PLETCHER POSITIVE: DRUG USED WITH PENICILLIN
Procaine, the local anesthetic detected above threshold levels in the Todd Pletcher-trained filly Wait a While when she finished third in the Oct. 24 Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf at Santa Anita Park, is used in association with penicillin G to prolong the minimum inhibitory concentration of the drug; in other words to keep penicillin in the bloodstream longer.
The California Horse Racing Board filed a complaint against Pletcher for violation of CHRB Rules 1943.2, 1844 (a) (b) (d), and 1887 after the Maddy Laboratory at the University of California-Davis detected an excessive amount of procaine. The Pennsylvania Equine Research Laboratory, a split-sample lab chosen by Pletcher, confirmed the test.
Procaine, which in its pure form can act as a stimulant, is a Class 3 drug in California. The penalty level for its presence is Class B, which calls for redistribution of the purse (Wait a While won $213,000), a minimum 30-day suspension absent mitigating circumstances, and a minimum fine of $500. Hollywood Park stewards will conduct a hearing Dec. 14 on the disqualification of Wait a While. No hearing date has been set for Pletcher.
Because procaine is extremely sensitive in testing, some veterinarians will use intravenous penicillin on a horse that may be close to a race rather than procaine penicillin. That, however, can cause an increase in the incidence of diarrhea, according to one veterinarian. Withdrawal times for procaine can vary, with some horsemen reporting positive tests for the drug for as long as three weeks after its administration. The Racing Medication and Testing Consortium recommends a 15-day withdrawal time for procaine penicillin G. The CHRB has no specific withdrawal times but offers free pre-race testing to determine whether or not procaine has cleared a horse’s system.
According to sources close to the Pletcher stable, Wait a While may have been treated with procaine penicillin for a respiratory infection roughly 18 days before the Breeders’ Cup. She won the Yellow Ribbon Stakes on Sept. 27. Wait a While has been retired with 12 wins in 24 starts and earnings in excess of $2 million. She raced for Alan and Karen Cohen’s Arindel Farm. Alan Cohen is the owner of the Florida Panthers of the National Hockey League.
Pletcher, the winner of four consecutive Eclipse Awards as North America’s outstanding trainer from 2004-07, could not be reached for comment. He last served a medication suspension in December 2006 and January 2007 when he lost an appeal regarding a 2004 positive test for mepivacaine and was suspended for 45 days.
Pam Blatz-Murff, senior vice president of racing for the Breeders’ Cup, said that organization currently has no sanctions against trainers whose horses test positive for any substance other than anabolic steroids. The Breeders’ Cup instituted penalties that could lead to a lifetime ban for a trainer with multiple anabolic steroid positives in the World Championships races.
"It is being discussed right now to determine what we might or might not do in the future to maybe tighten up the regulations from our side of the fence," Blatz-Murff told the Paulick Report. "This (charge against Pletcher) was just announced and we certainly support all of the actions of the CHRB. It’s a little early for us to make a statement other than our support of their function. How we progress and the improvements that are made is something that will unfold in the next months going forward.
"Obviously, Todd will have representation and he has due process," she added.
Copyright © 2008, The Paulick Report
Tags: alan cohen, arindel farm, California Horse Racing Board, CHRB, class 3 drug, karen cohen, maddy laboratory, Paulick Report, pennsylvania equine research laboratory, procaine, procaine penicillin, procaine penicillin g, racing medication and testing consortium, Ray Paulick, rmtc, split sample, todd pletcher, wait a while, yellow ribbon stakes
December 5th, 2008 at 4:00 pm
Anyone — trainer, owner, veterinarian, etc., — who illegally medicates a horse, should be precluded from participating in thoroughbred racing FOR LIFE. Remember, folks horses have no voice; no choice.
Stop the greed!
December 5th, 2008 at 4:42 pm
Oats and water…..when will these state jurisdictions understand that medicine is for the ill - even with equine athletes - and the quibbling over how much was supposed to be administered, when it was administered, why it was administered and how it was administered is not getting any closer to a zero-tolerance approach that must be done for the industry to regain any of the credibility it has lost in the world of sports.
December 5th, 2008 at 6:16 pm
Wait a minute–so sick horses shouldn’t be treated with medicine? And who says that Wait A While was illegally medicated?
How about waiting for the facts before pillorying people?
December 5th, 2008 at 7:47 pm
[...] VENOMOUS CONFESSION BY VEITCH ABOUT ALYDAR PLETCHER POSITIVE: DRUG USED WITH PENICILLIN [...]
December 5th, 2008 at 8:17 pm
I agree with Sarah. The filly was not drugged to enhance performance or mask soreness. Pletcher gave her longer than the advised withdrawal time. As she did not respond to other antibiotics, he felt this was the best medication for her. The zero tolerance approach is not rational or reasonable, especially under circumstances as these where valid treatment under a veterinarian’s direction was given but now Pletcher has to pay the price with no willful wrong-doing on his part.
December 6th, 2008 at 7:53 am
Why is it that we don’t see these medication “problems” (limits, types, withdrawel periods, ridiculuous lab and hearing times, etc) at many of the international, first class racing venues? What is it with American Racing that it has such ambiguities, inconsistencies and debatable results?
Maybe, G. Rarrick can help me understand.
December 6th, 2008 at 7:55 am
I’m with Priscilla and Sarah. Giving a horse cobra venom and giving a horse a legal medication to treat a health issue are not the same thing, and should not be treated the same; nor should their trainers be treated the same. Sensationalistic coverage of medication positives does nothing to inform or educate the racing public on the nuances of these incident, nor does painting every violation with the same brush.
December 6th, 2008 at 8:42 am
I have no problem treating a horse that needs treatment. But a horse that needs treatment is not fit to race. In Europe and Asia, a horse can be treated for whatever problem it has, but NO medication of any kind is allowed in the animal on race day. If there’s a doubt, the trainer can have the horse tested before start declaring to be sure the system is clear. There are no thresholds or withdrawal times - and so no excuses. I urge everyone connected with racing in America - owners, trainers, fans, jockeys - to push hard to eliminate all drugs, including (and especially!) lasix. It’s the only way for the sport to go forward. Don’t buy the excuses that the pharmaceutical/vet lobby uses - American horses work harder, race more, are kept in more polluted conditions - it’s all crap. Horses in America don’t race more than anywhere else in the world - in fact, the average number of starts is lower than in Europe. Don’t give up!
http://www.gallopfrance.com
December 6th, 2008 at 10:13 am
What are you suppose to do if a horse has a respiratory infection, just leave it?
Some of the rules are ridiculous - athletes get sick, both human and equine, should they go untreated and miss competitions because of illness?
December 6th, 2008 at 11:09 am
Yes, they SHOULD miss competitions because of illness. Just like you get to call in sick to work when you’re sick. Read my response more carefully, please. Yes, by all means treat a sick horse. And when it is better, and ONLY when it is better, and free of all medications, should it run. If it needs drugs to run, it is not fit to run.
http://www.gallopfrance.com
December 6th, 2008 at 2:23 pm
G. Rarick is a typical know-it-all who knows nothing. On one hand he complains that American horses dont race enough yet on the other hand they need to be in absolute perfect condition in order to race. He obviously has never been around racehorses before because they are rarely perfect. A horse treated three weeks before a competition for a respitatory infection is far from a sick horse. Do you call in sick for three weeks G. Rarick? What is amusing is that people like this act as though medications arent used in other countries. Remember a few years ago when the japanese runner in the Arc got a positive or when the Juddmonte runner in France came back with a clembuterol positive? Of course not. Because most of you have no real understanding of what happens here let alone overseas. The grass always looks greener
December 6th, 2008 at 9:20 pm
Dear Wesly: I train in France, and I’ve had 40 percent of my runners in the money this year, so sorry, I do actually work around horses and I do know what I’m talking about. Trust me: The grass is indeed quite a bit greener. Please tell me how many runners you have trained, how many winners you have had and how many have been in the money.
http://www.gallopfrance.com
December 7th, 2008 at 8:35 pm
Touché, Wesly. I have read several of Ms. Rarick’s opinion pieces and have always been impressed.
Horses should be medicated and rested to help them heal. Sick, spent, depressed, broken graded stakes winners running for $6K, $5K, $4K, $2K claiming and infirm horses at all levels should not be drugged, blocked and exploited until they “take a bad step” –which has replaced “stepping in a hole”. One is the correct and ethical use of therapeutic medications as they are intended to be used, in therapeutic doses to heal horses along with adequate recovery time, the other is the wrong, wicked and lethal drugging, blocking and doping of race horses to exploit them which has tanked the quality and reputation of American racing.
American horsemen should be inspired by how Europeans house, train and race their horses, the general absence of drugs and the low breakdown rate though European racing is not perfect. European and American horses are the same horses, yet European-based horses are healthier and sounder because of their quality of life and training, superior horsemanship, little or no drugs, little emphasis on speed and longer, more relaxed grass races with strong finishes. The breeding and even the surface (unless bad, sloppy, uneven and/or sealed) are less to blame for injuring and killing thousands of American race horses each year than people, drugs, greed and lack of compassion toward horses.
Hey Gina, please enjoy a warm baguette with a nice slice of Saint André for me! Merci beaucoup!