CHRB fines and suspends Callaghan for violating shock-wave treatment rule
Trainer Simon Callaghan has been suspended from Nov. 14-28 and fined $5,000 by the stewards at Santa Anita for allegedly administering shock-wave treatments to a horse within 30 days of a workout, a violation of California racing rules.
The horse that received the treatments, according to a ruling issued on Oct. 17, was Federal Bureau, an unraced 3-year-old who was bought for $1.2 million as a yearling at the Keeneland September sale in 2019 by Stonestreet, which still owns the Medaglia d’Oro colt. The ruling said that the shock-wave treatments were administered on three occasions.
Darrell Vienna, Callaghan’s attorney, said that he has appealed the ruling on the basis that the “stewards mistakenly interpreted the regulation.”
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Federal Bureau recorded nine workouts from April 6, 2020 to May 22, 2021, when he worked four furlongs handily in 49:20, the 36th fastest of 72 workouts at that distance that day. Stewards’ minutes describing an Aug. 15 hearing in the matter at Del Mar state that the horse received shock-wave treatments on May 5, 12, and 19, under the supervision of attending veterinarian Vince Baker.
The CHRB modified its rule restricting exercise after shock-wave therapy late in 2020. The rule reads that all horses that are administered the treatments “may not participate in a workout for 30 days after treatment.” The regulation defines “workout” as “an exercise session near full speed, or close to full speed.” Prior to the adoption of those rules, the restriction was 10 days.
Vienna said that the language used in the rule regarding what constitutes a workout is “so vague as to be unenforceable.” Previous language that was applied to shock-wave therapies referred to “recorded workouts,” but the language was changed when the stand-down period was lengthened to 30 days.
“What does that mean, near full speed or close to it?” he said. “A licensee doesn’t know what behavior he has to engage in or avoid.” Vienna said that four witnesses to the workout testified at the Aug. 15 hearing that the workout was “nowhere near full speed.”
Vienna applied for a stay of the penalty, but the CHRB denied the stay, Vienna said.
Shock-wave therapy uses ultrasonic waves to promote healing of damaged bone and tissue. The therapy is popular in both human and equine medicine. Although there is little to no evidence that pain-killing effects from the therapy last longer than 72 hours, regulators have moved to restrict exercise after it because of concerns that any injury requiring the treatment is indicative of an underlying problem that requires rest and recovery.