Tag: shock

U.S. Showjumper Receives 10-Year Suspension For Shocking Show Horses 

Jumper Andy Kocher, who has represented the United States in multiple international competitions, has received a 10-year suspension for using electric spurs on his horses. The ban was initiated by the International Equestrian Federation (FEI), the international governing body of horse sport. 

An investigation was launched after the FEI was informed that Kocher had used an electric shock device on horses in multiple competitions. The FEI considers shocking a horse in any manner horse abuse. 

The FEI Tribunal has suspended U.S. Jumping athlete Andrew Kocher for 10 years and disqualified him from eight events between June 2018 and November 2019 for using electric spurs on horses. The athlete has also been fined approximately US$11,000 and ordered to pay costs of approximately US$8,255.

The FEI Legal Department notified the athlete on June 29, 2020, that an investigation had been opened following allegations about electric spur use reported to the independent Equestrian Community Integrity Unit (ECIU). It was alleged that Mr. Kocher had used electric spurs on a number of FEI registered and national horses in international and national events, and during training.

Following the investigation, the FEI formally opened disciplinary proceedings against Mr. Kocher in October 2020. He was provisionally suspended on October 28, 2020 pending a hearing before the FEI Tribunal, and this period will be credited against the full suspension, meaning that the athlete is ineligible through to October 27, 2030.

During the suspension the athlete is barred from participating in or attending, in any capacity, including as a spectator, any competition or event that is authorized or organized by the FEI or any National Federation.

The sanctions also include disqualification of all results obtained at events for which the FEI Tribunal was provided with photographic evidence establishing the athlete's use of electric spurs. The eight events are: CSI4* Hickstead (GBR), 21-24 June 2018; CSI3* Lexington (USA), 14-18 May 2019; CSI2* Lexington (USA), 22-26 May 2019); CSI5* Calgary (CAN), 5-9 June 2019; CSI5* Calgary (CAN), 27-39 June 2019; CSI3* Traverse City (USA), 7-11 August 2019; CSI3*-W Columbus (USA), 2-6 October 2019; and CSI4*-W Toronto (CAN), 5-9 November 2019.

These sanctions form the operative part of the FEI Tribunal decision. The full reasoned decision will be published here in due course. Parties can appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) within 21 days of receipt of the full decision.

Read more here. 

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Treatment Options For Horses With Atrial Fibrillation

Atrial fibrillation is the most common heart arrhythmia found in horses, but it's also the one that most impacts a horse's athletic performance. The University of Illinois Veterinary Teaching Hospital in Urbana offers a unique way to treat the condition: transvenous electrical cardioversion (TVEC).

Atrial fibrillation, commonly known as “AFib,” is an electrical disorder that affects the heart's rhythm; the top two chambers of the heart (the atria) don't contract properly, preventing blood from moving to the rest of the body efficiently. This affects how hard a horse can work before he tires. It isn't known why horses get AFib, but their large hearts and slow heart rate could predispose them to loss of electrical coordination.

The most common sign of AFib is a sudden, dramatic decrease in performance. Occasionally a nosebleed can also be seen. A veterinarian should be contacted when this occurs. As part of the exam, the vet will listen to the horse's heart, which is how most AFib in horses is detected. The vet can confirm that the horse is experiencing AFib by performing an electrocardiogram (ECG).

Horses with AFib can be given oral quinidine to restore proper heart rhythm, but this medication does have side effects, including laminitis, swelling of the nose and even death. Horses given this medication that don't have heart disease typically return to the correct heart rhythm.

The TVEC procedure can also return a horse's heart to a normal rhythm. This treatment only takes place at specialty equine hospitals, including the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine. Once the horse has had a full work-up and been deemed clear for surgery, a catheter is placed in the horse's jugular vein, though which two small electrodes are fed. The electrodes then administer a shock to the heart to convert it back to its normal rhythm.

This is the same shock given to humans with AFib via paddles—horses have too much muscle to let the paddles work from the outside. Delivering the shock directly to a horse's heart muscle is effective; TVEC has a 95 percent success rate in converting the heart back to its normal rhythm.

Read more at University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine.

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