Re: RC: RE: RE: RE: Fw: Drugs

[Truman Prevatt <truman.prevatt@netsrq.com>]

No two people metabolize ethyl alcohol at the same rate, either.  None the less,
we have threshold levels for blood alcohol content defined by law above which
level people are defined by said law as being impaired and hence unfit to drive.
These laws have held up to legal challanges as being constitutional.

I would like to see the AERC take a look at moving in this direction.  That is
defining "therputic threshold levels" above which any test above said threshold
level is definied as positive and would b in violation of the drug pollicy and
would result in punishment.  Any test below this level would be defined as
negative.

I believe the AERC drug policy is a good one that has served us well.  It has
however become probmatical in it's current form because of the advances in the
testing technology, and it is probably time for the vet committee to take a good
hard look at the issue.

Truman

"Glenda R. Snodgrass" wrote:

> > The biggest problem with that is enforcement.  There is no point in wording
> > ANY rule in such a way that it cannot be enforced.  No two horses metabolize
> > any substance at the same rate, so blood tests won't tell you when a drug was
> > administered.
>
> While I can see your point here Heidi, in my mind, none of what you are
> saying precludes the issuance of "guidelines" which would assist new folks
> (in particular) in making decisions about when to schedule medical/dental
> work for the horse and when to return to competition following illness or
> injury. The point about tranquilizing for dental work is a good one -- it
> would *never* have entered my mind in scheduling dental work that a trace
> of the tranquilizer could show up in a drug test 2 months down the road.
> That's the kind of education that Linda is talking about, I believe, and I
> agree with her that it needs to be done.
>
> The first step has been taken in publishing a list of banned substances,
> with a caveat "this list is not complete ..." and all that good legalese.
> Why can't this be taken one step further in publishing "guidelines" that
> would give ranges of time and/or ranges of drug levels, taking into
> consideration the different metabolism rates of horses, with all the
> caveats spelled out, with the clear statement that the existing rules
> still apply, the vet committee has discretion to make final
> determinations, etc.  What is the harm in that?
>
> This wouldn't be changing the rule, merely supplying additional, needed
> informtion to the membership.
>
>

--
Truman Prevatt
Brooksville, FL

Mystic "The Horse from Hell" Storm with one on the way
Rocket a.k.a. Mr. Misty
Jordy a.k.a. Bridger (when he is good)
Danson Flame - Hot Dog I'm healed and ready to go.

http://www.mrsl.com



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