Illinois Announces "Premises ID" Requirement to Show or Race Horses at Fairs in 2008

Beginning in 2008, horse owners in the state of Illinois will be required to comply with government ID regulations for livestock if they plan to show or race horses at state, county, 4-H and FFA fairs in the state. The Illinois Department of Agriculture will announce the regulatory policy tomorrow.

Premises registration is the first step toward the establishment of a National Animal Identification System (NAIS), which its supporters claim will greatly improve the ability of animal health professionals to contain disease outbreaks. Regulatory opponents claim the policy to be a bureaucratic nightmare that will simply embroil animal owners in red tape while potentially violating their privacy.

Because the identification number corresponds to the location where an animal is raised, it does not necessarily have to be issued in the exhibitor’s name. The number must be obtained and included on entry forms, however, before fairs will allow an animal to compete. Since horses change owners much more frequently over a lifetime than a typical pig or steer raised for meat, and live longer, the record-keeping will be a burden for trainers and breeders and owners.

Owners of out-of-state horses must obtain a premises ID number through their state’s agriculture department, whose contact information can be found online at http://animalid.aphis.usda.gov/nais/premises_id/register.shtml.

It is not clear if the regulations apply to privately-organized horse events held on publicly-owned show sites.

The application form is posted on the Illinois Department of Agriculture’s website at www.agr.state.il.us/premiseid. Horse owners who register online will receive a premises ID number immediately. The application also can be completed and returned by mail, but may take four weeks to process. To obtain a copy of the form, horse owners should call 1-866-299-9256.

Illinois Truck Crash Traps 59 Draft Horses Inside Double-Decker Trailer

The Associated Press and midwestern US media outlets are reporting this morning on a truck crash that occured Saturday night outside Wadsworth, Illinois.

The driver of a truck hauling a double-decker trailer-load of horses ran a stop sign and collided with a pickup. The trailer turned over, ramp-side down. The horses were trapped inside. It took five hours to get them out. By then, nine or thirteen, depending on which authority you believe, were dead.

That's nine (or 13) out of 59 Belgian draft horses (not Shetland ponies) that were packed, sardine-like, into a single two-story trailer.

It seems logistically impossible but I have checked this story with several sources.

The Chicago Daily Herald has some first-person accounts; the photo above and more information can be sourced from the Chicago Tribune.

Yes, they were heading to an auction; their trip began in Indiana. The driver was released by police and got on a plane. The surviving horses are receiving medical care from volunteers at a local farm.

Who Floats Your Horse's Teeth? Texas Legislation Garners International Attention

The venerable weekly newsmagazine The Economist can't quite figure out the situation in Texas, where new legislation is forcing long-established horse "tooth floaters" out of business.

As always, the Brits offer a well-worded explanation of why we Americans act the way we do.

It is interesting that very little is being written about this in the US horse press, yet a British economy magazine devotes an entire page to it.

Tragedy at the Breeders Cup: Barbaro's Classmate Breaks Down in Classic

There was always a “PS” to the Barbaro story last year. At the same time that Barbaro was winning the Kentucky Derby, his stablemate from the 2003 crop of foals bred by Roy and Gretchen Jackson’s Lael Stables was excelling in Europe. “George Washington” went on to dominate the three-year-old ranks in England and Ireland. His success must have been some small consolation to Mr. And Mrs. Jackson as they struggled with Barbaro’s surgery, convalescence and eventual tragic death when laminitis overwhelmed his recovery odds.

We never heard much about GW over here, but at the end of the racing year, he was retired to Coolmore to stand at stud. Everything looked rosy until it became obvious that the mares bred to him remained open. GW had a low fertility rate.

This spring, the Jacksons’ Kentucky Derby winner was euthanized, never having sired a foal. And in Ireland, their other star product was unable to sire a foal.

Undaunted, the Irish connections sent GW back to the track, where he had a modicum of success in a 2007 comeback career. At least he didn’t embarrass them too badly. His trainer, the ever-successful Aidan O’Brien of Ballydoyle, shipped GW to Monmouth last week to enter the Breeders Cup Classic, a race he had failed to win in 2006.

Just as the horses were preparing to enter the gate, the ESPN commentator gave a quick insight into GW’s connection to the Jacksons and Barbaro. Was it a human interest quip or a curse?

Three minutes later, George Washington was dead, euthanized on the track in front of the grandstand, as burly Curlin charged across the finish line.

The screens went up, the horse ambulance arrived. People ran up the track.

George Washington shattered his cannon bone and then dislocated his fetlock, according to a 20-second interview by ESPN with AAEP On Call veterinarian Larry Bramlage DVM of Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital in Lexington, Kentucky. The dislocation destroyed the blood supply in his lower leg and the trainer quickly made the decision to put the horse down then and there.

I realized I had been holding my breath through seven races, breathing a half-sigh of relief when all the horses cantered across the finish line, no matter how far up the track. They all finished, at least in the races I saw. And then, in the last race, the one horse with an eerie connection to the world’s most famous breakdown met his end.

It was not a Hollywood ending; it was more of Greek tragedy ending. I just didn’t see this one coming.


Read Mike Brunker's opinion piece about George Washington's last race at MSNBC.com or the more factual news report. Photo links to MSNBC.com.

Breeders Cup Tragedy: AAEP On Call Interview with Dr. Wayne McIlwraith

The following is part of a transcript of an interview with Dr. C. Wayne McIlwraith of Colorado State University by Eric Wing of the Breeders Cup press office, in response to the breakdown and subsequent euthanasia of the 2006 European champion stakes horse George Washington in the Breeders Cup Classic at Monmouth Park in New Jersey two hours ago:

ERIC WING: We are live in the interview tent right now. We have with us Dr. C. Wayne McIlwraith, the (designated) On-Call (for ESPN broadcast) veterinarian of the American Association of Equine Practitioners. We saw George Washington was eased late in the race. Can you give us an update on what is going on with George Washington?

DR. McILWRAITH: George Washington sustained an open fracture of the cannon bone in the right front fetlock joint and disarticulated the joint at the same time and had both sesamoid fractures broken. So it was a hopeless injury as far as repair, and he has been euthanized.

ERIC WING: Is this anything that can be attributed to a sloppy racetrack or not?

DR. McILWRAITH: No. You know, there's been no comparative work done scientifically as far as the nature of the track. You know, at times, a sloppy racetrack at the end of the day, you could have some concerns, because they are running in the base; and then obviously the base is not made for them to be running on directly; like it was a very sloppy track. You know..the rest of the races have gone off well, but it's always a concern.

Q. It looked, watching the race, as a spectator, that George Washington was maybe having a little trouble negotiating the course early on. He seemed to be struggling, at least relative to the other horses. Is there any knowledge whatsoever about when during the course of the race this injury might have occurred?

DR. McILWRAITH: Well, typically these injuries occur in the last part of the race. They are more fatigued so they have got less support to the joint. And that's when the injuries normally occur. As you know, he's -- I think this is the first time he's raced on a dirt surface. And he could have had trouble with being less coordinated on that, as he's used to racing on grass; those are possibilities.

(continues)We generally consider these fractures to start as associated with earlier damage, so they can sustain a small degree of damage and then it can escalate into a fracture. So it is quite possible, especially when you have a horse that's relatively inexperienced at that surface and racing on a different surface.

We talk a lot now about investigating the cause of these fractures, minor incoordination or just not landing on the leg as exactly the same way as a horse that's completely used to that surface does.

ERIC WING: Were any of the three owners or trainer involved in the decision prior to euthanization, or is it an open-and-shut case, pardon the term.

DR. McILWRAITH: The decision was made very quickly. Aidan O'Brien was on the racetrack with the horse right after it happened and he requested euthanasia.

Q. I wish to point out, George Washington raced in the Classic at Churchill last year, but races on grass and switches to a track with a lot of water and slop, does it have any meaning, meaning is this a bad example?

DR. McILWRAITH: You mean a bad example to switch it to a sloppy track?

Q. Are you saying it's not a wise move that it should be or should not be done?

DR. McILWRAITH: No. I was being asked for sort of possibilities as to, if you can have contributing factors, and you can certainly have many contributing factors. But, no, I certainly did not imply that it's not a wise move.

ERIC WING: I don't mean to take you outside your field of expertise or your focus today, but as an onlooker and an observer, can you characterize in any way the emotions of Aiden O'Brien or the owners from where you stood?

DR. McILWRAITH: Well, we weren't there. (Dr. Bramlage) and I, we were across the racetrack. So we have no -- we weren't present for that. But I'm sure he's extremely upset about it.

ERIC WING: Doctor, as always, we appreciate your expertise and your speed in getting in here and updating us on the situation. Thank you very much.

Breeders Cup Day News Includes Quarantine at Churchill Downs

It's Breeders Cup Day! Televised coverage of the World Series of Horse Racing from New Jersey's Monmouth Park begins at noon, eastern standard time, on ESPN. (Check your local listings.)

Three new Breeders Cup races, including the dirt mile, were run yesteray. The biggest news of the day was the weather: it was all wet. During the grass race, it was actually hard to see the horses! Nownownow, trained until a week ago by the outlawed Patrick Biancone, came out of the fog for a thrilling mid-track capture of the finish. In the dirt mile, Corinthian scored a decisive victory; poor Discreet Cat, last year's top horse, finished a far-distant third.

I'm distracted from the coverage this morning by reports of a quarantine being lowered on Barn 47 at Churchill Downs, where a three-year-old horse trained by David Carroll tested positive on Thursday for Equine Herpes virus (EHV). The horse has been shipped to Hagyard Equine Medical Institute in Lexington, Kentucky for treatment. The horse is expected to recover, but there's no way to tell if other horses will be affected by the airborne disease.

Complicating matters is that Churchill's fall meet begins on Sunday and horses are shipping in as Keeneland in Lexington winds up its meet. Biosecurity measures include restricting horses that ship in to race to the track's receiving and stakes barns. Disinfecting procedures also have been increased at the receiving and stakes barns, starting gate, and paddock.

A complete report is available on the Churchill Downs web site.

ASPCA Provides Hay for California Evacuee Horses

NEW YORK, October 24, 2007—The ASPCA® (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals®) is providing funding to the San Diego Humane Society for hay and other equine supplies needed following the outbreak of devastating wildfires in California.

“The ASPCA is happy to provide financial assistance for animals affected by this horrible tragedy,” said ASPCA President and CEO Ed Sayres. “Our disaster readiness experts are in touch with the San Diego Animal Coalition as well as animal welfare groups throughout the Los Angeles area, and although the ASPCA’s assistance on the ground has not yet been requested, we are standing by and monitoring the situation carefully.”

Animal welfare officials in the area say evacuees appear to be taking their animals with them and that shelters, especially the Red Cross, have been very accommodating toward pets. However, larger animals, such as horses, can present special challenges, according to the ASPCA’s Senior Director of National Outreach, Sandy Monterose. “We’re glad to be able to help address the challenge of providing food for some of the larger animals,” she said.

For people and organizations wanting to help, Ms. Monterose said, "California pet parents were amazingly prepared, and many made disaster plans for themselves and for their livestock and companion animals. The time for more aid will come when those that have been left homeless will need their local organizations to help them, and those organizations will then need the community’s help to provide needed supplies and services."

Monterose added that organizations outside the immediate area, including national organizations like the ASPCA, "only respond when invited into communities after their resources are exhausted."

California Update: The Horror of the Fires, the Largesse of the Horse World

Did anyone else do a double-take when the ABC news aired a clip of Olympian Gunter Seidel unloading his dressage horses amidst the goats and ponies and rodeo horses at a local fairground? Yes, the evacuation of horses is the great leveler...and one of those times you are glad you know someone with a six-horse trailer. You'll vow never to diss the polo trailers again!

While many of the stories stress the hardships of people facing the approaching flames and getting their horses out of harm's way, there is another story; the story of how people know where to go...and who's in charge when they get there.

Here's a press release from the National Thoroughbred Racing Association:

DEL MAR, USEF PROVIDING HELP TO HUMANS AND ANIMALS DURING WILD FIRES

Del Mar Racetrack and the entire staff at the Del Mar Fairgrounds have sprung into action to help those affected and displaced by the rampant wild fires that have engulfed a number of locations in the Southern California area.

Some 2,000 people and another 2,500 animals, including approximately 2,000 horses, have received shelter at the San Diego area racetrack and fairgrounds. Another 200 or so volunteers have descended upon Del Mar to offer any help they can.

"The people have just been great," said Craig Fravel, Executive Vice President of the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club. "The vast majority of the work has been done by the Fairgrounds people and their staff, but everyone has been terrific. Yesterday we were running out of food and the feed guys at Santa Anita pitched in with two shipments of animal food. The situation is still fluid, though, and we're still not out of it."

Due to a fortuitous shift in the Santa Ana winds, fires that on Tuesday appeared to be heading straight for Del Mar weakened and reversed direction. As a result, many Del Mar area residents were allowed to return to their homes on Wednesday, and the air quality in the area improved noticeably.

"The staff at the Del Mar racetrack and the Fairgrounds has always had the reputation of being an integral part of the local community and never has that been truer than this week," said Alex Waldrop, President and CEO of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association. "We salute everyone at Del Mar for their invaluable service, and our thoughts and prayers continue to go out to all the humans and animals impacted by the fires."

The United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) has in place the USEF Equine Disaster Relief Fund and is now requesting contributions from individuals and organizations wishing to assist those in the Southern California area. Money donated to the USEF Equine Disaster Relief Fund assists equines of any breed that find themselves victims of disasters, including but not restricted to hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, blizzards and fires. The money will be held by USEF in an account restricted for this purpose and disbursed only upon authorization of the USEF Chief Executive Officer.

"During situations like this, it's imperative that we gather forces to assist in any way possible," said USEF Chief Executive Officer John Long. "Thankfully, the weather forecasts are good. However, Southern California just experienced the largest evacuation of residents in our country's history. Of course, that has had an impact on the countless horses that call that part of the state home. The Federation wants to do what it can to assist those horses and owners."

Donations may be made online at www.usef.org.

If you wish to contribute to the effort by check, please make it out to the USEF Equine Disaster Relief Fund and mail it to: The United States Equestrian Federation, 4047 Iron Works Parkway, Lexington, KY 40511.

Horses Evacuated in Southern California; Del Mar Stables Full, Horse Events Cancelled

Yes, those fires in southern California that you are seeing on the television news are affecting horses. The San Diego area is believed to be home to 300,000 horses and it sounds like quite a scramble is on to find places for those fortunate enough to be evacuated by owners prepared for emergencies.

An excellent article in today's San Diego paper (San Diego Online) gives some insight into what horse owners are experiencing as they try to find places where their horses can be housed in safety.

Highly recommended for ALL horse owners, no matter where you live: watch this short video of Associate Press interviews from the Del Mar fairgrounds, just north of San Diego, where you will see horses and owners trying to cope with the evacuation. And these are the fortunate ones, the ones who were able to mobilize and get their animals out of harm's way.

As one owner says, "If you can't get your horse to load, you're in trouble."

The video also shows one owner being turned away and referred to a facility in Thermal, California, to the east, on the other side of the fire zone. Except the fires are coming from the east, and it's not easy to get through. The fires are literally herding the horses to the coast.

What if this happened in your neighborhood? Do you have a plan? Do you have a functional truck and trailer, or a share plan with another owner? Would you or a stranger be able to load your horse quickly?

What's your plan? Would it work today?

Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital Will Sponsor 2010 World Equestrian Games in Kentucky and Serve as Official Vet Hospital

LEXINGTON, Ky— Lexington's Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital will be the Official Equine Hospital and Veterinary Partner for the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games, as announced today by the World Games 2010 Foundation, Inc. Rood and Riddle is the first sponsorship partner since Alltech became the Games’ title sponsor.

“We are incredibly honored and excited to be forming this partnership with the highest level of horse sport in the international equestrian community,” said Dr. Bill Rood, Hospital Director. “We are well prepared as a hospital to meet the variety of veterinary services that these World Championship horses may need leading up to and during the 2010 Games.”

Rood & Riddle is a full-service equine hospital established in 1986, as a referral center for horses requiring specialized medical and surgical care. Today Rood & Riddle is known and respected throughout the world for its innovative and highly skilled treatment of horses. The hospital facility offers a full range of services including surgery, internal medicine, advanced diagnostic imaging, a focused Podiatry Center and a specialized Reproductive Center.

The practice also provides ambulatory services (on-site care) for breeding farms, sport horse facilities, horse shows and events, with a variety of services, including emergency and preventative care, general reproduction, lameness, radiography, podiatry, and internal medicine.

“Our reputation stems from our unwavering commitment to quality, both in the care of horses and in our relationship with clients and community,” said Dr. Tom Riddle. “We measure our success by our clients’ success—and to work with the highest level of equine athletes as they come to compete in Lexington, Kentucky, is a landmark achievement in the history of our veterinary practice.”

“Rood and Riddle is world-renowned particularly for their specialized services, as well as their individual care for both the four-legged patients and their owners,” said World Games 2010 Foundation CEO Jack Kelly . “While we certainly hope that no horse will need emergency services during the Games, it is only fitting that an equine hospital with such an outstanding reputation—and a nearby location—is able to sign on as our veterinary partner. Their sponsorship will contribute to the legacy of the Games’ success.”

The Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games, to be held at the Kentucky Horse Park September 25 to October 10, 2010, are the world championships of the eight equestrian disciplines recognized by the Fédération Equestre Internationale (FEI), and are held every four years. The Games have never before been held outside of Europe; nor have all eight disciplines ever previously been held together at a single site. It is anticipated that more than 600,000 spectators will attend the 16-day competition.

IT'S BREEDERS CUP WEEK: Oprah Winfrey Will Feature "Oprah Winney" on Show

It's time for the 2007 Breeders Cup...do you need a horse to be your favorite? Here's a good place to start:

Mega-media star Oprah Winfrey will pay tribute to her (almost) equine namesake on Tuesday, October 23, when The Oprah Winfrey Show runs a segment on the New York filly sprinter "Oprah Winney".

The segment is expected to include footage from Oprah Winney’s victory earlier this year in the Barbara Fritchie Handicap at Laurel Park as well as scenes from last year’s Breeders’ Cup World Championships.

Trained by New York's Rick Dutrow, the filly is scheduled to start in the inaugural running of the $1 million Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint on October 26 at Monmouth Park in Oceanport, N.J. (ESPN2, 4:00-6:00 p.m., ET--Yes, that's right, the Breeders Cup is now two days of racing, and the filly sprint is on Friday).

A web site for the filly launches Tuesday, too.

According to owner Michael Dubb, who purchased Oprah Winney with his partners after her second career start, the segment will include an interview with the woman who named the horse. That woman has a debilitating immune-system disease and, according to Dubb, named the horse "Oprah Winney" because she was inspired by Oprah Winfrey.

Also, Dubb said, ten percent of any money Oprah Winney earns in the race will be donated to the Anna House, the daycare center that Dubb helped build on the property of Belmont Park. Children of backstretch workers are the beneficiaries of the care and services offered by Anna House and the nonprofit Belmont Child Care Association.

Although no New York-bred horse has ever won a Breeders Cup race, Oprah Winney is by Royal Academy, a well-respected sire who won the Breeders Cup Mile in his day. And the filly has won over $300,000 in her short career. And trainer Dutrow has two Breeders Cup victories (both in 2005) to his stable's credit.

Watch a little video on the filly (and the other Oprah) on her page at the NTRA/Breeders Cup site.

Horse Health Word of the Week: Cancel the epidemic--the word is "epizootic"

It's October and 2007 is tumbling toward an end. For me, it has been a year of reporting on equine diseases and learning so much. I began the year reporting on the herpes outbreak in Wellington, Florida and hope that I will end the year without the word "disease" in my posts.

I re-learned the word "epizootic" this year; there is no "epidemic" of EI in Australia, since the "dem" in epidemic means a disease spreads among humans. An epizootic (ep-ee-zoo-OHT-ick, phonetically speaking) is the equivalent in the animal world.

My apologies if in my rush to get the news posted I slip up and call it an "epidemic". I notice that my colleagues at Reuters and the BBC make the same error each day, perhaps assuming that the readers would stumble over the strange word and opting for the more familiar, if inaccurate, misnomer.

Even "epidemic" is technically misused when the press reports on human diseases. There's a good discussion of the usage of "epidemic" vs. "pandemic" on the oh-so-helpful "Wise Geek" website. We tend to overuse "epidemic" in our rush to get the attention of readers and listeners.

If things keep on the way they have been going, we might all just get used to using the correct term.

Pigeon Fever Cases Rise in the Pacific Northwest

The Seattle Times is reporting today that cases of pigeon fever in horses are on the rise this fall in Washington, Idaho, Oregon and Northern California.

Pigeon fever--also called pigeon chest, false strangles, dryland distemper or Wyoming strangles--is a contagious equine disease that is caused by a bacterium Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis. Veterinarians warn that human contact may help spread the disease from horse to horse.

Characteristics of the disease are unusual swelling on the horse's body, especially on the abdomen or chest, giving the horse the appearance of having a plump breast like a bird's--hence, the name. Abscesses filled with white or green pus form and the disease requires considerable care for hygiene.

The Seattle newspaper article has good advice for horse owners. Dr. Christi Garkinkel, a horse vet in El Cajon, California, has an excellent fact sheet on pigeon fever in her web archives.

To learn more: a good reference book to have on hand in this age of equine disease is Color Atlas of Diseases and Disorders of the Horse by veterinarians Derek Knottenbelt and Reg Pascoe. It has photos on every page to show symptoms or pathology and is easy to navigate. My copy is well-thumbed! Your local independent bookstore will be happy to special-order a copy for you, I'm sure, or check the bookstore at your regional veterinary college!

Horseracing "Lasix" Drug Debate Set for Unique Testing "Lab Race" Trials in South Africa

(received via press release; note that furosemide is commonly called "Lasix" at the track)

FORT COLLINS, COLORADO - A study led by Colorado State University and research partners will help to answer a long-debated question about health and performance effects of a drug commonly used to treat racehorses in the U.S. to prevent bleeding into their airways as they run. The study, which is a massive research effort, involves 200 horses in South Africa that will compete in four days of racing in November. The races have been coordinated for the purposes of the study.

The drug furosemide is widely used in the horse racing industry in North America but is banned on race days in all other countries. More than 90 percent of racing Thoroughbreds and 50 percent of racing Standardbreds in the United States and Canada are given furosemide a few hours before racing to treat bleeding. However, despite this common practice, there is no conclusive evidence that furosemide is actually effective in preventing or limiting lung bleeding in racehorses - but there is evidence that the drug may enhance performance for other reasons, making it a controversial treatment.

"This study will be the first randomized field trial ever conducted under normal racing conditions to investigate the efficacy of furosemide for preventing exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhage in horses," said Paul Morley, one of the leaders of this study and a veterinarian at Colorado State University. "Because of the size of this experiment and its design, these results will provide the most reliable information ever available to guide the highly politicized debate over the use of this drug in the horse racing industry."

Because of their unique physiology, all horses running at racing speeds experience varying degrees of exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhage, or bleeding into their airways. Because of blood pressure changes in the lung that are unique to horses during exercise, more than half of Thoroughbred racehorses have some amount of blood in their trachea after a single race.

While horses rarely bleed severely into their airways, the same research group working on this project in South Africa previously confirmed the widely held belief that bleeding into the airways impairs athletic performance of horses. Morley and co-researchers Kenneth Hinchcliff from the University of Melbourne and Alan Guthrie from the University of Pretoria will conduct research in South Africa because use of furosemide is not currently allowed on race days in horses, and also because of the interest and support from the South African racing industry.

Use of furosemide, which is sold as Lasix and Salix, to treat pulmonary hemorrhaging in racehorses began in the 1970s. Today it is estimated to cost $30 million annually to treat horses with furosemide on race days in the United States and Canada.

Furosemide is also used in other species, including humans, to control blood pressure and fluid balance.

"While its use in the racing industry has always been controversial, controversy surrounding use of this drug increased with the discovery that horses receiving furosemide prior to racing generally perform better," Morley said. "A study of more than 22,000 racehorses that was previously conducted by our research group found that horses treated with furosemide raced faster, earned more money and were more likely to finish in a top position. It is possible that performance is improved by preventing or minimizing lung bleeding in these horses, but it is also possible that improved performance is caused by other drug effects, such as transient weight loss. Race horses treated with furosemide lose about 2 percent of their body weight - or about 20 pounds - prior to racing, which may make it possible for them to run faster."

In South Africa, horses participating in the research project will compete in two races, once treated with furosemide and once with a placebo. Each horse will be examined after each race for evidence of bleeding and for the effects of furosemide on pulmonary hemorrhaging. In addition, their performances will be evaluated to identify differences in performance.

Other than the use of furosemide, which will be administered strictly adhering to research project guidelines, all races will take place under South Africa's standard rules and regulations for the industry. The horses and jockeys will race for purses to ensure competitive racing efforts. The five to eight furlong races will be conducted on a one-mile straightaway on the turf at the Vaal Racecourse in South Africa. The races will take place Nov. 20-21 and Nov. 27-28.

If the study points to the effectiveness of furosemide in treating hemorrhaging, the results will help veterinarians and horsemen make more prudent and informed decisions about the drug's use and alleviate concerns that the drug is primarily being used to enhance racing performance.

"Regardless of whether or not furesomide can be shown to prevent pulmonary hemorrhaging, results of this study will provide critical information for policy-makers in the horse racing industry throughout the world," Morley said.

Several sectors of the racing jurisdiction have pledged support. The Grayson-Jockey Club foundation and the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium, both from the United States, have provided about $150,000 to support this research, and an equivalent amount of support is being provided by the South African horse racing and from high profile private sponsors, including golfing legend Gary Player.

Atari Game Puts Players in the Saddle...and They Have to Care for Their Horses, Too

There may not be an X-Box in my tack trunk...but their could be a tack trunk (and a mounting block and a lot of oxers, liverpools and cavaletti) on a lot of X-Boxes this Christmas.

Atari is planning to launch its new "My Horse and Me" game package in the USA on November 23; it is already available in other countries, and has been endorsed by the FEI.

Two weeks ago, Atari helped sponsor England's Horse of the Year Show to launch it there and it went on sale today in Australia, I believe, so that horse people will have something to do while they wait for the Flu Thing to be over so shows can start again in the affected states.

Information about the technical content of the game is scant and it is not clear if the game has individualized content for the different countries. I love the graphic at the top of this post, for instance...not too many arenas like that around here, although who among us hasn't dreamed of riding our horse in the indoor school at France's Palace of Versailles?

In addition to jumping technical courses, gamers will have to care for their horses.

I have to try this...But the first thing I would do is put a helmet on my game rider...hopefully the game encourages safety, too.

"War Horse" Front and Center on British Stage

Ok, it's Sunday...what's in the papers? My favorite story today is from the Telegraph in England, where a new play opens at the National Theatre. "War Horse" is based on a children's book by Michael Morpurgo and the Telegraph serves up a great interview with the author.

In the book, an English horse named Joey is shipped to France to help the Brits win World War I, ends up captured by the Germans who make him into an artillery-hauler, and when he goes down in the fighting, is recognized on both sides of the battlefield; British and German soldiers rush to the aid of their beloved equine brother-in-arms. (That's a gross over-simplification, I know.) For a short moment, there is peace between men who unite to save a horse's life.

Right: Black Beauty meets The Red Badge of Courage. But wait a minute, it's more than that.

Two million horses died in World War I. Farmers, huntsmen and hostlers sent their best and most beloved horses to fight the war, just as they went themselves, or sent their sons. The British soldiers who survived returned at the end of the war without their horses; they sold their "lucky" horses to French butchers, en masse, according to the author.

The theatrical production uses a giant puppet from the Handspring puppet troupe to tell the horse's tale; Joey towers over the humans on stage, in more ways than one.


Note: In the interview, the author recalls the inspiration for the book. An orphan child who had stopped speaking because of severe stuttering was in his equine therapy program. The author came into the barn one day and overhead the child chattering--without a stutter--to a horse.

I've heard similar stories about a farrier who stutters badly when speaking to owners, but when left to shoe the horse, is often secretly overhead chatting amiably with the animal. When someone human comes up the barn aisle, the stutter returns.

The author runs a terrific charity called "Farms for City Children".

Learning from the Australian Equine Influenza Crisis

If there is one lesson to be learned from the ongoing (and seemingly worsening) equine influenza outbreak in Australia, it is how fragile the horse world is.

"Horse world" has two parts. Aussie EI has taught us that the "horse" in "horse world" isn't just high-flying stakes horses at the track. It's kids' ponies. It's zebras at the zoo. It's police horses. And circus horses. And it's me. And you.

The "world" in horse world is equally all-encompassing. While I monitor the Aussie crisis each day, I'm casting a wary eye on northern Europe and the British Isles, where the first cases of insect-borne "bluetongue" disease are showing up in farm stock. No, bluetongue doesn't effect horses, but it is carried by the same types of southern insects that carry African Horse Sickness. Where bluetongue goes, AHS can easily follow.

As we ramp up to the Olympics in Hong Kong a scant 11 months from now, the risks seem higher than ever before. Horses from countries with AHS are usually subject to travel bans. The Aussie Olympians are fighting to get their horses vaccinated against Equine Influenza so they can be assured of travel and a healthy training period.

No matter where you look on the world map, horse and livestock diseases are in the news in 2007: Herpes in the USA, CEM in Austria, foot and mouth in England, EI in Australia and Japan, AHS in South Africa, EVA in Ireland, and even EEE and Lyme's disease right here in my own backyard.


But 2007 is tumbling toward an end. For me, it has been a year of unexpected reporting on equine diseases and learning so much about not just how a disease affects a horse, but how an equine disease outbreak affects humans, especially those who make decisions that affect both sick and healthy horses. You just have to hope that good people are making good decisions for our horses.

You're Invited: Say Good-Bye to John Henry

Double-click on the image to enlarge and print the invitation.

Equine Flu Disrupts Australian University Life, Students' Progress

It's spring at the University of Queensland, just a few weeks left until graduation. But students in the equine sciences and vet school will be getting first-hand experience with handling sick horses, as Equine Influenza seems to be affecting the first horses on campus.

It is expected that all of the 130 horses on campus will contract the disease and will be quarantined for up to seven weeks. This includes research horses; many Americans are aware that the University of Queensland is the home of the Australian Equine Laminitis Research Unit, the world's leading research center for that disease.

As a result, the university has filed these plans for protocol:

• All work with horses will cease immediately, including classes, riding and research;

• All areas with horses will be placed in quarantine with only a limited number of people designated for the care and welfare of animals being allowed into this area;

• Vehicle and personnel decontamination protocols will be put in place;

• All horse areas will be cordoned off to restrict entry of unauthorised personnel. Only essential vehicles will be allowed into these areas.

Students will be required to make up time lost from horse-related classes in the next semester.

"On to Hong Kong” Pre-Olympic Horse Health and Welfare Conference Planned

The world's governing body of equestrian sports, the Federation Equestrian International (FEI), has announced “On to Hong Kong”, a workshop to assist national federations to prepare for the 2008 Olympic Games in Hong Kong. The event, to be organized by the FEI’s Welfare Sub-committee, will take place in Lausanne, Switzerland, from 16 – 18 February 2008.

The objective of the workshop will be to promote the health and welfare of the horses by making the information collected at the August 2007 Test Event available to all federation officials, veterinarians, riders, chefs d’equipe and others. The workshop will be open to all for a registration fee.

The program will include the following presentations:

• Setting the scene – John McEwen BVMS, MRCVS, Chairman of the FEI Veterinary Committee

• Overview of facilities and local arrangements – Dr Chris Riggs BVSc, PhD, DEO, DipECVS, MRCVS, Head of Veterinary Clinical Services, Hong Kong Jockey Club

• Understanding the weather situation in Hong Kong for the Olympic Games – the results of a two year study with the Hong Kong Observatory– Professor Leo Jeffcott MA, BVetMed, PhD, FRCVS, DVSc, VetMedDr, University of Sydney, Australia, Veterinary Delegate for the 2008 Olympic Games.

• Air conditioned facilities and cooling stations – Dr David Marlin BSc (Hons.) PhD, David Marlin Consulting Ltd, Newmarket, UK

• Results of horse monitoring – Dr Catherine W. Kohn VMD, Diplomate ACVIM, Professor, Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences The Ohio State University, USA

• Horse transportation logistics – Martin H. Atock, Managing Director, Peden Bloodstock, Leyenburg, Rheurdt, Germany

There will be a question-and-answer panel discussion following the presentations.

The Chairman of the Welfare Sub-committee, Dr Andrew Higgins, commented: "It is vital that the FEI is fully proactive in providing the necessary information to ensure that competitors and national federations are well informed to enable them to prepare their horses optimally for the challenging climatic conditions that they will face in Hong Kong. The Workshop will enable the leading scientists and veterinarians in the field to share all available information with stakeholders. This is an important and timely meeting."

For further information and to receive a registration form please contact: Ms. Nina Wittek at n.wittek@horsesport.org . To assist with planning the event these forms should be returned prior to 1 December 2007.

University of Minnesota's Leatherdale Equine Center Opens Monday

(post based on press release)

(St. Paul, MN)--- The University of Minnesota will welcome horse lovers into its new state-of-the-art $14 million facility on Monday, October 15 at the grand opening celebration for the Louise and Doug Leatherdale Equine Center on the St. Paul campus.

The public is invited to the free event and official ribbon cutting at 2 p.m.; a procession will be led by the Ames Farm six-horse Percheron hitch. From 2:30 to 4:30 p.m., there will be demonstrations of the new high-tech systems in the 60,000 square foot facility.

"The comprehensive Equine Center has been designated as a Program of Excellence at the College of Veterinary Medicine," said University of Minnesota President Robert Bruininks. "But more than that, it meets a growing need of our state: Minnesota ranks among the top 10 states in horse population and the equine industry contributes almost $1 billion annually to the state economy, sparked by the passion and support of horse lovers like us."

The facility will be named in honor of Louise and Doug Leatherdale of Medina, Minnesota who made a generous lead gift to the University of Minnesota. Tad and Cindy Piper of Long Lake made the lead gift for the Piper Performance Clinic, a performance medicine and reproductive clinic in the facility.

The Center's new technology includes computerized gait analysis and high speed cameras to test for lameness, an aqua treadmill used in rehabilitation, a state-of-the-art reproduction wing and a high speed treadmill that allows a horse's every breath and heartbeat to be monitored while galloping up to 30 mph.

The University Mounted Police unit will also be housed in the facility, which offers a conference center and indoor and outdoor arenas for demonstrations, meetings and programs by community horse organizations.

Anti-Slaughter Vets Call on AVMA to Reverse Political Stance on Horse Slaughter

Veterinarians for Equine Welfare, a group opposed to the slaughter of horses for human consumption, recently called on the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) to end its opposition to the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act, a federal Congressional bill that seeks to prohibit the domestic slaughter of horses for human consumption as well as their export for slaughter elsewhere.

"It is intolerable that our professional association continues to support horse slaughter. The abject cruelty that our horses are being exposed to in Mexican slaughterhouses is beyond imagination and anyone concerned for the welfare of our horses ought to be doing everything he or she can to support quick passage of the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act," said Nicholas Dodman BVMS, MRCVS, ACVA, ACVB.

Dodman is professor of behavioral pharmacology and director of the Behavior Clinic of Tufts Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine in Massachusetts. He is an internationally known specialist in domestic animal behavioral research, as well as in the veterinary practice of animal psychology. A board-certified member of the American College of Veterinary Behaviorists, he holds four patents for the pharmacological control of behavior problems, in which field he is a well-known expert.

Dodman's comments come on the heels of recent investigations documenting the brutal slaughter of American horses at Mexican slaughterhouses. It portrayed horses being shipped to Mexico following recent closure of the three remaining US horse slaughterhouses under state law. Reports of horses repeatedly stabbed in the spinal cord with a "puntilla" knife by Mexican slaughterhouses workers until they are paralyzed and then hung, drawn and quartered have outraged Dodman and his colleagues, as well as Members of Congress and the general public.

"The AVMA has recently been quoted as saying that banning horse slaughter in the US has led to an increase in animal suffering because of the terrible conditions awaiting horses on their trip to Mexico, yet they and the merchants buying and shipping horses to Mexico for slaughter continue to lobby Congress against passage of the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act," stated Nena Winand, PhD, DVM and senior research associate in the department of Molecular Medicine at Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine.

For more information, visit: http://www.vetsforequinewelfare.org/

John Henry Is Dead

The legendary Thoroughbred racehorse John Henry was humanely euthanized at the Kentucky Horse Park today at 7:00 pm.

The sad but unanimous decision was reached by a team of people who knew him best. The park’s equine director, Kathy Hopkins stated, “After continued successful efforts to maintain the quality of John Henry's life, in the past 48 hours he did not respond to our medical intervention. Due to the loss of kidney function and muscle mass, his veterinarian, Dr. Mike Beyer, found it impossible to keep him properly hydrated and comfortable.

"Over the years, our goal has always been to maintain the highest quality of care and life for him," she continued, "and it became evident over the weekend that this was no longer possible. Our hearts go out to all of those who so deeply cared for John during his long and charismatic life.”

He lived 32-and-a-half years, and went peacefully to sleep surrounded by a small circle of friends who were closest to him, including Cathy Roby, who has been his friend and caretaker for 16 years and his breeder, Verna Lehmann.

John Henry overcame numerous well-known obstacles throughout his career, and colic surgery in 2002. His talent, determination, tenacity and toughness inspired thousands of people who didn’t even see him race, but became aware of him many years after his retirement. Some of his fans visited him at least once a month from Toledo, Indianapolis, and other cities in the Midwest, while others made annual pilgrimages to his barn from California, Texas and around the world.

When it recently became public knowledge that his health was in a state of decline, many of his fans immediately came to the park to thank their beloved champion for the memories, and to whisper their personal, final farewells to the horse who inspired great respect and ardent devotion.

John Henry’s race record included more than $6.5 million in earnings, 39 wins including 30 stakes wins (16 Grade 1 stakes wins) and seven Eclipse Awards, including two Horse of the Year titles. He was the only horse to win Horse of the Year more than once in nonconsecutive years, and the oldest horse ever to win that title - at age nine. John Henry was voted Racehorse of the Decade for the 1980s, and was inducted into Racing's Hall of Fame in 1990.

Sired by Ole Bob Bowers out of Once Double, by Double Jay, John Henry was foaled on March 9, 1975 at Golden Chance Farm in Paris, Kentucky.

After having passed through several owners and trainers, John Henry finally blossomed under the careful tutelage of trainer Ron McAnally, and with his owner, Sam Rubin. McAnally, who brought out the best in the horse with “carrots, apples and love,” visited John Henry many times during the horse’s retirement and had just seen him again as recently as September. Lewis Cenicola, John Henry’s exercise rider for six years, also visited the horse in September.

Chris McCarron rode John Henry in 14 of his last races and has spent many hours with the horse during his 22 years at the park. Regarding the great horse’s passing, he observed, “What can I say about the legendary John Henry that has not already been said? John meant the world to my family and me. Everywhere he raced, his presence doubled the size of a normal race track crowd. He did so much for racing, even after he retired, that he will be impossible to replace. He will be sorely missed but forever in our hearts.”

A public memorial service will be held and will be announced by the park upon completion of the arrangements.

John Henry will be buried near his paddock at the Hall of Champions. Other Thoroughbred champions buried at the park include Man o’ War, War Admiral, Forego, Bold Forbes, Allez France, Peteski and Jay Trump.

KHP Executive Drector John Nicholson concluded, “The next few days will be terribly difficult for his fans, but especially for the people here at the park who have worked with him and loved him for so long. It was our unparalleled privilege to have John Henry living at the Kentucky Horse Park for the past 22 years.”

Four Schools of Classical Art of Dressage Will Perform in Paris in November

What: World Premiere of the "FOUR EQUESTRIAN ART SCHOOLS"

When: 23, 24 & 25 November 2007

Where: Omnisports Stadium of Paris-Bercy


Remember "The Three Tenors"? The equestrian world will have its equivalent in a few weeks.

The Spanish Riding School of Vienna (Austria), The Cadre Noir of Saumur (France), The Royal Andalusian Horse School of Jerez (Spain) and The Portuguese School of Equestrian Art of Lisbon (Portugal) will perform together for the first time ever, in the world, during three unique performances.

The show will present the most beautiful performances of each school and their training philosophies. Some scenes will be done with the four schools in the arena at same time.

This special show will showcase 45 high-level riders, led by the four chief riders, with 80 horses coming from each school. Breeds to be represented are the Lipizzans of Austria, the Anglos Arabs of France, the Pures Races Espagnoles (PRE, formerly known as Andalusians) and the Lusitaniens Alter Real (Lusitanos) of Portugal.

A brief promo video (French narration) has been posted at the site where you order tickets.

Warning: Tickets start at $US80 (approx) for the cheap seats...

Retired Vets, Vet Students from Across Australia Respond to Epidemic

(from a New South Wales Department of Primary Industries press release)

A concerted effort has seen animal health professionals from across Australia arrive in New South Wales to help with the Equine Influenza (EI) epidemic there.

Animal health officers, stock inspectors and veterinary officers, many of them retired, have been brought in from (Austrlian states) Western Australia, South Australia, Victoria, Queensland, Northern Territory and the ACT.

They are involved at the control centers at Orange and Camden, and their knowledge of rural areas is vital in making proposals a reality on the ground.

Many of these animal health professionals are in private practice and have been sourced from the Australian Veterinary Reserve, which involves non-government vets who are trained in national emergency animal disease preparedness.

Their roles vary from veterinary investigations to working in the field with the vaccination program.

Vet students are also working at the centers; the project is giving them valuable training experience.

Australian EI Crisis: Under Control or Out of Control?

Who can you believe with all the conflicting reports from Australia? The official message to the world via government press releases is "all quiet on the Aussie front, situation under control" while other reports would label it "SNAFU!"

The Courier Mail newspaper reports that 3000 people protested in Ipswich yesterday against the handling of the crisis:

"Dr David Lovell, director of Redlands Veterinary Surgery, commented at a 3000-strong protest rally in Ipswich against the DPI’s handling of the outbreak. 'The update last night was that equine flu was under control and that vaccination was proceeding very well,' he said. 'One of the things that comes to my mind is when America invaded Iraq and Saddam’s man was appearing daily on local television telling the people of Iraq that they were winning the war. My personal view is that this disease is getting out of control'."

(Note: Dr Lovell is former president of the Australian Equine Veterinary Association and a director of the Australian Veterinary Association.)

A batch of 4800 doses of vaccine destined for the northern state of Queensland was compromised when the temperature sensor indicated that it had become exposed to below-minimum temperatures, which is a problem with transporting live vaccine.

More from the Courier Mail:

"Dr Lovell said he did not believe there were only 628 infected properties in Queensland. He said he had spoken to many property owners with infected horses who had not been officially confirmed by the DPI.

'They tell me that probably only one in every four properties is being recorded. That would suggest that we could have over 2500 infected properties,' he said.

(State) Premier Anna Bligh has written to (Australian Prime Minister) John Howard seeking 10,000 vaccines for the horse-breeding industry and another 4000 doses for the non-racing industry. Ms Bligh said the sector was 'at serious risk of widespread infection and economic collapse'."

Another grumble coming from Australia is that racehorse stables are receiving preferential treatment for vaccine and quarantine over pleasure horses, many of whom are competition horses.

In New South Wales, a government press release states: to date there are more than 32,000 horses infected on more than 3700 properties in NSW. NSW Department of Primary Industries initiated the first round in its buffer vaccination program (this) weekend."

Buffer zones, classified by color, have been identified around infected areas; preventive vaccination will be concentrated in these areas to prevent the spread of the disease to so-called "clean" green zones.

Early this morning, two horses tested positive to EI in one of NSW's green zones. That should change the map.

Deadly Day at Keeneland

I'm not supposed to have to write articles like this. Polytrack was going to change everything.

Today at Keeneland in Lexington, Kentucky, two horses were euthanized and three-year-old star Teuflesberg suffered career-ending injuries that reports say will require surgery on both his front legs. He was moved to Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital in Lexington where he will undergo surgery.

It was a big day at Keeneland, with five graded stakes on the card. Keeneland is entering it's second year of racing on a Polytrack (patented artificial) surface.

Racing is serious this time of year, with only three weeks left until the almighty Breeders Cup, which is like the Super Bowl for racing.

I wasn't watching ESPN today when it happened, so I went to the Keeneland web site. No headlines, no statement of the facts, no tasteful tribute to the fallen horses are posted there. Keeneland owns the company that produces Polytrack surfaces for racetracks. On the Polytrack page of the Keeneland site is the title: "Polytrack: A safer solution".

From what I understand, one horse was euthanized in the paddock before the race, and two broke down on the Polytrack surface during races.

MSNBC seems to be the only racing news outlet that considers the injury of three horses (on the new "safe" racing surface) and the death of two of them as newsworthy enough for a story.

Meanwhile, at Belmont Park in New York, Barclay Tagg's NoBiz Like ShoBiz won the Jamaica Handicap on the turf by four lengths. It was a big day of stakes races there, too, with everyone prepping for the Breeders Cup.

Are these horses being pushed too hard to qualify and prep for the Breeders Cup? Are trainers racing their horses on a schedule dictated by counting weeks backward from the Breeders Cup circled on their calendars?

Barclay Tagg shocked everyone by saying that his popular colt would probably skip the Breeders Cup three weeks from now and train up to the Hollywood Derby in late November.

Imagine that.

Sunday morning update: FoxSports posted an Associated Press story that has the breakdowns in the headline, but it doesn't have much information about the horses nor any reaction from track officials, owners, jockeys, etc.

Tough Guys Haul Pink Trailers?

It's Horse of the Year Show (HOYS) time in England this week--a very big deal no matter what sport or breed you embrace, if you live in the British Isles. The all-indoor event is promoted as the world's most famous horse show.

One of the many sidelights of the show is an auction to raise funds and awareness of breast cancer. And what better way to do that than with a hot pink horse "box" as an eye-catcher? The trailer, donated by Ifor Williams Trailers of Wales, is valued at US$8,000.

This being the age of the Web, you can also bid online!

Now, is it me, or is the dressing room door on the wrong side? Most of us have enough trouble backing up a trailer...can you imagine doing it from a right-hand drive car...on the wrong side of the road?

Of course, you'd need a hot pink Range Rover to pull your pink trailer...

The VIP Treatment: Very Important Putin Visits Spanish Riding School in Vienna

Who wouldn't want to meet Chief Rider Klaus Krzisch? Vladimir Putin, President of the Russian Federation, visited the famed Lipizzan stallions of the Spanish Riding School in Vienna this week. In this photo, Putin chats with Krzisch following a performance. Note the red carpet in the background; is it for Putin or for the stallions?

Invitation: Chris Pollitt Lecture and AHF Laminitis Fundraiser Hosted by Purina Mills in Missouri October 20th

You are cordially invited to attend a
Laminitis Lecture, Auction and Dinner Party
to benefit
The Animal Health Foundation's Laminitis Research Fund

Saturday, October 20, 2007
4:00-10:00 P.M.

Purina Mills Conference Center
Gray Summit, Missouri (near St. Louis)

4:00 Lecture by Dr. Chris Pollitt, Australian Equine Laminitis Research Unit,
University of Queensland, Australia
6:00 Cocktails, silent auction opens
7:30 Dinner, followed by live auction and special presentation

Casual Attire
Tickets $100 Each
RESERVATION DEADLINE OCTOBER 10.

"Let's Help Free the Horse of Laminitis"

About the Animal Health Foundation Mission: The Animal Health Foundation is a not-for-profit, all-volunteer organization dedicated to the study of Equine Laminitis (founder). Finding the cause and developing a prevention of Laminitis has been the goal of the Animal Health Foundation since 1984. The Animal Health Foundation has been supporting Dr. Pollitt's research since 1995, as well as the research of innovative experts like Kathryn Watts of www.Safergrass.org.

Note: The AHF is Dr. Pollitt's sole source of research support from the USA. He is coming to America with great new research findings that should lead to new advances in preventing and treating laminitis. Many of his new findings have been made possible by financial support provided by small and large donations from individuals received through the AHF.

Donations to the AHF go directly to research. If you can't attend but wish to support research, please consider a donation; use the RSVP card to make donations to Dr. Pollitt's research. Donations to laminitis research via AHF are fully tax-deductible.

Click on this link to download complete invitation with RSVP card and directions to Purina's conference center site: AHFinvitation.doc

Additional information and auction donation information:
http://www.animalhealthfoundation.com/2007Fundraiser.html

Refrigerator: More About the Great Quarter Horse

Last week's announcement by the American Quarter Horse Association Foundation that a fund for traumatic head injuries in horses had been set up in memory of the late racehorse Refrigerator just wasn't enough. I wasn't the only one who wanted to know more about this horse!

My questions were answered today when our friend Sally Harrison posted a biography of the horse on her blog. Yes, Refrigerator did die of a head injury, but did you know he was bred and raised by a farrier?

Thanks to Sally for telling us the rest of the story of this great horse!