>The issue that I have
with the 30 day dead horse rule is NOT about research or
education. If my horse died after a ride and I and my at home vet
decided that it was remotely possibly endurance related I would be more than
happy to volunteer any and all information to help out. I am very
concerned about the death of horses, and the reasons for it. Or any horse
discomfort. What I have issue with is making it a rule, something that riders
have to sign away rights to privacy or face penalty. How can
you hope to keep track or enforce? If you hear a rumor that my horse
died and you call me up and ask and I tell you that it is not dead, what are you
going to do about it? Sit on the highway with binocs and watch for buzzards over
my ranch? Get a court order and a back hoe to dig looking for
bodies. Who will pay for all this documentation,enforcement,record
transferring? I mean what are you going to do about
it? There is nothing you can do. So why make a rule that is
completely unenforceable,
Annie, thank you for so eloquently
stating my own reservations about this proposed rule. I'm happy to add to
AERC's info base, and as a ride vet, I've meticulously filled out death reports,
followed up with owners, etc. and have gotten the info in. That said, if I
come home from a ride, and lightning strikes my horse the next day, it is none
of AERC's business. An unenforceable rule is in many ways worse than no
rule at all.
Personally, I think a better
approach would be an exit exam as the horses leave the ride site--if they are in
good shape then, that is all the jurisdiction AERC can really have.
Through education, we can make riders aware of the importance of other post-ride
information, and ask for voluntary reporting. And if the horse is not in
good shape leaving the ride site, we could (and should) make it policy (not a
rule) to ask that the veterinarian in charge of that case at the ride
follow up with that horse and report to AERC--veterinarians follow up on cases
referred out or sent home routinely anyway. The BoD and the
veterinary committee would do much more good by working out a protocol for this
to happen (veterinarian getting contact info from RM, etc.) than making an
arbitrary rule that is a) unenforceable, and b) may in many cases be odiously
intrusive without yielding information pertinent to our sport.
