Speaking during an Oct. 30 media briefing before the Nov. 1-2 Breeders’ Cup at Del Mar, officials outlined procedures that have led to increased equine safety and explained why Breeders’ Cup provides limited or no health information when horses are announced as scratched or withdrawn for physical reasons.
The Chosen Vron , for example, was an early withdrawal from the Breeders’ Cup Sprint (G1), days before post positions were drawn, after being placed on the veterinarian’s list, a group of ineligible horses. The only reason provided for placement on that list was “unsoundness,” not a more specific description. Other horses have been pulled this week without even that degree of disclosure, with information only provided via the connections of the affected horses.
“With regards to the disclosure, obviously, it’s public record of who gets scratched, but very similar to human health records where there are laws that protect what kind of information can be given,” said Dr. Will Farmer, a Breeders’ Cup veterinary team leader. “These medical records are also private information between the attending veterinarian and the owner through VCPR, the veterinary patient-client relationship…