Category: Medication

68th Round Table Conference to Feature Anti-Doping, Achieving Integrity, and Diversity

louisianathoroughbred

The Jockey Club announced today that its 68th Annual Round Table Conference on Matters Pertaining to Racing will highlight the importance of reform in medication rules and testing, challenges faced by the Thoroughbred industry, and insights into the claiming system. This year’s conference will be held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It will be streamed on The Jockey Club’s website at jockeyclub.com on Sunday, August 16, at 10 a.m. EDT and be aired on TVG and Racetrack Television Network’s respective platforms. The Jockey Club Chairman Stuart S. Janney III will preside over the conference.

“While we are disappointed that we cannot host an in-person event, we are excited by this year’s lineup of speakers and the perspectives they will share with the conference’s virtual attendees,” said James L. Gagliano, president and chief operating officer of The Jockey Club.

Gagliano will interview three-time Tour de France winner Greg LeMond about anti-doping and the importance of clean competition. LeMond has been outspoken about performance-enhancing drugs for more than 30 years and has testified before the United States Anti-Doping Agency.

Trainers Mark Casse, John Gosden, and Jessica Harrington will discuss training and competing in different jurisdictions in a panel moderated by Matt Iuliano, executive vice president and executive director of The Jockey Club. Casse was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame this year, while Gosden has trained champions in both the United States and Europe. Harrington, based in Ireland, has trained top horses on the flat and over jumps.

Bob Costas, former sportscaster for NBC Sports and current sportscaster for MLB Network and contributor to CNN, will discuss covering the Triple Crown races and the challenges faced by sports in 2020. Prior to leaving NBC Sports in 2019, Costas co-anchored or hosted its coverage of baseball, football, basketball, hockey, golf, NASCAR, boxing, the Olympics, and horse racing. Costas co-hosted NBC’s coverage of the Kentucky Derby from 2001-2018.

Sal Sinatra, the president and general manager of the Maryland Jockey Club, will present on America’s system of claiming races and recommend changes that would benefit the sport. Before joining the Maryland Jockey Club, Sinatra spent 15 years at Parx Racing, where he was the vice president of racing and racing secretary.

Katrina Adams, the immediate past president of the United States Tennis Association (USTA), will discuss the importance of diversity. She previously served two terms as the USTA’s chairman and president and was an accomplished professional tennis player on the Women’s Tennis Association Tour for 12 years. Adams was the first African American, first former professional tennis player, and youngest person ever to serve as USTA president.

Jason Wilson, president and chief operating officer of Equibase, will deliver a report on the activities of The Jockey Club.

The full agenda and bios of all speakers will be posted on jockeyclub.com in advance of the conference.

The Jockey Club Round Table Conference was first held on July 1, 1953, in The Jockey Club office in New York City. The following year, it was moved to Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

The Jockey Club, founded in 1894 and dedicated to the improvement of Thoroughbred breeding and racing, is the breed registry for North American Thoroughbreds. In fulfillment of its mission, The Jockey Club, directly or through subsidiaries, provides support and leadership on a wide range of important industry initiatives, and it serves the information and technology needs of owners, breeders, media, fans and farms. It founded America’s Best Racing (americasbestracing.net), the broad-based fan development initiative for Thoroughbred racing, and in partnership with the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association, operates OwnerView (ownerview.com), the ownership resource. Additional information is available at jockeyclub.com.

More Than 600 Stakeholders from Across the Racing Industry Sign Public Letter In Support of Protecting Lasix as a Choice on Race-Day

louisianathoroughbred

LEXINGTON, KY (Friday, Sept. 20, 2019) – A unified industry group believes banning Lasix will adversely impact the health and welfare of racehorses, as well as the strength of our industry. Today, a letter (posted below) was released with more than 600 signatures in support of protecting Lasix as a choice for horsemen and veterinarians to administer on race-day for the well-being of equine and human athletes. The initial round of signatures from racing stakeholders features individuals from across the industry. Signatures will continue to be collected going forward. Click here to be added to the list.

Public Letter on Stance to NOT Eliminate the Choice to Administer Lasix on Race Day

A recent open letter proclaimed that “horse racing is at a pivotal moment in its long history in the United States.” On this we agree. We also agree all of us love and cherish the equine athletes upon which our industry is built. To that end we believe in practicing the highest standards of horsemanship, and we continually work to improve the care, health and safety of our thoroughbred racehorses.

In that regard, we support horsemen and our veterinarians having the continued option to run a horse with a race-day administration of the therapeutic and protective medication furosemide (Lasix).

We, too, are ready for change and will eagerly embrace change if the alterations are done for the greater good of equine health and welfare. We are committed to reforms emphasizing transparency and developments that will address misunderstandings from those in the non-racing public as well as ensuring our horses are treated with the highest degree of care. The eradication of our choice to administer race-day Lasix will not do any of those things.

It is our belief that banning Lasix will adversely impact the health and welfare of our racehorses as well as the strength of our industry. Research also proves an increased number of horses will bleed significantly out of their nostrils, or into in their lungs, and an increased number will die.

We understand and agree things can and should be done to improve the safety and welfare of our equine athletes. It is just as important to understand what is NOT causing catastrophic injuries, as it is understanding the underlying causes. Many continue to claim Lasix will interfere with post-race drug testing due to dilution, but this argument has long been disproven. Lasix is a short-acting diuretic and the dilution effect is gone in two hours. However, the tightly regulated administration of Lasix is required four hours before a race. Thus, Lasix has no ability to interfere with blood or urine testing after a race.

No one takes our stance on this position casually, but we believe we must not be led down a path created by perception and not facts. For this reason we must stand for what is in the best interest and safety for our equine and human athletes.

This letter includes an initial round of over 600 signatures from racing stakeholders and signatures will continue to be collected going forward. Click here to be added to the list.

Signatures include the following: Rusty Arnold; Steve Asmussen; Buff Bradley; Bret Calhoun; Anita and James Cauley; Dr. Nancy Cole; Brad Cox; Boyd Caster; Wayne Catalano, Jake Delhomme; Michael Ann Ewing; Greg Foley; Vickie Foley; Tim Glyshaw; Larry Jones; Dallas Keen; Marshall Gramm; Dr. Chuck Kidder; Mike and Penny Lauer; Mike Maker; Ron Moquett; Randy Morse; Maggi Moss; Loren Hebel Osborne; Joe Orseno; Joel Politi; Allen Poindexter; Louis J. Roussel III; Clay Sanders; Chester Thomas; Mike Tomlinson; Tom Van Berg; Kelly Von Hemel; Gary and Mary West; Ian Wilkes; Jack Wolf; Erv Woolsey.

The entire list may be viewed as a PDF file and can also be found at this link (list updated as of 9/20/19):

Industry Reaction To Racetrack Coalition’s Proposed Partial Phase-Out Of Lasix

louisianathoroughbred

by

 

Reaction was mixed to the announcement on Thursday by a coalition of U.S. racetracks to partially phase out race-day administration of the anti-bleeding diuretic furosemide (Lasix), beginning with 2-year-olds racing in 2020 and in stakes races beginning in 2021.

Those supporting the initiative include all tracks owned or operated by Churchill Downs Incorporated (CDI), the New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) and The Stronach Group as well as Del Mar, Keeneland, Lone Star Park and Remington Park, Los Alamitos Racecourse (Thoroughbreds), Oaklawn Park and Tampa Bay Downs. Breeders’ Cup Limited, the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders’ Association (TOBA) and its American Graded Stakes Committee and the Kentucky Thoroughbred Association also signed on in support of the proposal.

 

To Read Paulick Report Article

Racetrack Coalition Moves Toward Lasix Ban in Stakes

louisianathoroughbred

Fair Grounds among Twenty Racetracks Committed to Ending Race-day Lasix in stakes in 2021.

 

A coalition of leading Thoroughbred racing associations and organizations announced April 18 a new initiative committed to phasing out the use of the medication furosemide (Salix, commonly called Lasix) beginning in 2020 and eliminating the use of Lasix in stakes races at their tracks beginning in 2021.

Coalition racetracks that have signed on to this initiative include all tracks owned or operated by Churchill Downs Inc., the New York Racing Association and The Stronach Group as well as Del Mar, Keeneland, Lone Star Park, Remington Park, Los Alamitos Racecourse (Thoroughbred meets), Oaklawn Park, and Tampa Bay Downs. Taken together these tracks represent 86% of the stakes races assigned graded or listed status in the United States in 2018. The coalition tracks will work diligently with their respective horsemen’s associations and racing commissions toward implementing this effort.

To Read BloodHorse Article

What Medications Are Safe for Mares?

louisianathoroughbred

Giving medications to pregnant mares is never without risk and should always be discussed with your veterinarian.

Which drugs are safe for use in pregnant mares? 

My pregnant mare is colicking … can I give her Banamine? She needs a laceration sutured … is it safe for her to get a sedative? What about her fall vaccines?

Which common drugs and medications are safe for use in pregnant mares is a huge topic with more questions than answers, says Margo Macpherson, DVM, MS, Dipl. ACT, professor of large animal reproduction at the University of Florida’s College of Veterinary Medicine, in Gainesville. This is primarily because very few drugs have been thoroughly evaluated and validated for use in this population.

Click Here to Read The Horse Article