AERC Charges & Reports

[Randy H Eiland <renegade12@juno.com>]

The AERC has a document titled, POST - RIDE STATISTICAL REPORT, that
every Head Vet fills out and it is sent to the AERC Office.  This P-RSR
lists the name of the ride, distances, dates, region, Ride Manager,
number of Ride Vets, Head Vet, # of starters, finishers, and Non
finishers.  It also requires reasons for Non Completions, ie Lameness
which limb, types of lameness and the same thing for Metabolic and Rider
Option.  All deaths require a report to be filed listing  a full
accounting of all circumstances involved...this is sent to the AERC Vet
Committee.  
 
Once the information is provided to the AERC VC, the VC reviews the
reports and can ask questions or interview any parties privy to the
event.  A final report is then furnished by the VC to the AERC Board of
Directors.  As any reasonable person can imagine, this can take some
time.  I am not aware of any situation where the circumstances were
"swept under the rug" or hidden from anyone.  99.9% of all AERC Members
are caring and concerned with horse welfare.  100% of the Board and the
Vet Committee are concerned with horse welfare.  In my experience as both
an AERC member, Director, and past VP and President,  I believe AERC has
always gone the extra step to insure that our horses welfare is protected
above all else.   When an unfortunate event does occur, we have always
investigated the circumstances and taken the appropriate action when it
is called for.
 
I believe that AERC's record on equine welfare far exceeds any other
horse discipline, including "pleasure riding".  Equine fatalities related
to AERC endurance riding are somewhere near .00025%.  That equates to an
average of less than 5 horses per year out of approximately 20,000 horse
starts per year.  The AERC Vet Committee has records on most rides,
including final reports of fatalities.  I think the records will reflect
that almost all of those cases involved extenuating circumstances that
would have probably affected the subject horses sometime in their
lives...it was just the luck of the draw that it occurred at an endurance
ride.  I do not think the individual findings should be made public, but
I do think they should be available to any AERC member who wishes to see
the final reports.
 
I am proud of AERC's record in horse welfare and would proudly stand our
record against any other horse discipline as well as any other national
endurance organization.
 
Randy Eiland
SW Region Director