At its November board meeting, the CARMA Board voted to give $264,000 to twelve different charitable organizations caring for retired California racehorses.  This figure is an increase of approximately 50 percent from the amount granted in 2008, its first year of fundraising.  Last year, after only 6 months of operation, CARMA was able to grant $150,450 to eight charities.  The predominant source of funding is a .03 percent deduction from purses that goes directly to CARMA.  Owners do have the ability to opt out of the program, but most owners, close to 80 percent, participate.“We are extremely proud of the work we have done over the past 12 months. These funds will help buy much needed hay, feed and medications etc.  Hopefully this will give a financial cushion to each of the charities,” said CARMA Board Chair Madeline Auerbach.  “Not only has the CARMA program proven to be successful in terms of dollars raised, we’re able to see a tangible difference at the farms and facilities where the horses live.  As we go out and visit organizations throughout the year, our directors are seeing the money put to work.”

On Dec. 26, CARMA will present each of the charities with a check.  Thanks to the generosity of Santa Anita’s president, and CARMA board member, Ron Charles, CARMA will host a day at the races for grant recipients, including lunch in Front Runner Restaurant and a winner’s circle presentation.

Organizations receiving funding include CANTER – CA, California Equine Retirement Foundation, Equine Encore Foundation, Glen Ellen Vocational Academy, Harmony & Hope Horse Haven, Heaven Can Wait, Inc., Neigh Savers Foundation, Southern California Thoroughbred Rescue, Square Peg Foundation, Thoroughbred Rehab Center, Tranquility Farm, and United Pegasus Foundation. 

CARMA is run by an independent board of directors, chaired by Madeline Auerbach, and is responsible for hosting fundraising events, educating owners and trainers on equine retirement and working to unify the industry in support of retiring equine athletes.  For more information, visit CARMA’s website at www.carma4horses.org.

Finallymadeit, a 5-year-old son of Concerto who was being pointed toward Saturday’s Grade 1, $750,000 Whitney, was euthanized after fracturing a left fore cannon bone Tuesday while training.

Owned by Rolbea Thoroughbred Racing, Finallymadeit won 16 races in 47 starts and earned $1,026,640. In his most recent start he was third in the James Marvin Stakes on Opening Day at Saratoga.

Finallymadeit was in the midst of his best season. The 5-year-old son of Concerto   won two of his three graded stakes this year, capturing the Skip Away Stakes (Grade 3) at Gulfstream Park and the Memorial Day Handicap (Grade 3) at Calder Race Course. He ran second in this year’s Donn (Grade 1) and Gulfstream Park (Grade 3) Handicaps.

Finallymadeit’s other graded score came in the 2008 Fred W. Hooper Handicap (Grade 3) at Calder.

ELMONT, N.Y. – Dunkirk, the second-place finisher in the June 6 Belmont Stakes, suffered a non-displaced condylar fracture of the left hind cannon bone during last Saturday’s running of the 1½ – mile Classic. The injury was detected when the colt was slightly off following the race, and x-rays taken June 8 revealed the fracture.

“He will have surgery later this morning to place a screw into the area which will stabilize the injury while it heals,” said Todd Pletcher, trainer of Dunkirk.  “We anticipate a full recovery and a return to racing later this fall.”

The surgery will be performed at the Ruffian Equine Medical Center in Elmont, NY by Dr. Patricia Hogan.

Dunkirk, owned by Mrs. John Magnier, Michael Tabor and Derrick Smith, was a $3.7 million Keeneland September yearling sale purchase. Sired by multiple graded stakes winner Unbridled’s Song, he led the field in this year’s Belmont, setting the pace under jockey John Velazquez.  He finished 2 ¾ lengths behind eventual winner Summer Bird and a neck ahead of Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird.

The Belmont was the fifth start for Dunkirk, who ran an impressive second to Quality Road in the Florida Derby after scoring back to back wins at Gulfstream Park.

The project took four years of planning and construction at a cost of $18 million.

“Long Island has never had a facility of this scale,” said Dr. Hunt.  “It’s overdue considering the population of horses in the area.  We’re thrilled to be able to provide the best services we can to the horse owners, their trainers and their veterinarians.”

The facility housing the REMC was an IEAH corporate vision that commenced in 2003.  The hospital was designed by British Architect and IEAH Director John Roberts to the specific requirements of Doctors Hunt and Hogan. 

“A lot of people associate this hospital today with IEAH Corporation, and certainly through the efforts of IEAH Corporation the building was constructed,” said Richard Schiavo of IEAH. “Now that the facility is finished, IEAH is a landlord and the operation of the hospital and the veterinary practice rests exclusively with Doctors Hunt and Hogan and their professional staff and we wish them the best of luck.”

Dr. Hunt said the REMC will never serve as an ambulatory clinic.  It will always be a referral center. 

“It will be a place where veterinarians can refer horses for diagnostics, certain emergency medical situations and orthopedic surgeries but remain the primary clinician once the patient has been discharged.  We see this as a center where outside surgeons are invited by their clients to travel to the hospital in order to provide services. This would alleviate stress to the horse as well as the expense of shipping to another clinic,” said Hunt.  “It will be very convenient for horseman from Belmont Park to walk their horses across the street as well as for Long Island and surrounding area horseman to be only a short trailer ride away.”

The medical center takes up over 22,000 square feet of space and includes two surgery suites, three recovery stalls, CT (computed tomography) a high-speed treadmill, digital radiography with an overhead high-power generator, as well as three portable EKLIN units, nuclear scintigraphy, a full-service laboratory, a lameness strip and outdoor lunging ring, three climate-controlled stalls, and 26 standard stalls in the barn.

“The equine center is a great showplace for the veterinary community; said Dr. Hogan.  “It is my hope that the facility will be able to provide the best care possible for these horses.  This will include an ‘open door’ policy that will welcome outside surgeons and/or specialists if their assistance is requested or required on a specific case.  The ultimate goal is a successful outcome for the patient and convenient access for the client to the best medical care possible.”

The REMC also has retained the services of Dr. Chris Byron, previously of the University of Illinois, and is searching for a third surgeon. An internship program is also in place at the Long Island clinic, and top-of-the-line equipment has been installed.

The National Thoroughbred Racing Association announced Friday that Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky., will be the first U.S. racetrack reviewed by an inspection team as part of the NTRA Safety and Integrity Alliance accreditation process. The inspection visit will begin Monday, April 6.

In preparation for the accreditation visit, Churchill Downs completed a 48-page written application that serves as the first step in the accreditation process. The track also hosted several meetings with Alliance officials and met with the Alliance’s independent monitor, former Wisconsin Governor and U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary, Tommy Thompson. The on-site visit will include inspections of all facets of the racing facility, and interviews with track executives, racetrack personnel, jockeys, owners, trainers, stewards, regulators and customers.

Heading up the Alliance inspection team that will visit Churchill Downs are Jennifer Durenberger, DVM, Richard J. Lewis and Mike Ziegler, Executive Director of the NTRA Safety and Integrity Alliance. 

Durenberger is a commission veterinarian at Santa Anita Park and previously worked as an associate veterinarian for the New York Racing Association from 2003-2008. Lewis is a longtime racing official who served from 1998-2008 as Director of Racing at Bay Meadows. He is also a former trainer on the Northern California circuit.

“The on-site inspection is a key component of Alliance accreditation,” said Ziegler. “A roster of Alliance inspectors is being assembled to conduct the many visits still to come.”

The Alliance, formed last October with the goal of establishing national uniform standards in the areas of safety and integrity, includes 55 racetracks in North America and every major national horsemen’s organization. Alliance certification standards cover five broad areas: injury reporting and prevention; creating a safer racing environment; aftercare and transition of retired racehorses; uniform medication, testing and penalties; and safety research. Within those five categories, specific standards will focus on areas including:

Systematic reporting of equine injuries
Aftercare of racehorses
Pre- and post-race veterinary examinations
Post-mortem examinations
Health and safety of jockeys
Riding crops and their use
Horse shoes and hoof care
Safety research
Safety equipment for jockeys and horse handlers
Exogenous Anabolic Steroids
Alkalinizing agents (TCO2)
On-track emergency medical care for humans and equines
Out-of-competition testing
Freezing and retrospective testing of post race samples
Continuing education
Security assessment and training
 
Pimlico Race Course, Belmont Park, Delaware Park, Hollywood Park, Calder Race Course and Arlington Park—all of which have race meetings beginning in the spring—will be among the next tracks to undergo Alliance review.

The NTRA Safety and Integrity Alliance is a standing organization whose purpose is to establish standards and practices to promote safety and integrity in horseracing and to secure their implementation. Information on the Alliance, including the Alliance Code of Standards, can be found at www.NTRAalliance.com.

The Honorable Tommy G. Thompson, former four-term governor of Wisconsin and U.S. secretary of Health and Human Services, serves as independent counsel of the Alliance and will provide public reports on Alliance progress in instituting safety and integrity standards.