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As we speak the Congress is having hearings about drug use in Major 
League Baseball. These are the types of drugs that have long term 
effects like Epogen which was or one of its cousins have been used in 
cycle racing. Bottom line we are has my grandaddy "pissing into the 
wind" if we think the drug enforcement the FEI has in place will do 
anything to stop such use or protect the horses from such abuse.

I don't see it an issue with the AERC because I don't see many that 
would risk their horse for the first place awards you see at an AERC 
ride. Ah but for winning the WEC, selling your horse for big bucks by 
winning FEI rides in record times or the pride of kicking someone's butt 
at the big show for bragging rights and maybe a few side bets - those 
are prizes that would put the horses at risk.

Will we see FEI address this issue. Sure we will - when pigs fly.

Truman

Susan E. Garlinghouse, DVM wrote:
> And also keep in mind that there are drugs that exert a systemic 
> effect long after the drug itself is gone---ie, the synthetic 
> erythropoietin that stimulates bone marrow to increase the production 
> of red blood cells and thus markedly increase oxygen transport to 
> muscle cells. The bone marrow remains stimulated after the Epogen 
> itself is past a measurable level---something the toxicology labs are 
> working on, but it’s a tough nut. The same Epogen protocol increases 
> performance in human athletes, great stuff except for that pesky 
> potential side effect of the occasional stroke, heart attack and 
> sudden death. Horses have their own physiologic adaptations for 
> maximizing red blood cell content safely, but manipulating it 
> artificially does exert an effect on performance, if a very dangerous 
> one. But if your only goal is winning, the occasional dead horse 
> shouldn’t be too much of a hindrance.
>
> Susan Garlinghouse, DVM

--

"It is even harder for the average ape to believe that he has descended 
from man." H.L. Mencken


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