Santa Anita, preparing to reopen for racing Friday on the heels of a highly-publicized spate of breakdowns during its winter/spring meet, will be served by a veterinary team of seven individuals under the auspices of Dr. Dionne Benson, Chief Veterinary Officer for The Stronach Group, the track announced Monday. The team, which also includes Santa Anita's primary Track Veterinarian, Dr. Dana Stead, will oversee every aspect of Santa Anita's training and racing operation.
Dr. Benson's team will be reviewing all horses that have given 48-hour notice to work out, on either the one-mile main track or six-furlong training track, as well as reviewing all horses that are entered to run in races. In addition to reviewing past performance, workout patterns and veterinary records, the team will continue to observe horses as they go to and exit both the main track and training track each morning, as well as observe horses as they go through their daily routines, be it jogging, galloping or breezing.
All horses that are entered to run will physically inspected at their respective barns and selected horses will be inspected as a part of the 48-hour workout review process.
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