Rees: Race-day Lasix ban devastating for Kentucky racing

by Best of the Blogs | 04.16.2012 | 7:13am

In her blog at the Courier-Journal, Jennie Rees addresses the idea of Kentucky racing without race-day Lasix. The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission is planning to vote on this issue in a meeting today.

Rees says: “This is a game-changer for Kentucky racing, and not for the good. Rather, it would contribute in alarming fashion to the devastation of a circuit already on the ropes. You want to see a bloody corpse, that would be Kentucky racing if getting rid of the proven-effective anti-bleeder medication furosemide is banned on race day.”

“I don’t think I’m exaggerating.”

“Horses bleed, not just thoroughbreds. Lasix has been proven to prevent or reduce the incidence of bleeding. It is highly regulated. The bettors know who is on Lasix and who is not, because it is prominently noted in the program. It is a system that works when you’re talking about integrity and protecting the public.”

» Read more at Courier-Journal

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voiceofreason

Just like stillriledup said a week ago.
C2

Interesting the comments weren’t horse health centered….
Tinky

Typical hysteria from another Lasix apologist.

Never mind that the vast majority of horses competing around the world race safely and successfully without Lasix. Never mind that they enjoy longer careers than their medication-addicted American counterparts.

Never mind that the average number of career starts and starts per year for American Thoroughbreds dramatically declined during the period of Lasix use (though obviously is not solely attributable to that usage).

Never mind that racehorses competed successfully for around 100 years in the U.S. without any bleeder medications before the advent of Lasix, and that those horses were far, far more durable.

Never mind that Lasix is unquestionably a performance enhancing drug.
Randy in Lakeland

Son of a b—— need to learn how to train a horse without. I remember in New York when there was no lasix. You had to draw a horse but I am sure no one remember how to.
Tom Bower

Finally someone gets it. If they ban Lasix then Turfway and Ellis should close their doors the next day. And one half of the KY stallions should move to other states. It will be over.
nomoralcompass

Stop the BS, get rid of this garbage. Salix has done more to destroy the confidence in the American thoroughbred world wide than any gambling joint in Indiana. And if it devastates the fields in Kentucky by moving the cheap crappy claimers desperately running on Salix to NY and PA, have a nice trip.

Please note, apologists of the desperate state of horse conditioning in this country, that the horses running in the Grand National this weekend ran over 4 miles, over jumps and still had enough in the tank to make it a photo for the win, are THOROUGHBREDS, not on Salix and not trained by Americans. Why are all the bleeders in America? Is it the grass and water in Kentucky? Your argument is pure crap. Sorry, Salix and the drug store cowboys are killing our business. It would be a great thing if breeders, owners and the few trainers out there who know better, would stand up as a group and demonstrate as much courage about this issue as our horses possess on the race track. But alas, I ask for courage from a group notorious for our collective cowardice.
BELLWETHER4U

get rid of the CHEATERS/REPETERS…LASIX is the least of “THE GAMES” problems…GOT IT???…hope is KENTUCKY will stand up to all this BS…ty…
Take that

“For those owners and breeders (including apparently some on the KHRC) who say Kentucky should be the first in line to ban lasix, I say you don’t need a regulatory change to not run your horses on anti-bleeder medication. Set the example and don’t run your horses on such medication and prove you can be successful without it and that it is just the needless and dangerous crutch you contend it is. Take out ads that your stallion/broodmare never raced on Lasix, if that is the case.”

She knows very well why they don’t do this. She is peddling pure, unadulterated propaganda.
Jasonfeldman

The only thing that is unquestionable is that you are obviously nothing more than a delusional, misguided Barry Irwin apologist. Why don’t you do what your hero demands and stop spewing your nonsense while hiding behind a phony screen name. Back up your claim of expertise by exposing yourself.
Ridindirty3

This could be a case where the operation was a success……but the patient died!
voiceofreason

100% correct, although you’ll hear from the “There’s no proof to support it” contingency that “every horse bleeds” or “they only invented scoping recently” or “Lasix helps horses” and “it has no effect on the breed or racing” bull.
Ridindirty3

I agree with you! Nobody says…you MUST race your horse on Lasix! If you think there’s an advantage in the marketplace to NOT racing on it…you are free to choose that option & advertise to that effect…..and reap the benefits! Unfortunately, the “Sport of Kings” assumes the existence of BALLS! The way it looks nowadays…..they should call it the “Sport of Queens”!
Jimculpepper

Another credible scribe making the flat statement that drug dependency is a dominant force in racing.
Josh

We die a slow death without slots, we die an instant death without Lasix. Meanwhile in the real world we keep plugging away raising horses the best we can. I say we get all of our deamons out now and move on with a fresh attitude in KY. There are A LOT OF OWNERS looking for answers to why their horses aren’t performing. At least without all the smoke and mirrors we will know it’s the horse
Frank L.

Jasonfeldman —

You are 100% correct.
Tinky is a phoney of the first order!! Good luck in trying to
identify who he really is. I do know that he has been only licensed
as an owner on the track — this after many, many confrontations
with him on this site. He boasts of many capacities he filled on the
track, BUT, everyone on the track, no matter what his
position/capacity, must be licensed — he has only answered as being
licensed as an owner, and authorized agent, “PERIOD”!!!

Racing in the U.S. is
totally different than racing in Europe, and cannot be compared,
directly, if trying to analyze the use of Lasix in both countries.

Also, remember that
internal bleeding is “NOT” recognized as bleeding in Europe as it
is in the U.S — “BIG DIFFERENCE”.
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_OPYWICKFKTSPHHUKZQGUAM75JQ BILLIE

Europe hardly does it or should I say NO LASIX IN EUROPE….stop the ridiculous excuses…..nothing but STUPID EXCUSES….the problem is we kept breeding these bleeders…..talk about animal abuse…..
Ridindirty3

As soon as the fix….I mean vote…. is in. I’m gonna start marketing the Woody Stephens autograph model red rub rag. For all your EIPH needs!
Cheryl

“Just take Aruna, winner of last fall’s Grade I Spinster at Keeneland. She was a bleeder in France and sent to America so she could race on Lasix and prove herself on the track, which she did.”

A horse that was NOT GOOD ENOUGH to win on her own merits in Europe is a poster child for drug use? A great arguement, I don’t think.
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_OPYWICKFKTSPHHUKZQGUAM75JQ BILLIE

NOthing to expose and Irwin has nothing to do with…

THEY DONOT USE LASIX IN EUROPE…..GOT IT?…..
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_OPYWICKFKTSPHHUKZQGUAM75JQ BILLIE

FACE THE REAL TRUTH……THE HORSES WE BREED ARE INFERIOR!!! and NEED MEDICATION like Lasix to even run……
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_OPYWICKFKTSPHHUKZQGUAM75JQ BILLIE

Agreed!!

Aruna winning on lasix only proves SHE IS A FAKE!!!!
Frank L.

Europe breeds bleeders also. Your inexperience shows?
Smittyhorse101

tinky
you ban Lasix? and you don’t ban Clenbuterol, Steroids and what else horses are given? Nuts…
Smittyhorse101

but you don’t know what they do use do you?
Cheryl

SOME, underline, SOME trainers in Europe use Lasix in training but the point is that it is banned on raceday. We don’t see horses pulling up with bloody nostrils on racecourses in Europe, so why on earth do you think that is what would happen in the US? Unless you are acknowledgin that the American TB has a weaker constitution that its European cousins ;)

All that aside, the main reason trainers are so anti banning Lasix is because they know it means they’ll have to learn real horsemanship and change their training methods, rather than relying on whatever magic potion their vet has on offer.
Garrett Redmond

Regarding phony screen names, what about Jasonfeldman and Frank L?
McGov

That’s my biggest fear regarding the ban on Lasix….that horseman will return to what they know: withdrawing water for 48 hours before a race. I can’t imagine a more cruel method…can anyone imagine a human athlete not drinking water for 2 days before an event???? Scary thought.
Racingwithbruno

You people have no clue what performance enhancing drugs are, Lasix ? funny, won’t you please read up on Zilpaterol, a steroid mimicking supplement or even Winstrol which weakens bone, read up on that please, and then tell me that Lasix is performance enhancing. Here is details: http://www.horsesciencenews.co…

This is what is being used in California and other states, instead of blowing hard about Lasix or Furosemide about getting rid of the real enhancing performing meds.

Zilpaterol comes out of Mexico and its referred to as the ‘pink stuff’ http://www.zilpaterol-mexico.c…

The RCI has known this for over a year http://www.thoroughbredtimes.c…

Please read this and tell me Lasix is the devil in racing?
Big Red

no problem, ban lasix in KY and I’ll simply find another trainer / track to race my claimers that NEED lasix. Best wishes on trying to find someone to bet on your 5 horse fields.
Jasonfeldman

What about it Sally Hemmings ? Do you have something constructive to add to the conversation, or are you just going to sue people when you don’t get your way ?
Cheryl

Whilst there are definitely many other medication issues that need to be dealt with in the USA, you cannot escape the fact that Lasix IS performance enhancing:

ARUNA could not win in Group/Graded company in France due to her bleeding (unplaced in 2 starts in this company)

She is sent to the US and raced on Lasix, winning a G1 (raced 8 times, 7 in Group/Graded company, winning 3 and placing 2nd twice).

Ergo, her performance was improved by use of the medication.
LindleyPaxtonBarden

This situation will play out just as the adoption rate on Lexington-Fayette County Animal Shelter dogs did when mandatory spay/neuter rules (and increased adoption fees) went into effect. At first, adoption rates dropped and dogs died because of the increased cost of adopting from a county shelter; but when the public became accustomed to the change, the world was truly better for the altered, re-homed dogs and the county in general.
Yes, the owners/trainers/bettors of horses running on Lasix will be taken aback by the new no-Lasix rule, and racing will suffer a definite slump because of it. But the afore-mentioned groups will rise again, and public perception and the horses themselves (individually, and as a breed–if non-bleeders are winning the races, they will be the breeding stock of a stronger race of American thoroughbreds!) will definitely BENEFIT from the rule change!
Trainer

Lasix is simply a therapeautic medication. How many people that use lasix have their performances enhanced? The fact is that without lasix a lot of horses will bleed when they run. The betting fan will then really be gambling won’t they? They will be gambling on whether or not the horse they bet on will actually make it thru the race without bleeding. As far as Barry Irwin and his comments, his horse ran in the Blue Grass on lasix. If he is so against it then why does he use it? Food for though folks.
Rickbarton

what does draw a horse mean Randy? I guess we aren’t talking about watercolors or charcoal on paper artwork…
McGov

Fearmonger. Like always, those afraid of change make lots of noise about the end of the world. Any yet, we somehow continue to survive…its got to be in miracle territory by now.
THE SPORT OF HORSE RACING WILL NOT DIE IF WE TAKE THE DRUGS AWAY. HORSES WILL CONTINUE TO RUN FAST AND BE COMPETITIVE IN A HERD, JUST AS THEY DO IN THE WILD WITHOUT DRUGS.
There, I know I feel a bit better.
Rcyetman

When China went to establish the breeding industry in their country, they didn’t ask Kentucky for help, they went to the Irish and Coolmore. Lasix is destroying the breed in this country. John Gosden has said often the center of the racing world is shifting away from America. Lasix has hastened this shift.
Allynn

ty…
Allynn

they do train with it…period…so no we don’t got it…
Allynn

BS…
Warren Eves

Boy I couldn’t disagree with you more on a subject I have spent years studying. Absolutely on the other end of your opinion.
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_OPYWICKFKTSPHHUKZQGUAM75JQ BILLIE

”Just take Aruna, winner of last fall’s Grade I Spinster at Keeneland.
She was a bleeder in France and sent to America so she could race on
Lasix and prove herself on the track, which she did.”

yeah right!! therapueautic!??…sell that somewhere else….
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_OPYWICKFKTSPHHUKZQGUAM75JQ BILLIE

Always the easy way out….BREED THOSE BLEEDERS OUT OF THE STOCK….
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_OPYWICKFKTSPHHUKZQGUAM75JQ BILLIE

yeah right….quit pretending….oh it’s the tapeta when we went to Dubai….uhhuh…..they were sucking wind without lasix….and those inside knows it….
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_OPYWICKFKTSPHHUKZQGUAM75JQ BILLIE

yeah right! keep lying….
Ridindirty3

HEY! JUNYA! My grandfather had the best sayin’ ’bout these sum bitches…………Wouldn’t know a horse if they woke up next to one!
Rachel

He uses it to level the playing field because lasix is a proven PED for man and animals.
stillriledup

I had to LOL when i read “the bettors know who is on lasix and who is not becuase its noted in the program”

How about first time geldings, are they ALWAYS listed in the program too? No, you see fines for non reporting of geldings……so why would we think that the L in the program is always accurate?

Also, if a horse does NOT have an “L” in the program, how do we know for sure if the horse really has NO lasix…is there really a ‘lasix test”?

The reputation of lasix (true or not) is that it masks other PEDs. Get rid of the cheating trainers and you won’t have to ban lasix.
stillriledup

what did i say a week ago!????
Tinky

Jason –

That’s what is called an ad hominem attack. In other words, as you are apparently unable to argue the substance of the issue, you resort to attacking irrelevancies like screen names.

I’ve posted references to back up everything that I’ve asserted in these discussions many times. Feel free to look them up.
Jasonfeldman

Tinky,

Your reply is nothing but a straw man argument.
Frank L.

Typical of a know nothing — Jasonfeldman anf Frank L. are our actual names. Any more dumb questions?
Tinky stlll hasn’t answered his licensening capacities.
Tinky

Thanks for the confirmation that you have absolutely nothing substantial to add to the discussion.
Frank L.

Tinky —

I think you have worn out
your “ad hominem attack” card as an answer to questions you don’t
have an answer for. It has already been established, in the past,
that you have “NO” actual hands on barn experience, so stop
trying to confuse the issue of Lasix with articles that fail to make
“direct” comparisons between U.S. and European racing!! Your
subjective comparison’s “DO NOT” get it, as they are imply
inexperience, PERIOD!!

Ray Paulick —

Why don’t YOU have any
comments, with respect to Lasix, from leading U.S. trainers like
Baffert, Sadler, Mitchell, Mott, Pletcher, and Assmusen, etc., or
that go against “YOUR” particular “agenda”, with respect to
Lasix. I notice that most all your articles, and quotes, are from ALL
but the “actual” trainers involved in the U.S.

Also, I remember that
Karen Maclaughlin (name may be mis-spelled) was doing an experiment
with Lasix use with his two year olds . Why hasn’t any more been
reported with respect to his experiment? I believe that was back in
January!!
Yovankajojo

at this stage of the game after so many studies have been done,it really is detramential to all exspecially the horses
Trainer

I would like to know exactly what drugs using lasix masks? In 25 years of training horses at an acceptable win percentage level I have never seen lasix mask any drug. Just because you do not see bloody nostrils in Europe does not mean that horses do not bleed. Also there are plenty of other medications used in europe and Dubai to control bleeding. Ever hear of estrogen?
Garrett Redmond

For several days have not had a chance to check this ‘thread’.

This is a response to Frank L. and Jasonfeldman.

Both are good examples of the flatulence that comes from those who cannot offer answers to fair questions.

Do we have many citizens with just one letter as a surname?
Perhaps it is pronounced correctly as “Lperiod”.

Jasonfeldman, because of his unwillingness to risk identification, resorts to the red herring defense. Typical of those without courage.

I shall not be returning to this subject with you. I believe in fairness. It would be unfair of me to joust with people of your low IQs.