equine safety

Since last summer, the New York Racing Association (NYRA) has trialed on thousands of runners a discreet sensor technology capable of detecting minute changes in a horse's gait at high speed. Called StrideSAFE, the biometric sensor mechanism slips into the saddle cloth and works like a traffic light signal, providing a green for all-clear, an amber for possible warning (light amber better than dark amber), and a red for possible danger. The ultimate aim of StrideSAFE--a focus of discussion during the recent Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation Welfare and Safety of...

Owner, breeder, humanitarian, and philanthropist Earle Mack was bestowed with the William T. Young Humanitarian Award by the Kentucky Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders (KTOB) Wednesday morning. The former U.S. Ambassador, who has been breeding and racing Thoroughbreds for nearly six decades and has had 25 black-type winners, including Canadian Triple Crown winner Peteski (Affirmed) and U.S. MGISW November Snow (Storm Cat), is well known for his humanitarian work, both in the industry and in the greater world. A long-time supporter of numerous equine charities and a strong proponent of Thoroughbred...

If there's a main takeaway from Tuesday's Arizona Racing Commission Meeting, it's an acknowledgement from officials and track management that the racing industry is monitoring Turf Paradise closely. "We've got to do a better job at coming up with answers and coming up with solutions," said commissioner Rory Goree, arguably the most outspoken member of the commission about Turf Paradise's poor equine safety record. "I'm hopeful that here, in the near future, we as a commission will be able to talk about some of the solutions and ideas and make...

At a special Arizona Racing Commission Meeting Wednesday, Turf Paradise's equine safety record was once again a serious bone of contention, with commissioner Rory Goree calling the track's equine fatality numbers "deplorable." In her routine track safety report, Sue Gale, the Arizona Department of Gaming's chief veterinarian, explained that 22 horses have died at Turf Paradise since the start of the meet, on Nov. 5 of last year--nine racing-related fatalities, five during training, and eight due to illness. The racing-related catastrophic injury rate works out to 2.8 fatalities per 1000...

Del Mar rounded out its 2021 racing calendar Dec. 5 with the conclusion of its eighth Bing Crosby Season following its successful fall and summer meets. Between them, the pair totaled a combined final wagering mark of $943.49 million, a record for the seaside oval. Among highlights this season, the oval saw the return of racing fans, healthy purses in addition to hosting another record-setting Breeders' Cup. Also in 2021, a single horse was injured catastrophically in the 426 races and 3,552 starters that performed during the two meets. Total...

The Maryland Jockey Club confirmed the cancellation of live racing at Laurel Park through Sunday, Dec. 5 as work continues to complete repairs to the track and to analyze recent equine injuries. While racing is suspended, the Maryland Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association and the Maryland Jockey Club are working with industry experts to analyze surface composition and maintenance procedures directed at the safest possible racing surface. According to a MJC press release: "Until now, and through collaborative measures among industry participants, Maryland racing has experienced the lowest fatality rate in its...

The Breeders' Cup outlines health and safety protocols for the 2021 World Championships, which take place Nov. 5-6 at Del Mar. EQUINE SAFETY, TESTING AND SECURITY All Breeders' Cup runners are subject to: Randomized out-of-competition (OOC) testing (beginning internationally in June and concluded Nov. 1, resulting in the collection of over 300 blood and hair samples Expanded veterinary scrutiny in-stall and during training at Del Mar, Santa Anita and San Luis Rey Training Center Mandatory trot up observations of every horse prior to being permitted to enter a racing surface...

We recently ran part one of our story on the challenges facing HISA. Today, we deal with lawsuits, adjudication, and more. This time next year, the machinery of horse racing in the U.S. may be almost a month into a radical system overhaul. But with scant few calendar pages between now and then, what do we know about how the cogs, wheels, and pulleys of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) will work together? To find out, the TDN reached out to Charles Scheeler, chair of the HISA board...

Part One of a Two-Part Series If the letter of the law is any reliable prognosticator, this time next year the United States horse racing industry will already be nearly a month into what promises to be a major realignment of the planets. With the official enactment of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) on the first of July, 2022, racing jurisdictions North and South, East and West will be bound by the same medication standards, safety rules, and enforcement mechanisms--a hallelujah for many who have long championed the...

After 15 years as California's equine medical director, Dr. Rick Arthur has stepped away from the post. A vocal proponent of tightened welfare practices in the sport, Arthur has spearheaded during his tenure a slew of equine safety reforms that have made California arguably the most stringent regulatory environment in the States. Arthur's forthrightness, however, has led to him staking out positions that have at times proven polarizing. The day after Arthur officially stepped down, he conducted a Q&A with the TDN, the first part of which can be seen...

Continuing a decades-long regional effort to enact uniform medication, safety and welfare reforms, protocols and rules, a coalition of 31 regulatory and stakeholder organizations representing all seven states in the Mid-Atlantic region have unanimously agreed to work together to implement a new rule that will significantly restrict the improper use of the bronchodilator clenbuterol. Under the current regional rule, clenbuterol may not be administered to a horse within 14 days of a race, and the concentration of the drug in a post-race blood sample may not exceed 140 picograms/ml. The...

Santa Anita, which concluded its 16-day Autumn Meet Oct. 25 with 1,106 horses racing and 51,200 training sessions since Sept. 5., when the Del Mar Summer Meet was winding down, had no racing or training fatalities during that time. The meet was pushed back due to the Bobcat Fire in the neighboring San Gabriel Mountains and the track did not host live racing until Sept. 25. The main dirt track at the Arcadia oval has not had a single racing fatality in 2020, including during the Winter/Spring Meet which began...