America is a land of drug users. People take drugs for a runny nose, aches and pain, high blood pressure, diabetes, diarrhea, constipation, allergies, to sleep, to wake up, the list goes on and on. Most are legal drugs but society decides that some are not legal. Some are not legal but subsequently become legal (example: some drugs legal in other countries but have not yet been approved in the U.S.); some are legal to a certain level then become illegal (i.e., alcohol).

In athletic competitions some drugs are allowed and some are allowed to a certain level and some are banned completely. We in AERC take pride in our no drug rule. A year ago this January I went before the USEF's (formally AHSA) veterinary and drugs/medications committees and successfully argued against allowing anti-ulcer medication during competition. There are some in our organization that do not agree with AERC's position here.

As society determines what drugs are allowed or not allowed in humans, our organization determines what is allowed or not allowed in our horses or mules. In AERC's rules and regulations booklet, rule number 13 creates a lot of correspondence from members to the vet committee. Rule number 13 states:

"The integrity of endurance competition requires that the equine is not influenced by any drug, medication or veterinary treatment. Endurance equines must compete entirely on their natural ability. AERC prohibits from competition equines who contain evidence of the administration of abnormal substances or of normal substances in abnormal amounts. Since the complete effects of such administration cannot be known, the fairness and safety require the prohibition of such practices."

This rule reads pretty straight forward and one would not think it to be controversial. However, when you take phases like "not influenced by drug, medication, or veterinary treatment," there are some veterinarians who feel passing a stomach tube to relieve choke at a vet check is merely restoring a horse to its natural ability. Our organization has taken the position that a horse chokes from being dehydrated to the extent that when it chews its food it does not moisten it properly so that it can swallow successfully and passing a stomach tube is "veterinary treatment," so consequently, any horse that requires this procedure during competition is eliminated.

As long as our organization (society) requires elimination if veterinary treatment is required, then all veterinarians should take the same position even if they disagree with the position. Allowing a horse to go on after "tubing" it may give a completion to one horse when another horse at a different ride is stopped. This makes for an uneven playing field.

In the previous example it is fairly easy to see that passing a horse at a vet check that can't swallow properly is not in the best interest of the horse. However, it is not always that easy where drugs are concerned. Most other disciplines consider some drugs to be in the "best interest" of the horse. Certainly deworming, vaccination, anti-ulcer medicine, skin preparations, antibiotics, etc. are "good drugs," whereas painkillers, stimulants, depressants, etc. are "bad" drugs.

The question arises: when does one stop with a good drug so that it does not influence competition? This is where your Veterinary Committee comes into play. If an equine tests positive for a drug the Protest and Grievance Committee turns to the Veterinary Committee for assistance in determining if the drug influenced the equine during competition. Even "bad" drugs are good drugs under the right circumstances.

Dr. Trisha Dowling is the Veterinary Committee's expert on drug-related matters. She is a board certified veterinary pharmacologist and helped write many of the withdrawal times for medications used in all disciplines.

Everyone wants to know when they can use a certain drug and when they can't. Most practicing veterinarians truly don't know the answer to most of the questions that arise concerning withdrawal times because new drugs are always being added to a veterinarian's inventory. Previous Veterinary Committees have determined that stopping most drugs 96 hours prior to competition will result in a drug "not influencing" competition.

AERC has taken the position that if a horse must be on a medication during the competition (day of the ride) then it should not be competing. With that thought in mind most "good" medications can work their magic in plenty of time for competition, however, if a condition is nonresponsive within 96 hours of competition then that equine should not participate.