Endurance.Net Ridecamp Archives

For years now, the FEI has allowed endurance horses to compete on a drug not 
allowed by the AERC, that drug is omeprazole (often adminstered as Gastrogard 
to horses), so one would assume that there has, for equally as long, been a 
policy in place for how to deal with FEI endurance horses in the USA who are 
allowed to compete on a drug allowed by the FEI but not by the AERC.

Does anybody know what this policy is?? Or if there is one?? Or if there isn't, 
then why isn't there?

Also, with respect to horses competing on Bute (and many other NSAID's, 
including Banamine and most recently added, Surpass), this has LONG been 
allowed by USEF, and its predecessor AHSA.? And yes, there are plenty of horses 
in the US competing in both show jumping and dressage on bute or other 
anti-inflammatories.

You can find on page?2 of:

http://www.usef.org/documents/competitions/2007/2007DrugsMedsGuidelines.pdf

A list of the drugs allowed in most USEF competitions that are not FEI 
sanctioned as well.? And yes, they are allowed at the USDF Region 7 
Championships for FEI Level Dressage.? Though the FEI level tests are used for 
these championships, they are not FEI CDI competitions, and therefore are 
governed by USEF's Drugs & Medications Policy.

Tons of dressage and show jumpers are shown on NSAID's to help them with their 
arthritis.? Surpass even ADVERTISES that it is allowed to be used for 10 
consecutive days (instead of just the 5 allowed for bute or banamine).

The arguement that MAY have been made at the FEI General Assembly that went 
something along the lines of "horses in the US have been competed on bute for 
years, so why not the FEI too?"

And it isn't just USEF that has long allowed the use of substances with 
anti-inflammatory/analgesic properties.? The AERC has at least ONE such 
subtance on ITS list of allowed subtances, and that is ice.? Ice has VERY 
strong anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties, yet many an endurance rider 
(myself included) has been known to use it (and therapeuticaly I might add) at 
an endurance ride.? And if patrick Perkins is to be belived, the assorted 
'chondroprotective agents" on the AERC's allowed substance list also have these 
properties.

A?very good argument can be made that a little bit of anti-iinflammatory 
(whether ice or some oral pharmaceutical) is in the best interests of a horse; 
although, I confess, because of what I now know of its analgesic properties, 
_I_ reserve the use of ice for POST ride, and I figure if it would be in the 
best interests of my horse to use it DURING (or before) the competition, that 
it would be in even better interests of the horse to stop riding it in the 
competition.

kat
Orange County, Calif.
:)

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