Chelokee in the $150,000 Alysheba Stakes (G3)

[Glimmerglass]

Chelokee dumped Ramon Dominguez at the top of the strech in the sloppy Churchill Downs main track in the 8th race ($150,000 Alysheba Stakes) - he looked rather off when he ran away towards the stands. No clipped heels, no bumping, he just looked to take a bad step when he was a few feet out from the rail.

[Glimmerglass]

Not good :(

Dr. Larry Bramlage, the On-Call AAEP for Kentucky Oaks, has indicated it is similar break as that suffered by Barbaro however different leg.

[Texarkana]

D@mn it! :(

This circle of people is having the worst luck lately... and it's completely undeserved.

[Glimmerglass]

Agreed that the luck just hasn't been there.

I will give props to horse racing for the On Call service [where available] and being very upfront and direct with regards to addressing the public quickly with injury information. As I cited in the Eventing forum, the Rolex 3-Day should have an AAEP On-Call rep on XC day. No excuse not to have it. Especially with the big clinics across the street plus the AAEP also located right there as well!

[teacher]

This really is awful! That track is a mess. It kinda looked like he slipped just as he was about to make a move to go around or between horses.

[Kenike]

Glimmer, you are the first person that I have officially given a subject over to :) You're so much more in the know on this.

I STILL haven't seen what actually happened. I was watching the race, saw the clips, and I still haven't seen it. But then, I'm really off today, myself.

[VirginiaBred]

This makes me sick. :(

[Kenike]

D'OH!!! Sorry, Glimmer! All this time I thought you were a she! I wasn't trying to give you a change in gender :lol:

[Barnfairy]

Update is "cautiously optimistic"; he's up & standing on his way to Rood & Riddle for surgery in the next day or two.

[Glimmerglass]

Lexington is just down the road - relatively speaking so they can easily get him there within an hour and half. As I believe I heard Jeannine Edwards corrected "they have to ensure they have a sufficient blood supply" there. It does sound a bit more promising but we'll see.

Just so folks understand Chelokee while trained by Michael Matz is not owned by the Jacksons but rather by Peabody, MA-based Centennial Farms (http://www.centennialfarms.com/history.asp)

[Glimmerglass]

TB Times 5-2-08 "Race is on to save Chelokee" (http://www.thoroughbredtimes.com/racing-news/2008/May/02/Race-is-on-to-save-Chelokee.aspx)

Of course with a lot media there at Louisville for the Derby this makes for fast coverage

AP 5-02-08 "Winner of Barbaro Stakes breaks down on Oaks day" (http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jZi3V0BR_gJcLQagTUddOdc5Tr1wD90DO2B00)

[Xctrygirl]

Just as a brief point of correction,

Glimmer- At Rolex we do have an on call Vet from AAEP. That would be Catherine Kohn,

http://vet.osu.edu/CatherineKohn.htm

She is well qualified to speak to the injuries incurred at the three days in America and as a Professor at the prestigious Ohio State University's School of Veterinary Medicine, she is well within "the loop".

On doing a search on the AAEP site, it looks like she co authored a paper in '83 with Dean Richardson.

Anyway... praying for Chelokee... I have ridden him and he was never anything other than a classy horse.

~Emily

[merrygoround]

Not in any way to denigrate Dr Kohn's credentials, but there are veterinarians, and there are veterinarians who are very experienced in the field of equine trauma.

[findeight]

I do appreciate the fact that ESPN had the vet right there and condition of horse was promptly disclosed to those watching. Something missing elsewhere...

[Glimmerglass]

Just as a brief point of correction,
Glimmer- At Rolex we do have an on call Vet from AAEP. That would be Catherine Kohn

I don't doubt there was a presence in reduced some capacity of an AAEP rep - seeing that they are based in Lexington - however no one spoke to the Rolex-based media or the public (as they do in their On-Call role unique to the NTRA) this year. I was there at Media operations and a statement was prepared by the ground officials (not AAEP) as to the on course breakdown. No conditional report of the horse's injury as those provided via the role of the On-Call role AAEP plays in racing. Ms. Kohn did not make any formal or public statements either in her role on Saturday.

[Kenike]

Anybody else catch the update a few minutes ago? I was seriously afraid we'd hear that he was either in bad shape or euthanized this morning, but just the opposite!
Sounds like he's doing great! Swelling is down, blood flow improving, and no fracture! A dislocated joint that will be fused later in the week, but given the initial diagnosis....whew!!
And good on the vet to give him a traffic cone to play with :lol:

[Glimmerglass]

From the update on ESPN this morning (on camera) and the condition is much better: Per the AAEP press release:

Veterinary Dr. Larry Bramlage reported this morning that the prognosis for Chelokee, the horse injured in Friday's running of the Alysheba stakes at Churchill Downs, was far more optimistic than it had been in the immediate aftermath.

Chelokee, trained by Michael Matz, who also conditioned ill-fated Derby winner Barbaro, fractured bones in his right front ankle at the start of the stretch run. The colt was shipped to the Rood & Riddle Clinic in Lexington.

Bramlage said that Chelokee was "doing well." That veterinarians had changed the cast on the injury earlier this morning after early swelling in the area had subsided somewhat. The injury is career-ending and, while there is still concern regarding possible complications, there is hope Chelokee will be saved to embark on a career at stud.

[Glimmerglass]

The situation sounds much more like Teufelsberg who broke down last fall and who is now standing at stud.

The DRF article from today (12:40 pm) however was a bit more grim (http://www.drf.com/news/article/94256.html):

Chelokee will need “a major piece of surgery” to repair a dislocated right front ankle that he suffered during the running of Friday’s Grade 3 Alysheba Stakes at Churchill Downs, Dr. Larry Bramlage said Saturday. But while his racing career is over, Chelokee could be saved to become a stallion, Bramlage said.

Chelokee, trained by Michael Matz, broke down in upper stretch during the running of the Alysheba, run over a sloppy Churchill Downs track. It was first believed to be a condylar fracture of the right foreleg, but Bramlage on Saturday said that was not the case.

“He had a dislocated ankle where he dislocated the sesamoids about five centimeters up the side of the leg, and that’s what the ambulance [personnel] thought initially was a condylar fracture,” Bramlage said. “It’s a career-ending injury. Hopefully, with a little luck, he’ll be able to be a stallion.”

Immediately after the race Chelokee was transported by equine ambulance to the Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital in Lexington, Ky. Bramlage said that Chelokee’s chances of survival are “at least 50-50” and that he would wait for the swelling to subside and the blood supply to increase in the ankle before doing the surgery.

“I’ll look at him again [Sunday] morning,” Bramlage said. “He lost some of the blood supply to his foot, the rest of it is coming back. We have to follow it along until it’s appropriate to make an incision in the soft tissue that he injured. He had quite a lot of swelling and a lot of soft tissue damage.”

Bramlage said the surgery would entail fusing the ankle together with plates, screws and wire. He said the only thing holding the ankle in place currently is the cast.

Bramlage said that Chelokee’s condition had improved overnight and his attitude was terrific.

“We had to actually put a traffic cone in his stall so he had something to play with because he kept trying to pull his [intravenous] line out of the ceiling,” Bramlage said. “He actually did it once, pulled it out of the bag just because he’s looking for something to do.”

[Kenike]

Bramlage said the surgery would entail fusing the ankle together with plates, screws and wire. He said the only thing holding the ankle in place currently is the cast.

That's the part that jumped out at me and made me go "yueeeh."

I think it's safe to say he's being cautiously optimistic. Understandibly, and rightly so.

[hitchinmygetalong]

Not good :(

Dr. Larry Bramlage, the On-Call AAEP for Kentucky Oaks, has indicated it is similar break as that suffered by Barbaro however different leg.

As we now know, it wasn't a fracture after all. So much for having an on-call vet to "diagnose" moments after an injury. I would be willing to bet that Bramlage was sitting high above the action and the ONLY thing he had to base this diagnosis on was a phone call from those tending to the stricken horse.

Why why why do people DEMAND instant news? Those who were shrieking for minute by minute updates on <<insert any number of horses who have suffered injuries in public>> need to sit down and exercise some patience. What difference does it make if you find out the details two hours from now? It won't change the course of things a bit.

A dislocation with disruption of the blood supply and rupture of ligaments is actually a very, very serious injury. No need for rejoicing yet.

And I'm sure the horse was in good spirits - he's probably got a ton of meds coursing through his veins.

[Barnfairy]

The value of on-the-spot television vet presence lies not in the accuracy of diagnosis (come on, anyone with half a brain knows Dr. Bramlage didn't base his judgement on rads at that point yesterday), but rather in plain old good PR. Acknowledging a problem and talking about it helps put people at ease, right or wrong.

[VirginiaBred]

Continued prayers for Chelokee!!!

[Glimmerglass]

Why why why do people DEMAND instant news? Those who were shrieking for minute by minute updates on <<insert any number of horses who have suffered injuries in public>> need to sit down and exercise some patience. What difference does it make if you find out the details two hours from now? It won't change the course of things a bit.

Simply because, if you watch a lot of daily races (TVG/HRTV) you'll see the occasional breakdown and that is without a peep on what happened to the horse or the status. The prefunctory "looks like the jockey is up and walking" is cited but the horse? Rarely is that covered or they ever circle back to an update.

That said people want to know that a sport they watch like racing does actually care - which it does. If the athlete (in this case the horse) is injured people want to know why the screen is up, or the ambulance is out there, or the horse hobbled off.

I think the viewers do deserve that initial update.

That said, do I expect an update relayed from the vet on the scene back to the AAEP doing a stand-up with the network to know it all or be 100% accurate? No, but if they do euthanize the horse well they can explain that.

It is better then having a talking head in a studio 500 miles away say "well sorry looks like Run Jerry Run has passed away and on to the next race, who do you like?"

[Glimmerglass]

The update ...

BloodHorse May 6, 2008 "Chelokee's Surgery Goes 'Very Well'" (http://news.bloodhorse.com/article/45063.htm)

Chelokee, who dislocated his right front ankle May 2 at Churchill Downs, underwent surgery that “went very well” May 5 at Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital in Lexington, according to Dr. Larry Bramlage. He added that "everything had gone as planned," so far, in the 4-year-old colt’s recovery.

Bramlage fused the Chelokee’s damaged ankle in a procedure that is known as a fetlock arthrodesis.

[Kenike]

Well, that's a little bit of good news, I guess. I know it's just the very, very beginning, but still...

Thanks, Glimmer

[Cammie]

Bloodhorse has a video clip up on Chelokee- http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/videos/watch/6ACC53FD-AA57-46C0-AA77-3D0A85E4319B

Extremely interesting x-rays. That is far more hardware than I would have imagined. All in all, he looks pretty good and walks out well with the fused ankle. :)

[VirginiaBred]

Really, really nice piece.

[Glimmerglass]

Fast forward almost 1 1/2 years later and Chelokee is now going to get some sun out west: DRF 1-5-10 "Chelokee given to University of Arizona" (http://drf.com/news/article/109919.html)

excerpt

Centennial Farms has donated its Grade 3 winner Chelokee to the University of Arizona's Equine Center in Tucson, where the 6-year-old stallion will cover about 15 mares this year.

Chelokee's 2010 book will include seven mares the center owns as part of its equine studies program.

"Those mares will primarily be Thoroughbreds," Walker said. "We have classes where we teach students how to properly care for and manage horses. We have to generate our own funding, so the mares we breed and the babies we raise out of our mares, those come up and help us teach classes, and then once they're yearlings, our students take them to the Arizona Thoroughbred Breeders sales in Scottsdale, and we sell them there as racing babies. We get a percentage of their earnings if they win, through the Arizona Thoroughbred Breeders Association."

Chelokee arrived in Arizona on Nov. 12. He requires a special glue-on shoe for his right front hoof that the Equine Center's farrier makes by hand. Dr. Vernon Dryden, an equine podiatry specialist at Lexington's Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital, also conducted a clinic at the university to show area farriers the latest hoof-care technology and glue-on shoe applications.

"So it's benefitting the community as well as our students," Walker said of Chelokee's presence as an educational tool. "He's doing great."

Walker said Chelokee has a stall with an outdoor paddock, and Equine Center staff also handwalk him as needed. That exercise is important, she said, both for the horse's happiness and to prevent stiffness and arthritis.

"Quite a few people have been calling and e-mailing, wanting to know how Chelokee's doing," she said. "He's getting FedEx packages of peppermints and treats and blankets. He's a sweetie, and we really appreciate Centennial letting us have such a nice horse."

[Where'sMyWhite]

Glimmer,

Why would a horse such as Chelokee be give to a University breeding program?

Not a draw for the mares at a more traditional TB farm? A lighter breeding load plus more specialized care for his foot??

Really just curious why donations similar to this are done.

[Glimmerglass]

Glimmer,

Why would a horse such as Chelokee be give to a University breeding program

He fetched scant little in sessions and revenue (IMO): (per the article)

He stood for $7,500 then, but mare owners will be able to breed to him this year for $2,000. That fee drops to $1,500 for black-type runners or producers, according to the Equine Center's manager, Laura Walker.

So I suspect rather then fall through the cracks they pitched him to a learning program. As such his physical problems henceforth become a learning project with name recognition and in terms of breeding he is a bit above just any old stallion who happened to race once by virtue of his black type. Also perhaps someone at Centennial Farm has connections to their programs there and got the ball rolling.

[summerhorse]

He only got 24 mares last year. They said people couldn't get past his funny looking leg. Amazing how dumb horse breeders can be.

[KentuckyTBs]

Chelokee is a nice boy. I know they will love him there in AZ. It is a great oppurtunity for the students there to learn about his injury and the ongoing care and shoeing it takes for him to be fairly comfortable. He's a love

[Las Olas]

They said people couldn't get past his funny looking leg. Amazing how dumb horse breeders can be.

Because we don't want to breed to a horse that's by a stallion who's not exactly a sire-of-sires out of a Silver Ghost mare, who broke down on the track and is unproven in this uncertain market? Seriously? We're apparently smarter than you are.

[EponaRoan]

Stallions at the U of A are also available to outside mares. Desert God (Pepper's Pride) stood there before he relocated to New Mexico. They also foal out (outside) mares.

http://www.aaranch.org/NewFiles/TB%20Times%20Article%2003-09%20Edited%20Copy.pdf

[summerhorse]

Because we don't want to breed to a horse that's by a stallion who's not exactly a sire-of-sires out of a Silver Ghost mare, who broke down on the track and is unproven in this uncertain market? Seriously? We're apparently smarter than you are.

Well 24 owners fell for it apparently. But there are plenty of WORSE prospects out there getting mares but they didn't have a funny looking leg. If we took out of commission all of the mares and stallions who broke down/got injured then we'd have a handful of very slow horses to pick from.