Horse Racing Tips

Samantha Miss Focuses on Victoria Oaks

The Melbourne Cup Carnival, or Spring Festival, is being hosted by Flemington Racecourse this year, and one of the most popular races featured during this time, is the Victoria Oaks. It takes place on the 6th of November 2008 and is run over a distance of 2,500 meters. The Victoria Oaks is a racing event for three year old fillies, and trainer Kris Lees has confirmed that Samantha Miss will be in the lineup for the race. With a purse of $1 million, this Grade 1 race has drawn a lot of attention, and Samantha Miss will be up against a tough competitor field.

Askar Tau – Cesarewitch favorite

The Cesarewitch Handicap was first known as the Tsesarevich, named after the Crown Prince of Russia, in honor of his visit to the United Kingdom, and was inaugurated in 1839. Today, the Cesarewitch Handicap is still run at the Newmarket Racecourse, over a grueling distance of just over two miles, and will take place on Saturday, 18 October 2008. It is a flat horse racing event for three year old horses and over, and the course is fairly straight, due to the distance of the race. This year, one of the favorites for this popular race, is Askar Tau.

Equine Sports Massage

When humans feel pain in their muscles or tightness in certain areas of their bodies they will often visit a massage therapist, who will work to loosen the muscle and to assist in its healing. Horses are also have a variety of muscles, but cannot tell us when they are experiencing some discomfort, therefore injured muscles are only noticed when horses start to display a change in demeanor, are afflicted by constant lameness or perform poorly. Equine sports massage treatment can assist horsemen in keeping their horses in the best possible shape and prevent muscle injuries before they become more serious.

Laminitis in Racehorses

Laminitis is a word that strikes fear in the hearts of every horse owner, be it family horses or racehorses. In 1989, the magnificent Secretariat was euthanized because of laminitis; a similar fate was suffered more recently by Barbaro, the people’s hero, who also contracted laminitis after suffering a broken leg. When humans decided to domesticate horses, their diets and workloads changed dramatically from what they were accustomed to in the wild, and this has opened the door to illnesses and injuries which would probably not have occurred had they remained wild. But there is hope for horses with laminitis, depending on the severity, and as more research is done into laminitis, the more is learnt and preventative measures developed.

The Low Down on DOD

In 1986, the term Developmental Orthopaedic Disease, or DOD, was used for the first time. The term is a general description and can be misleading as DOD not only refers to bone diseases, but also to problems that are found in developing joints and plates. Developmental Orthopaedic Disease is therefore a diagnosis for any development issues of the musculoskeletal structure. Even though there is no specific general cure or treatment that can assist in all the various forms of Developmental Orhtopaedic Disease, problems can be treated and steps can be taken to prevent most DODs.

Seriousness of Hoof Cracks

The racing community and thousands of fans were waiting in anticipation for the prognosis of the hoof crack that was found on Big Brown’s left front hoof. The quarter crack was treated by Ian MacKinlay, a hoof specialist, and Big Brown should be back on track to take on the Belmont Stakes on 7 June 2008. The fact that the hoof crack could be repaired was a great relief to all those who are pinning their hopes on Big Brown being the next Triple Crown winner, and even though some hoof cracks are repairable, there are some that can cause serious injury and pain to horses.

Fractures – Types, Causes and Prevention

Racing and even training puts a vast amount of strain on the bones in the legs of horses. To understand the pressure that a leg is under during a full gallop, it is vital to point out that even though horses are much larger than human athletes, their bone structures are approximately the same size. When a thoroughbred is at full gallop, only one leg is in contact with the ground at a time. This causes the force of an estimated seven tons to be exerted on each leg as the horse moves through the stride. It is this force that can cause serious damage if a horse steps wrongly or is running on uneven ground.

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