04.04.08 - THE GRAND NATIONAL, RACING AT AINTREE

Vets on call

Seven veterinary surgeons, five on the course itself, and two based in the stabling yard, ensure that horses at the John Smith’s Grand National meeting have the best possible care available. For 11 years, the University of Liverpool has provided that care.
 
Nor is the relationship between the course and the University of Liverpool limited to the three days of the meeting, but is an ongoing dialogue, as Professor Chris Proudman of the university explained.
 
"We are always looking to learn from what happens, so we have meetings both before and after the event, to look at improvements we can make, and situations which have worked well."
 
"For example, recently, we had the results of research which had been jointly funded by Cheltenham and Aintree racecourses which gave us a very clear indication of how the going can effect injuries. It was information that we always thought was true, but it was reassuring to have the evidence supporting that."
 
During the John Smith’s Grand National meeting, there are state of the art facilities available to the vets. There are two treatment rooms in the stabling area, and a digital X-Ray machine is on site.
 
"Always the philosophy is prevention rather than cure: for example, bone scanning techniques are now so well developed that vets can prevent many injuries just by detecting bone that may be fragile and could be broken under the stress of racing."