Endurance.Net Ridecamp Archives

Title: "The opposite of a correct statement is a false statement

What we do know is from fatalities - a horse in a 100 is about 3 times more likely to die than one in a 50 and a horse in a 50 is about 2 times more likely to die than one in an LD and the LD mortality rate is about the same as the equine population as a hole in the age range of 5 to 20 years old.

I expect the treatment numbers would run about along the same lines but those numbers don't seem to be tabulated any where. Other than accident - the deaths are colics. Most likely they result from dehydration and electrolyte imbalances.

Our next challenge IMO is to address two issues. The first is emergency treatment - the sooner treatment is started the better the prognosis. That means that rides will need to provide for on site treatment or for on site stabilization so a horse can be transported to a near by clinic.  Right now that is not part of the AERC policy so that is a discussion that needs to be had.

Part of this is the ability to pay. I hate to see a horse suffer and die as a result of an endurance ride that could have fully recovered and go on for years if only they had quick emergency care at a ride. While I don't think the AERC should be in the insurance business - forming a partnership with an insurance company to develop a program sounds like a good place to start.

The second issue is to address the issues of how to mitigate the onset of dehydration at rides. Are there steps that could be taken and polices introduced that would reduct the risk of colics? We just don't know. We should start trying to find out.

Truman

Joe Long wrote:

Horseraser@xxxxxxx wrote:

hey that emergency fund is what is holding me back for doing Tevis-I figure I need to have at least $2,000.00 set aside for "just in case" stuff

Micki

I will be happy to support a "treatment insurance" program in AERC, and happily pay three or five dollars per ride into a fund to pay costs of treatment at a ride.  I think it would need some qualifying standards or a deductible, say $100, so that it pays for those few cases with high expenses and not routine or "just to be on the safe side" treatments.

We might consider outsourcing this to an insurance company.

-- 
Joe Long  aka ChipRider
jlong@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
  

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"The opposite of a correct statement is a false statement. The opposite of a profound truth may well be another profound truth."  Neils Bohr, Nobel Laureate Physics