As Lasix ban reaches Kentucky Derby, debate over anti-bleeding medication continues
If trainer D. Wayne Lukas had gotten his wish, Grindstoneâs victory in the 1996 Kentucky Derby wouldnât be the answer to an obscure trivia question.
Owned by William T. Youngâs Overbrook Farm, Grindstone is the last horse to win the Run for the Roses without running on Lasix, the controversial anti-bleeding medication.
As Lukas tells it, Young was outspoken against the use of race-day medication for thoroughbreds and didnât want to be hypocritical in allowing Grindstone to run on Lasix in the Kentucky Derby.
Lukas, winner of four Kentucky Derbys, wasnât so sure.
âGod forbid I run in the Kentucky Derby or any major race and get beat half a stride, only to find out that he bled,â Lukas said. âIf nobodyâs using it, thatâs one thing. But if 19 out of 20 are using it, you donât want to be the 20th one.â
Owners and trainers in this yearâs Kentucky Derby wonât have to make that choice.
Kentucky began a partial elimination of race-day Lasix, the trade name for furosemide, with 2-year-old races in 2020. This year, the ban extended to stakes races â including the Kentucky Derby â as the sport moved toward a complete elimination of Lasix by July 1, 2022, which is when the Horseracing Integrity And Safety Act is scheduled to go into effect.
As part of this yearâs new rules, horses that ran on race-day Lasix could not accumulate qualifying points toward this yearâs Kentucky Derby.
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The debate about Lasix and its pros and cons goes back more than 40 years.
Proponents say Lasix prevents bleeding and aids breathing. Blood entering the lungs during high physical activity can cause a pulmonary hemorrhage and result in death. And thereâs always been a concern about public backlash if a horse were to win a major race â such as the Kentucky Derby â only to be visibly bleeding out of a nostril after crossing the finish line.
Opponents say Lasix can lead to dehydration and is a masking agent for other drugs. Lasix is generally prohibited as a race-day medication in other countries.
Chad Brown, winner of four straight Eclipse Awards for Outstanding Trainer from 2016-19, has been training since 2007 and admits heâs still not sure which side is right.
âI think itâs very early still with that,â Brown said. âIâm a big information guy and I like data, so Iâd like to see it researched more and in the future do whatâs best for the horses and the industry. I donât know what the answer is, but I think now is the time with these new rules to obtain a lot of data and look at it.â
Lasix 'a friend of the horse'
The issue crested April 3 at Keeneland when Bound for Nowhere beat Imprimis by a nose to win the Grade 2 Shakertown, a race that did not allow horses to run on Lasix.
After the race, Imprimis trainer Joe Orseno questioned the Lasix ban after seeing his horse bleeding from a nostril. Days later, Orseno issued a statement clarifying that some of the bleeding was caused by the horse hitting his head in the gate. Orseno said a veterinarian exam confirmed Imprimis had trace levels of Exercise Induced Pulmonary Hemorrhaging, the exact condition Lasix is used to prevent.
âTheyâre taking the best horses in the country, and theyâre penalizing them,â Orseno said immediately after the race. âHow is that good for the publicâs perception? Thatâs what I want to know. Somebody has to answer that question. Itâs not fair to take a horse like this and make them bleed. Itâs just not fair. I wish you would print every word of that because itâs total bull---- . Iâm very upset.â
Indeed, itâs an emotional topic for trainers.
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Greg Foley has been training since 1981 and had his first horse in the Kentucky Derby last year with Major Fed. Heâs back this year with O Besos.
Foley said the new rules didnât change the way he trained into the Triple Crown series this year but added he uses Lasix every time heâs allowed.
âI think itâs the craziest thing ever taking away Lasix,â he said. âI think itâs a friend of the horse. I see no negatives to it. I donât understand at all, to tell you the truth, why they want to take it away. You want to see a horse bleed? All it does is help the horse and keep them from bleeding.
âIf you get a horse bleeding all the time, youâre in big trouble with the horseâs health. The racing career is going to be very limited â if not over â for a lot of horses, depending on how bad the circumstances are.â
Hurting owners and trainers
Lukas said owners and trainers with only a handful of horses will suffer most because of the Lasix ban.
âThe guy thatâs going to get hurt is the guy you talked into spending $250,000 on a well-bred yearling, only to find out he bleeds and he canât race,â Lukas said. âAnd if youâre a small trainer and only have four horses and one of them bleeds, theyâve taken 25% of your livelihood right there.â
Several trainers noted bleeding was a problem even when Lasix was allowed.
Brad Cox, the Louisville native who has the Kentucky Derby favorite in Essential Quality, was affected by the new rule when Hidden Scroll bled after the Grade 3 Commonwealth on April 3 at Keeneland.
An April 5 report from PaulickReport.com said Hidden Scrollâs incident âwas the fourth case of verified bleeding on record since the state began its partial phaseout.â The report said the other cases came at Ellis Park and Churchill Downs in 2020 and at Turfway Park earlier this year.
Cox declined to comment when asked whether Lasix should be allowed.
âThe bottom line is weâve had a lot of success without Lasix,â Cox said. âI donât feel like itâs affected our ability to have our horses perform.â
Like Brown, Todd Pletcher said he would like to see more data about the effects of Lasix-free races.
âTo be honest, we have horses bleed sometimes with Lasix,â Pletcher said. âSometimes they win and bleed. Sometimes they run poorly and bleed. I think some people have the misconception that if you give a horse Lasix, they will not bleed. Thatâs not always accurate. Some horses will bleed through Lasix. Those horses when they go off Lasix are probably a bigger issue.â
Contact reporter Jason Frakes at jfrakes@courier-journal.com; Twitter: @KentuckyDerbyCJ.