Equine Injuries

Equine fractures and catastrophic injuries have been the topic in the horse racing industry since the recent tragedies Preakness Stakes at Pimlico when Barbaro fractured his right hind leg in three places during early part of Preakness Stakes and at the Kentucky Derby when Eight Belles broke both ankles in her front legs.  According to reported facts, it appears that less than two percent of all horses involved in horse racing suffer debilitating fractures, which ultimately provide fatal.

But race horse fractures are not limited to popular race tracks. For instance, over the last two weeks at the Thoroughbred Center in Lexington, Kentucky, two thoroughbred race horses had to be euthanized on the practice tracks after suffering leg fractures: one on the upper track and one on the lower track.

In discussing this with racehorse trainer Chuck Hamilton, he indicated that racehorse fractures are a serious problem. For example, he explained that at the Thoroughbred Center, the upper dirt track is deep - too deep in his opinion.  Race tracks are constructed so that various depths of loose dirt is placed over a solid surface so as to minimize the impact trauma to the horse's legs when they exercise or run.  Mr. Hamilton further explained that when the horses train, their hoofs tend to leave divots in the dirt of various depths. Several horses training over the same area may tend to cause the divots to become deeper and ruts to form. Thereafter, race horses training on the track at fast gallops may be at a higher risk of injury if they step into a deep divot (hole).  When asked for a possible solution, he indicated his preference to exercise his race horses on tracks which have a dirt cover which is not as deep, such as the lower track at the Thoroughbred Center. So as to minimize the size of the divots, the tracks at the Thoroughbred Center are harrowed, or leveled, several times a day on a regular basis.  Additionally, in an effort to minimize fractures, the racing industry has been investigating and experimenting with different types of track materials.

We would welcome thoroughbred race horse trainers and professionals to share their opinions about this topic along with race track construction.  Please feel free to leave your opinions and comments.

Comments

[E. A. Buck]

The primary cause of breakdowns in race horses is tetanic contractions...a subject few riders, trainers or vets know anything about.
at www.hartetoharte.org there is an unpublished article about it.