Horse Racing Performance Enhancing Drugs - Salix use to be banned, USA expects changes
The three strikes penalty system was proposed by the New Mexico Senator, Tom Udall, and, Ed Whitfield, of Kentucky, on drugs that enhance the performance of horses and the key issue was to ban the use of these drugs on race day.
The summit took place at Belmont on 13 June and this issue was discussed in response to the federal bills filed on the day of the Kentucky Derby to ban medications.
That pre-race drug is called, Salix, it is a diuretic, and it is used to remove excess fluid from the horse’s body before the race. It is also used to treat heart related problems, such as a congestive heart etc.
It is a common understanding that Salix is used to drug horses, but actually it cures diseases and keeps the animal fit to perform at its best for example it manages pulmonary haemorrhaging in a horse, or, any other pet, which in other words is also called
prevention from bleeding.
It also prevents the lungs from getting scarred so all in all it’s more of a treatment drug rather than a performance enhancing drug.
Even with all of these qualities, the drug is not used as a pre-race preventative drug in Hong Kong and Ireland and it is something to be considered that both of these countries had ample amount of success without the use of Salix.
Bill Nadar, who is the former New York Racing Association (NYRA) Chief Operating Officer, also thinks that the drug should be banned based on the success of Irish and Hong Kong racing scene.
Nadar believes that previously the USA horse racing scene was pure of any pre-race medications. But in 1994 the USA allowed pre-race meds and everybody came to accept it, so did he in his 14 year career at NYRA.
There were mixed arguments about the use of race day medications since there were more than 100 people at the summit from nine different countries. One view was common, that the use of these drugs is cheating and there is not much anyone can do to totally
eradicate the problem. Ban is one thing but found guilty three times would end up as a career ending move.
In Hong Kong they perceive things differently and if a horse is found to be bleeding, he will get an automatic ban for three months, while he gets medical attention from the vets. A medical exam has to be passed to get the green signal.
An international summit on horse medication made it very clear that the ban on “Salix” is not debateable, and, if, the USA implements the ban, drastic changes can be expected.
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