CHRB passes rule to limit drug levels in post-training tests

The California Horse Racing Board on Wednesday passed a motion that would put in place threshold levels for commonly used painkillers for horses that are conducting training exercises, as part of a suite of new rules intended to reduce injuries and fatalities of horses and address concerns from critics of the sport.

The rule, which will soon go into a 45-day public comment period, would establish limits in post-exercise tests for regulated medications known as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, such as phenylbutazone and flunixin. The rule would be the first in any U.S. racing jurisdiction to place formal post-exercise limits on the medications and provide for sanctions for violations.

Rick Arthur, the CHRB equine medical director, told commissioners during discussion of the rule that the state currently conducts some post-exercise tests on horses, but the commission does not now have the power to issue sanctions.

“All we can do is go to that individual and say, ‘Hey, you are not in compliance,’ “ Arthur said. “This actually gives us some teeth and allows us to sanction people for violations.”

The rule was a number of proposals addressed by the CHRB on Wednesday during a three-hour meeting that ended with a parade of individuals speaking vociferously against the sport and repeatedly calling for the CHRB to ban racing at “state-owned properties.” The tactic, which appeared coordinated, seemed to be squarely targeting Del Mar Thoroughbred Club and the state’s fair circuit, and many of the speakers said they would be communicating directly about the ban with the office of California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has been critical of the sport over the past year.

The CHRB also approved a measure to extend the suspension of the administration of any medication other than furosemide, the diuretic used to mitigate bleeding in the lungs, within 48 hours of a race. The suspension of the administrations was passed last year on a temporary basis, and CHRB staffers explained that the extension would allow the commission to avoid a gap in the enforcement of the rules while permanent rules are put in place, likely sometime this summer.

In addition, the CRHB passed a proposal that would require trainers to participate in a “post-mortem examination report” with CHRB staff following the conduct of a necropsy and investigation into a fatality. Previously, trainers could decline to participate in the review, according to Arthur.

“It’s really an educational experience for the trainer, and we learn how the trainers are maybe misinterpreting the signs” of a potential at-risk horse, Arthur told the board in the discussion of the proposal.

The agenda for the Wednesday meeting included an item that would have placed restrictions on the size, shape, and materials of riding crops, but the item was tabled and referred to the commission’s medication committee for discussion next month. The item was discussed for an hour, during which a number of representatives of the Jockeys’ Guild and other officials expressed concerns that the proposal had not been discussed in enough detail to generate an adequate rule. The CHRB is expected to take up another proposal on the restrictions at its February meeting.

Last year, the CHRB passed restrictions on the use of the whip that significantly curtail the manner and frequency in which riders may strike a horse. Still, the CHRB’s failure to ban the use of the whip outright came up for frequent criticism during the public-comment period of the meeting, with respondents citing the earlier action to refer the proposal to the committee as an act that demonstrated its inability to stop animals from being abused.

Also at the meeting, board executive director Rick Baedeker informed the commission that a long-awaited report analyzing the circumstances surrounding a spate of fatalities at Santa Anita early last year would be released soon in two parts. Baedeker said the first part will be released on Jan. 31, “if everything goes right,” while the second part, which will contain “mostly files and addendums to the first report,” will be released several weeks after the initial report is made public.