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Guess who showed up at the Kentucky Horse Park yesterday???????

ALYSHEBA

The 24 year old settled into John Henry's stall, across from Cigar. Interesting note. Before Cigar came around and set the all-time money earning record, that title belonged to Alysheba.

He spent the last eight years in Saudia Arabia in HRH King Abdullah's royal stables.

John Nicholson, the Executive Director of the Kentucky Horse Park stated:

"His Royal Highness King Abdullah realized how much Alysheba means to the American racing fans and we are grateful for this magnanimous gift of one of his favorite horses to our country. We are grateful as well for the great care His Majesty has provided for Alysheba."

While winning the 1987 Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, AND Eclipse Award (Horse of the Year), Alysheba was even better as a 4-year-old, winning six Grade 1 stakes, including the 1988 Breeder's Cup Classic. He's listed as #42 out of the top 100 U.S. racehorses of the 20th Century.

This is a tremendous gift to the Horse Park. If you haven't been in a while or have never been, go now. Go see this wonderful horse, along with the others that are still there: Cigar, Da Hoss, Kona Gold, Western Dreamer and the others. Their former owners have been so gracious to send them to the Park so the fans of the sport, new and old, can enjoy them again, or for the very first time.

Horse Racing

This past year I've become more interested in horse racing, beyond the Triple Crown races. Jennifer and I took a trip to the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington last year with her sister and fiance and had a great time. It was a wonderful experience to see the legends like Cigar and John Henry (RIP).



By no means do I consider myself a student of the game, but I've enjoyed following a number of horses this year and watching them run in the Breeder's Cup last weekend.

CURLIN

I followed Curlin through his sensational season as a four year old. I applaud Jess Jackson for allowing the fans to see one more year of him before he goes to stud.

BIG BROWN

I think Big Brown is a great horse with bad feet. However, I'm thrilled to see him leave the likes of IEAH and Dutrow and head for Three Chimneys where another favorite, Smarty Jones, is standing.

ZENYATTA

Zenyatta, in her undefeated season culminating with a win in the Ladies' Classic, is a strong contender for Horse of The Year. I hope she or Curlin gets it.

I was amazed at how well the European horses ran this year, but given their typical training, I can see their advantage. If the pace is slow enough, they can practically canter around to the top of the stretch, then explode.

Most importantly, this year saw tracks take on anti-slaughter measures to prevent throughbreds from being sent off to auction. Nick Zito publicly applauded Suffolk Downs for leading the way.

Stacker

Well, here we are, back at Allatoona Animal Hospital. Stacker has been putting his foot down more frequently so the pain and swelling seem to be going away. We're back to see Denise and Dr. Hiland to see if we can get some better x-rays.

Stacker seems ready for it.

Dr. Hiland still was not able to get a good picture and came back to let me know they were going to give him a mild sedative so they could position him to get a better picture. Bring on the Propofol!

As with any sedative, the results are obvious.

This time the x-ray definitely ruled out a fracture.

Pending a consult with the orthopedist, it's possible that Stacker damaged a ligament (maybe the dorsal elastic ligament) in his toe. The joint between P2 and P3 looks a little abnormal in comparison with the surrounding joints. A fractured toe would be much easier to deal with. The bone could be allowed to calcify and heal and he'd probably be fine. Soft tissue injuries are always suspect. Amputation is an option. I don't like the fact that the injury is on a load-bearing toes, but I've talked to friends who have had a load-bearing toe removed and the dog has been fine afterward.

So now we're in a new splint and will wait to hear back from Dr. Hiland after she has talked to the orthopedist.

TRICK OR TREAT!??!??!