CANTER Facts and Information
A great opportunity exists to make Thoroughbred Racing in Michigan a leader in the horse racing industry and the best at caring for thoroughbreds after their racing careers are over.
At Great Lakes Downs in Muskegon, the “sport of kings” was degraded by a few unscrupulous owners/trainers who became the “jesters” of horseracing. Their laughter at the sport and their disregard for the well being of these magnificent athletes, thoroughbred racehorses, demean the horse racing industry. These few irresponsible owners/trainers should not be allowed to participate in the sport of kings in Michigan or anywhere else.
If Michigan approves the new Thoroughbred racetrack near Detroit, The Pinnacle, owned by Jerry Campbell and Henry Mast, Michigan Thoroughbred racehorse owners and trainers..and CANTER.. want this to be a HIGH QUALITY, above board, thoroughbred racetrack that provides the best in thoroughbred horse racing, comparable to Kentucky, New York and higher quality racetracks. Michigan can set the standard in making thoroughbred rehabilitation and retirement a priority. In California, Thoroughbred owners created a California Retirement Management Account, or CARMA which is funded by a .3% (point 3 percent) of purses for all meets to pay for ex-racehorse rehabilitation. Arizona charges $1.00 per start for each horse which is paid to the HBPA to distribute for racehorse rehabilitation. Michigan thoroughbred owners can become the leaders and the best when it comes to horse racing AND rehabilitation of ex-racehorses, by establishing a rehabilitation and retirement fund.
Racetrack injuries to thoroughbred racehorses are a fact of the sport. Hundreds of thoroughbreds, injured on the racetrack, that come to CANTER, result in CANTER being the largest client at Michigan State University Veterinary Teaching Hospital with $100,000 worth of surgeries every year on CANTER thoroughbreds. All of the injured thoroughbreds are the result of racetrack injuries.
CANTER PAYS for surgeries at MSU.. CANTER PAYS for vets, farriers, transport, feed & grain, boarding, rehabilitation, retraining, website, marketing, and even euthanasia when necessary. CANTER MAKES NO MONEY on thoroughbreds. Why does CANTER continue if its makes no money? CANTER believes every thoroughbred racehorse should have a chance at a new life after it crosses the finish line for the last time.
The MAJORITY of thoroughbred racehorse owners and trainers retire their horse immediately following a serious injury and most contact CANTER to take the horse into the CANTER program so it can receive life saving surgery, rehabilitation, retraining, and adoption into an approved non-race home.. all at no cost to the owner. Most owners/trainers want and receive pictures and descriptions of their former racehorse from its new owners. CANTER has thousands of success stories.
CANTER is the ONLY equine rescue/rehabilitation organization in the country that accepts ANY thoroughbred off the racetrack, regardless of injury.. and CANTER does NOT have a “closed door” policy because there is no room for a thoroughbred off the track… CANTER makes room!
CANTER is an all-volunteer 501©(3) organization with a $250,000 a year budget devoted to thoroughbreds. No salaries are paid, but active CANTER board members who devote hours each day to help thoroughbreds, include: a business owner, attorney, Chief of Staff at MSU Veterinary Teaching Hospital, Equine Veterinarian, oncology nurse, equine trainer, broadcaster, computer specialist and educator.
CANTER depends on donations, grants and rehabilitated thoroughbred adoptions to meet its $250,000 a year budget. 100% of revenue goes to help thoroughbreds. An MSU fund, the Equine Rehabilitation Fund, accepts donations to help pay for MSU surgeries.
Huge benefits to the CANTER/MSU collaboration are the educational opportunities provided to MSU Equine Vet students and residents. The Equine Vet student program at MSU is one of the best in the country because of CANTER thoroughbreds and the cooperation of the thoroughbred racing industry.
A FEW unscrupulous thoroughbred racehorse owners/trainers continue to race their horse even after the horse has been diagnosed with serious injury. On a recent television report on horseracing, an owner/trainer admitted that, quote: “This vet told me he has a suspensory (leg injury). He said the horse was through. I won 6 races with the horse.” Unquote. *(See a complete transcript of the TV report at the end)
That owner/trainer came to CANTER to intake his horse when he knew the horse should be euthanized because of traumatic injuries. Yes, CANTER took the horse…the owner saved euthanasia charges.. and, after a CANTER vet assessment determined there was no chance to save the horse, CANTER paid for euthanasia.
Also included in the tv report was a chestnut thoroughbred that had raced with 80-90% of its superficial digital flexer tendon torn. Another thoroughbred had raced with its suspensory torn at the point of attachment.. and yet another thoroughbred had raced in the same week as the above two horses, with multiple fractures in a knee and severe arthritis.
The “Sport of Kings” is being ruined by the few unscrupulous owners/trainers who become the “jesters”. Stop their laughter at the sport. Stop them from racing.
BACKGROUND:
CANTER volunteers and thoroughbred owners and trainers have been working well together for 10 years, since CANTER was founded to find new non-race homes after the closing of the Detroit Race Course, DRC in 1997. When Great Lakes Downs opened in Muskegon, CANTER volunteers continued to help thoroughbred owners and trainers remove their non-competitive or injured thoroughbreds, by bringing them into the CANTER program. CANTER is a free service to thoroughbred owners and trainers.. but it costs CANTER more than $250,000 a year to transition these magnificent athletes into non-race homes. CANTER also provides a free website service to owners and trainers who want to list their horse(s) for sale. CANTER volunteers take pictures and descriptions of the horse, include owner/trainer contact information and place it on CANTER’s website for the owner/trainer to make a direct sale.
Each thoroughbred is transported to a boarding facility where it is evaluated for any medical needs and personality traits. If a medical issue is present, x-rays are taken and sent to MSU’s Veterinary Teaching Hospital for evaluation, surgical options, and potential prognosis. A good prognosis is possible for most thoroughbreds when they are taken out of racing by their owners as soon as a serious racetrack injury develops.
After surgery, CANTER volunteers continue the thoroughbreds rehabilitation, retraining, and constant evaluation, until a veterinarian determines the horse is ready for adoption.
CANTER cares about thoroughbred racehorses.. and about the responsible owners and trainers in the horseracing industry.
CANTER asks all owners and trainers to stand up for quality in horse racing and reject irresponsible owners and trainers who will race severely injured thoroughbreds trying to get one last dollar out of them. We have an OPPORTUNITY to make Michigan a HIGH QUALITY thoroughbred horse racing state. Let’s take it.. and continue to work together.
Transcript of TV report aired Thursday, November 8, 2007 on WXYZ-TV Detroit. Investigative reporter: Ray Sayah. Title: “ONE RACE TOO MANY”
Reporter: “Next year, Wayne County is scheduled to get a racetrack near the airport and if the track is like others in Michigan, there will be some horse owners who want to make money even if it means putting horses in danger. In a hidden camera investigation, we show you how and how one group is fighting to stop it.”
“Its race night at Muskegon’s Great Lakes Downs. While many fans cheer for the Number Eight horse, Devilsville Slew to win..”
Joy Aten, CANTER: “I’ll be rooting for him to go slow.”
Reporter: “Joy Aten wants the horse to take all the time he needs.”
Joy: “I’d like Devilsville Slew to NOT do well tonight.”
Reporter: “That’s because a loss by Devilsville Slew means the aging horse will get a chance at new life at a rehab farm far away from the racetrack. But a win by Devilsville Slew means he stays in racing, exposed to an underworld fans rarely see. Our hidden camera showed “priority” isn’t always taking care of old and injured horses because often times, making money comes first.”
Unidentified owner/trainer: “This is a horse racing business, this isn’t a ---- pet me zoo.”
Joy: “I think what it comes down to is the almighty dollar.”
Reporter: It’s the lure of the almighty dollar says Joy that makes some owners push their horses to run one more race, even though their aching legs say no.”
Joy: “Too many racing thoroughbreds are running injured.”
Reporter: Nine years ago, Joy volunteered for CANTER, a group that travels the race circuit and asks owners not to race their old and injured horses any more and give them to CANTER instead.”
Joy: “I’d like them to come to CANTER when their racing days are over for whatever reason.”
Reporter: “On this night, Joy is at the racetrack with her eye on more than a dozen thoroughbreds, among them a 6 year old gelding named Devilsville Slew. Our hidden cameras are there too as Joy makes her rounds. We get a look at thoroughbred racing that sometimes goes unchecked. An owner admits to Joy that on October 22nd he raced this horse (picture) even though he knew the horse had a bad tendon.”
Unidentified Owner: “He had the tendon, I told you he had the tendon.”
Reporter: “Just days after the race, a vet x-ray showed the bad tendon was beyond repair. CANTER took in the horse, but on November 2nd, 11 days after the race, a vet had no choice but to put him to sleep. When Joy questioned the owner, his response: ‘I race injured horses all the time.’
Unidentified owner/trainer: “I’ve been in this game for 38 years. You know how many horses I’ve had with tendons? This vet told me he has a suspensory (leg injury). He said the horse was through. I won 6 races with the horse.”
Reporter: “On a night when this owner bragged about injured horses winning races, Joy was eager to see Devilsville Slew lose. Two minutes into the race, she got her wish. Devilsville Slew loses the race but wins a chance at a new life.”
Joy: “I wanted to run out there and give him a hug.”
Reporter: “Today, Devilsville Slew is at a CANTER rehab farm in Imlay City. A checkup reveals he raced with an injury too.. a bone chip in the ankle.”
Canter horse trainer examining the horse: “definitely calcification.”
Reporter: “But the good new is, his racing days are over.”
Joy: “This is what we hoped for.”
Reporter: “For Joy Aten its another saved horse. Now she’s off to save another.
Reporter: “Horse Racing is important to Michigan’s economy. It bring in Millions in revenue and there are regulators. The State has 3 investigators and a vet who must inspect horses on race day. But, budget cuts have made their job tougher and that’s why they depends on owners to make good decisions.”
Reporter: “If you suspect a horse of being mistreated, the State does have an anonymous tip line: 1-800-973-5000.
Anchor response: “Most owners are on the up and up.”
Reporter: “Horse Racing has been around Michigan 75 years. Even rescue groups say MOST horse owners are good.. they love their animals. Its those few bad apples that put the horse in danger.”
SUMMARY:
CANTER supports responsible Thoroughbred racehorse owners and trainers. Thoroughbred racing in Michigan can be a high quality sport if unscrupulous owners/trainers are prohibited from racing injured horses.