This is my response to Maggi Mosss recent posts regarding Lasix: Other than the jockeys who torture themselves trying to keep weight by doing horrific things to their bodies like taking Lasix (and many do or have done), what other athlete in the world dehydrates just hours before competition, and by that process of induced diuresis, depletes the minerals and electrolytes that are crucial to his/her performance, and then only AFTER the competition does the athlete replace the minerals and electrolytes? ZERO. Thats the number. Only in horse racing have people deluded themselves into thinking that this is a good idea. BTW: if Lasix really is efficacious - how come so many horses bled through the Lasix as reported in the race result charts? It is happening A LOT - I know because I am tracking this nationally. Lasix is one of the primary reasons that our horses cannot start as much as in the past, and I am convinced it is why American races get shorter each year. The breeders cup just eliminated the Marathon - why? Horses on the balance cant run a route of ground. We are turning Thoroughbreds into Quarter horses because they dont have the stamina - likely a chemically induced phenomena - to stay the distance. I stand ready to debate this issue publicly in any forum - we will take apart the 2009 Hinchcliffe South African study and I will demonstrate how it failed to prove efficacy, how the race conditions in no way shape or form re-created actual general racing conditions, how racing back to back within 7 days actually distorted the observation of decreased measurements on the Pascoe scale. Lasix is a bad idea, it is bad for horse racing, and just because the negative attributes and affects are gradual or not readily apparent and obvious Class I or II violations, the drug is in fact pernicious and we need to cease its use and promptly. Our trainers today are terrified or lack the confidence to blow out their horses the day of or the day before a race. California Chrome didnt have a breeze within six days of the Belmont. That is crazy. Look at Assaults workout and race records as well as the other triple crown winners. He was given a blowout and serious works the week of the Belmont. In fact, he ran the Derby Trial Stakes 5 days before the Kentucky Derby. Look at all the horses that historically raced in the Derby. Assaults training record was more towards the norm - i.e., horse ran, they trained hard, they had more stamina, the breezed a mile withing 5 days of a race and had a blowout the day of or day before. How often does that happen now? ZERO. One last thought and this goes out to Rick Violette and to anyone else giving in to the hysteria over eliminating Lasix: avoiding Lasix is not cruel - dehydrating a horse before the race is cruel. If you say that without Lasix we have to go back to withdrawing water 24 to 48 hours before a race - I say that you are giving in to a wives tale that has ZERO basis in science as having anything to do with alleviating EIPH whatsoever. That same mental function of giving in to myth that moves anyone to withdraw water is no different to the prevailing myths and distortions used to justify Lasix. It is time to bring some sanity and some real horsemanship to our great sport. Regardless, I no longer care what the industry decides because I will continue to forbid its use in my horses either for a race or for training. I have never raced a horse on it and never will. To be clear - the reason I speak so much about the workouts and spacing is because of the concept of letting the horse dump its spleen before the race. THAT is the best way to diffuse potential problems associated with EIPH. Look at the past - horses did amazing things, raced many distances and ran often: all without Lasix. Horse racing performance and number of starts has steadily eroded since the advent of Lasix - it is no accident. Today horses cant handle the triple crown because they are used up by unnecessary medications and inadequate horsemanship. Period. I would love to see the day come back when a horse ran the week before the Derby, and even ran a race between the Preakness and the Belmont. Absolutely no horse can do that today. Assault is not as extreme an example as people think - his work and performance was closer to the rule - not the exception. Think about it. Dont you wonder why? Arent you even curious?
Posted on: Mon, 04 Aug 2014 19:43:11 +0000
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