I am still curious as to why a barn or stable is doing their own in house drug testing after competitions. Why would this be part of routine post race protocol if horses are supposed to be racing drug free. I can see testing before a race to make sure that a horse is clean to start. But why would it be necessary to test after a race if you haven't used prohibited substances during competition.
I don't care so much about the positive and the outcome from this. I am just trying to figure out why in house drug testing after competition would be included as part of the routine after care protocol in a professional racing barn if horses are competing drug free. I feel like I am missing something here.
Some of the top placing horses in UAE race for multiple seasons, they typically only do 1 or 2 races per year. Most of the trainers have learned how to manage and maintain their best horses. But of course there is a high attrition rate, some of the stables have hundreds of horses in training, and of course the use of drugs can lead to fatalities or career ending injuries.
Also - there are 'good trainers' as well as 'bad trainers' so it's not fair to generalize across the UAE, and across the middle east.
One thing that is interesting is that the vets over there are observing an increased incidence of stress fractures. This is the type of injury that was rarely associated with endurance riding in the past - much more common would be soft tissue injury and osteoarthritis. They attribute this to the higher speeds that endurance horses are running at. (flatter groomed courses, better training and management techniques).
Steph
On Apr 13, 2009, at 11:03 AM, Kathie Ford wrote:
Well this is interesting. They always win.(The UAE) So does this mean that they have most likely NOT won may of their races fairly? I've also wondered in the past in regards to their horses. Do they ride the same horses that win in other rides over the years like we do here? Or do their horses just sort of disappear and are never raced again?
