[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ fullwidth=”on” admin_label=”Hero” _builder_version=”4.9.4″ background_color=”#FFDBCC” parallax=”on” custom_padding=”0px|0px|0px|0px”][et_pb_fullwidth_header title=”Racing Through Their Veins: Doping in Horse RACING” subhead=”Doping and legal medication keeps the horse racing industry divided. Photo courtesy of Ryan Haynes.” background_overlay_color=”rgba(29,38,51,0.86)” content_max_width=”700px” admin_label=”Hero Section” _builder_version=”4.9.4″ title_font=”Oswald|on||on|” title_font_size=”80px” title_line_height=”1.3em” content_font=”Roboto||||” content_font_size=”20px” background_color=”rgba(255, 255, 255, 0)” background_image=”https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/mrp\/horseracing\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/34\/2021\/08\/IMG_3686.jpg” custom_button_one=”on” button_one_border_radius=”0px” button_one_letter_spacing=”4px” button_one_font=”Oswald|on||on|” button_one_icon=”%%3%%” button_one_icon_color=”#ffffff” custom_margin=”|||” custom_padding=”151px||210px|||” custom_padding_tablet=”60px||60px|” custom_padding_phone=”” custom_padding_last_edited=”on|tablet” animation_style=”zoom” animation_direction=”bottom” animation_intensity_zoom=”4%” button_one_text_color_hover=”#ffffff” button_one_border_color_hover=”#ffffff” button_one_border_radius_hover=”0px” button_one_letter_spacing_hover=”4px” button_one_bg_color_hover=”rgba(0,0,0,0)” button_one_text_size__hover_enabled=”off” button_two_text_size__hover_enabled=”off” button_one_text_color__hover_enabled=”on” button_one_text_color__hover=”#ffffff” button_two_text_color__hover_enabled=”off” button_one_border_width__hover_enabled=”off” button_two_border_width__hover_enabled=”off” button_one_border_color__hover_enabled=”on” button_one_border_color__hover=”#ffffff” button_two_border_color__hover_enabled=”off” button_one_border_radius__hover_enabled=”on” button_one_border_radius__hover=”0px” button_two_border_radius__hover_enabled=”off” button_one_letter_spacing__hover_enabled=”on” button_one_letter_spacing__hover=”4px” button_two_letter_spacing__hover_enabled=”off” button_one_bg_color__hover_enabled=”on” button_one_bg_color__hover=”rgba(0,0,0,0)” button_two_bg_color__hover_enabled=”off”]<\/p>\n
By Raylene Lung<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_fullwidth_header][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.9.4″ background_color=”#FFE8CC” custom_padding=”110px||110px|”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.9.4″][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text admin_label=”Discover Beatuty Title” _builder_version=”4.9.4″ text_font=”||||” text_text_color=”#1a1a1a” header_font=”Oswald|on||on|” header_text_align=”left” header_font_size=”60px” header_line_height=”1.3em” animation_style=”slide” animation_direction=”%22fade_in%22″ animation_duration=”500ms” animation_intensity_slide=”10%”]<\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_divider color=”#ed4441″ divider_position=”center” divider_weight=”3px” disabled_on=”off|off|off” _builder_version=”4.9.4″ max_width=”150px” height=”false” animation_style=”slide” animation_direction=”top” animation_delay=”200ms” animation_intensity_slide=”10%”][\/et_pb_divider][et_pb_text disabled_on=”on|on|off%22%22″ admin_label=”Discover Beatuty Text” _builder_version=”4.9.4″ text_font=”Roboto||||” text_font_size=”16px” text_line_height=”1.9em” custom_padding=”30px|||” animation_style=”slide” animation_direction=”top” animation_delay=”300ms” animation_intensity_slide=”10%”]<\/p>\n
Everyone knew he was fast. He had previously won other expensive races, including the Kentucky Derby in 2019. But he just kept getting faster.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Then in that same year, his trainer,<\/span> Jason Servis and 26 other trainers, veterinarians and drug distributors were charged<\/span><\/a> for secretly doping several horses in a cheating scheme that shook the racing industry. Those involved customized and distributed mislabelled drugs so they could be secretly administered to the racehorses.<\/span><\/p>\n Servis is accused of administering performance-enhancing drugs to several horses under his control, including Maximum Security.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIt’s a good thing that happened,\u201d says Reade Baker, a thoroughbred racehorse trainer in Toronto, Ont. \u201cHopefully, it’ll stop guys from doing stuff like that in the future.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n The events in the U.S. have caused the Canadian industry to question their own methods at the racetrack. Trainers, owners and industry professionals saw the Maximum Security scandal as a threat to the industry as a whole, and worried about their own hometown tracks. The controversy of doping and improper drug administration has been brewing in the American racehorse industry for decades, but the Canadian industry began to question if they had the resources to prevent doping from becoming a bigger problem behind their own barn doors.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n They believe doping is a problem at their own racetracks. They believe people are getting away with pumping their horses full of performance enhancers. They believe drug testing is not effective or sensitive enough. Then there are controversial medications, the legal ones that are being abused. People in the industry say a lack of leadership and oversight and punishments have left the Canadian racing industry exposed to what could be a devastating drug scandal.<\/span><\/p>\n Drug scandals have happened on Canadian soil in the past. In 2007, Ben Wallace, a trainer out of Flamboro Downs in Hamilton, Ont.,<\/span> had a horse that tested positive for aminorex<\/span><\/a>, which is an illegal stimulant. Wallace received about $15,000 in fines and a racing suspension in Ontario of up to five years. Then in 2010, at the Windsor Raceway, video evidence was discovered of trainer Derek Riesberry injecting a standardbred horse\u2019s trachea with a hypodermic needle that forced officials at the track to pursue criminal charges. <\/span>This case made it all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada.<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/mrp\/horseracing\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/34\/2021\/08\/image0.jpeg” title_text=”image0″ _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default” custom_padding=”|0px||||”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default” custom_padding=”0px||3px|||”]<\/p>\n Horses race neck in neck at Century Mile racetrack in Edmonton, Alta. Photo courtesy of Julie Brewster.<\/em><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_divider color=”#E01F45″ divider_position=”center” divider_weight=”3px” _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default” width=”20%”][\/et_pb_divider][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”]<\/p>\n On May 1, 2021, American trainer Bob Baffert\u2019s face held a wide grin as his colt Medina Spirit bolted past the finish at the 147th Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs. Everyone in Louisville seemed to have seen it coming \u2014 Baffert had seven Kentucky Derby winners. No one was surprised.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Then a few days later, Baffert\u2019s three-year-old thoroughbred failed his drug test, testing positive for the steroid and anti-inflammatory known as betamethasone. The colt had nearly double the legal limit of betamethasone in his system.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Baffert has since been suspended from training at Churchill Downs. He had to wait for Medina Spirit to have a second test before the horse could be disqualified, but it was determined that the horse was treated with a dermatitis ointment containing the steroid prior to the race. Any trace amounts, no matter the source, are still illegal on race day in Kentucky. As of May 2021, Baffert was allowed to enter the horse in the Preakness Stakes in Baltimore, under strict testing and monitoring rules, despite Medina Spirit\u2019s positive test results. Baffert was not allowed to attend.<\/span><\/p>\n There has been controversy around the case of Baffert\u2019s horse\u2019s positive test, including other trainers<\/span> that say testing is too sensitive and the steroids didn\u2019t aid the horse in his win.<\/span><\/a> Others say he was getting away unscathed.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Then, on July 14, 2021, Baffert won his appeal in a New York courtroom, with the New York Racing Association nullifying his suspension at Belmont, Aqueduct and Saratoga racetracks.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Medina Spirit\u2019s victory is still undetermined. The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission has yet to conduct a hearing; a date hasn\u2019t been announced.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Only one Kentucky Derby winner has ever been disqualified because of a drug violation \u2014 a horse named Dancer\u2019s Image in 1968.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n But this isn\u2019t the first time Baffert has been caught in an illegal drug scandal.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n At the 2018 Santa Anita Derby, Triple Crown winner Justify tested positive for scopolamine, a nausea medication, the results were attributed to the natural jimson weed in the feed and bedding from Baffert\u2019s barn.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Then in spring 2020, two of Baffert\u2019s horses, Charlatan and Gamine, both tested positive for lidocaine after the Arkansas Derby. Baffert was fined and suspended but won his appeal after claiming that the medication in the horse\u2019s system had been transferred through a pain patch that had been worn by his assistant trainer, Jimmy Barnes.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Later in 2020, at the Kentucky Oaks, Gamine tested positive again, for betamethasone. The medication needs to be administered two weeks before the horse races and was not, therefore showing up in the filly\u2019s system.<\/span><\/p>\n Since the Medina Spirit scandal, the American and Canadian have been more alert to how prominent doping really is.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/mrp\/horseracing\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/34\/2021\/08\/image1.jpeg” title_text=”image1″ _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”][\/et_pb_image][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_font=”||on||||||” custom_padding=”||5px|||”]<\/p>\n An exercise rider prepares to race a horse on the track in the morning at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, CA. Photo courtesy of Julie Brewster.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default” min_height=”12.5px”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_divider color=”#E01F45″ divider_position=”center” divider_weight=”3px” _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default” width=”20%”][\/et_pb_divider][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default” min_height=”719px” custom_margin=”-32px|||||”]<\/p>\n For an American industry with earnings in the millions, it is not surprising that trainers like Baffert and owners might do whatever it takes to win. But in Canada, which operates with slightly smaller purses, doping is still sneaking in behind stall doors.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n There are currently only 12 Thoroughbred racetracks across Canada, some of which also host harness racing. There are 31 race tracks in the country that host both thoroughbred racing and standardbred harness racing.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n According to a study conducted in 2010 by Equine Canada<\/span><\/a>, the Canadian horse racing industry contributes $19.6 billion to the economy annually. Horse racing accounts for 29% of the revenue of the Canadian horse industry. Ontario has the largest industry, representing 26% of the total expenditures for the Canadian horse industry.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Jim Lawson, CEO of the Woodbine Entertainment Group, along with Christina Litz, the vice president, say the horse racing industry contributes more than 50,000 jobs. In Ontario alone, it accounts for 35,000 jobs and contributes around $2 billion to the national economy, through ticket sales and wagering. These jobs are possible, thanks to wagering on horse races through the pari-mutuel system in place, regulated and supervised by the federal agency operating under Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada called the Canadian Pari-Mutuel Agency (CPMA) since 2006. The agency ensures that pari-mutuel betting is conducted in a way that\u2019s fair to the public.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The CPMA deters the use of illegal substances in horses through the Equine Drug Control Program, which monitors drug and medication use and controls every aspect of drug testing in the Canadian horse racing industry.<\/span><\/p>\n Doping is an issue but the administration of any medication at any racetrack in Canada (and North America) must be done by a licensed veterinarian. A vet has the authority to administer any necessary injectable medication, whether with a needle or syringe. In the case of oral medication, trainers are allowed to administer that themselves but it must be under the supervision of a vet. The rules around this can vary slightly among each provincial racing commission, but for the most part are the same. By putting the control of the drugs into the hands of the vets, this should theoretically defer illegal drugs from ever entering a horse\u2019s system.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Steve Smith, who\u2019s been a racetrack vet in Edmonton for over a decade and currently works at the Century Mile track, is familiar with the Drug Control Program. He says while trainers can\u2019t administer anything (without supervision), they are able to request medications like hyaluronic acid (which aids in cell production)\u00a0 for the horse’s joint health. As it\u2019s a natural component of healthy joint fluid, Smith says he has no problem fulfilling the trainer\u2019s request for it if he sees fit.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIt would be totally common for a trainer to request something like that. And I have no problem, administering that to a horse,\u201d he says.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/mrp\/horseracing\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/34\/2021\/08\/image2-1.jpeg” title_text=”image2 (1)” _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default” min_height=”29px” custom_padding=”||2px|||”]<\/p>\n A racehorse trots out on the track, ready to race, alongside a track pony at Northlands Park in Edmonton, Alta. Photo courtesy of Julie Brewster.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_divider color=”#E01F45″ divider_position=”center” divider_weight=”3px” _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default” width=”20%”][\/et_pb_divider][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default” custom_margin=”-2px|||||”]<\/p>\n Whether the drugs are administered safely by a vet or not, The CPMA Equine Drug Control Program is meant to keep track of whatever enters the horse\u2019s system. The program was established to deter the uncontrolled use of drugs, both legal and illegal, in racehorses. Representatives of the program insist that positive tests are rare.<\/span><\/p>\n The program works closely with provincial commissions, such as Ontario Racing and the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario to support the integrity of betting to ensure that all horses are raced fairly.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The program has guidelines that set out the dosage regimen for each classification of drug, including the time it takes for the drug to be completely flushed from the horse\u2019s system. They test for all types of drugs as well, not just the illegal ones.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Provincial governing bodies determine the finish order of the race and can then determine which horse is tested based on performance or request. The Equine Drug Control Program collects and analyzes blood or urine from horses before or after a race. <\/span>Positive tests are reported to the appropriate provincial regulatory body or racing commission to determine the penalty, if there is one, <\/span>and how and when the drug was administered. They relay this information to the drug program, if they ask for it. The CPMA\u2019s authority is restricted to post-race testing of races. According to the CPMA, there are two official laboratories that conduct the testing \u2014 the CPMA Reference and Research laboratory and Bureau Veritas Laboratories.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Out of competition testing (testing done before a race or on days outside of race day) is performed by provincial racing commissions.<\/span><\/p>\n The drugs are divided by classification, according to the <\/span>Association of Racing Commissioners International<\/span><\/a>, and the province investigates, and determines the penalty based on their findings.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n All positive test results are made available to the public through each provincial commission. In the case of racing in Ontario, <\/span>positive test data<\/span><\/a> for the last 3 years is available on the Alcohol and Gaming Commission\u2019s website but doesn\u2019t offer enough information to be truly illuminating.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n But James Watson, media relations for Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, says that the testing is thorough. He also says there are usually four types of positive tests. But Carolyn Cooper, a Canadian Pari-Mutuel Agency expert, says that the drugs aren\u2019t always easy to identify.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThe issue is that a drug can fit into more than one category,\u201d Cooper says.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Smith agrees, saying that there are some doping agents out there that aren\u2019t detectable by the time the horse races.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Not only that, but some trainers and owners buy substances from outside of Canada that the CPMA cannot test for. Sometimes, they even have their own chemists creating compounds for them, says Dale Saunders, who has been a horse trainer in Alberta for more than 50 years.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n While the actual tests are complicated, most testing is done after the races rather than before and only those who are assumed to have drugs in their system are tested. Cooper says taking a sample before a race is disruptive.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cSometimes it can take an hour or two to get a urine test,\u201d she says. \u201cIf the province wanted to pull a blood sample before a race, they could set the horse off. The horses know what their jobs are.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/mrp\/horseracing\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/34\/2021\/08\/mrp-horse-racin_45054525.png” title_text=”mrp-horse-racin_45054525″ _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”][\/et_pb_image][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”]<\/p>\n Data suggests that the CPMA collects positive drug tests every race season. Infographic made with Piktochart. Photo credit to Woodbine Entertainment Group.<\/em><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”]<\/p>\n For example, drugs like aminorex act as a stimulant and are still detected in drug tests at the racetrack. But its testing is made difficult due to the fact that it is also a metabolite of a legitimate substance, according to the Kentucky Equine Drug Research Council. Another problem lies in how the drugs enter the horse\u2019s system in the first place.<\/span><\/p>\n Morphine, on the other hand, while not illegal, is a painkiller and can enter the horse\u2019s bloodstream via injection or pills. But both Watson and Cooper say that sometimes indirect exposure can also occur, for example, through a human\u2019s prescription medication (as was the case with Bob Baffert\u2019s Medina Spirit and the pain patch). Cooper says that often occurs when a trainer or groom urinates in a horse\u2019s stall, which she says is not uncommon.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThe trainers are definitely more aware, and they’re taking a lot more care,\u201d Cooper says. \u201cBut there are definitely still a few every year.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Morphine can linger in the horse\u2019s system for a longer period of time, even when administered legally. Sue Leslie, who has been president of the Horsemen\u2019s Benevolent and Protective Association in Ontario for 16 years, says this can occur when a horse undergoes a legal procedure and is given morphine by a vet. If the horse races a week or so later, the horse tests positive for morphine.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n She adds that those aren\u2019t the types of positives that concern her, considering how minute the amount of morphine is.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Another issue that arises are synthetic versions of illegal drugs that circulate. They are also hard to test for, and Smith says the solution is more out of competition testing \u2014 testing not done on race day.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI think that would improve the integrity of racing,\u201d he says.<\/span><\/p>\n Out of competition testing would help combat another major drug issue in the industry \u2014 blood doping.<\/span><\/p>\n The most common drug for blood doping is erythropoietin, or EPO. Produced naturally in the body by the kidneys, it signals the bone marrow to create more red blood cells, therefore allowing for increased oxygen carriage. Forms of synthetic EPO like epogen can be given to people who are anemic, but when given to healthy individuals, it can increase endurance, bringing the red blood cells to higher levels. When administered to horses, it similarly boosts their body\u2019s production of their RBCs, enhancing their race performance.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n EPO has been a longstanding issue in horse racing, Smith says, and has posed many issues in terms of testing, mainly because the synthetic drug disappears from the horse\u2019s system quickly.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201c<\/span>EPO or derivatives of it, synthetic EPO, those sorts of things would be something that certainly can improve performance,\u201d he says. \u201cIt is something that you need to do out of competition testing to really catch.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n While the drug disappears from the horse\u2019s system within approximately three days, the effects can last up to a week\u00a0\u2014 the horse may not receive a positive test, but they would have more red blood cells in their system.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201c[Your horse] would be able to run not faster, but further. And that’s what racing is all about,\u201d Dr. Rod Cundy says. \u201cIt’s not so much speed, it\u2019s endurance.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Cundy was a racetrack veterinarian out of Edmonton and Calgary for 40 years before joining the Horsemen\u2019s Benevolent and Protective Association of Alberta, the governing body for individuals in the racing industry. He has been involved with several racing bodies, advocating for different rules around drugs at the track.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n He also says out of competition testing would solve this issue.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n While out of competition testing does occur, it is not conducted by the CPMA, says Lydia Brooks, a manager of research for the CPMA. They are restricted to post-race testing of pari-mutuel races. Any other testing is performed by the appropriate provincial racing commissions.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Despite this, Cundy believes that not enough of this testing is done and says that regulatory racing bodies don\u2019t do it often enough.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n As a Horse Racing Hall of Fame trainer, Baker agrees.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIt’d be nice if they all tested before they race and they could run those tests but money is the object,\u201d he says.<\/span><\/p>\n In contrast, provincial commissions like in Alberta and Ontario, have out of competition programs in place. Both commissions may order for a sample of blood, hair, saliva and urine at any time or place and without prior notice. The sample must be taken by a vet designated by the appropriate provincial permission to determine if the horse has any substance in its system.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n If an owner or trainer doesn\u2019t make their horse available for a test, their horse may be scratched for its next race, or the owner or trainer may be barred from entering any horse in future races in said province. In Ontario, the owner or trainer may also be subject to a monetary fine or suspension. The rules don\u2019t outline the value or time period for either of these sanctions.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Another drug that has stirred up controversy is clenbuterol, or Ventipulmin, a bronchodilator that opens up a horse\u2019s airways. Not only does it make it easier to breathe, it also has an acute side effect: it helps build up muscle mass. Horse trainers started using it after other anabolic steroids like testosterone became illegal.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWhen they put a stop to [anabolic steroids], and were testing for it, [trainers] started using this clenbuterol to build up muscle mass on their horses and take advantage. That was a legal drug that was getting used illegally,\u201d Cundy says.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n According to the current CPMA guidelines, the legal dosage of clenbuterol (used as a decongestant) is 0.40 mg taken by mouth, twice a day for five days. It has to be out of the horse\u2019s system within 28 days, but Cundy says he used to argue for the CPMA to increase the time.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThey had withdrawal time for that of only two or three days or something. And that’s not going to stop them from using it for this muscle building purpose. Eventually it got to seven days, but now they’ve got a ban on it in some of these jurisdictions in the U.S., it’s not allowed anywhere in their system ever.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThat was one drug that I fought for big-time at the end of my career,\u201d he continues.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Despite having initial pushback from the Horsemen\u2019s Benevolent and Protective Association in Ontario, Cundy says it was \u201c10 years before they finally got on the bandwagon.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Another doping agent that has been a hot topic at the racetrack is sodium bicarbonate or “soda doping”. Baking soda, which is alkaline, offsets the acidic lactic acid in a horse\u2019s body, making their muscles less tired. The solution, often referred to as a \u201cmilkshake\u201d, acts as a performance enhancer by boosting horse\u2019s endurance. The process entails inserting a tube up the horse\u2019s nose and down its throat, pumping a diluted mixture of sodium bicarbonate into its stomach.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s still to this day one of the most abused substances in races, because you can tweak around the edges and give a horse so much and get away with it,\u201d Cundy says.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n He says there was only one time he can recall giving a horse baking soda, to a horse trained by straight-laced, Albertan trainer Rod Haynes. The horse went on to win.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n However, recent research published in the Journal of Equine Veterinary Science reveals that soda doping doesn\u2019t in fact boost horses\u2019 performance. Soda doping in human athletes has been studied for years, but has often produced <\/span>uncertain results.<\/span><\/a> The data from the study concludes that from eight experimental trials of 74 horses, the sodium bicarbonate did not improve horses\u2019 running abilities, in the simulated racing trials or treadmill tests.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Cundy says that testing has soda doping mostly under control now. For every horse that is taken to the test barn after a race in Canada, blood samples are drawn to determine sodium bicarbonate levels. Yet certain trainers, he says, still give their horses enough where it doesn\u2019t go over the limit, yet still gives the horse an edge.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/mrp\/horseracing\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/34\/2021\/08\/image1-1-scaled.jpeg” title_text=”image1 (1)” _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.9.4″ _module_preset=”default” min_height=”32px” custom_margin=”||29px|||” custom_padding=”0px||6px|||”]<\/p>\nthe Recent American Scandals<\/h1>\n
An Inside Look<\/span><\/h1>\n
Let’s Talk About Drugs\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n