Prominent horse owners vow to run 2-year-olds without race-day drugs

[parsixfarms]

How about the geared-down winning performance from Lunar Victory in today's Evan Shipman Stakes at Saratoga? A very talented horse who may be the top New York-bred horse in training on dirt, he has now won four consecutive races for Bill Mott and the anti-Lasix pledge-taking Juddmonte Farms. In the third victory of his current streak, he bled through Lasix so bad that it was noted in the race chart. Would racing be better off without the horses like Lunar Victory?

[freddymo]

Originally Posted by parsixfarms

How about the geared-down winning performance from Lunar Victory in today's Evan Shipman Stakes at Saratoga? A very talented horse who may be the top New York-bred horse in training on dirt, he has now won four consecutive races for Bill Mott and the anti-Lasix pledge-taking Juddmonte Farms. In the third victory of his current streak, he bled through Lasix so bad that it was noted in the race chart. Would racing be better off without the horses like Lunar Victory?

The point is racing would be better off without lasix in general. BTW geared down? Please like in 2 jumps a horse is so much slower if the rider relaxes , this stuff is so overrated. Of course I like watching good horses and of course I want to see horses like Lunar Victory run. My issue is how come at Royal Ascot and Longchamps the horses are fine and at Saratoga and Delmar they aren't?

[Riot]

Originally Posted by freddymo

My issue is how come at Royal Ascot and Longchamps the horses are fine and at Saratoga and Delmar they aren't?

The horses at Royal Ascot and Longchamps are not "fine". The same number of horses as in the US bleed and suffer EIPH. The horses at Royal Ascot and Longchamps just suffer EIPH more severely when it happens during a race, as they train on lasix, but don't race on it. Plenty of horses come back to the paddock snorting blood out their nostrils. Read the stewards reports before you guess.

[Riot]

There is a segment of the racing industry that wants no drugs allowed on race day.

I agree with that. I am anti-illegal performance enhancers. I am 100% for what improves the welfare and safety of the race horse, what is in the best interests of the horse - not owners, nor trainers, nor gamblers.

And with the health and welfare of the horse first and foremost, I agree with the 99.999% of my professional veterinary colleagues, that furosemide should continue to be allowed as a legal race day therapeutic medication. That's because the veterinary medical community knows lasix attenuates the severity and frequency of EIPH.

Thus it's continued use is for the better health and welfare of the race horse, in the view of the professional veterinary community responsible for that health and welfare

A small segment of the racing industry doesn't want any drugs used on race day. They are angry the vet community doesn't fall in line with their idea. So they have to demonize lasix. They have to demonize the veterinary community. They demonize scientific research.

They created the false meme that "lasix is a performance enhancer and must be eliminated", while maintaining they don't have to prove this made up claim.

I'm tired of the lies and the nonsense. What has to be done is what is best for the race horse. Not the egos of a very small segment of participants, who are willing to sacrifice what's best for the race horse in order to demagogue their issue and massage their egos.

[Indian Charlie]

Originally Posted by Riot

I'm tired of the lies and the nonsense.

Stop reading your posts, that should help.

Originally Posted by Riot

What has to be done is what is best for the race horse.

Inject away! Maybe the jockeys should be on Lasix too, just to make sure.

Originally Posted by Riot

Not the egos of a very small segment of participants, who are willing to sacrifice what's best for the race horse in order to demagogue their issue and massage their egos.

You mean like what you and other vets do?

[Riot]

Originally Posted by Indian Charlie

Stop reading your posts, that should help.

Inject away! Maybe the jockeys should be on Lasix too, just to make sure.

You mean like what you and other vets do?

" So they have to demonize lasix. They have to demonize the veterinary community. They demonize scientific research."

Check.
Check.
Check.

[parsixfarms]

Originally Posted by freddymo

The point is racing would be better off without lasix in general. BTW geared down? Please like in 2 jumps a horse is so much slower if the rider relaxes , this stuff is so overrated. Of course I like watching good horses and of course I want to see horses like Lunar Victory run. My issue is how come at Royal Ascot and Longchamps the horses are fine and at Saratoga and Delmar they aren't?

I really think a lot has to do with the difference in the surfaces over which the horses are raced/trained. The fact is that our dirt races, contested with a premium on early speed, in many respects, are a battle of attrition. I don't think it can be seriously debated that dirt races are more strenuous on the horse than turf races are. Few turf races are contested in the same way; in fact, just the opposite, the premium is placed on late speed.

This is more anecdotal than anything else but twice we have owned turf horses that would bleed if worked strenuously (over 4F) on dirt. When we got up here in Saratoga and were able to work them over the Oklahoma turf course, we could work them up to 6F without incident in the morning. It did illustrate that, when a horse is breezed/raced over what was for him a more demanding/uncomfortable surface, he was more apt to bleed (even with Lasix).