excitement.

“Everyone assumes that because I was riding at such a high level in the racing that I must be competing at a very high level of eventing, but that is not the case,” she said. “At this point, I have had several top clinicians tell me they think we have what it takes to continue to move up and my plan is just to keep going until I either run out of money or get scared! I have had my glory days, so to be able to do this with no pressure and just enjoy myself and enjoy the horse has been an incredible experience.”

Preparing For Catastrophic Flooding As Horse Owners

Seventeen inches of rain in 24 hours were recorded in McEwen, a small town in West-Central Tennessee over the weekend of Aug. 21. And no, 17 is not a typo.

While not yet official, this would break the all-time 24-hour rainfall record in Tennessee by more than three inches. McEwen was one of many locations across this area that saw 8-plus inches of rain.

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As you can imagine, this resulted in catastrophic flooding across this region causing 21 deaths with many others still missing. Property damage has also been immense, with homes lost and vehicles totaled. As the Tennessee Crop Progress and Condition Report summarizes, flooding left row crops and hay fields under water, tore down fences and damaged other infrastructure.

Like Tennessee, Kentucky has experienced its own share of catastrophic flooding this year and in the past. A few weeks ago, Governor Beshear issued a state of emergency following severe flooding across Nicholas County. While not as bad as the flooding in Tennessee, impacts included one death and severe property damage after some locations recorded 3 to more than 4 inches of rainfall.

Kentucky also experienced historic flooding at the end of February when excessive rain fell across a stalled frontal boundary, leading to accumulations of 4 to more than 6 inches across portions of South Central and Eastern Kentucky. Soils were already saturated from melting snow/ice and vegetation was dormant, leading to excessive runoff into streams and rivers. Some rivers broke all-time record crests. Below is one image showing the town of Beattyville under water.

All of these examples demonstrate one thing: We need to be prepared.

I always remind students in my meteorology class that they have probably seen multiple tornado warnings in their lifetimes but have never seen an actual tornado. You still need to take shelter. You can't predict when the warning might turn into a tornado passing over your house. The same goes for flooding. You never know when a disaster like the flooding events in McEwen, Tennessee; Nicholas County, Kentucky; or Eastern Kentucky could occur in your neighborhood.

The best thing to do is prepare. I've talked about flood safety in previous columns, but being prepared for inclement weather, especially on a farm, is critical. There isn't much we can do about row crops, but safe passage through severe weather for families, animals and buildings takes planning. Think about all the scenarios that could happen and prepare for each, making a plan for both family and farm.

I've put together a list of recommendations and questions to consider when thinking about emergency preparedness in relation to flooding, but many apply to other disasters.

Examine the landscape and determine safe areas during a flood event (higher elevations) and potential evacuation strategies. Be sure to prevent livestock from accessing flood-prone areas. Take into account the possibility of washed-out roads. Do you have a means for transporting animals? What if you have downed fence line, which happened in Tennessee? Will you have people (family, neighbors, employees,) you can count on to help?

Identify how you will receive warning information. This could include television, weather apps, radio or local outdoor warning systems. How will you get news if there is a loss of electricity? I recommend everyone have a NOAA Weather Radio. NOAA weather radios alert you to any warnings or watches across the area from your local National Weather Service office. They can be picked up for as little as $20-30 and can save your life. These devices also run on batteries. Of all the suggestions mentioned, I would make this one of the top priorities. Another thing you will need to consider is how will you send a warning in the case of communication failure. Do you have two-way radios available?

Make an emergency contact list. This may include neighbors, utility companies, local Cooperative Extension, veterinarians and emergency medical contacts. These contacts may be obvious to you, but what if you're not there? Consider creating a wallet-sized card (the size of a business card) with the farm's emergency contact information and distribute it to everyone on the farm.

Keep an up-to-date list of on-farm inventory. This can include farm machinery, livestock, acreage, electrical shutoff points and hazardous materials. Be sure that all animals can be clearly identified as your own.

You may already have a disaster supply kit for you home, but what about the farm? It's always good to have some extra supplies on-hand for the unknown. I suggest planning for a week at a minimum, longer for drought scenarios. Your disaster kit might include alternative power supplies, extra fuel, dry bedding, additional feed for livestock, fence supplies and alternative sources of clean water. Also, fire extinguishers are a must for every building.

Review your emergency plan periodically. Things change and it's best to account for all those changes before the next disaster. Replenish supplies, update contact information and learn from the past.

In the end, my advice is plan and prepare so you stay safe. While we've had our fair share of localized flooding disasters over the past several years, we can't rule out even worse flooding in the years to come. Tennessee's disastrous flooding is an eye-opener.

To drive home the danger of flooding, I want to take you back to 1937, arguably the worst flood in recorded history for the state of Kentucky. The National Weather Service in Louisville has a great writeup on the event, with eye-popping statistics. Overall, Louisville saw 15 inches of rain in 12 days (which shows how severe the Tennessee flood was) during the middle of January. Seventy percent of the city was underwater, and the flooding caused an estimated $3.3 billion in damage in today's dollars. The flood crested 30 feet higher than flood stage.

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Ins And Outs Of Transdermal NSAID In Horses

If you're fighting tooth and nail to administer oral medications, the introduction of a transdermal option often pleases horses and handlers alike. Transdermal medications are applied to the surface of the skin, typically in the form of an ointment or gel, so as to allow gradual absorption into the body. Are you considering transdermal medications, especially anti-inflammatories? If so, it's important to understand how these drugs are absorbed and eliminated, particularly if your horse is involved in competition and subject to stringent drug withdrawal times.

In the U.S., a transdermal formulation of the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory (NSAID) diclofenac sodium, sold under the brand name Surpass, is approved for use in horses. Recently, a transdermal product containing flunixin meglumine was approved in cattle and is therefore available for off-label use in horses. Flunixin meglumine is often called by the common brand name Banamine.

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To assess how transdermal delivery of flunixin meglumine behaves in the body compared to other routes of administration (e.g., oral, intravenous, intramuscular), researchers applied a 10-mL dose of transdermal flunixin meglumine along the midline of the horse's back, from the withers to the tailhead. This was equivalent to a standard 500-mg dose of flunixin meglumine per horse. *

Blood and urine samples were intermittently collected for up to 96 hours after administration to measure the intricacies of how the medication is absorbed and cleared, a science known as pharmacokinetics.

“Transdermal application was well tolerated in all six study horses, with no horse showing any negative dermal effects,” said Peter Huntington, B.V.Sc., M.A.C.V.Sc., director of nutrition at Kentucky Equine Research.

In terms of the drug's behavior, here's what the research team found:

The maximum concentration of flunixin meglumine in blood was only an average of 515 ng/mL, which is much lower than oral and intramuscular concentrations. Oral administration of a comparable dose of flunixin meglumine results in average concentrations ranging from 3,340 to 7,200 ng/mL. Intramuscular flunixin meglumine reaches average concentrations of 1,799-3,269 ng/mL.
Transdermal absorption into the horse's bloodstream was slow, an average of 8.76 hours. Oral flunixin meglumine requires less than an hour to be absorbed.
Elimination (clearance) of transdermal flunixin meglumine was also much slower than other routes of administration. It took 22 hours for half of the drug to be eliminated from the bloodstream (called the half-life) when the transdermal formulation was used. In contrast, the intravenous half-life is 3.38-9.68 hours.
The data also showed that transdermal flunixin meglumine has unique pharmacokinetics called “flip-flop kinetics” in which the rate of absorption is actually slower than the rate of elimination.

“Based on this data, it is not surprising that flunixin meglumine and a metabolite were still detectable in urine 96 hours after application. This means that the withdrawal time for transdermal flunixin meglumine would be longer than for any other route of administration,” said Huntington.

He added, “Even though the blood concentrations of flunixin meglumine were lower compared to those achieved by other routes, the slow, variable absorption and 'flip- flop kinetics' indicate the medicine applied transdermally persists in the body longer than if given by other routes of administration. More excretion studies in exercising horses are needed before safe withholding periods before competition can be established.”

Despite the low circulating drug concentrations, transdermal flunixin meglumine still elicited an anti-inflammatory effect for up to 72 hours after application.

In terms of safety, Huntington warned, “Considering that transdermal flunixin meglumine is indeed absorbed systemically, this means that horses are at risk of the common side effects associated with NSAIDs administered by other routes: gastric ulceration, dorsal colitis, and disruption of the intestinal microbiome.”

Horses treated with any type of NSAID by any route of administration, including transdermal, would therefore benefit from a digestive tract supplement containing antacids, stomach-coating agents, and a hindgut buffer.

“These supplements reduce the risk of damage to the gut lining or change in the microbiota resulting from NSAID use,” Huntington advised.

*Knych, H.K., R.M. Arthur, S.R. Gretler, D.S. McKemie, S. Goldin, and P.H. Kass. 2021. Pharmacokinetics of transdermal flunixin meglumine and effects on biomarkers of inflammation in horses. Journal of Veterinary Pharmacology and Therapeutics:12993.

Reprinted courtesy of Kentucky Equine Research. Visit ker.com for the latest in equine nutrition and management, and subscribe to Equinews to receive these articles directly.

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Thoroughbred Charities Of America Awards Grants Worth $788,000

Thoroughbred Charities of America (TCA) announced Wednesday that grants totaling over $788,000 were awarded this year.

Eighty two grant applications were received earlier this year during the organization's annual grant cycle. Ultimately, 69 organizations were approved for a grant including 46 aftercare organizations, 14 backstretch and farm worker programs, five equine-assisted therapy organizations, three Thoroughbred incentive programs, and one research organization. Grant recipients from the last three years can be found on www.tca.org.

Included in the granting total is over $12,000 expended from the Horses First Fund, an emergency fund, administered by TCA and established LNJ Foxwoods, that assists Thoroughbreds and their caretakers in need of emergency aid due to large scale neglect, natural disaster, or other catastrophe. The Horses First Fund aided in a food-assistance program at Woodbine Racetrack earlier this year for backstretch workers left without an income when COVID-19 halted racing at the track. The Horses First Fund also assisted Equine Rescue of Aiken with an emergency grant for a catastrophic barn fire earlier this year.

TCA's 2021 grants to organizations that provide health and human services for backstretch and farm workers were bolstered by support from Fasig-Tipton and buyers at Keeneland's September Yearling and November Breeding Stock Sales as well as the January Horses of All Ages Sale. Over $100,000 was raised and awarded to approved organizations.

“Fundraising has been a challenge over the last year and a half for many nonprofits,” said Erin Crady executive director of TCA. “We are happy to be able to assist nearly 70 organizations with a grant to help them carry on their vital work with Thoroughbreds and backstretch and farm workers. Our grants are only possible thanks to our generous donors.”

Grant applications for the 2022 grant cycle will be available in mid-January.

TCA's mission is to fund and facilitate the support of Thoroughbreds and the people who care for them. TCA distributes grants to several categories of Thoroughbred-related nonprofits including rehabilitation, retraining, rehoming and retirement organizations; backstretch and farm employee programs; equine-assisted therapy programs; and research organizations. Since its inception in 1990, TCA has granted over $25 million to more than 200 charities. TCA is the charitable arm of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association (TOBA).

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