THE SUNSHINE COAST NEWSPAPER COLUMN - EXTREME WEATHER CONDITIONS BRINGS AN EXTRA DUTY OF CARE

By Graham Potter | Sunday, December 2, 2012

Summer has arrived on cue and the extreme weather conditions that can apply on occasions during this time of year means that a common-sense approach is needed by racing authorities, trainers and jockeys for their own benefit as also to further protect the welfare of the thoroughbreds involved in race-meetings.

That duty of care is always there of course, but the threat of heat-stress brings its own specific dangers.

My understanding … and please it is limited and in general terms … is that only twenty to twenty-five percent of the energy created by a horse during exercise translates into muscle movement. The remaining seventy-five to eighty percent is lost as heat.

Therein lies the possible source of a problem on days of oppressive heat and humidity, firstly in terms of the fact that relative conditions (ie air temperature compared to body temperature) might limit the amount of heat that can be released from the horse into the air by blood vessels in the skin that widen during exercise, right through to the possible dire side-effects of good old fashioned sweating.

Sweat has not only got the water-loss component, but by sweating horses are also losing much needed electrolytes. That can take us to the point where a horse becomes simply dehydrated or depleted of electrolytes in a short, uncomfortable space of time and both of these factors will make a horse more susceptible to heat stress.

So it is a very real problem, particularly as there is seemingly no clear-cut way of establishing a horse’s vulnerability to heat stress under performance conditions if it has showed no symptoms before going out to race.

Like jockeys, they are all individuals and some will cope better than others.

Apart from the fact they can tell us how they are feeling, jockeys are much in the same boat as the horses they ride as far as heat stress is concerned.

In his latest blog on horseracingonly.com.au long-time leading rider Larry Cassidy didn’t even try to cushion the blow that the arrival of summer brings to his way of life.

“It has been reasonably well documented just how much work I have to do on my weight and, contrary to what some might expect, summer is a lot harder for me than winter in that regard,” explained Cassidy.

“I just get so dehydrated. The heat takes it out of me because I am such a free sweater. When you sweat as much as I do it takes all of the goodness out of your body and, of course, you can’t replace that quick enough on a race-day, so it can play havoc with your riding schedule. Sometimes you just won’t be able to finish the meeting.”

Ray Murrihy, Chief Steward of New South Wales Racing aptly put things in overall perspective earlier this week when assessing this weekend’s forecast which predicted a heat-wave for Sydney.

"Our first responsibility is to the participants, the horse and the jockey," Murrihy said. "We can always race another day. There is always something to bet on somewhere else.

"We won't risk life or limb to get the meetings through but if we can race safely then that's what will happen.”

Those wise sentiments will be welcomed and echoed by true racing enthusiasts throughout the country.

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