U.S. Congress: "It's Time to Draw the Line" - By Sen. Tom Udall and Rep. Ed Whitfield

[andymays]

http://cs.bloodhorse.com/blogs/industry-voices/archive/2011/05/03/it-s-time-to-draw-the-line-by-sen-tom-udall-and-rep-ed-whitfield.aspx

Excerpt:

While medicating sound horses on race day is concerning, the doping of sore horses is appalling. Sore and lame horses should not be raced. Feeling no pain, an injured horse on drugs may continue to charge down the track, endangering every horse and jockey in the race. Drugs may account for the fact that the U.S. horse fatality rate is more than three times higher than in comparable British flat racing. Trainers or anyone else caught doping racehorses should face stiff penalties, including fines and meaningful suspensions.

We reluctantly believe that Congressional action is needed to address this critical challenge facing the industry. Unlike other sports, horse racing lacks a governing body that can issue uniform medication rules and ban performance-enhancing drugs. That is why recent calls from the RCI and The Jockey Club to phase out race-day medication are not enough to save American horse racing. An existing law, the Interstate Horseracing Act of 1978, should be amended to ban performance-enhancing drugs and require stiff penalties for doping. We plan to introduce legislation soon in the Congress that would do just that.

http://cs.bloodhorse.com/blogs/industry-voices/archive/2011/05/03/it-s-time-to-draw-the-line-by-sen-tom-udall-and-rep-ed-whitfield.aspx

[andymays]

In a perfect world this might be a solution but it’s my opinion that anything they do needs to be phased in over at least 5 years. A “cold turkey” ban would cause just about every jurisdiction to stop racing for an extended period of time.

It’s hard to argue with the argument that Horse Racing should have taken care of this on its own by now by setting national standards for testing and national standards for penalties. Make no mistake; this will be a “runaway train”.

Brace for impact,

Andy

[Tom]

Racing has failed to clean up its own house, now someone else will do it for them. No sympathies for anyone. The only thing worse than having the government stick its nose in your business is deserving to have it done.
This should be a huge CF.

[thaskalos]

Medicating and racing sore and ailing horses may be "part of doing business"...but it is a shameful part of the game - and it should cease immediately!

Risking the lives of the jockeys and the horses in the name of monetary gain is appalling...and should not have been tolerated as long as it has been.

Horse racing doesn't exist in a vaccum...it must still abide by laws of proper conduct.

And if the game suffers as a result...so be it!

[andymays]

Medicating and racing sore and ailing horses may be "part of doing business"...but it is a shameful part of the game - and it should cease immediately!

Risking the lives of the jockeys and the horses in the name of monetary gain is appalling...and should not have been tolerated as long as it has been.

Horse racing doesn't exist in a vaccum...it must still abide by laws of proper conduct.

And if the game suffers as a result...so be it!

Where the issue gets tricky is the definition of "sore". All athletes are sore at some point and go into competition "sore". No athletes should compete when they are "sore" to the point of risking permanent injury or in the case of Horses "sore" to the point of risking their lives or the lives of the Jockeys.

[thaskalos]

Where the issue gets tricky is the definition of "sore". All athletes are sore at some point and go into competition "sore". No athletes should compete when they are "sore" to the point of risking permanent injury or in the case of Horses "sore" to the point of risking their lives or the lives of the Jockeys.
Andy...this is too serious an issue for us to get caught up in a play of words.

In a related article which was posted on this board not too long ago...it was revealed that, in the vast majority of the fatal breakdown cases, the horses had incurred previous trauma on the EXACT spot as that of the fatality.

What does that tell us?

Horses are rushed back to the track before previous serious injuries have properly healed.

And, since we already know that no animal would willingly overly exert itself on an ailing limb, we must assume that the horses' pain threshold was "altered" by drugs.

[andymays]

Andy...this is too serious an issue for us to get caught up in a play of words.

In a related article which was posted on this board not too long ago...it was revealed that, in the vast majority of the fatal breakdown cases, the horses had incurred previous trauma on the EXACT spot as that of the fatality.

What does that tell us?

Horses are rushed back to the track before previous serious injuries have properly healed.

And, since we already know that no animal would willingly overly exert itself on an ailing limb, we must assume that the horses' pain threshold was "altered" by drugs.

I'm not playing and I know this is serious. It could end up putting a lot of people out of business if not handled correctly.

Who is going to be determining the degree of "soreness" and whether or not a horse should race at all?

[andymays]

http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/62863/equine-drug-bill-introduced-by-congressmen

Excerpt:

The first violation calls for a fine of at least $5,000 and a suspension of at least 180 days; a fine not less than $20,000 and a suspension not less than one year for a second violation; and for a third offense, a fine not less than $50,000 and a permanent ban from horse racing.

The two lawmakers in a statement allege “permissive medication rules have resulted in some unscrupulous trainers giving horses painkillers and other drugs to improve their chances of success without regard for health or safety.”

Industry officials repeatedly have said the percentage of positive calls for such drugs is negligible, and that equine drug testing in the United States is the best in the world. Most of the positives are for legal, therapeutic medications used on race day or a few days before.

Udall and Whitfield claim illegal drug use is rampant in U.S. horse racing.

“Chemical warfare is rampant on American racetracks, and unlike other countries, our law does not reject this unscrupulous practice,” Udall said in a statement. “A racehorse has no choice when it comes to using performance-enhancing drugs, but this legislation takes away that option from those who would subject these magnificent animals to such abuse for gambling profit. Those involved in horse racing will have to play by the rules or face getting kicked out of the sport.”

[Grits]

Trio of high profile breeders and owners are in agreement.

http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/62864/trio-of-owners-lobbying-for-federal-drug-ban

[andymays]

Trio of high profile breeders and owners are in agreement.

http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/62864/trio-of-owners-lobbying-for-federal-drug-ban

I'm kind of surprised more people aren't interested in what's going on in Congress. This could be the last straw for Horse Racing as we know it in the short term. In the long term it may be better but in the short term........ :confused:

Who's going to take care of all the horses that are banned from racing for bleeding or from chronic "soreness"? I'd imagine that the numbers of retired horses would be easily be in the thousands after one year of their new plan.

[lamboguy]

Racing has failed to clean up its own house, now someone else will do it for them. No sympathies for anyone. The only thing worse than having the government stick its nose in your business is deserving to have it done.
This should be a huge CF.this statement is about as correct as correct can be. good response.

the only thing that can revive this game is to have an association like football, baseball, basketball, and car racing. horseracing must police themselves in the proper manor.

i got plenty more to say but i am going to keep my month shut for awhile because i am involved in a beef in a racetrack now.

[andymays]

http://www.paulickreport.com/news/ray-s-paddock/proposed-legislation-would-impose-zero-tolerance-on-drugs/

Excerpt:

The bill, as written, would not allow even trace amounts of any medication in a racehorse on the day of a race. That would make U.S. medication regulations the most stringent of any racing nation, most of which have threshold testing levels for specific therapeutic drugs.

[mountainman]

The proposed measures are too strong, just as current policies are too weak. As stated earlier, the govn should never have had to step in. Rather than close ranks and protect their own, honest horsemen should have screamed and bellowed years ago for stiffer penalties on cheaters. They're the main victims. Like protection claims, drugging is a horsemen on horsemen crime.

Racing suffers from the fallout, and the risk to animals and riders is unacceptable, but it's law-abiding trainers who take the financial hit in terms of both purses and clients when their peers beat them by cheating. I put much of the blame for this epidemic on the national hbpa for trying to have it both ways rather than siding with the good guys and taking a pro-active stance LONG ago.

[Charli125]

http://www.paulickreport.com/news/ray-s-paddock/proposed-legislation-would-impose-zero-tolerance-on-drugs/

Excerpt:

The bill, as written, would not allow even trace amounts of any medication in a racehorse on the day of a race. That would make U.S. medication regulations the most stringent of any racing nation, most of which have threshold testing levels for specific therapeutic drugs.

The thing a lot of people don't realize is that it would make it the most stringent in the world. I recently learned this, but in other countries(Australia for example) the thresholds are much higher than ours. I'm talking 100 times higher and more in some cases. So when a horse passes a drug test in another country, they could actually have more of a drug in their system than a horse that fails in our system.

I'm not saying it's bad to get rid of drugs; I'm not in a position to know what is/isn't the best for the horse. I do think we need to have people that actually know what they're talking about writing this type of bill though.

[andymays]

Statement from Alex Waldrop as seen on Equidaily front page.

http://www.equidaily.com/

"We strongly disagree with the overall characterization of our sport by the authors of the Interstate Horseracing Improvement Act. Horseracing continues to outpace other sports in its drug and medication policies. The winner of every race is subject to drug testing at every track, every day in the United States. Non-winning horses are also subject to random drug testing. The fact is that less than one half of one percent of the more than 100,000 tests resulted in a positive for illegal drugs or overages of therapeutic medications in 2010. Our industry is committed to catching and punishing cheaters.

"The horse industry, together with capable and committed state regulatory authorities, equine veterinarians and others, is now engaged in a far reaching dialogue over legal, therapeutic, race-day medications. Preserving the welfare of our athletes and the integrity of our competition will always be our foremost goals."

http://www.equidaily.com/

[Delawaretrainer]

The proposed measures are too strong, just as current policies are too weak. As stated earlier, the govn should never have had to step in. Rather than close ranks and protect their own, honest horsemen should have screamed and bellowed years ago for stiffer penalties on cheaters. They're the main victims. Like protection claims, drugging is a horsemen on horsemen crime.

Racing suffers from the fallout, and the risk to animals and riders is unacceptable, but it's law-abiding trainers who take the financial hit in terms of both purses and clients when their peers beat them by cheating. I put much of the blame for this epidemic on the national hbpa for trying to have it both ways rather than siding with the good guys and taking a pro-active stance LONG ago.

Love this post. I don't know why horseman don't scream more about the cheaters like the guy with extreme numbers at Philly Park. Maybe they are afraid their horses will get claimed in retaliation. Or, they are afraid their complaints will not be handled anonomously. I have thought of going to the HPBA but thought the same thing, that maybe they are focused on protecting horseman from authorities instead of protecting horseman from other cheating horseman.

[thaskalos]

Statement from Alex Waldrop as seen on Equidaily front page.


"The horse industry, together with capable and committed state regulatory authorities, equine veterinarians and others, is now engaged in a far reaching dialogue over legal, therapeutic, race-day medications. Preserving the welfare of our athletes and the integrity of our competition will always be our foremost goals."

http://www.equidaily.com/

How does Alex Waldrop expect to be taken seriously after comments like these?

[andymays]

How does Alex Waldrop expect to be taken seriously after comments like these?

Just a guess but I would say well over 95% of everyone involved in horse racing is going nuts over this bill if implemented as introduced. A zero tolerance with no trace amounts on race day will put Horse Racing out of business for quite a while and some states will close the doors. The people who I've spoken with who work in the industry are scared to death over this Bill (as currently written).

[thaskalos]

Just a guess but I would say well over 95% of everyone involved in horse racing is going nuts over this bill if implemented as introduced. A zero tolerance with no trace amounts on race day will put Horse Racing out of business for quite a while and some states will close the doors. The people who I've spoken with who work in the industry are scared to death over this Bill (as currently written). Andy, I love this game...and I have been supporting it in a serious fashion for 30 years. It pains me to see what is has become over the last few years.

And I am sure of one thing:

If the horse racing "industry" is allowed to continue to run things without outside "interference"...they will choose to run the game into the ground before they implement the necessary changes needed to revive it.

[andymays]

Andy, I love this game...and I have been supporting it in a serious fashion for 30 years. It pains me to see what is has become over the last few years.

And I am sure of one thing:

If the horse racing "industry" is allowed to continue to run things without outside "interference"...they will choose to run the game into the ground before they implement the necessary changes needed to revive it.

I agree that they have run the game into the ground and they should have cleaned it up without Congress. Nevertheless this Bill as written right now will put most of the industry out of business.

[andymays]

http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/62909/aaep-urges-caution-on-federal-drug-bill

Excerpt:

The legislation, introduced in Congress May 4, apparently doesn’t differentiate between legal therapeutic medications and illegal drugs.

The legislation deals with “any substance capable of affecting the performance of a horse at any time by acting on the nervous system, cardiovascular system, respiratory system, digestive system, urinary system, reproductive system, musculoskeletal system, blood system, immune system—

Read more: http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/62909/aaep-urges-caution-on-federal-drug-bill#ixzz1LaepKR9O

[Brogan]

Andy...this is too serious an issue for us to get caught up in a play of words.

In a related article which was posted on this board not too long ago...it was revealed that, in the vast majority of the fatal breakdown cases, the horses had incurred previous trauma on the EXACT spot as that of the fatality.

What does that tell us?

Horses are rushed back to the track before previous serious injuries have properly healed.

And, since we already know that no animal would willingly overly exert itself on an ailing limb, we must assume that the horses' pain threshold was "altered" by drugs.
I'm coming a little late to this discussion, but the above highlighted sentence is just plain incorrect. It is the nature of the tbred to run, run and run some more. They will try to run despite any pain...it is very seldom that a horse pulls himself up, its the jockey that feels something is amiss and yanks back on the reins.

[andymays]

If the bill passes as is then it's a total disaster for Horse Racing in my opinion.

[cj]

If the bill passes as is then it's a total disaster for Horse Racing in my opinion.

Maybe that is what horse racing needs long term, a total disaster to make it start over.

[andymays]

Maybe that is what horse racing needs long term, a total disaster to make it start over.

Maybe, but if they take too long I'll be too old to have any fun after I win. :D

[Bruddah]

I say this country has more pressing issues Congress should deal with and I love Horse Racing. Yet, they have a group that thinks they should "manage" horse racing. Hell, Congress will only mismanage AND F**CK IT UP WORSE THAN IT IS NOW!

We need term limits at every level of Government. These guys build their little fifedoms and then try to act as if they are doing something. No more excuses for creating more Government.

I wished I had the power to fire every one of their sorry asses.

[Bruddah]

Love this post. I don't know why horseman don't scream more about the cheaters like the guy with extreme numbers at Philly Park. Maybe they are afraid their horses will get claimed in retaliation. Or, they are afraid their complaints will not be handled anonomously. I have thought of going to the HPBA but thought the same thing, that maybe they are focused on protecting horseman from authorities instead of protecting horseman from other cheating horseman.

You get a big AMEN BRUDDAH! You hit the nail square on the head!