Erin Richards

So how do you lessen your chances of having to deal with roaring and, subsequently, tie-back surgery? One way, Bollam suggested, is to make an endoscopy a part of your pre-purchase exam.

Some people may not know their horse is a roarer until the animal is pushed toward strenuous exercise, so Bollam always encourages her clients to find out if the animal is already performing at the level at which they want to compete.

Horsemen can get caught up in the specifics of their disciplines, but the basic needs of sport horses, like all athletes, are simple: water, food and air.

The act of breathing, so commonplace that it’s often taken for granted, is of such importance in equine athletes that race horses with one tiny misalignment in the upper airway can immediately be destined for a different career.

The signs are familiar and common yet never easy to watch: short, stubby strides, marked soreness, the head-bobbing lameness. When those kinds of symptoms are caused by navicular syndrome, treatment options have been depressingly slim.

But in the early part of this century, veterinarians with well-connected European colleagues heard whisperings about, or actually obtained, a new drug that appeared to work wonders at restoring soundness in horses with bone-related lamenesses.

And a new nationwide study may make it easier to obtain.

The signs are familiar and common yet never easy to watch: short, stubby strides, marked soreness, the head-bobbing lameness. When those kinds of symptoms are caused by navicular syndrome, treatment options have been depressingly slim.

But in the early part of this century, veterinarians with well-connected European colleagues heard whisperings about, or actually obtained, a new drug that appeared to work wonders at restoring soundness in horses with bone-related lamenesses.

Although the causes of this condition are not fully understood, medical advances have led to better diagnosis and treatment.

For young horses with bright futures, the best bloodlines, training and attitude are nothing without good legs. Strong legs. Sound legs. A concert of bones, muscles, tendons and joints growing together in rehearsal for real work.

While these tumors may be rare, it’s important to recognize warning signs when they do occur.

If you’re a horse lover who listens to National Public Radio, you might have enjoyed a segment in the fall of 2006 about a race horse named Precisionist.

The immigration debate may divide legislators in Washington, D.C., but the real effects are at training facilities, horse shows and racetracks around the country.

Hunter/jumper trainer Ginny Edwards has tried every method she and her lawyers can think of to get her best groom back in the United States.

Trainer Sanna Hendriks was worried; McDynamo still didn't look right.

He was coming off a disappointing start to the 2006 spring season, plagued by a pull-up at Keeneland (Ky.), a fever at Iroquois (Tenn.) and a bad abscess. Although Far Hills (N.J.) had always been the gelding's favorite venue, Hendriks knew he faced more obstacles than usual at this year's $250,000 Breeders' Cup Steeplechase.

In 1987, Kathleen Toomey walked into Somerset Medical Center in Somerville, N.J., and received a surprise greeting.

"Hello, doctor," said a nurse cheerfully. "How are you today?"

Toomey, an oncologist who'd decided that year to enter private practice and become affiliated with Somerset Medical Center, was floored. Hospitals are known for being more sterile than social; seldom had Toomey seen a facility where doctors, or even patients, received a genuine greeting from a staff
member they didn't know.

Something wasn't quite right: Chris Kappler could feel it as he and Royal Kaliber cleared the big brown oxer in the jump-off at the 2004 Athens Olympics.

Maybe the big stallion just overreached, Kappler thought, as the pair galloped on toward the double of verticals.

With the silver medal on the line, Royal Kaliber surged toward the combination, pushing off in his trademark swing-and-twist jumping style.

They would be the last two fences of Royal Kaliber's life.