Horse Care | Horse Racing Free Tips

New Zealand Thoroughbreds Now Required To Have ‘Accountable Person’ For Increased Traceability

In an effort to improve traceability of the Thoroughbred racing and breeding populations in New Zealand, the country has released new rules to ensure that retiring racehorses are placed in appropriate homes. To enforce this, all horses are now required to have an “accountable person” who is responsible for informing NZ Thoroughbred Racing (NZTR) of the death, retirement from racing or breeding of a horse in their care. This person can be an owner, manager, trainer or other person responsible for the horse's care.

If the horse is to be retired, this accountable person must ensure that the horse is given or sold to a person with an adequate working knowledge of Thoroughbreds and must provide the NZTR with the new owner's contact details. NZTR has been following up with the owners of registered horses that are listed as inactive on its website.

Additionally, the window in which an owner is required to report a foal's birth has been shortened from 6 months to 30 days. This can be done electronically and there is no fee.

Scar Tissue Issues In Horses May Be Resolved With Standing Surgery

A horse that has experienced a hind-end injury such as a kick, fall or other trauma can develop a mechanical restriction from scar tissue that does not allow him to take normal strides, called a fibrotic myopathy, which can affect his athletic ability. The condition, which is not usually painful, is diagnosed by palpation and ultrasound around the horse's thigh.

The veterinary hospital at the University of California, Davis, did a retrospective study that used 22 horses with the condition that had a standing fibrotic myotomy performed. Drs. Charlene Noll, Isabelle Kilcoyne, Betsy Vaughan and Larry Galuppo reviewed the horse's long-term comfort and return to athletic endeavors.

Tenotomy is a more-standard treatment for this type of issue, but a standing myotomy is less expensive and less invasive. The horse can also be moved about during the procedure to assess the response to the incision into the fibrotic tissue.

Only two of the horses in the study developed complications during the surgery. There were additional complications in 18 percent of the horses, which included issues with drainage or infection that caused sutures to reopen.

After the surgery, the horses were on stall rest for two weeks and hand walked for 10 minutes three times a day. Once sutures were removed, the horses began trotting for five minutes each day and work was increased incrementally from there.

Four weeks after the surgery, canter work was added to the rehabilitation program. Passive range of motion exercises were also recommended twice daily throughout the rehabilitation time. Two months after the surgery, the horses could go back to regular work and could get turned out.

Follow up calls and questionnaires were sent to the horse owners between 6 months and 11 years after the surgery was performed. Ten of the 16 owners said they were satisfied with the long-term outcome of the surgery. Eight of the horses had a recurrence of issues, and eight of the 12 athletic horses returned to their previous level of use. The other four athletic horses needed repeat surgery.

The research team concluded that standing myotomy for fibrotic myopathy leads to fair outcomes with minimal complications, but proper rehabilitation was imperative to the surgery's success.

Read the full article here.

Diagnostic Tool Offers Medical-Grade Imaging In Standing Equines

Prisma Imaging has successfully developed a new system for equine diagnostic imaging that addresses the shortcomings of current technology. Founded in 2016, Prisma developed a system that captures CT and radiographic images of the entire anatomy of a standing, weight-bearing and conscious horse. The advanced imaging capabilities established through Prisma's research and development is different from anything available in the marketplace. The resulting system represents a game-changer for the overall effect on equine diagnostics and horse health care.

Other ventures have attempted to build equine CT systems but have been unable to provide a comprehensive solution to image the horse's entire anatomy. Other devices are repurposed human medical CT systems. Most systems require that the horse be under anesthesia, representing a risk to their health and safety. In 2015, another venture's attempt employed the use of robotics, but never developed a working system.

“Miscues in the industry demonstrate a strong demand for better equine CT imaging,” said Michael Silver, Prisma's founder and chief operating officer. “Building next-generation imaging to benefit the veterinary industry and horse health is the core of Prisma's mission.”

Prisma's system is distinctly different and was developed to ensure every component meets high-performance specifications. Fully documented, thorough testing by third-party experts have been performed on every aspect of the system.

Authorities on imaging have taken notice of the groundbreaking work of the Prisma team.

“The testing done with Prisma's system demonstrates image quality which has eliminated the risks to achieve commercial readiness,” said Josh Star-Lack, principal scientist at Varex Imaging, author of over 100 papers and co-inventor of 27 patents.

According to Silver, their unique solution is facilitated by three major innovations:

1) Robotics

2) Using two types of radiographic technologies

3) A motion correction system to compensate for the movement of a conscious horse

Prisma's system has successfully performed in vivo imaging of live horse subjects and has demonstrated the efficacy of the system's multiple technologies. Prisma's CT image quality has proven to be on par with the top medical-grade CT systems.

The CT images taken with Prisma's system revealed all of the relevant anatomy and was virtually indistinguishable from those taken with medical-grade CT systems.” said Kurt Selberg, DVM, MS, DACVR, associate professor veterinary diagnostic imaging, Colorado State University and lead imaging practitioner at the 2018 FEI World Equestrian Games in Tryon.

Silver projects that commercial installations of the system will begin in mid-2021. “Prior to purchase, Prisma will require the customer's inspection and full satisfaction that all its capabilities are fully functional and meet or exceed the highest standards,” Silver said.

Learn more about Prisma here.

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Belmont, Travers Winner Birdstone Pensioned To Old Friends

Belmont Stakes and Travers winner Birdstone has been pensioned to Old Friends, the Thoroughbred Retirement Center in Georgetown, KY.

Michael Blowen, founder and president of Old Friends, made the announcement Friday.

A homebred for owner Marylou Whitney and trained by Nick Zito, Birdstone captured the G1 Champagne Stakes as a two-year-old in 2003. Birdstone ran up the track in the Kentucky Derby and sat out the Preakness, before surprising most of the sell-out crowd when he got up in the final yards in the Belmont Stakes to ruin Smarty Jones' try for the Triple Crown. That summer, at Saratoga Race Course, Birdstone proved that the Belmont was no fluke when he added a victory in the Travers Stakes to his impressive resume.

The son of Grindstone, out of the Storm Bird mare Dear Birdie, Birdstone retired from racing in 2004 after a chip was found in his left front ankle after his final start was in the GR1 Breeders' Cup Classic. Birdstone retired with five victories from nine starts and earnings of $1,575,600.

He spent his stallion career at Gainesway Farm in Lexington, KY where he became one of very few sires to have produced a Kentucky Derby winner in their first crop when Mine That Bird captured the 2009 Run for the Roses at 50-to-1 upset in 2009. That same year, his son Summer Bird repeated his sire's efforts by winning both the Belmont and Travers Stakes.

“We are so grateful to John Hendrickson for allowing Old Friends to care for Birdstone in his post-breeding career,” said Blowen. “He's a living tribute to the late Marylou Whitney, and we plan to carry on her great contributions to the aftercare of both humans and horses,” he added. “We're extremely grateful to John for trusting us to care for his tremendous stakes winner. Birdstone had a great life at Gainesway and we plan to continue that tradition at Old Friends.”

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