Maybe they are. Decreased numbers of starts may be an indicator. The general perception that TBs are more fragile now. The fact that horses over 4 who have been racing on lasix longer have highest death rate.
Statistics might not tell the whole story? Say what? That’s crazy talk. :rolleyes::lol:
(I hope you can tell I typed that in my sarcasm font)
1 Like
[Sarcasm font]
I mean, obviously, the only thing that has changed in racing over the past 50 years is Lasix. There are no other factors possibly at play here.
[/Sarcasm font]
3 Likes
Thank God for you, Texarkana. You have more patience than I do.
2 Likes
I appreciate that you think I’m being patient. I’m really just being snarky at this point.
I think the Lasix debate is a serious one. I don’t like to see it dominated by misinterpreted statistics and perceptions.
Racing welfare reform is SO hard. Racing is inherently dangerous, yet people always seem to forget that fact when pointing fingers…
4 Likes
What is the rationale for allowing Lasix in training but not on race day?
Is it the drug masking issue like it is in human athletes?
Lasix question/thought from a racing fan: in human medicine we give Lasix often, but it’s almost always given in conjunction with K+ supplementation because loop diuretics deplete potassium like crazy. Is this something that’s monitored on the track? I don’t know if equine dosing is high enough to cause that problem or not, but my nurse brain is curious.
1 Like
You are so wrong about your information it’s ridiculous, and you make no sense whatsoever. There is no link between Lasix and breakdowns and soundness. Your conclusions are wrong.
You do realize that horses usually get Lasix on race day, not every day, right? You cannot compare Lasix in horses to Lasix in humans.
1 Like
Well, that answers ~something~, but not the question asked.
5 Likes
Herbivores inherently have more K+ intake in their diet than omnivores/carnivores, consuming it in excess. In a single race day dose, the K+ depletion can be corrected quickly with oral electrolyte supplementation, or will self-correct over time. The sodium depletion is generally a bigger concern for herbivores, but again, can be easily corrected orally. Likewise with calcium and magnesium.
7 Likes
It’s not just me. https://www.paulickreport.com/news/ray-s-paddock/commentary-lasix-industry-an-out-of-control-juggernaut/
1 Like
I was hoping someone with actual international experience would respond. Since no one has, I’ll put in my 2 cents. My best guess would be because of the different cultural perceptions towards race day meds. To my knowledge, the UK and Europe have always been against all race day meds, where America has been accepting of thresholds.
Our racing is very different than European racing in most every way, so our tolerance of threshold levels makes sense.
Most other major countries tend to aspire to emulate racing practices and racing conditions more similar to the UK than the USA. Especially since those other major countries shuttle their top horses to either destination; makes sense to follow the stricter regulations of the two.
A notable exception would be South America. Their practices are more similar to ours and most countries allow race day Lasix in some form.
According to this article :http://www.thoroughbreddailynews.com…lead-on-lasix/ South America as a whole now only allows horses 4 years old and older who are running in non-black type races to run on lasix. They have been phasing it out since 2013. Article states that the non-Lasix fields are much larger in general than the lasix fields, and since blacktype races tend to pay more than non-blacktype ones, the potential rewards are greater.
It’s an interesting article in more than one way.
1 Like
That would be the reason I said “in some form.”
Are you surprised that richer races attract more horses? That’s pretty much a given.
The only reason you see short fields in high dollar races is when there aren’t enough fast horses in the barns to be competitive. No one is going to run their $12K maiden claimer in a $250k race just because the field is small. That’s like going from an 18” crossrail class straight to a 1.45m Grand Prix just because there aren’t a lot of entrants.
4 Likes
Hollendorfer and the CA TB Trainers filed a complaint against Del Mar in superior court. I have no idea how long Del Mar has to respond, but it will be interesting to hear what they say.
That’s interesting. Last I knew Alan Balch leads the CA Trainers group. He knows exactly how to navigate this kind of mess.
Im late to this party but…It always puzzles me why Standarbreds can race longer age wise and with more starts than your average Thoroughbred. I’ve known Standarbreds racing into their double digits with well over 20 starts a year and many do it on Laxis and on stonedust. Of course some of those are cheap claimers but don’t you think they would be on the short list for breakdowns? Maybe they are a tougher breed?
SA/TSG are considering a return of the 6 1/2 f downhill sprints to SA’s downhill turf course for the fall meet starting September 25.
Discussions are ongoing.
Speed kills. It’s that simple.
3 Likes
