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Until we can make a difference, we'll continue
Campaigning for Barbarosm
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  Racehorse Welfare and Safety Recommendations Released by Blood-Horse Staff Date Posted: 11/10/2006 11:58:29 AM Last Updated: 11/10/2006 12:04:52 PM Keeneland president Nick Nicholson, said welfare and safety summit was a "great step forward."
THE PLAN - http://www.bloodhorse.com/pdf/welfaresummit.pdf
Edited press release
A cross-section of prominent participants from the Thoroughbred breeding and racing industry who participated in the Welfare and Safety of the Racehorse Summit in Lexington, on Oct. 16-17, have drafted recommended action plans in six areas to potentially improve conditions in various facets of the Thoroughbred industry.
As the Welfare and Safety of the Racehorse Summit does not have any authority to implement these recommendations, the proposed strategic plan will be forwarded to potential responsible parties for their consideration. Full Text of Welfare and Safety Summit Plan (PDF) The summit was coordinated and underwritten by Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation and The Jockey Club, and hosted by Keeneland Association in Lexington, Ky.
The six areas are Education & Licensing, Racing Conditions / Racing Office, Research, Health & Medical Records, Racing Surfaces / Shoeing / Hoof Care, and Breeding Practices.
Among the recommendations coming out of the two-day summit were: --Research, develop and publish additional statistics that will provide insight into the durability and longevity of progeny of breeding stock. --Distribute scientific research more widely among industry stakeholders. --Examine the use or ban of certain horseshoes, such as toe-grabs. --Develop a uniform on-track injury reporting system for horses and humans. --Provide continuing education for all horsemen, exercise riders and farriers and make initiatives such as the Groom Elite Program more accessible throughout the country.
The goal of the summit was to identify critical issues that affect horse health and/or shorten the career of racehorses and to develop action plans to address each issue. "I think the turnout and the interest in this summit proves that there is widespread concern among industry stakeholders about the welfare and safety of the racehorse," said Ed Bowen, president of Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation. "The summit was certainly successful in identifying issues and devising action plans and we're grateful to all the participants who were here."
Nick Nicholson, the president and chief executive officer of Keeneland, echoed those thoughts. "This summit was a great step forward," he said. "I commend Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation and The Jockey Club for putting this together. Now that we have identified issues and possible solutions, we need to roll up our sleeves and do the work."
The Oct. 16 morning session was open to the public and it included presentations by five noted veterinarians and several panel discussions, which were moderated by Bowen.
Panelists discussed the relationships of breeding, training, veterinary practice, race track surfaces, and track management as they affect longevity of racing careers and racehorse soundness. Closed discussions in breakout groups, facilitated by a team of staff members from The Jockey Club, were held on the afternoon of Oct. 16. The participants were separated into six groups. Each group was asked to list at least three critical issues associated with the decline in the racing careers of Thoroughbred horses over the last 50 years in terms of fewer years raced and fewer starts per year and to list action plans for each issue.
While injuries are a key component of shorter careers, participants were asked to look at all factors, such as track surfaces, training and breeding practices, economics of racing versus breeding, and medication. Several weeks before the summit, participants were provided with packets that contained research papers, articles, statistics and public comments that addressed these factors.
At the end of Monday's session, the moderator from each group presented their findings. On the evening of Oct. 16, participants received write-ups on the day's discussions and were asked to prioritize the issues in terms of importance. One other area of concern involved medication. Those recommendations will be sent to the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium. Before breaking off into strategic planning sessions on the morning of Oct. 17, attendees heard a brief presentation from farrier Mitch Taylor and a presentation on the creation of a standardized on-track injury reporting system from Drs. Karin Opacich and Mary Scollay. In the strategic planning sessions, each group focused on the issues and developed a primary objective, related objective, criteria for success, tasks, responsible parties, resources, and a timeline to address their issue.
The Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation has allocated $957,260 to underwrite 20 research projects at 12 universities in 2006, including 12 new projects and the continuation of 8 two-year projects approved in 2005. Foundation-funded research helps not only Thoroughbreds and racing, but all breeds and uses of horses.
Since 1983 the foundation has underwritten 210 projects at 32 universities for more than $13 million. |
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Calling all Breeders, Trainers and Industry Professionals!
Unfortunately, accidents will happen and somethings cannot be explained.
However, Track Safety isn't
the only issue at hand.
Welcome to our "Opinion Blog" for all Breeders, Trainers and other
Industry professionals
who wish to post their
opinions on other issues that concern the safety of racehorses.
As we continue our campaign for track safety, we will be updating all
the tracks that are coverting to Poly/Synthetic.
While we're continuing to research this topic, we would appreciate
any knowledge of this conversion posted to our "comments" section
of our "OPINION BLOG". Thank you in advance for your information.
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Joe Harper (President and General Manager of Del Mar race Track) Responds to campaigningforbarbaro.com
about the Joysey Jeff incident.
Thank you for taking the time to write to me about the breakdowns. Believe me, we are as upset as anyone with this rash of injuries. J.J.'s trainer said afterwards that the track wasn't at fault and that he just took a bad step. The ambulance was dispatched within seconds of the horse being injured but the wet ground made it impossible to drive up the slope to the grass track. A splint was applied and the horse was taken to the ambulance. Not what we wanted to happen but it was the only way to get the horse into the ambulance. We have since figured out a way to solve that problem. A hard lesson to learn for all of us. I wish I could put my finger on any one reason but to tell you the truth there are many factors. Prior injuries that have gone unnoticed. We are seeing evidence of this in studying the legs of horses that have been euthanized at all the California tracks over the years. The noted columnist, Andy Beyer, recently wrote an article that spoke of a breeding industry that bred more for speed than endurance. The number of racing days. Too many in my opinion. Overcrowding on Del Mar's stable area. This puts a very large number of horses on the track in the morning. Especially after the renovations. The horsemen are cooperating and spreading out their works. Too many sore horses.....This, in my opinion, is the #1 reason. Our vets check every horse that is entered. This is done in the morning. They look at past performances and check x-rays if available. They take the horse out of the stall and check his legs. If there is any doubt about the soundness of the horse it is scratched. And we are doing this with three vet this year instead of the usual two. The new synthetic track that we will put in for next year's meet will go a long way to solving many of these problems. It is a very forgiving track. The breakdowns are greatly reduced where this product has been in operation. I hope this answers a few of your concerns. Please know that no one cares more about the well being of the horses than the crew of people we have working here.
Joe Harper |
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