Mullins banned 30 days, O'Neill 15 [Mega Horse Trainers -HORSES TESTED HAD TOO MUCH CO2 !!}

Daily Racing Form ^ | 4/28/2010 | Steve Andersen

[ml/nj]

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Prominent trainers Jeff Mullins and Doug O'Neill have been given suspensions and fines by state regulatory agencies after two of their starters tested in excess of the permitted level of total carbon dioxide.

[ml/nj]

I've been at the racing game for more than 40 years. This is the first time I've heard of this. The two guys charged have been at the top of the trainer standings in Southern California for a number of years now. (I met O'Neill once. I thought he was a pretty good guy.)

ML/NJ

[Digger]

Pls explain how this happens & why trainers would want it.

[sonofagun]

So, what is the elevated CO2 an indication of?

Horses running too fast?

[Brett66]

Why doesn’t California just post signs on every road coming into the state saying “We hate business! Leave!”

[ml/nj]

Please read the linked article. I've known that baking soda can supposedly be used to enhance a horse's performance. (Maybe this is true but hay, oats, and water, do so also. Maybe they should be banned too?) Apparently a sign that someone utilized this dreaded baking soda is an excess of CO₂ somewhere.

ML/NJ

[WSGilcrest]

I done wanna register.

[Murp]

Damn!!! CO2 causes GLOBAL WARMING. Can’t have that, now can we?

[colorado tanker]

I know nothing about it, but Google found this at "Project Lasix":

"Lasix", is a powerful diuretic that causes fluids locked up in the horse's body tissues to be released and expelled in the urine. This has the effect of lowering the horse's blood pressure, particularly in the aorta and pulmonary artery. The lower blood pressure in the capillaries mitigates the problem of bleeding, thus, the horse's performance returns to a normal level. In addition, Lasix has the side effect of increasing the Carbon Dioxide (CO2) in the blood.

So, it appears elevated CO2 is a sign the horse has been doped with the diuretic Lasix.

[wildehunt]

I had an OT TB that I bought for an eventer when they closed the DetroitRC barns.
He came with a lasix certificate because when he ran hard he would get nosebleeds. This apparently is not so uncommon so I’m not sure if Lasix is considered “doping” in the usual sense.

[colorado tanker]

You got me! I’m at the limit of my knowledge on it!

[LauraJean]

It’s called milk shaking(no relation to the tasty drink). Has nothing to do with Lasix. Lasix is used to prevent bleeding in the lungs.

All the suspension means is that the assistant trainer will train under his name, Mullins and O’Neill won’t be allowed on the track. But they probably will keep track of what’s going on off-site.

[Holen1]

Lasix is legal in Ca.

[Rational Thought]

All trainers have rules to adhere to. If their horses test positive, they pay the price. Milkshakes are an old trick. What has always gotten me is the number of trainers that most know are playing fast and loose with the rules, yet never get caught.

I found this article by Andrew Beyer on Oscar Barrera you might be interested in.

http://articles.latimes.com/1991-04-11/sports/sp-221_1_oscar-barrera

[ml/nj]

I done wanna register.

Resuming what I was going to say before we were so rudely interrupted (Thread was pulled accidentally) ...

I wasn't aware that one had to register to see the article. drf.com is one of those sites that doesn't remember login info so when I want to get to the restricted content I am always asked for my info. I don't recall being asked when I came across this article.

ML/NJ