Antihistamines and NSAIDs and nutraceuticals, oh my! Have a question about equine drugs or medications at Equestrian Canada (EC) sanctioned competitions? EC’s Equine Medication Control Committee is here to answer your questions on the EC Equine Medication Control program.
My horse was picked for drug testing at a recent competition. Why was my horse selected, and how is the testing done?
Medication control or drug testing may take place at any EC sanctioned competition. Horses are randomly selected by EC’s Equine Medication Control Technicians. Specific horses may be target-tested as requested by a steward or a member of the ground jury, or in the event of a serious horse injury or death at a competition.
Following selection, the horse is accompanied by the Equine Medication Control Technician and a witness to the testing stall, where an attempt is made to collect a urine sample for up to 60 minutes. Once a urine sample is obtained, the horse is released from testing. After 30 minutes from the time the horse is available for testing, if a urine sample has not been obtained, a blood sample may be taken by a licensed veterinarian who is not the competitor, owner or person responsible. If a veterinarian is not available to take a blood sample and a urine sample has not been obtained, the test is abandoned and the horse is released from testing. All samples are submitted to the official EC laboratory for analysis.
For further information please see EC General Regulations, Chapter 10: Equine Medication Control.
Do you have a question? Send your inquiries about the EC Equine Medication Control program to equinemeds@equestrian.ca.
Please note, this does not constitute legal advice. Information included in this article is for informational purposes only. It is not, and should not be taken as, advice regarding a particular situation. You should not rely on, nor take or fail to take any action based upon this information. You are encouraged to seek legal advice regarding your circumstances, and you should not rely upon anything you have read in this article without seeking appropriate legal advice regarding the application of EC Equine Medication Control Rules to your particular circumstances.