Equine Safety at Forefront for Breeders' Cup

When Santa Anita Park hosts the Breeders' Cup World Championships for an unprecedented 10th time Nov. 1-2, the top priority for the event is equine welfare, officials said Oct. 30 during a news conference on safety protocols.

As a result of 36 equine deaths from racing or training at the Arcadia, Calif., track since December, including six during the ongoing autumn meet, all eyes are upon Santa Anita and the Breeders' Cup this week. Already this fall, animal welfare groups have protested outside the gates of the track, and the deaths have garnered national news coverage and calls from politicians for reform.

It was against that backdrop that Breeders' Cup officials met with the media Wednesday, outlining their plans for what they hope will be a safe two days of racing.

"Having a safe and consistent surface, having multiple veterinary exams, having security on these horses all combine to measure success for me, for the corporation, for the racetrack," said Dora Delgado, executive vice president of racing and nominations for the Breeders' Cup. "It's the No. 1 priority. If we can't put a product out there that gives our fans and wagering public a sense of confidence, then we're doing it wrong."

Over the course of a 45-minute meeting, Delgado and accompanying veterinarians outlined the initiatives undertaken by the organization, practices they said are layered on top of those by Santa Anita and the California Horse Racing Board. These include a combination of examinations from a pool of 30 veterinarians, required 14-day medical record history for participants, and increased veterinary monitoring during racing and training. 

Dr. Dionne Benson, chief veterinary officer for The Stronach Group, which operates Santa Anita, declined to speculate about the cause of rising fatalities this autumn compared to last year, even with enhanced safety measures.

"I think that until the full investigation is done—the information, the necropsies (are) back—it would be premature for any of us to comment," she said. "For our purposes, we are going to try to see if anything can be done and what can be improved in our horse safety and welfare, and if we do identify anything, we will make those changes."

Although no horsemen were on the panel assembled for the conference, most have accepted the initiatives undertaken by track, state, and now the Breeders' Cup. Among these, repeated veterinary evaluations of the equine participants.

"They've got a lot of checks and balances in place here, a lot of examinations, which is fine," said trainer Bill Mott, who runs Channel Maker in the Longines Breeders' Cup Turf (G1T) and Yoshida  and Elate in the Longines Breeders' Cup Classic (G1). "We want to make sure the horses are moving good going into it, that they've passed the veterinary exams that they've been looked at, and we certainly don't want to miss anything."

Physical inspections are only part of the Breeder's Cup protocols. In the spring, the Breeders' Cup began its out-of-competition testing program from blood and hair follicles, collecting samples from its Breeders' Cup Challenge Series race winners and horses that were considered as possible starters. Over the course of the year, the pool of sampled horses grew, totaling more than 250, and not one tested positive for any performance-enhancing or prohibited medication, officials said.

In addition to its own initiatives, Breeders' Cup is continuing the protocols established by Santa Anita and the CHRB that began in the spring. These sweeping medication restrictions limit use of pain management and anti-inflammatory medications and treatment, joint injections, shockwave therapy, and anabolic steroids. The dosage of Salix, the anti-bleeding diuretic known more commonly as Lasix, is now down to 5 cc, a 50% reduction from its previous level.

Despite these changes, catastrophic breakdowns have continued. On Oct. 27, the filly Bye Bye Beautiful was pulled up with a leg injury on the backstretch of a main-track dirt race and later euthanized, setting a somber tone for the start of Breeders' Cup week.

Injuries have not been restricted to the main track. Others have died from racing or training on turf or the training track. 

Mott said he likes the steady track maintenance at Santa Anita, noting three renovations of the main track allow the opportunity to train over a freshly harrowed surface. The inner training track is also maintained regularly and groomed at different intervals.

Those two tracks, along with the grass course, went through an extensive evaluation in early spring when the track closed for most of March following a spike of fatalities. A new drainage system was installed under the main track before this meet.  

"I'm not worried about the track surface," trainer Bob Baffert said from his barn this week. "I don't know, we've just had a rash of injuries. I know it happens in sports. In horse racing, they're slowly getting control of it. It's like keeping the freeways safe—anything that moves, some things are going to happen."

Should an injury occur—they have happened during previous Breeders' Cups—officials expect to have a team in place to address it. A total of 14 veterinarians will be stationed within the paddock, on the racetrack, and on the backstretch. An equine hospital is also on site at Santa Anita.

Speaking to reporters after the briefing, Breeders' Cup president and CEO Craig Fravel, who will join management at TSG after the Breeders' Cup, said his organization remains fully committed to Santa Anita. He pointed to its board of directors meeting in June and unanimously agreeing to keep the event at Santa Anita rather than go to an alternative location.

"I don't think when people take corrective measures and sincere efforts to correct a situation and address something that you turn your backs on them and go somewhere else," he said. "It's just not the right thing to do."